Recently General Motors presented its brand new battery-powered two-wheel vehicle, dubbed Project P.U.M.A. and developed in cooperation with Segway. It was developed with the goal of making it easier for people to move through agglomerated city streets. The name of the vehicle is an abbreviation of Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility. In fact the vehicle is an enclosed scooter that can achieve a maximum speed of around 35mph, for a maximum distance of approximately 35 miles on a single charge. The technology behind the new GM vehicle is used by Segway, a scooter company, for its personal vehicle, which was initially designed by Dean Kamen. It allows P.U.M.A. to use only two wheels when moving. The vehicle features training wheels that are very useful when stopping. Both, GM and Segway look forward to find partners among cities and/or colleges, to establish P.U.M.A. travel lanes. These will be used to carry out tests of the ecofriendly vehicle. In addition, the on-board wireless communicator will be able to operate the vehicle by itself while the driver relaxes or does other tasks. It is worth mentioning that GM entered a partnership with Segway 18 months ago. In their new creation GM is responsible for making the electronic wireless systems that will allow a safe, autonomous operation and Segway develops the self-balancing, electric, two-wheel chassis. The vehicle is powered by lithium-ion batteries. The presentation took place in New York but the companies hope P.U.M.A. will be widely used in densely populated cities worldwide, including the cities of India and China. ( www.infoniac.com )
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