As I was lamenting the other day about a recent foot injury that will require surgery and result in reduced mobility while I undergo physical therapy, my good friend Miss Motor Mouth, Michelle Naranjo, forwarded me the below You Tube video which got me thinking about how far we have come, and yet haven't, in personal mobility.
Remember the i REAL? It debuted at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show representing Toyota's next stage of personal mobility development and follows the PM, i-unit and TOYOTA i-swing. It's name "REAL" symbolizes the hope for commercialization in the near future. Here's hoping.
I remember scoffing then at the PMV, short for Personal Mobilty Vehicle, and questioning its commercial viability or need.
Yet, as the newest member of the Cast, Crutches, Wheelchair community (or CCW as I like to call us) l am a convert. Reduced or lost access to society, stinks.
Thankfully, I live in a ground level dwelling, yet my injury forces an unfamiliar way of conscious living where even the simplest of tasks, like paying ones taxes for example, no small feat in of itself, becomes momentous.
Therein lies the seduction of the i REAL.
It's vision is of seamless movement from room, to pavement, to road. In pedestrian areas, the iREAL shortens its wheelbase, allowing it to maneuver naturally among people at eye level. On the road, strap yourself in as the wheelbase lengthens to provide a lower center of gravity and more agile driving performance with speeds to 30mph.
Hookup my laptop and connect me to the Internet and I'm off!
The latest foray into PMV's is a collaboration by Segway and General Motors. Called the PUMA, an anacronym for Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility, the nimble electric-powered two seater works on similar principles as the Segway Personal Transporter.
The makers proclaim the prototype represents the shift that’s needed for the future of transportation and bill it as a digital solution to an analog problem.
Sorta like your old wheelchair represents dial-up, while these new PMV's represent high-speed.
On crack.
So watch out.
Because coming up behind you with its lights flashing and siren blaring may be the T3, a 3-wheeled, zero-emission, all electric vehicle, powered by two lithium polymer battery packs made by T3 Motion of Irvine, Calif., which produces personal mobility vehicles for government, security and law enforcement uses.
But dont you worry.
I have my blue handicapped sticker.
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