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Recall of Segway Announced by CPSC
mshiltonj writes "The Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced a voluntary recall of the Segway human transporter. The hazard is that under certain operating conditions, particularly when the batteries are near the end of charge, some Segway HTs may not deliver enough power, allowing the rider to fall. This can happen if the rider speeds up abruptly, encounters an obstacle, or continues to ride after receiving a low-battery alert."
some Segway HTs may not deliver enough power, allowing the rider to fall. This can happen if the rider speeds up abruptly, encounters an obstacle, or continues to ride after receiving a low-battery alert.
or if the rider is fresh from a tennis match with Poppy, rushing to an appointment to bomb some unsuspecting nation back to the stone age.
I'm much funnier now that I'm a subscriber.
If you continue to ride after the low battery alert, it's your own dumbass fault if you get hurt.
It's like saying it's Fords fault your engine died because you didn't check your oil.
Gibble: Descriptive of an emotional state in which one's mind is scrabbling for some purchase on reality
It looks like there's going to be 3 very dissapointed people out there.
Does this have anything to do with the size of the rider? If you continually fall off your Segway, maybe it's just a sign to GET OFF AND WALK for awhile.
There is no reasonable defense against an idiot with an agenda
:wq
Perhaps the most interesting thing in this recall is that it provides information
about the total number of Segway's out there: 6,000. Given that Amazon
sells them about $5,000 that means that there are $30M of Segways out there.
Of course many were probably sold below that price and Segway LLC will be sharing
that with the retailer, but still not bad for scooter.
Second, interesting thing is that the problem is fixed by a *software upgrade*
and not something physical.
John.
I am a fisherman, and I fish out in the North Sea, near oil-rigs. I mainly fish for crabs but generally sell anything I catch. On my small boat is a laptop with Linux installed, which is running open source software for controlling the electronical fishing rods, which hauntingly swing and sway above the cold blue surface of the sea.
While I find being able to administer my fiashing rods from the powerful BASH shell both efficient, safe and empowering, this software has a bug which causes a huge 20 farad capacitor in the rod to discharge into the ocean at random intervals. The voltage induced is so large that it causes various potentially hazardous metals to be come electroplated to the hull of my ship. Often by the time I reach harbour my ship is so laden with electrolysed metal that it is barely bouyant, and occasionally I am not allowed entry.
This is killing my buisnes. While I love the ideals of Linux, the inherent instability is not tolerable. So I am asking, are there any quality fishing-rod control programs available for Windows or Apple operating systems?
Thanks in advance... sorry for the OT-ness...
I love the imagery involved in this..
*VROOM* *VROOM* *put* *put* *put* *creeeeek* *thump* OW!
Heh
For every problem, there is at least one solution that is simple, neat, and wrong.
Damn. Nobody ever recalled a poor boy's bicycle because it fall sideways when the riders energy runs out.
Battery Not Found.
philcrissman.com.
The Solution in Search of a Problem that is the Segway is inherantly unstable, and has to burn power just to stand still (balancing at an unstable equilibrium point).
That when the power starts to drain, the device becomes unstable (as the motors no longer have enough power to keep it upright after a mild upset) is hardly suprising, and indicitive of the fundimentally stupid design (but fantastic engineering) that is the segway.
Test your net with Netalyzr
Toyota recalled all cars manafactured since the start of the company. Under certain circumstances, when speeding up, ignoring a warning about a cliff and not braking, the car might fall down from a great heigth and kill the occupants. According to Hiyasuka Miamoto, official Toyota spokesperson, the recall will be effective immediately and no new cars will be produced "untill people stop being so fucking stupid!".
Moral of the story; warnings are called warnings for a reason.
Hate me!
As much as I love seeing rich people fall on their faces, I hate seeing technology fail because of poor testing.
Why didn't this come up before now? Because ravenous marketing monsters couldn't wait to start selling "THE NEXT BIG THING".
Even if they were reasonably priced, I can't see what they're really good for anyway. They're too fast for sidewalks, too slow for streets and let the world know you've got more money than sense!
So, I'm riding along on my self powered segway that battery powered gyros to keep itself upright and I get a low battery warning and I ignore it. Then I get all upset when the thing pitches me off like a ragdoll to test the local dirt.
;-)
Hmm, I think that S in CPSC should be for Stupidity...
Note to stupid people... Firstly, if you've got too much money, I can help you with this problem
Secondly, I highly recommend you never get fitted with a pace maker... as you expire your dying words will be something like "Damn, I guess the doctor wasn't lying, the battery really is only good for 5 years..."
Yes Francis, the world has gone crazy.
You misunderstand the market for this device. It is basically a wheelchair targeted at old people that can't walk very well, but still would rather be in a standing position (because, let's face it, most of the world is set up for people of average height). Young people are not going to buy them because they are too slow and too expensive. However, the same people that consider riding a golf cart around a golf course to be good exercise just might buy or rent them...
"Freedom means freedom for everybody" -- Dick Cheney
In other news, bicycles around the world have been voluntarily recalled. It seems that if the rider stops moving their feet, the bike could potentially tip over. A minor flaying of the skin has also been reported to occur during such accidents.
Oops, damn, there goes another pedestrian....
Making trouble today for a better tomorrow...
You know, that started as a joke in my head, but you do have to wonder why they didn't put a small third wheel on there somewhere always touching the ground but on a hing so that it would only actually bear weight if the thing tipped too far.
Then again, I suppose the market droids couldn't have pushed it so hard as the next big thing if it didn't just have two wheels... Hard to look like an adult when you're basically whizzing around on a tricycle.
Quoth he
"It's all academic anyway..."
Caution is advised whenever you must make contact with any floor. The recomended uses of a floor now include laying and sitting. The safety of crawling on a floor is being studied at this time.
In other news the Dihydrogen Monoxide Research Division is recommending that the government Ban Dihydrogen Monoxide.
Your friend and well-wisher
m0smithslash
http://www.ferociousflirting.com
Yes, I think we can put off 'redesigning our cities' for a bit, untill they sell a few more of them.
If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
I don't find it interesting that a software upgrade fixes the problem.
Software upgrades are the cheapest fix for any system problem. This is why they are almost always required by devices. We (companies, not specifically Segway) can ship products early with solid hardware and must less solid software because the cost of fixing problems in software are so minimal.
This software fix probably just shuts down the scooter earlier before the battery runs all the way out. A few cars do the same with gas so that people are driving at 70mph don't loose power breaks and stearing when the engine starts studdering.
Hardware fixes can often cost more then direct replacement of the product. A simple printer circuit board rework could cost $50 each to just disassemble a product, cut a trace and reassemble it. That doesn't include the cost to ship the product back to the manufacture or to a rework house somewhere in the US.
Flash is cheap and almost all companies use it to fix sw problems in the field and work around hardware problems.
It wasn't my fault honey come backkk :'(
An Indian-American Hindu committed to non-violent thought/speech/action alarmed by the global explosion of radical Islam
or consider mocking the President or laugh when someone else mocks the President or even think of laughing when someone else mocks the President, then the terrorists win. You're giving aid and comfort to America's enemies. Now just step away from the computer and wait for your Guantanamo relocation expert who will be there shortly.
And I don't want anybody to say that we didn't warn you. We sure enough warned you.
This is not action by a court. This is not a lawsuit. This is action by a governmental regulatory body under George W. Bush. If they are acting under Bush, this must be a humongous problem.
In my opinion, proper use of a Segway will probably require at least a helmet.
IIRC Dubya forgot to turn it on in the the first place.
There is no dark side of the moon really, matter of fact it's all dark
Funny what happens when your amazing balancing anti-walking machine runs out of juice. And once you've picked yourself up off your ass/face, you get to lug your 90lb, $5000 machine someplace safe.
The humble bicycle, as if there was any doubt, clearly reigns supreme in this class of transportation. For getting around town comfortably, get a comfortable bike. For working around the warehouse, get a work bike or trike. And if you would like the electric assistance without your vehicle becoming useless when the battery runs out, get an electric bike. It's just that easy people.
---If you can't trust a nerd, who can you trust?
come on people. it's not magic. It's battery powered. you didn't realize when the batteries died the thing would fall over?
The decision we made when we designed the thing was based on the idea that people would stop riding it when the battery low light came on. Since then we've realized a few things:
1) People treat battery low as "still works under all conditions" as they might if it were a gas tank. But the battery is unable to deliver the instantaneous power needed to go over certian obstacles when partially discharged.
2) The battery low signal is set too low, since even a mild partial discharge will not supply enough instantaneous power for critical maneuvers.
3) Li-Ion batteries are dieing in a pattern which we did not expect. The processor needs to assume there is less power available than what it was previously calculating.
Upshot: The software "upgrade" will give you about 10 minutes of ride time on a full charge before turning on the low battery light, then the alarm. Shortly thereafter the unit will stop in place and use its remaining power simply to stay upright.
Internal memo: Design an "upgrade" battery pack that doubles the range to 20 minutes! We'll make a killing!
-Adam
Clearly, my car needs to be recalled. When I run out of gas, it just stops.
This could be dangerous on the highway!
autopr0n is like, down and stuff.
Why can't they have something on front and back, like the wheelie bar on a dragster, to keep them from tipping completely and sending the rider sprawling in case of a failure?
All the software and gyroscopes and magic technology is fine and good, but it's nice to have common sense as your backup system.
I don't need no instructions to know how to rock!!!!
When moving, a bicycle is inherantly stable, as there are two aligned gyroscopes keeping it going forward. It's only unstable when not moving or nearly not moving. Even when stopped, it is only ustable perpendicular to the direction of motion.
The segway, on the other hand, is ALWAYS unstable along the axis of motion, and the farther you get away from the stable point, the more force it takes to bring it back to being stable.
Test your net with Netalyzr
According to Wired, Kamen had predicted he'd be "stamping out 10,000 machines a week" by the end of 2002.
Making trouble today for a better tomorrow...
My car doesn't fall over if it runs out of gas.! :-)
If this thing is supposed to revolutionize the way entire cities are built I guess that means they're going to have padded sidewalks!
Clearly this problem should have come up during the design and prortype phase? Shouldn't it have?
LOL!
Too bad the fix is just a software upgrade... seems like they could add a retractable "nose wheel" that would deploy on low battery situations.
I mean really... who wants to land their Segway in a full stall anyway?
--Rob
When I leave on a trip, be it short or long, I always check my gas level and make sure my lights, brakes, etc. work. It's common sense.
Falling off aside, if my battery/alternator is bad and it's a rainy night, it's my own fault if I get stranding in outer Bogonia. Same goes for fuel, brakes, and radiator.
This issue does point out a flaw with some very reasonable solutions (slow and stop upon low battery or even a third wheel stabilisation to allow the gyros to be turned off-drops/extends from the back).
Too much fodder for the basshers here.
"School Paste, it's what's for dinner!"
Do all the Segway owners with atrophied leg muscles and rotund asses get a loaner unit while their unit is in for repair?
It would be simply cruel to expect them to transport themselves under their own muscle power due to a defect in the Segway.
...hmmm... if the device runs short of power, it sounds as if it can in effect pull your feet out from under you. (Actually, it's falling to push your feet under you). That sounds like a fairly unpleasant and dangerous kind of fall, similar to being tripped.
On a bicycle, it's easy and natural to take your foot off the pedal and put it on the ground; ditto a scooter. But perhaps it's not so easy when you're standing upright with both feet on the device.
"How to Do Nothing," kids activities, back in print!
A better analogy would be, wouldn't they recall cars if your car steering and brakes failed every time the "low gas" indicator went on.
You're almost there. The equivalent situation for a dead Segway battery would be a gasoline engine with no gasoline.
I've been (un)fortunate enough to run out of gas in a car as well as while riding a motorcycle, and I can tell you when you're out of gas in either one (especially if you're in a freeway situation, which I was lucky enough to be in while riding a nearly-empty motorcycle) it is completely unsafe. No gas, no power. No power means you can't keep up, and suddenly the 5-10 feet between you and the other cars seems way too close. So if I, as a driver, am too careless/stupid/whatever enough to ignore the gas light and keep driving, how the hell could I make any claim that it's the auto manufacturer's fault if I get plowed into by other freeway traffic? I think this is similar to the Segway situation, because they're giving you a warning alert, so it becomes a discretionary issue with the individual.
I'm curious to know what Segway intends to do with the units that are sent back for the recall. My guess is that they'll simply modify the Segway to shut down if the battery is low.
Recall it because it fails to work if someone keeps going AFTER it gives them a low battery warning???
That's like saying they should recall cars because you could run out of gas on the highway and die, even though they have a handy gas gauge and some put on a little light to tell you when you're pretty much empty. I don't think they should recall something because of user stupidity.
Now I'm not a Segway advocate by any means (I think they're ridiculous), but this is stupid.
Is recall fever spreading?
I belong to the ______ generation.
I become unstable and fall over.
1) Will I be recalled soon?
2) Is there a software upgrade available that will prevent this from happening in the future?
This can happen if the rider speeds up abruptly, encounters an obstacle, or continues to ride after receiving a low-battery alert.
All of which are the rider's fault. By that logic we should recall cars, boats, and planes as well.
Personally, it sounds like Darwin in action to me. People that have more money than sense buy a toy, fall off, and potentially relieve the gene pool of the affliction.
The truth about Scientology, Xenu, and you: Operation Clambake
It is amazing how difficult it is to form an intelligent response to this article.
I can understand slashdot's collective interest in all things Segway, but I think at this point there's probably nothing more that can be said about the subject.
I see this as a parallel to a prophetic article in which the Hurd is used to power the next Furby, thus sounding the death knell for both technologies.
Furby = nearly dead retired clown, and Segway = The Hurd, in case you didn't get my analogy.
It's an interesting technology looking for a market that doesn't exist. People in densely packed cities are doing just fine with inexpensive bikes. Americans like their cars. The Segway is the butt of a lot of unfunny jokes, and publicity stunts like this.
Just hook the thing up to one of the TZero's Range extending trailers and the problem's solved. Hell, you might even get the thing up above 15mph! ;-)
Go permanent? In your dreams and my worst nightmares.