'Revolutionary' scooters are recalled after riders fall off
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Your support makes all the difference.All Segway electronic scooters, the invention that was supposed to revolutionise personal transport, and indeed life as we know it, have been recalled because riders have been injured falling off.
Announcing the recall of all 6,000 Segways sold, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said that three people had been injured. One suffered a head wound and needed stitches. The problem occurs when the battery runs low. A software upgrade cures it, and new models have been modified.
The recall is the latest blow to the widely hyped invention. Sales have been sluggish; firms, such as Federal Express, which were rumoured to be buying fleets of Segways have not done so.
The Segway carries one person who stands on a small platform with wheels on either side and a steering handlebar. Leaning slightly forward moves the scooter forward; leaning back makes it reverse. It can travel up to 12mph. The scooter uses gyroscopes to keep it upright, making it less likely to fall or be knocked over.
But the CPSC said that "human transporters", when operated with low batteries, may not have enough power to remain upright, causing the rider to fall. Some Segways may not deliver enough power, especially when the batteries are running out, Segway and the safety agency said in the statement. The problem can also occur if the rider speeds up abruptly, hits an obstacle, or continues to ride after receiving a low-battery alert.
In order to correct the low-battery problem, the makers are offering a free software upgrade. The company said that all Segways being shipped now included the mandatory software upgrade and were labelled as such.
The transporter, which took over a decade for inventor Dean Kamen to develop, enjoyed more than two years of hype before it went on sale in March for $4,950. Before it was unveiled, stories about "Project Ginger" were saying that an invention that would be "bigger than the web", capable of "changing the world" and also reducing the West's dependent on Middle East oil, was on the way.
Apple computer founder Steve Jobs said: "If enough people see the machine you won't have to convince them to architect cities around it - it'll just happen." The sense of excitement abated somewhat when it was revealed that Project Ginger was, in fact, a scooter. When it was launched it was variously described as resembling an old-style rotary lawnmower or a ride-on Dyson vacuum cleaner.
Postal delivery workers have carried out trials of Segways in New York, San Francisco and other US cities, and their potential for warehouse use, travel and tourism is being considered.
US President George Bush was photographed this summer tumbling off a Segway at his family retreat in Kennebunkport, Maine.
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