Zoomi Life

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s ElectricMotorbikeMan!

I imagine the sales brochure for this one:

Ever want to look like an alien, freak out your friends with your super-hybrid speed powers, or scare old ladies with your freakish long arms and wheels for hands and feet? Well now you can! Introducing, the ElectroBike Suit!

For all its goofiness, though, this thing is actually freakish enough to be kind of cool. Invented by Jake Loniak, a junior at Art Center College of Design, this “electric exoskeleton motorcycle” is what he’s named the “Skele-Cycle,” but officially titled the “Deus Ex Machina.” Controlled by 36 pneumatic muscles, which are controlled by the rider’s body movements, the bike is an upright exoskeleton rather than a traditional motorcycle.

The bike is a three-wheeled design with one wheel being directly below the driver and two others thrust slightly forward and controlled by the arms of the rider. The design college has produced legendary designers like Henrik Fisker, creator of the Corvette and the new Fisker Karma.

He envisions the bike as a sports bike, not a commuter, with top speeds of around 75mph powered by batteries and electric drive motors. He likens it to riding two skateboards simultaneously, but with computer control and better stability.

I can imagine riding one of these and the need to pack extra underwear for, uhh, emergencies. It’d be great fun, but probably like parachuting or airplane piloting: I can do it if my wife has a $1 million policy on me first.

The technology to build the suit already exists, but currently it’s just a design in a computer. Pretty cool one, though.

Check out the PopSci video:

Source: PopSci.com