Segways are actually pretty hard to ride if you've ever ridden a standard skateboard. The stability control gain needs to be super high because it's so tippy, so you can easily get it to oscillate if you're not used to riding a self-balancing vehicle.
The acceleration stability problem for electric longboards is actually totally solvable (and solved, just not in a commercially-available machine) by detecting the rider's weight distribution.
I built a prototype back in '06 that (unlike the zboard) had the weight sensing system distributed over the entire deck, so there was no fiddly stance that you had to maintain.
It was super intuitive to ride, even for beginners, and had just an on-off switch as a controller (I used a little car-alarm-style key fob).
I teamed up with a buddy in Vancouver to improve it, and we converted it from a single rear hub motor to dual front hub motors (so no belts or anything to wear out or break). We showed it off at the Bay Area Maker Faire in '07.
On the trip back our prototype got stolen, and real life intruded, and we haven't done much with it since. I'd love to get another unit put together soon though.
The acceleration stability problem for electric longboards is actually totally solvable (and solved, just not in a commercially-available machine) by detecting the rider's weight distribution.
I built a prototype back in '06 that (unlike the zboard) had the weight sensing system distributed over the entire deck, so there was no fiddly stance that you had to maintain.
It was super intuitive to ride, even for beginners, and had just an on-off switch as a controller (I used a little car-alarm-style key fob).
I teamed up with a buddy in Vancouver to improve it, and we converted it from a single rear hub motor to dual front hub motors (so no belts or anything to wear out or break). We showed it off at the Bay Area Maker Faire in '07.
On the trip back our prototype got stolen, and real life intruded, and we haven't done much with it since. I'd love to get another unit put together soon though.
http://3wdm.blogspot.com/ for more info.