Toyota wants to put us in things that look more fitting...

"El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First!" (lightningzone) 11/05/2013 at 09:13 • Filed to: None

0

10

...in Elon Musk's crazy imagination. The FV2, a vehicle that promises to be a great drive “by connecting physically and emotionally with the driver.”

It’s a new kind of vehicle, with its sights set firmly on the future, and it not only looks like it's from 2020, but it’s also controlled in new and unique manner. Gone is the old fashioned steering wheel, and the FV2 gets its input via the driver shifting his or her weight front, back or to the side. It definitely is a more organic way to accelerate and go around corners, but I bet it’s disconcerting to try out at first…

Interestingly, Toyota promises the fun levels one experiences when guiding this narrow and peculiar looking vehicle down a twisty road increase over time, and end up emotionally involving the driver in the same kind of relationship “that a rider might have with his or her horse.” However, unlike other animals from the Equus genus (zebras included), the FV2 can be interacted with via a specially designed app that accumulates driver information over time (and makes sense of it) in an attempt for the user/operator to "grow together" with it…

The Japanese are really into getting affection from machines mimicking real life animals (and even people), so we wouldn’t be too wrong in calling this a very advanced Tamagotchi riding on four (weirdly placed) wheels – we’re curious to see some live photos of it, and a more detailed explanation about its control method.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 11/05/2013 at 09:32

1

A four-wheel highway speed death-pod Segway which learns to be psychotic with its owner and is made by Toyota? Sign me up!
/nothx

Let me elaborate: technologically interesting, but... no. The human brain's ability to abstract systems of movement means that the "outdated" steering wheel and direct physical links hang on for a reason - i.e. there isn't really a problem with "natural" movement that needs to be solved, because feeling things through physical links and intuiting their movement is fsking basic tool use. Any time you're trying to add a layer of abstraction to "simplify" the experience, you produce a facile initial ease of grasp but obstacles to deep mastery.

Also, any time Toyota claims emotional attachment here lately I get suspicious.

The Jevans > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 11/05/2013 at 09:33

0

Kill it with fire.

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 11/05/2013 at 09:34

0

But looks like fun, like skating, supercharged.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 11/05/2013 at 09:43

0

I don't doubt it could be fun. It's the practicality and long-term safety I question. That, and the psychological comfort once the novelty wore off. I've used Segways before - but I might have trouble owning one long term. The initial ease and fun are both there, but it never quite crosses into being natural - there's always what I might term a machine spirit lurking beneath the service to make its actions unpredictable once outside the comfort zone.

As I'd interpret this blurb, they're trying to take that pseudo-willfulness exhibited by a self-managing system and make it familiar or recognizable. Well, okay. Me, I'd like to have a direct link, not managed by some daemon of Artificial Stupidity. There are some things I can probably trust a horse *not* to do, the FV-2 not so much.

Erdnase > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 11/05/2013 at 09:59

0

So they're essentially futuristic motorcycles that you can't sit down on? And I thought Spyders were silly.

DragginHard > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 11/05/2013 at 10:20

0

Interesting concept. It looks to me that they have the wheel size backwards. The bigger wheel should be upfront. Or don't they have potholes that swallow tires in 2020?

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > DragginHard 11/05/2013 at 10:28

0

Well, Japan has no potholes, had to damage a part of it's proving grounds, when setting up their models for the EU, Honda said UK roads are quite rough. And I am not surprised...

¶haelin > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 11/05/2013 at 10:32

0

How is any of this considered safe? This is progress in the wrong direction.

Like the spork.

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > ¶haelin 11/05/2013 at 10:57

0

Safe enough for you?

¶haelin > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 11/05/2013 at 11:14

0

Where's the seat belt?

In all seriousness, those cycle things look just awful. At first I thought you sat in them and the lid closed. But they're just land-jet-skis. Or something like that.