A car serves as a macro mode of transportation and your legs cover the rest of the micro part. We are talking about overcoming the last mile in situations such as parking too far away from your intended destination. There are many ways to do this, including skateboarding or cycling, or if you prefer, walk the rest of the way but risk breaking out in perspiration. That’s the current situation. But Ford has other fabulous idea and that’s to pluck out the back wheel of the car and turn that very wheel into a RYNO-like monocycle – well, at least, that’s what the patent filed by Ford recently proposed to do so. The above image pretty much tells it all.
But if the image didn’t quite help in your imagination, then just think of it as The Dark Knight’s Batpod that’s hidden within the Tumbler. The only difference here is, you will need to get your hands dirty to disengage the rear wheel and somehow put the monocycle together. The wheel has the motor to power the monocycle, while the rest of hardware, such as the seat, handlebars, battery, and the upper body goes into the back of the car until it is ready to be deployed. In the patent filed, the vehicle features an automated jack system that will raise the vehicle to facilitate popping on and off the wheel and we are assuming, removing the wheel will be much simpler than battling with four of five ridiculously tight nuts.
While it sounds like a brilliant idea, it is merely a patent. There’s not even a hint that Ford is working on such a thing. The patent is just one way to secure the concept so no one else can offer it in future. However, we would love to see this becoming a reality because some cities’ parking are just too ridiculously far. So, instead of vying for a close spot near our destination, we could probably park at the outskirt and ride the rest of the way, which could turn out to be faster.
via Engadget
