Old Segway add from amazon when it was a baby

[BillPaxton]

I found this very interesting (located at http://www.linkoregon.com/segway-human-transporter.htm ):




Available exclusively at Amazon.com
Segway Human Transporter
First come, first served for delivery starting March 2003
Offered by Segway Exclusively at Amazon.com! You won't find Segway anywhere else. Be the first on your block! Available now for delivery starting March 2003. First come, first served.

See It in Action 56k|300k
Price: $4,950.00
Nonrefundable deposit: $495.00 (due now for 2003 delivery)
Availability: Deliveries will begin on a first come, first served basis beginning March 1, 2003, and all units reserved through this special offer will be delivered by July 31, 2003.



Deposit: $495.00
Balance payable at time of product shipment: $4,455.00
(plus tax and shipping)

Limited quantity: Only two per customer during this special launch offer. Available only at Amazon.com.

Amazon.com Review | The Science Behind the Segway| Exploded Diagram and More Pictures | Inventors' note | Specifications | Purchase, Safety, and Ownership Guidelines

Special Holiday Offers: Hand-numbered collector's print, perfect for holiday giving, delivered now with each deposit. Also, place your deposit today and you can enter the Segway HT Early Delivery Contest. Thirty lucky winners can get their Segway HTs by December 24, visit the factory, and meet the team that created the world's first Human Transporter.

• World's first dynamically stabilized, self-balancing Human Transporter
• Forward and backward maneuvering is guided by rider's natural motions
• Easily navigates most walkable areas, including paved surfaces, dirt roads, grass, and inclines
• Emissions free, powered by rechargeable NiMH battery packs
• Fun to ride--a unique experience

Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
ASIN: B00007EPJ6
Shipping charge: Segway will charge you $99 for standard ground shipping in all states other than Alaska and Hawaii. Segway will charge you $150 for shipments to Alaska and Hawaii.


Amazon.com Review
The Segway Human Transporter (HT) is a truly 21st-century idea. A two-wheeled electric vehicle that's practical, efficient, slightly miraculous, and an undeniably fun way of getting around, it's as different from a bicycle or motorcycle as...

See more...

The Science behind the Segway

Balance Sensor Assembly (BSA)
The BSA, supplied by Silicon Sensing Systems, is an elegantly designed, extremely robust, and yet incredibly sensitive piece of equipment.
This small cube, 3 inches on a side, is packed with five solid-state, vibrating-ring, angular-rate sensors ("gyroscopes") that use the Coriolis effect to measure rotation speed. These tiny rings are electromechanically vibrated in such a way that when they are rotated, a small force is generated that can be detected in the internal electronics of the sensor. Each "gyro" is placed at a unique angle that allows it to measure multiple directions. Segway's onboard computers constantly compare the data from all five gyros to determine if any of the five is supplying faulty data--in this condition, it can compensate and use data from the remaining sensors to continue balancing through a controlled safety shutdown. Two tilt sensors filled with an electrolyte fluid provide a gravity reference in the same way your inner ear does for your own sense of balance. The BSA is monitored by two independent microprocessors and is split into two independent halves for redundancy. Even the communication between sides is performed optically to avoid electrical faults on one side propagating to the other.


Motor
The Segway HT's motors are unique in a number of respects. Produced by Pacific Scientific, a division of Danaher, they are the highest-power motors for their size and weight ever put into mass production. Each motor is capable of maintaining a power output of 1.5 kilowatts--that's 2 horsepower!
The motors use brushless servo technology, meaning there are no contacts to wear, arc, and reduce performance. The magnets are constructed of an incredibly powerful rare-earth material: neodymium-iron-boron. Each motor is constructed with two independent sets of windings, each driven by a separate board and motor. Under normal conditions, both sets of windings work in parallel, sharing the load. In the event of a failure, the motor is designed to instantly disable the faulty side and use the remaining winding to maintain control of the Segway HT until it can be brought to a stop. The motor is carefully balanced to operate up to 8,000 rpm, allowing it to produce very high power levels in a small package. Feedback from the motor back to the Segway HT is provided by redundant, noncontact analog hall sensors that sense the positions of magnets with no moving parts other than the motor shaft itself.


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Gearbox
The Segway HT's gearbox, a joint effort between Axicon Technologies and Segway, is constructed more like a precision Swiss watch than a traditional gear drive from an automobile. A two-stage reduction system provides a 24:1 reduction, allowing the motor to operate at powerful, efficient speeds throughout the full range of speeds of the Segway HT. Each gear is cut to a helical profile, which creates a spiral engagement to minimize noise and increase the load capability of the gears. The number of teeth on each gear is chosen to produce noninteger gear ratios. This means that the teeth will mesh in a different location each revolution, maximizing the life of the gearbox. Our engineers were so obsessed with the details on the Segway HT that they designed the meshes in the gearbox to produce sound exactly two musical octaves apart--when the Segway HT moves, it makes music, not noise.
The gearbox is pre-assembled and lubricated, and is designed to require no maintenance over the life of the Segway HT. It has been tested for thousands of miles under severe conditions.


Wheel and Tire
Michelin was one of the earliest partners in the Segway HT design project. The tires on the Segway HT have been designed specifically for this product, using a unique tread compound (a silica-based compound instead of traditional carbon-based materials), giving enhanced traction and minimized marking on indoor floors, and a specially engineered tubeless construction that allows low pressure for comfort and traction while minimizing rolling resistance for long range.
The tire is mounted on an equally unique wheel design: the wheel is constructed of a sophisticated engineering-grade thermoplastic chosen in partnership with GE Plastics. This composite material allows light weight and excellent durability, and actually reduces noise transmitted from the drive system. The wheel is molded around a forged steel hub, eliminating fasteners that can loosen over time. The attachment between this hub and the transmissions incorporates a unique (patent pending) taper and hex design, which allows a single nut to attach or remove the wheel while retaining the security of multiple-bolt systems more typically seen in conventional applications.


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Your e-mail:

Batteries
The Segway HT uses twin NiMH battery packs, designed in partnership with SAFT (a division of Alcatel), running at a nominal 72 volts. These nickel-metal hydride cells deliver the highest power of any currently available chemistry, optimized to maintain the Segway HT's balance under severe conditions. These are not your cell phone batteries!
Each pack consists of an array of high-capacity cells and a custom-designed circuit board that constantly monitors the temperature and voltage of the pack in multiple locations. This assembly is enclosed in another unique application of GE thermoplastics--the battery box is sealed using a vibration welding technique that makes the outside of the pack a single, continuous structure--sealed from moisture and strong enough to survive the most extreme tests our durability engineers could throw at it.
The internal electronics in the battery incorporate "smart" charging--the customer need only plug the Segway HT into the wall and the battery will choose the appropriate charge rate based on temperature, voltage, and level of charge. The batteries will quick charge, then automatically transition into a balance and maintenance charge mode. The Segway HT customer does not need to worry about memory or timing their charges--just plug it in.
Under normal operation, the Segway HT carefully monitors both batteries and automatically adjusts to drain the batteries evenly. In the unlikely event of a battery failure, the system is designed to use the second battery to operate the machine and allow it to continue balancing until it is brought to a safe stop.


Controller Boards
Two sophisticated controller boards from Delphi Electronics provide both brains and brawn for the system. Delphi Electronics was chosen as a partner based on their track record in the production of high-volume, high-quality automotive electronics for such demanding applications as airbag modules.
Each board contains a Texas Instruments digital signal processor, monitoring the entire Segway HT system and checking 100 times per second for any faults or conditions that might require immediate response. It reads the information from the BSA to determine if the rider is leaning forward or backward, and instantly uses this information to deliver power from the batteries to the motors through a set of 12 high-power, high-voltage field-effect transistors (FETs). These calculations take place 100 times a second, and the motors are adjusted at up to 1,000 times per second, responding far more quickly than the human body is capable of perceiving. Although each board is capable of operating the Segway HT after a failure (each board, in fact, powers electrical circuits on both motors), under normal conditions they share the load.


Join Amazon's Early Adopters Club. Sneak previews and early access to leading-edge products.
Your e-mail: Inventors' Note
The dictionary defines segue as "a smooth transition from one place or idea to another." While the Segway HT represents a smooth transition from one physical place to another, we chose the name Segway for our company because we believe the Segway HT also represents an important transition to a new idea: an energy efficient, environmentally friendly, productivity enhancing, and fun alternative for short distance travel.

Segway enthusiasts who choose to purchase the first Segway Human Transporters through this program will have the world watching them. Hopefully, you will represent Segway with the same passion and vision we had in bringing the idea to reality. Why such great expectations? Because we believe that when you are among the first to purchase and embrace new technology, you personify the spirit that allows inventions to become innovations, and that spirit can change the world.

So, welcome to Segway, and enjoy the ride!

Thanks, Dean Kamen and the team at Segway

[segsurfer]

Awesome archival piece. Boy, this really takes me back to when the segway first came out. I had no idea what it was, but I was intrigued. The earliest segway memory I had was when the popular mechanics issue first came out with ginger on the cover, back when a segway was a ginger. Geez I feel all nostalgic

This gives me an idea...

-segsurfer

[RAG1247]

Date: 19 Nov 2002 13:52:27 -0800
Message-ID: <.AAA-25660620-23555,245.1037742747@mail-ems-104.amazon.com>
X-AMAZON-TRACK: 25660620
To: rag@sonyguy.com
From: "Amazon.com" <amazonpromo@segway.com>
Subject: Congratulations on Your Segway HT Order, and Enter the Segway HT Early Delivery Contest
Bounces-to: ems+FULK82U4JG77GN@bounces.amazon.com
X-UIDL: 6"~#!j#Z"!Kl2!!mc^!!
Status: RO

Dear Amazon.com Customer,

Congratulations on your Segway HT order! You've successfully reserved
your place in line for one of the most fascinating products we've ever
come across. Below are details describing how you can enter a contest
to win early delivery of your HT. The contest is optional, but you
must enter the contest to be eligible for early delivery.

One important detail about the timing of your delivery: orders will be
filled on a first come, first served basis starting in March
2003. However, your Amazon.com order confirmation e-mail will show a
delivery date of July 2003, which is the latest your Segway HT will be
shipped. Your Amazon.com Your Account information also will continue
to show an estimated delivery date of July 2003. Segway LLC will be in
touch with you regarding the production schedule for your HT.

Now, for the contest details.

To make this even more exciting, you are now eligible to enter the
Segway HT Early Delivery Contest. Thirty (30) winners will receive
early delivery of their Segway HT on or before December 24, 2002, and
the opportunity to have a customized Segway experience in New
England--an insider's view of the people, places, and processes that
brought the Segway HT to life.

To enter, simply describe, in 75 words or less, "What I like most
about the Segway HT."

Entries must be completed online at the contest entry form:
http://w.segway.com/cgi-bin/amzcontest.cgi?code=AMZ4572754

Entries must be received before 11:59 p.m. (EST) on Monday, December
16, 2002, to qualify. Since winners will be chosen starting November
20, 2002, the sooner you enter, the greater your chance to win. Entries
are limited to one per purchaser.

Winners and one guest each will be invited to Manchester, New
Hampshire (the birthplace of the Segway HT), for an overnight stay
including the following activities:

* Detailed product orientation from experts in the technology.

* Hands-on training on a specially designed "agility course,"
including safety training and coached riding.

* Tour of engineering, prototype, and production facilities.

* A close-up view of a Segway HT that you can operate and see before
it is shipped to your home, and a chance to ask questions and go
through all aspects of maintaining and operating your Segway HT for
maximum performance and enjoyment.

* A unique opportunity to meet and talk to the engineers and designers
who created the product. They will show you the insides of the
Segway HT, explain its inner workings, and give you the opportunity
to understand its unique technology.

* A look into the history of the Segway HT (and a number of other
inventions) and a chance to see the progression of early prototype
Segway HTs that led up to the final production design.

* A tour of, and catered dinner at, Dean Kamen's dramatic and
extraordinary estate, which includes giant steam engines, secret
passageways, a machine shop, and a helicopter hangar.

* Exclusive gifts to commemorate your stay and share your experiences
with others.

[BillPaxton]

Originally Posted by segsurfer

Awesome archival piece. Boy, this really takes me back to when the segway first came out. I had no idea what it was, but I was intrigued. The earliest segway memory I had was when the popular mechanics issue first came out with ginger on the cover, back when a segway was a ginger. Geez I feel all nostalgic

This gives me an idea...

-segsurfer

BTW, the videos still work! Imagine if they made a new ad, maybe even ran it on TV??

Originally Posted by BillPaxton

BTW, the videos still work! Imagine if they made a new ad, maybe even ran it on TV??

There's something interesting about the video, too... the first half to 3/4's of the video feature the 67... the last half-to-quarter are the P.

Were the two concurrent models? I thought the P came out months after the 67?

[pam]

Actually, as if I'm remembering, the timeline was
Jan 02 GMA reveal
Nov 02 Amazon sale - 167 first available to the public

It was the following fall before we started seeing the P's as available, and they weren't really - there was no dealer mechanism like there is now, and they'd been doing a year of test/survey down in Celebration, FL. The NEV dealer carried the HTs and he brought some Ps to the Chicago SegFest for rentals. He sold me mine at the meeting, only to find out later that he wasn't really supposed to be selling them yet.

So it was longer than just a few months.... That said, Dean had a p long before anyone else . He had one plugged in at his house, with the briefcase mechanism attached, when I was up there in Dec 02 for the dinner. In fact, I think it was the p that was shown in the GMA reveal. But if you asked Doug Field, his comment was that the p was just not quite ready for prime time, yet.

Pam

[Desert_Seg]

Originally Posted by pam

Actually, as if I'm remembering, the timeline was
Jan 02 GMA reveal
Nov 02 Amazon sale - 167 first available to the public...

Pretty close.

Dec '01 - GMA Reveal
Nov '02 - First Public Test / Reveal (Comdex) and the Amazon sale.

Steven

[pam]

Thanks, Desert_Seg. Goodness, I didn't remember that long from reveal to availability, but I have no doubt that you are correct!
Pam

[Desert_Seg]

Originally Posted by pam

Thanks, Desert_Seg. Goodness, I didn't remember that long from reveal to availability, but I have no doubt that you are correct!
Pam

I only added a month to your date, that really isn't that looooooong

I only remember the month (and I think the day was Dec 5) because it was just before I quit my well paying job to start my own company and forever live a life of poverty!

Steven

[JIMBO]

Originally Posted by Desert_Seg

I only added a month to your date, that really isn't that looooooong

I only remember the month (and I think the day was Dec 5) because it was just before I quit my well paying job to start my own company and forever live a life of poverty!

Steven

... was Monday, December 03, 2001.

Jimbo