Student builds Bullet: Self balancing unicycle for quick commute

Many of us have been enticed by those jaunty Segway PTs gleefully spurting across the cramped city turfs. Of course, the bantam scooter has now moved onto the commercial scheme of things. But that did not stop a few daring DIY enthusiasts from emulating the buoyant mechanism in their homegrown contraptions. Well, MIT computer science student Stephen Boyer is certainly one among them, and he has contrived his variety of a self balancing vehicle, christened aptly as the Bullet.

Bullet

The designer has touted his creation as a 'partially' self balancing unicycle. This is because the self maneuvering only takes place on one axis (in a linear bearing like forward and backward), just like a traveling bullet. Obviously, the driver has to manually balance on the left and right bearing, which according to Boyer is similar to balancing a bike without applying hands.

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Bullet is created by MIT student Stephan Boyer

Bullet is created by MIT student Stephan Boyer

Well, we never said it was for amateur drivers. But when its boils down to the intrinsic steering mechanism, the contraption is controlled just like the Segway. This means, one has to lean forward to accelerate, and incline back for the brakes. As for the structural set up, the power train is set upon a custom MIG-welded steel chassis. The power train in itself is composed of a 450 Watt electric motor, complimented by two sturdy 7 Ah 12 Volt batteries. The overall visual demeanor has been kept on the sylvan side, with all the paraphernalia of the circuitry being exposed.

This does not mean that the designer has not thought of any safety features. As a matter of the fact, the hefty chassis keeps up around a suitable 2-inch of ground clearance. Moreover, the Bullet is also equipped with a 'kill switch' (which can be held in the right hand by the driver), which deactivates the motor in emergency cases of steering.

Coming to the workings of the contraption, the circuit component consists of a conventional ATmega328P micro-controller. The self orientation mechanism of Bullet is achieved by utilizing a complimentary filter (by assimilating readings from the gyro and accelerometer), with the code written in C. You can check out the details here.

As for the solid specs, the designer touts the vehicle to reach speeds of up to 15 mph. Now, we should remember that the Bullet entails a low emission electric ride. In this respect, the commute remains on the convenient side of affairs with a 5 mile range on a single charge. But as far as practicality goes, the designer has admitted that the bantam conception is on the heavier side. Though, the set up can be made more lightweight by incorporating manageable components such as a wheel hub motor, NiCad or NiMH batteries and an aluminum frame (instead of the steel chassis).

Finally, we come to the element that made Segway systems such a hit among urban commuters i.e., portability. In this regard, the Bullet exhibits a very small size, and thus can be carried across the streets and public transit systems quite easily. Moreover, according to Boyer, the unique conception can be developed even further, by utilizing more efficient albeit costly components.

Via: Dvice