Hoverboard kickstarter proves once again that the masses don't understand physics - Polidicks

[QUOTE=_Kent_;46311546]Lift buildings during earthquakes? Sounds like an even bigger disaster about to happen to me.[/QUOTE] [quote]Arx Pax's primary goal is something much grander than riding a board: he wants to create entire buildings that can lift off the ground to survive flooding, could be rotated in place to maximize solar power, or even be reconfigured into different campus structures. He hopes to construct a prototype facility in time for the next natural disaster, to prove that it's a better way to build. Only for buildings, we're not necessarily talking about electromagnets anymore.[/quote] from [url]http://gizmodo.com/the-hoverboard-is-real-and-i-rode-it-1649345408?utm_source=recirculation&[/url] i recomend reading this article verses the kickstarter page, this has a more in-depth look and actual prototypes, and explanations beyond the marketing PR

[QUOTE=meppers;46311536]to be fair this technology does look decent for factories and other automated environments that have robots moving freely about on the shop floor. no moving parts = more uptime, and the robots would hover hover debris and small obstructions that will fall on the floor[/QUOTE] I can't imagine powering tons of little robots with electromagnets would be cheaper than wheels. Especially since moving magnets can screw up electronics, to do any significant work using a hoverboard would probably require extremely powerful magnets, which would be extremely expensive.

[QUOTE=sloppy_joes;46311600]I can't imagine powering tons of little robots with electromagnets would be cheaper than wheels. Especially since moving magnets can screw up electronics, to do any significant work using a hoverboard would probably require extremely powerful magnets, which would be extremely expensive.[/QUOTE] This tech's built for use in maglev trains, which are a very real thing. You think some industrial robots are going to slow it down? Magnetic propulsion has already proven to be a cheap, relatively efficient means of high-speed transportation for well over a decade now.

[QUOTE=Blue Meanie;46310012]Watch the battery run out in 5 minutes, then the complaints start pouring in.[/QUOTE] It does though. It's a $10,000 board that only works on certain metal, has a battery life of a couple minutes, has very little control, and is fucking loud. And you hover less than an inch off the ground. That trailer is goddamn deceiving.

[QUOTE=woolio1;46311648]This tech's built for use in maglev trains, which are a very real thing. You think some industrial robots are going to slow it down? Magnetic propulsion has already proven to be a cheap, relatively efficient means of high-speed transportation for well over a decade now.[/QUOTE] afaik maglev trains cost a lot more than wheels in terms of upfront cost. also, trains only go forwards and backwards, these hovercraft would need to go all over a shop floor which would probably add to the cost. i'm not saying it won't happen though, it certainly could.

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Holy hell people read what thy are trying to do, they aren't selling the damn hoverboard theyre selling the tech behind it Stop reading the fucking headline

It looks like riding a skateboard, only lamer and with Explosions in the Sky playing in the background.

[QUOTE=sloppy_joes;46311664]afaik maglev trains cost a lot more than wheels in terms of upfront cost. also, trains only go forwards and backwards, these hovercraft would need to go all over a shop floor which would probably add to the cost. i'm not saying it won't happen though, it certainly could.[/QUOTE] A lot of those industrial robots already run on marked tracks. The ones I've seen use a strip of color-coded material and a series of cameras. You could make a really interesting pushcart with this tech, though... If it's really near-frictionless, imagine pulling a couple tons of freight without effort. Question is, is it worth installing an expensive floor and buying expensive pushcarts when you can get the same result by hiring stronger workers?

[QUOTE=woolio1;46312037]A lot of those industrial robots already run on marked tracks. The ones I've seen use a strip of color-coded material and a series of cameras. You could make a really interesting pushcart with this tech, though... If it's really near-frictionless, imagine pulling a couple tons of freight without effort. Question is, is it worth installing an expensive floor and buying expensive pushcarts when you can get the same result by hiring stronger workers?[/QUOTE] The battery for this board lasts like 7 minutes. Mate, you'd expend more energy using this for your pointless floating pushcart that you would if you just used the current setup. The answer is fuck no it's not worth it.

If you're only hovering an inch off the ground why not just use a conventional air cushion? [IMG]http://hight3ch.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/02/Hoverboard.jpg[/IMG] cheaper, can use it longer, doesn't require a copper skatepark. This is like $100 in materials. With 10k I'm sure you could get a lot closer to regular skateboard size.

[QUOTE=bravehat;46312048]The battery for this board lasts like 7 minutes. Mate, you'd expend more energy using this for your pointless floating pushcart that you would if you just used the current setup. The answer is fuck no it's not worth it.[/QUOTE] Again, maglev trains. You charge the pushcart through the floor. I'm not sure why they're not already doing this, it makes too much sense.

Does it come off of the metal, or why does he have to slide it up the ramp before he can jump on it?

[QUOTE=woolio1;46312060]Again, maglev trains. You charge the pushcart through the floor. I'm not sure why they're not already doing this, it makes too much sense.[/QUOTE] How do you charge through the floor? You mean like wireless charging?

[QUOTE=sloppy_joes;46312218]How do you charge through the floor? You mean like wireless charging?[/QUOTE] Yep. Wireless charging. Or bumper cars.

I want to point out that nothing they've done is unphysical. Their explanation was kind of shitty, as to be expected when pitching a product to lay people. It will of course be severely limited by power considerations and is probably not worth $10,000 though.

[img]http://puu.sh/cnCXu/8c1a16f520.png[/img] *on specially approved Hendo™ surfaces Nice false advertising. Sounds like something Eddy would come up with to scam the cul-de-sac [img]http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110729183435/ed_/images/b/bc/Edd_eddy_174x52.png[/img]

repeat after me cash grab

[QUOTE=SexualShark;46312679]repeat after me cash grab[/QUOTE] cash grab

[QUOTE=woolio1;46312256]Yep. Wireless charging. Or bumper cars.[/QUOTE] I don't think that would work. Inductive charging uses the same principle as transformers, basically the magnetic flux generated by one coil is then used to generate a current in another coil (inside the device you want to charge) using faraday's law, to charge batteries. there are multiple losses though, due to things like fringe fields and heat loss. so you'd have to have a huge current in the ground to charge the device, just so it could generate a magnetic field. not only that but the coils would have to line up so that it can be charged efficiently. it would be easier to do the reverse, where you use powerful magnetics in a grid pattern to push magnetic pallets around. but that would render this device totally useless.

Their tech is legit and I can imagine it's going to bear actual use one day (affordable maglev trains), they are just chewing Kickstarter idiots for what they are worth. I honestly cannot really blame them.

Can't believe for a minute that they're not letting the people who actually buy the hoverboards know the limitations, this is a marketing stunt and that would be shitty marketing. Besides the fact that what they're probably hoping for, is for this to lead to funding to develop the stuff they really want to make, like the robots and the earthquake resistant stuff.

[QUOTE=Capnscarlet;46312883]Can't believe for a minute that they're not letting the people who actually buy the hoverboards know the limitations, this is a marketing stunt and that would be shitty marketing. Besides the fact that what they're probably hoping for, is for this to lead to funding to develop the stuff they really want to make, like the robots and the earthquake resistant stuff.[/QUOTE] Let's be absolutely honest here. If you're spending $10,000 on Kickstarter, you're either rich enough that you don't care, you've got hold of mommy's credit card, or you already know the limitations. Nobody is that stupid as to buy a hoverboard that costs as much as a used car without doing their homework.

To be fair, they admit that they can't really sell the thing as it currently is.

You would think that people with more than 10,000 of disposable income would know this is bullshit.

[QUOTE=woolio1;46312037]A lot of those industrial robots already run on marked tracks. The ones I've seen use a strip of color-coded material and a series of cameras. You could make a really interesting pushcart with this tech, though... If it's really near-frictionless, imagine pulling a couple tons of freight without effort. Question is, is it worth installing an expensive floor and buying expensive pushcarts when you can get the same result by hiring stronger workers?[/QUOTE] You would still need to put some effort (energy) to get that heavy load moving, and then without the friction from wheels to help you out, slow it down again.

or instead of spending 10k you can drop 200 dollars like I did to get a good longboard and high trucks and wheels which is pretty fun

Maybe if they added an aerosol tank full of sprayable metal that could shoot in front of you like the freeze from the incredibles.

[QUOTE=elixwhitetail;46309943]Also, right now, you wouldn't want to go anywhere on this thing even if the streets were plated with Hendo-approved metals and battery life was magically infinite: [URL]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuWflDnAO9s[/URL][/QUOTE] at 42, when his foot is removed, it wobbles in a very strange way. It definitely isn't ball bearings, maybe it is an air cushion as people guessed? But then it would not be staying at a static altitude(bladders would deflate some from the added weight) and the fans needed for that effective of a cushion would be larger as well as the intakes would be needed somewhere I'd think. not to mention I don't think those would have a wobble from lack of weight to that extent. Not to mention a air cushion one would still have a lot of friction, even on a surface like that, the air bladder would be damaged a lot by those plate edges. There definitely is a fan in it though(vibration noise at beginning in the start up is vibrating plastic from a fan, my comp has that issue due to a slightly off balance fan).The location of that fan is probably directly mounted to a large plastic sheet, like the central underside with the light, and would not be an air tight fit, nor an efficient fan for collecting air, especially since it would draw the board towards the ground if it was an intake. Honestly, their proclaimed magnetic hover would make sense, especially with the copper plating on the floor.

It's a rotating arrays of magnets. There's no reason to think its fake, it's just inefficient.