Fuel Cell Segway

[GyroGo]

So, fest people, wazzup?



http://www.fctec.com/fctec_projdetails.asp?ID=21

[JohnM]

Cool, but an old topic, discussed last February.
http://www.segwaychat.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=7017


JohnM
If riding 2 hours is fun, then riding 20 hours is 10 times more fun.
RUSA #235

[TedS]

But there is one at SegFest.

Like GyroGo said, wazzup at the fest?

Ted

You won't find anything if you are not looking for something.

[ZoliHonig]

What's the range on that monster?

[8]-Zoli[8]

[SegwayUtah]

quote:Originally posted by ZoliHonig

What's the range on that monster?


Battery + Hydrogen (H2) hybrid:
8-12 miles for the batteries, plus 18 miles for fuel cell

Total: 25-30 miles with full batteries and full tank.

You can also put on a much bigger tank :)

That machine was the _ultimate_ mod!

Chris

[JohnM]

Certainly the ultimate mod. A fascinating kludge of emerging technologies with a high 'gee whiz' factor.

But I can't help but wonder, if Segway owners are really interested in increasing their range today, rather than somewhere out in the future when we're in a hydrogen economy, why not adapt a simple gasoline powered generator rather than a full cell to their HTs?
A simple Honda EU1000i ($650) would be lighter (29lbs.), more powerful (1000watts) and run for 3 hours on $1 worth of gas, a fuel available everwhere, today. At a max of 59db its no louder than the background noise in a residential neighborhood. Switch between generator and battery power for indoor and ourdoor use and you can still go anywhere. Sure, gasoline is a dirty fuel, but where is the power coming from that's needed to produce the hydrogen for the fuel cell? A coal fired power plant?

Someday fuel cells will change our world. Can Segways wait that long for the increased range that will heighten their utility? Wouldn't it be better to use cheap old fashioned technology in the meantime?



JohnM
If riding 2 hours is fun, then riding 20 hours is 10 times more fun.
RUSA #235

[SegwayUtah]

John,

Great points. I thought I knew a lot about fuel cells until I met Mark (the man with the fuel cell HT). :)

It's really interesting that:

1. The hydrogen fuel (H2) in the special HT weighs a total of less than an ounce.
2. It is fairly simple to make H2 at home -- the issue is the electricity. And they are building applications right now which use excess solar power during the day to create "fuel" for use at night.
3. The cost of the electric-fuel cell hybrid would only add around $1,000 to the cost of an HT in quantities as small as a few thousand units. And that price would, of course, go down over time.
4. The integration of the fuel cell with the HT is super-, super-clean. It's a stock HT, and it looks very similar to a stock e-series HT. In fact, the Segway LLC engineers were a little bit surprised that it worked at all without triggering the safety system in the HT -- that's how well and how clean the integration was done. It was _very_ impressive.
5. The fuel cell is approx. 700 watts. It helps power the HT, but relies on the batteries for extra power when necessary. It's very cool.
6. The fuel cell charges the HT battery while the battery is in use. Apparently, this _is_ possible. But then again, I don't know how this affects the lifetime of the batteries, etc.

The beauty of it is that it's so simple. The HT will run off the battery until it drops to, say, 4 or 4.5 bars -- and then the fuel cell will automatically turn on and both deliver power to the HT and to the battery for charging. And there's no worrying about what is good or not good to use indoors.

As we find new materials with which to manufacture fuel cells, and find environmentally-friendly ways to generate the fuel (think distributed power, made by houses, rather than central power), things will get "very big."

Chris

[ZoliHonig]

Does LLC plan to adopt this technology?

And another question- How much is a refill tank?

[8]-Zoli[8]

[TedS]

Chris,
Thanks for the update.
That's interesting that it can charge while gliding.

Ted

You won't find anything if you are not looking for something.

[macgeek]

Think about the justification here, a Hydro segway, Talk about a green machine!
hydro/electric -- Oh man!!!

Sad part is it will cost $500,000 for one. (with segway add $4500, plus carriers)

I wonder if I get 10% off buy using the code "GINGER"

Jonathan

Segway - "Let's Roll"
www.segwaygeek.com

[macgeek]

P:S:

$1000??????
Daaaaaaaaaaam Thats THREE NEW BATTERIES!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jonathan

Segway - "Let's Roll"
www.segwaygeek.com

[Brian]

The range that the Fuel Cell Segway with a very small tank, that he had on it, (Which I can't remember, maybe 5 liters) Can go an additional 18 miles, so 18 + (10-12)is pretty good. 28 - 30 miles on about 12 cents.

Brian