A self-balancing electric vehicle may include a board having a frame, and a suspension system including at least one four-bar linkage coupling opposing end portions of a hub motor axle to the first end portion of the frame. The four-bar linkage(s) may have a first fixed link connected to the axle, a second fixed link comprising the frame, and two pivotable links joining the first fixed link to the second fixed link, such that the board is configured to be movable up and down relative to the axle. A shock absorber may be coupled to the four-bar linkage(s) and to the first end portion of the frame, such that the shock absorber is configured to damp up and down movement of the board relative to the axle.

A self-balancing electric vehicle may include a board having a frame, and a suspension system including at least one four-bar linkage coupling opposing end portions of a hub motor axle to the first end portion of the frame. The four-bar linkage(s) may have a first fixed link connected to the axle, a second fixed link comprising the frame, and two pivotable links joining the first fixed link to the second fixed link, such that the board is configured to be movable up and down relative to the axle. A shock absorber may be coupled to the four-bar linkage(s) and to the first end portion of the frame, such that the shock absorber is configured to damp up and down movement of the board relative to the axle.

A method is disclosed for foot sensors to be used to determine at least two characteristics of a subject's activity by using a combination of sensors for force and foot orientation/motion/position. A wearable footwear ecosystem is comprised of the subject's footwear, sensor-enabled insoles or insertable devices, in- or on-footwear electronics that is hard wired to the sensors and may contain additional sensors such as accelerometers, a master device and means to communicate (typically wirelessly) among the various sensor platforms, and the master device including clock synchronization. Correlating the time stamps for data among various sensors, and the master device communicating wirelessly is critical to accurate determination of the desired characteristics. Multiple force-sensitive resistors on a common substrate are individually optimized for dynamic range. Pulse sensors using arrays of such force-sensitive resistors are implemented. The resultant system can profitably be used for gaming, biometric monitoring, and activity tracking.

An electric vehicle may comprise a board including deck portions each configured to receive a foot of a rider, and a wheel assembly disposed between the deck portions. A motor assembly may be mounted to the board and configured to propel the electric vehicle using the wheel assembly. At least one orientation sensor may be configured to measure orientation information of the board, and at least one pressure-sensing transducer may be configured to determine rider presence information. A motor controller may be configured to receive the orientation information and the rider presence information, and to cause the motor assembly to propel the electric vehicle based on the orientation and presence information.

A powered skateboard having a powered wheel. The powered wheel formed of a motor within tire of the wheel. The powered wheel fixed to a truck of the powered skateboard. The powered skateboard including at least one onboard battery to provide electrical power to the powered wheel.

Articles of clothing or pieces of athletic equipment include modules, e.g., for sensing physical and/or physiological characteristics associated with use of the clothing or athletic equipment or for performing other functions. Such systems and methods may use physical or other interaction(s) between the module and the article of clothing or piece of athletic equipment for activating and/or deactivating the module and/or sensing devices included with the module, for confirming whether the module and clothing or piece of athletic equipment are authorized for use with one another, and/or for automatic data algorithm selection methods. Additionally, such systems and methods also may use the activation and/or authentication systems for data input to the module. Some examples of such systems and methods may utilize magnets and magnetic sensing systems and/or light (or other radiation) sources and sensing systems for activation, authentication, data input, and/or algorithm selection.

A method of driving a manned vehicle includes following steps of: acquiring correspondingly initial weight values of a plurality of weight sensors, each weight sensor is corresponding to a direction; acquiring correspondingly weight measurement values by the weight sensors; calculating correspondingly a weight ratio of each weight sensor according to the initial weight value and the weight measurement value of each weight sensor; producing a control command according to the direction corresponding to the weight sensor when the weight ratio of any one of the weight sensors is greater than a first threshold value; and driving the manned vehicle to move according to the control command. Accordingly, it is to effectively reduce the size and weight of the manned vehicle and reduce the difficulty of controlling the manned vehicle by intuitively controlling moving directions of the manned vehicle according to variations of the center of gravity of a user.

When an electric vehicle is traveling downhill, experiencing regenerative braking, or otherwise forcing the vehicle motor to turn faster than the commanded motor torque, the vehicle motor produces electrical energy that can be used to recharge a vehicle battery. However, if the vehicle battery is already nearly or fully charged, the excess electrical energy produced may damage the battery. Control systems described herein may reduce and/or dispose of the excess energy by manipulating the motor flux (i.e., direct) current and quadrature current independently.

A device with rotatable footpads for locomotion simulation in a virtual reality environment and method for same are disclosed. The apparatus comprises; a stanchion for supporting two footpads, wherein the two footpads rotate on an axis passing through the stanchion; a plurality of sensors that detect the rotation of each footpad; and a controller transmitting signals from the plurality of sensors representing the rotation of each footpad to a virtual reality system. The method for using the apparatus comprises: stabilizing footpads of a virtual reality locomotion apparatus using motors controlled by a locomotion controller; detecting the rotation of the footpads on an axis passing through the footpads via sensors of the footpads that detect rotation of the footpads; and transmitting a digital representation of the rotation of the footpads to a virtual reality system.

A self-propelled, one-wheeled vehicle may include a suspension system configured to provide arcuate, generally vertical motion of a board relative to an axle of a central wheel assembly when the vehicle encounters obstacles and bumps on a riding surface. Illustrative suspension systems may include a shock absorber and a swingarm that couple the wheel assembly to the board.