“A truly workable Stirling engine would revolutionize the world.”
That’s putting it lightly. If you could replace all current US gasoline consumption with Stirling engines at 80% efficiency, you could displace massive amounts of fuel. How massive?
The US currently consumes about 1.4 billion liters of gasoline per day. The rest of the world combined consumes about 1.225 billion liters per day. Replacing just the US fleet would reduce consumption by over 1 billion liters per day.
In other words, you could reduce gasoline demand in the US by 75%, and worldwide demand by 40%.
I’m not saying it will happen, or anytime soon... but that is the theoretical magnitude of the shift...
More on Segway:
Segway's x2 Adventure model features all-terrain tires and is intended for off-sidewalk use. Another model, x2 Golf, is designed to be used as an alternative to a golf cart. In addition, Segway has unveiled a concept vehicle that could be seen as human transport evolution in reverse -- from two wheels to four. The company's Centaur, which is not yet for sale, can be operated on four or two wheels and can carry a passenger behind the operator. In 2006 Segway announced it was voluntarily recalling all 23,500 Personal Transporters sold to date because of a software bug that can cause the device to suddenly go in reverse. Several cases have been reported of people falling, and in some instances, being hurt. For fiscal year 2006 estimated sales were $9.4 mil. Thanks to Segway Personal Transporter or PT (formerly called the Human Transporter or HT), being a highly advanced bipedal primate has gotten a lot easier! Similar in appearance to an old-fashioned lawnmower, the battery-powered PT is anything but old-fashioned. Using http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1872804/posts?computer processors that mimic human equilibrium, the PT moves forward when the standing rider leans forward; a backward lean sends the PT in reverse. The PT has a range of 24 miles on a single charge. It is designed for congested urban areas and various commercial uses, as well as policing. Inventor Dean Kamen founded the company in 1999.
Segway LLC is located in Bedford, New Hampshire, employing approximately 120 people.
Link to Segway-x2-Golf (MSRP $5,999) - The x2 Golf: fairway-friendly
Kamen's own company, DEKA Research (abbreviation for DEan KAmen): DEKA Research and Development is perhaps best known for its founder and president Dean Kamen - and for the Segway Human Transporter the company developed. DEKA develops technologies and products that improve quality of life in some way. Most of the company's products are medical devices such as a portable dialysis machine and an improved intravascular stent. After making a splash with the Segway, DEKA introduced IBOT, an all-terrain stair-climbing wheelchair the company developed with Independence Technology, a unit of Johnson & Johnson. DEKA was founded in 1982. For fiscal year 2006 estimated sales were $18.6 mil.
DEKA Research and Development is located in Manchester, New Hampshire, employing approximately 200 people.