Why do you take this so personal??? Try this:
1) You claimed that "zero turning radius" was one of the new innovations here.
And I merely reminded you (and Bad Back Joe) that a zero turning radius is not new. See any moving dolly with casters...or, see the 1896 Manual Reel Mower with "zero turning radius."
2) You claim I advocate "more wheels is better." .
No, I claim that three points define a plane. (Can't wait to hear you argue that one!) I do however insist that a practical real world production model will include a mechanical, failsafe longitudinal safety bumper/caster to protect idiots from running into curbs head-on at 17mph. If they don't, Personal Injury lawyers will design it for them, and that will be ugly.
3) You claim that such a caster would create some inordinate amount of friction.
No, I didn't even suggest that in normal operation such bumper/skid/caster would even touch the ground. It would merely have to protect the device from hitting anything beyond the maximum vehicle entry or exit angles. Look under any car for the skid plate and see if they trust users to avoid curbs and rocks.Besides, if your powerplant can't withstand the extra rolling resistance of a hard-rubber caster with ball bearings, then you're really going to have trouble powering 12" pneumatic tires with DC motors with brushes and bushings and planetary gear reduction!!
And yes, as Rush has, I have been loaned talent from God to be an engineer.
And I'm not taking it personally, so much as challenging all the "brilliant engineers" on this forum who seem to think they know the product better than Dean Kamen because they saw it on TV. As if he forgot to work out the practical details. I have questions about how it works in certain situations myself, but that's not the product's fault. We don't know enough about it. I've read that it handles curbs just fine for instance but don't know for a fact. At least I'm not so arrogant as to think my not having tested one means the product won't perform well or the design isn't optimized.
Don't forget how people crash on anything they ride at some point. So does it have to be 100% idiot proof just to please Free Republic cynics. Nope.
I sense massive amounts of jealousy from people who's mind can't grasp why this "easy to design" product is a breakthrough. They can't imagine how the thing will work in certain cases. That's OK because it is something completly different that humans have never seen before. But don't blame the messenger, and try doing something creative yourself instead of whining. Maybe one day you'll be as admired and respected for your brilliance as Dean Kamen is and you can steal all his market share.