Have you ever found yourself in a roller skating arena, dancing in a circle as is proprietary, and said to yourself “gosh I’m just not going fast enough?” Acton has the solution to this truly universal problem: Rocket Skates. Blasting to atmospheric levels on their Kickstarter campaign, achieving over ten times their stated goal, Rocket Skates are due to Ship in October this year.
The Rocket Skates come in three models, and cost $600 and above. Acton intentionally limited the speed of the rocket skates to 12 miles per hour, a pretty significant pace–though this allows the rocket skates to function as unlicensed personal vehicles, like the Segway. Can anyone justify requiring motorized vehicle licenses for either? They are worn over the shoe, meaning that it is simpler to transfer from skates to no-skates.
Like many companies making personal electric vehicles in the age looking forward to the Internet of Things, Acton has opened their Rocket Skates to private developers, to work on apps before their release. The Rocket Skates link with your smartphone, but the control is done with the your feet. When you come to an obstacle which cannot be surpassed by wheels, the front part of the foot remains available to step up stairs.
The smartphone can hold a route to a location, but it isn’t required for navigation. However, the lead Rocket Skate has the ability to move independently, controlled directly by the smartphone like a tiny, slightly terrifying and easily stolen robot, though the smartphone link means the theft may be short lived. The tiny electric motors allow for uphill travel, which is like climbing sheer faced walls in unpowered roller blades. Since the batteries are Lithium Ion rather than Nickel Cadmium, the power received from each charge does not dwindle as the battery charge gets lower. The charge lasts for anywhere between fifty minutes and half an hour, allowing for short distance jaunts at 12 miles per hour. Using a lithium ion battery means that the charge will not lower as the battery runs low until the very end of the charge, although like a smart phone, the battery will begin holding less of a charge each time it’s recharged. Charging isn’t a short term affair, taking anywhere between an hour or two meaning that planning is necessary.
See find out more and see how you can get your test run, visit their Kickstarter or their home page!
