Developer Touts Self-Balancing Electric Motorcycle

Thrustcycle Enterprises LLC has unveiled a new prototype of the self-balancing electric motorcycle it plans to launch next year.

Internal flywheels create a gyroscopic effect that stabilizes the so-called GyroCycle through turns and enables it to remain upright at a standstill. The technology is similar to that employed by the Segway scooter.

The self-balancing function provides more control and improves safety by making the vehicle less likely to slide and lose traction during cornering maneuvers, Thrustcycle says. The system also allows the vehicle to withstand some side impacts without tipping over.

Thrustcycle notes that several other companies are developing similar motorcycles, including BMW (with its recent Motorrad Vision Next 100 concept motorcycle) and China’s Lingyun Intelligent Technology. But the five-year-old Honolulu-based startup aims to be first to market with a street-legal model.

Pricing of the GyroCycle is expected to start at less than $20,000 at launch and could be “significantly lower” in the future, according to Thrustcycle.

The company also is developing an enclosed gyro-stabilized vehicle it hopes to launch in the near future. Thrustcycle says it may license its technology to other companies in the future.

More information is available on Thrustcycle's website.