Toyota to test stand-up-and-ride contraption

TOKYO: Japanese automaker Toyota showed on Friday a motorized stand-up-and-ride contraption that would allow people to scoot around at malls and airports.

Toyota Motor Corp. said it will start testing what it calls the ``Winglet'' later this year at a Japanese airport and resort complex and next year at a shopping mall to get feedback from people.

No plans are set to sell the Winglet as a commercial product, and pricing is also not decided, said Toyota executive Takeshi Uchiyamada, who scooted on to a Tokyo stage on the device.

The machine, which looks similar to a Segway, travels at up to 6 kph, according to Toyota. It can be controlled by the rider leaning his or weight to the left or the right.

It stops easily and has been developed to be safe for riding around in crowded areas, Toyota officials said. It also goes smoothly over bumps on roads.

Uchiyamada said robotics is a pillar of the automaker's strategy, and the Winglet is the latest offering that uses such technology.

Toyota has previously shown human-shaped robots that play the violin and the trumpet.

Toyota showed three versions of the Winglet, including one that can be folded up to be carried around. Toyota foresees a future when people will take the Winglet around on commuter trains and in the trunks of their cars, officials said.