Future of Scooters - MIT RoboScooter (GALLERY)

MIT Media Lab’s RoboScooter prototype is entirely electric, with at least one lithium-ion battery pack that can be swapped out for another, fully charged on. It can also folded up for easy transport. The RoboScooter’s biggest innovation however — one with the real potential to change the state of urban transportation—is on the assembly line. “A traditional internal combustion vehicle might have 1200 to 1500 parts,” says William Mitchell, director of the Smart Cities research group and a professor of Architecture & Media Arts and Sciences. “RoboScooter has 150.” RoboScooter should be available in Asian markets in about a year.