초록

A vehicle capable of an extraordinary mode of motorized motion programmed to draw the attention of an operator. When one or more sensors sense a condition requiring attention of the operator, an oscillatory motion is superposed upon the motion of the ground-contacting members.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A vehicle for carrying a user, the vehicle comprising: a. ground-contacting module which supports a payload including the user, the ground-contacting module contacting an underlying surface and including at least one ground-contacting member; b. a motorized drive for actuating the at least on

1. A vehicle for carrying a user, the vehicle comprising: a. ground-contacting module which supports a payload including the user, the ground-contacting module contacting an underlying surface and including at least one ground-contacting member; b. a motorized drive for actuating the at least one ground-contacting member so as to propel the vehicle in a normal mode of locomotion; c. a sensor for sensing a specified condition of the vehicle; and d. a controller for causing the vehicle, in response to the specified condition, to be accelerated with a vehicle acceleration modulated with a periodic modulation such that the vehicle acceleration alternates between braking and speeding up and braking over each period of the modulation. 2. A vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the ground-contacting module includes two laterally disposed wheels. 3. A vehicle according to claim 1, further including a control loop in which the motorized drive is included, for propelling the vehicle in a condition of dynamic balance with respect to tipping in the fore-aft plane. 4. A vehicle according to claim 3, wherein the controller provides an input to the control loop upon occurrence of a triggering condition, the input having a periodic factor. 5. A vehicle according to claim 4, the input further having a multiplicative coefficient. 6. A vehicle according to claim 4, the input contributing differentially to a torque applied to a left wheel and a torque applied to a right wheel. 7. A vehicle according to claim 4, the triggering condition including at least one of low battery power, a specified vehicle speed, and receipt by the controller of conflicting values from redundant subsystems.