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Originally Posted by Ashley Weed
As a Segway owner, I was well aware of the owner manual and the user restrictions. I sure would like to know what weighing under 100 lbs. has to do with the operations of the machine though, as I've never seen it affect its "sensitivity" of the sensors.
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OK, that is a good example of a design criteria that the engineers would know about, but you may never encounter in your lifetime using the machine.
The device requires the rider be able to shift their weight fore and aft to control the speed. Based on the physics involved (the weight of the machine with its full rated payload, speed, hills, surface friction, battery charge, temp (affects motor and battery performance)) a person under 100 lbs may not be able to lean back far enough to make a segway stop under worse case situations (ie, going down a 30° incline? with 50 lb of books in a carrying case, with a 50mph tailwind....)
The engineers must design a system for the worst case scenario, and spell out limitations in the users manual. Most people dont think of things this way - that is why automobiles started being mass produced in the early 1900's but a simple thing like seatbelts were not required until the mid 1960's. No one wants to consider what happens in the worst case.
Tens of thousands of people died, who could have been saved if they wore seatbelts from the early 1900's, until just recently when most states passed laws requiring they be worn. Tens of thousands died from the 60s to the 90s,
sitting on their seat belts. Why? because its human nature to reject bitter reality and to think "that doenst apply to me, thats for someone else".
I suppose Segway could create a user manual table that lists height, weight, payload limits, top speed, steepness of hills, windspeed, stopping distance.... and let people choose to ride if they stay within the correct part of a six dimensional graph, for example, if they only weigh 70 lbs but will never carry anything with them on the segway, or will never go up or down hills... but that would become so confusing it would be worthless.