Honda’s tagline of “the power of dreams” could mean a lot more in the future, if this new patent is to be believed
While the automobile industry is busy adding higher levels of autonomous driving features on vehicles, Honda has gone ahead and filed a patent for a surprisingly different piece of tech. The Japanese two-wheeler manufacturer’s Los Angles-based RnD centre recently filed a patent for mind-reading technology for its upcoming motorcycles.
The technology would allow a rider to control the motorcycle telepathically, via built-in electrodes on a helmet, which would feed brain signals into the BMI (Brain Machine Interface). The motorcycle’s onboard computer would interpret these signals and use them as inputs. It would also monitor other systems, like the ABS, traction control, throttle, and IMU, and use all the information to determine appropriate actions, thus potentially improving safety as well.
In the patent images, the rider is shown pulling a wheelie and stoppie using his mind! Of course, this is just a patent filing, and we will probably have to wait a year or two to see a prototype capable of such activities. The costs associated could be astronomical though, and we’re not sure if such tech would be feasible for production motorcycles anytime soon.
That said, Honda is no stranger to such outlandish innovations for in the motorcycle world. In 2017, the company had showcased self-balancing motorcycle, which could stand upright without a rider. This mind-reading tech may seem a little farfetched at the moment, but this could potentially become the norm a few decades in the future!
The patent, however, suggests that this tech is intended to compensate for the lack of a rider’s experience, not as an all-out driving feature. Think out if more like training wheels for beginner riders, rather than a telepathic steering and throttle input machine.
Mind-reading machines do exist though, but these are largely used for medical purposes. Scientists are busy developing commercially viable uses for them, but that will take a while. It would be interesting to see if Honda’s patent will find uses outside the automobile world.