What is a Gyrodeck?

A gyrodeck (or girodeck) is a self-balancing platform. An example of which is the Segway PT or the Solowheel.

Their distinguishing features are:-

A platform to to stand on
One or more wheels in parallel
The platform is kept upright (ie: horizontal to the ground) by computer controlled gyros and other methods (primarily friction between the wheel and the ground)

Typically these are operated by standing on the platform and leaning forward to go forward, backward to to go backwards.

There are 3 broad categories of gyrodeck:-
Cogy (ewheel, magic wheel, ghost wheel) these have one wheel with footplates either side.

Boards, (segways) these have two wheels, one at each end of the footplate. Each wheel has its own motor. Unlike the Cogy which requires the rider to balance laterally (sideways, as there is only one wheel), boards are balanced laterally by their wheels. They are step on step off devices.

eUnicycels, These like cogies have one wheel, and also a seat.

Balls, So far there are no ball based gyrodecks available on the commercial market and all examples at the time of writing are experimental, however I believe that ultimately these will be the primary form. They are distinguished by having a ball rather than a wheel. This has the advantage of a single ball, and balance in every direction.

While the Honda U3X has an innovative design, allowing it to balance in all directions, its wheel is a tyre made of many small wheels, the problem with small wheels is, they require extremely smooth riding surfaces. Ultimately a ball slightly larger than a football, is in my opinion, the most minimalist personal transportation solution possible.

For a list of gyrodecks including interesting experimental and home build machines see girodeck.com.