Honda has been testing the UNI-ONE in Japan in places like the Suzuka Circuit Park, where users have to navigate based on scenes on a tablet. The company envisions it being used mostly in entertainment settings such as theme parks and races.
The fun-looking device will be on display at this year’s SXSW conference in Austin, Texas. The UNI-ONE is kind of like a moving entertainment center, since you can steer it hands-free while wearing an augmented or virtual reality headset.
Resembling a massage chair on wheels, the UNI-ONE is battery-operated and steered by the user’s movements. Simply lean forward, backward, sideways or diagonally to tell it which direction to go. It’s not the fastest of machines, boasting a top speed of just 3.7 mph, but that’s probably a good thing if you’re wearing a VR headset.
