Can New Inventions Be Recession Proof?
The Ariens Company in Wisconsin has been making lawnmowers for more than 50 years. Now it has made the first battery-powered, riding lawnmower for the mass market. The AMP Rider is only half as loud as gas-powered models, doesn't pollute, requires no oil and rides more smoothly. Recharging it will cost about $40 a year - about one-fifth the cost of running and maintaining a gasoline version. Yes, the Ariens Company has made an environmentally friendly grass cutter; but at $3300 - hundreds more than comparable gas models - they may have to make a price cutter too. Price wasn't an object when Carbon Motors built a prototype for a high-tech police car, based on suggestions from more than 3,000 law enforcement professionals. The E7 has a 300-horsepower diesel engine that enables it to go from 0 to 60 in 6.5 seconds and has a top speed of 155mph. Among its features are bullet-resistant panels in the doors and dash, push bumpers incorporated into the aluminum frame, flashing lights which are visible from all angles, an ergonomic cockpit, a computer with voice command and instant license plate recognition and integrated shotgun mounts. The only thing the E7 doesn't have is - a price. Hawkes Ocean Technologies didn't think about price when it invented a submersible that can fly under water. The Deep Flight Super Falcon looks like a fighter jet - with 2 seats, 2 sets of wings and 2 tail fins. This battery-powered craft can stay under water up to 5 hours, dive to 1,500 feet and travel at speeds up to 6 knots. The base price for the Super Falcon is $1.3 million, the 3-day course to be an underwater pilot is $17,000 and a half-day ride-along is $5500. Even in a down economy there is obviously a wealthy sub-culture. For the not-so-wealthy General Motors and Segway have partnered on a prototype electric vehicle that seats 2 people and can go 35 mph. Although the Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility - PUMA - has been described as a hideous, two-wheeled egg, it is designed as an alternative for city cars and trucks. Although GM could begin producing Pumas in 2012 at about one-third the cost of owning and operating a traditional vehicle, critics claim it is unsafe for street driving. GM, however, says PUMAs will have an innovative sensor technology to help prevent collisions - but shouldn't that technology be on all GM vehicles?