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    Kowa Tmsuk's Kobot: an 18mph electric transformer you control with a smartphone

    Kowa Tmsuk's Kobot: an 18mph electric transformer you control with a smartphone

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    Japanese joint venture company Kowa Tmsuk demonstrated its Kobot lineup of personal electric vehicles at the Tokyo Motor Show yesterday. The robots can be controlled with a smartphone app, folding up to minimize parking space.

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    kowa_tmsuk_kobot_press_770

    The Tokyo Motor Show is always a good occasion to show off your inventive concept vehicle. Even with that in mind, joint venture Kowa Tmsuk's (pronounced "tem-zak") triumvir of 18mph one and two-person Kobot electric vehicles take the cake. Japan is not known for its roomy parking spaces, so luckily the Kobot ν (nu) and Kobot β (beta) are able to fold up, extending and contracting their wheelbases in order to minimize their footprints; all of which can of course be controlled with the compatible smartphone app. This is on top of their eye-catching illumination and a free-moving third wheel that allows for an incredibly tight turning radius.

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    According to president Yoshito Serita, the company is targeting tourist destinations and car sharing services and plans to begin production in Fall, 2012, provided it can get its problems with the Kobots’ legal classification sorted out. Check below for video footage from yesterday's Tokyo Motor Show demonstration, complete with dazzling background imagery.