lkopv21 Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 Thanks to 'Segway' on 3/16/16 US Officially Bans Hoverboard Imports. Some of the biggest hoverboard brands currently being imported from overseas are expected to be affected by this decision, including names like Swagway etc. Any infringing products will be seized at the border. My question is if it applies to the EUC and what will happen if I order one, or perhaps i won't even be able to order it altogether from manufacturer? I been enjoying my Msuper MS but wanted to upgrade to speed version summer time. I say all 'Segway' products should be banned.
esaj Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 Segway's currently owned by Ninebot, they bought the whole company last spring... Surprised that Segway was the one to get the imported ones banned, considering that the original patent of hoverboards & EUCs belongs to Inventist (as far as I know), who designed Solowheels & the original "hoverboard" (don't remember what the name was).
Peter Harrison Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 I thought it was "Swegway" that caused all the problems?
lkopv21 Posted March 18, 2016 Author Posted March 18, 2016 Swegway actually is also affected by this rule. I know that Solowheel is American company but if their manufacturer is in China they might be banned too. They are making it harder and harder in NYC first they banned riding hover boards /EUC and I have to check all around me for cops cause I hear fine is like $500, now if I can’t buy new gear I’m in trouble. Government should be helping people not screw them.
Hunka Hunka Burning Love Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 I read and saw a video a few weeks ago about this, but my impression was that they wanted to stop the imports due to the related fires and explosions happening in the US until such time that they can impose standards and quality control measures to ensure the general public's safety. They were conducting tests on some hoverboards in the videos that I saw. I wouldn't think they would be banning products that have authentic UL approvals. I don't know if Solowheel products are on the UL list, but I would imagine they would have to in order to avoid lawsuits? Usually to get UL approved it takes a lot of money so that's probably one reason why they command a higher price.
musk Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 Segway spent much time and cash lobbying the legislature in most US states to get laws passed allowing use of EPAMD devices. If poorly constructed devices flow into the country, catching fires and breaking wrists, that legislation might get overturned. Regardless of how much this will raise the prices of individual devices, we need to make sure that reactionary lawmakers don't change their state laws and kill the whole movement. It's not healthy if people think "fire" when a hoverboard is mentioned. Segway needs to keep that sentiment from growing.
Supersmi Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 I think this is the place to read more info about the topic: http://mashable.com/2016/03/16/segway-hoverboard-patent/#Ks1xHv91pZqy
dmethvin Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 Let's be clear about this. The US has banned "Certain Personal Transporters, Components Thereof, and Manuals Therefor". Not all hoverboards. The list is in the order but it includes Freego, Upstep, RoboTech, Ecoboomer, RoboScooters, and a few other variants of those names. It is strictly a ban based on patent infringements, not some kind of blanket ban on all devices of that type for reasons such as safety. I do not see some of the big-name brands like PhunkeeDuck or Swagway on the list, and they surely would be if they had been found to infringe. I suppose it's possible that the names that are listed actually are the names of the components used in the name-brand products but it would seem unusual not to call them out by the consumer brand. Here is the actual order from the government, the banned names are in there. https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2016/03/16/2016-05887/certain-personal-transporters-components-thereof-and-manuals-therefor-issuance-of-a-general
Keith Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 Am I misreading it? It appears to include Ninebot in the banned companies and the Mashable article also seems to read it as including Ninebot. That doesn't seem to make any sense when Ninebot own Segway?
dbfrese Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 32 minutes ago, Keith said: That doesn't seem to make any sense when Ninebot own Segway? You're right. It's clear they didn't read further into the Federal Register entry that @dmethvin gave the link to. If they had read the next paragraph after the listing of reespondents, it would have told them that a settlement had been reached, terminating their status as respondents. Presumably the settlement came at or around the time of the acquisition by Ninebot.
Jason McNeil Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 6 minutes ago, Keith said: Am I misreading it? It appears to include Ninebot in the banned companies and the Mashable article also seems to read it as including Ninebot. That doesn't seem to make any sense when Ninebot own Segway? Yeah spot on! I was chatting to the French Inventor of the Electric Unicycle (US8616313) Janick Simeray about it this morning: we think that this action was done on the basis of the Segway incarnation of the Segway patent (e.g. two-Wheels + handle) which applies to all the companies listed before the Ninebot acquisition of Segway & that this is a classic examples of legal action not keeping abreast of this industry....
lkopv21 Posted March 18, 2016 Author Posted March 18, 2016 That's just great. Segway got what they deserved. They cut the branch they are sitting on from the wrong side. The question remains if euc can still be imported to US.
Ed Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 23 minutes ago, dbfrese said: You're right. It's clear they didn't read further into the Federal Register entry that @dmethvin gave the link to. If they had read the next paragraph after the listing of reespondents, it would have told them that a settlement had been reached, terminating their status as respondents. Presumably the settlement came at or around the time of the acquisition by Nonebot. Seems to be that ninebot/segway are leveraging their patents to narrow it's competition in the US. We'll see if this move backfires in the long run.
esaj Posted March 18, 2016 Posted March 18, 2016 17 minutes ago, lkopv21 said: That's just great. Segway got what they deserved. They cut the branch they are sitting on from the wrong side. The question remains if euc can still be imported to US. 3 minutes ago, Ed said: Seems to be that ninebot/segway are leveraging their patents to narrow it's competition in the US. We'll see if this move backfires in the long run. Let's just wait for Ninebots' next firmware-update...
Stay1st Posted April 11, 2016 Posted April 11, 2016 This is true! A Patent infringement was released on numerous companies in China and 1 U.S. Company based in California. Segway has a patent from 2013 claiming the rights to a two wheeled device controlled by balance. The ban for Hoverboard importation is in place, but if you'd like to get a high quality Hoverboard before they all disappear visit: http://powercyclescooters.com/ I have 4 Hoverboards from them. Got them in December, and never had any issues
MetricUSA Posted April 12, 2016 Posted April 12, 2016 I think Segway banned 'their own' ninebot mini, still extremely hard to find in the US. Tried talking to a Segway dealer through Segway site, has not even contacted me back yet, after I mentioned interest in the mini...
Tim Haden Posted April 12, 2016 Posted April 12, 2016 Did you see these: https://www.hoodriderz.com/products/ninebot-mini? Hoodriderz ship from NYC and I hear people 200lbs+ are riding around on them
MetricUSA Posted April 15, 2016 Posted April 15, 2016 Yea, just seen that, they don't list it but I think this has the 240 wh battery not 310wh.... I have seen 'plain' mini being sold with 310 wh, such as on www.creativeriders.com ... Side note, this on yt... a shutdown...
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