Lexus has unveiled the first working hoverboard, powered by magnets and nitrogen — but we won’t be flying around like Back To The Future just yet.
The company has finally showed off its “slide” hoverboard concept, after a series of teasing videos. But the magnet-powered board only hovers slightly off the ground and can only do so when it’s on top of a metal surface.
The board levitates by using two “cryostats” — reservoirs of superconducting material — that must be cooled by being put into liquid nitrogen. It uses those to push itself slightly above the metal surface, levitating as it goes.
“The magnetic field from the track is effectively ‘frozen’ into the superconductors in the board, maintaining the distance between the board and track – essentially keeping the board in a hover,” said Oliver de Hass, CEO of one of the companies that helped Lexus make the board, in a statement. “The force is strong enough that the rider can stand and even jump on the board.”
The liquid nitrogen cooling means that the board shoots out a steady mist, emerging from the sides of the board. Gadgets and Tech News in Pictures
