According to Design Boom, the product is the result of a collaboration between researchers at University of Tokyo and research organization Mercari R4D.

The poimo, which is short for Portable and Inflatable Mobility, is a soft and transportable electric scooter that can be inflatable, when needed, which weights a total of 5.5 kg.

The inflatable body of the poimo is made of polyurethane thermoplastic, with the other independent components being attached to it. This includes the wheels, which incorporate the electric motors, the battery and the handlebars.

Photo source: Mercari R4D

Mercari R4D says that the process of inflating and attaching all the parts to the scooter shouldn't take more than five minutes.

The poimo team says that "we envision soft mobility, which is a new type of personal mobility made of soft, lightweight, and inflatable materials."

"A soft body enables safer user interactions with pedestrians and drivers; the lightweight and inflatable properties allow the users to easily carry it as a portable device, by deflating, folding, and packing it into, for example, a backpack" added the researchers.

Before presenting the product, the team wanted to make sure that it can support the weight of a person and it wanted to test the time that it takes to inflate/deflate the poimo.

The materials that the product is made of allows it to be made into different shapes for different applications, such as travelling, camping or carrying luggage.

Photo source: Mercari R4D