NEW ELECTRIC TRUCK STEERED WITH FEET (Mar, 1931) NEW ELECTRIC
TRUCK STEERED WITH FEET The operator of a new German industrial
truck stands on a small platform mounted on a horizontal axle.
Tilting it to one side or the other by pressure of his right or
left foot steers the vehicle to right or left as desired,
leaving both hands free to control power and brakes. Steering by
the operator’s platform in this fashion makes a compact machine,
with the greatest amount of loading capacity on the shortest
wheelbase and turning circle. The operator finds no difficulty
in maintaining his balance upon the steering platform even on
turns, because he has only to respond to the natural instinct to
lean in the direction of the turn, exactly as a skilled rider
does in guiding a horse. The foot-steered truck, it is claimed,
materially increases the efficiency not only of the operator but
of the machine itself.