Toyota has shown reporters one of the latest products it has developed, a transporter which the company dubbed 'Winglet.' The transporter bears a strong resemblance to Segway, both in functionality and in the way it can be driven.

Winglet will come in three models 'S,' 'M' and 'L,' ranging from 18 inches for the 'S' model to 3 ft, 8 inches for the 'M' one. The car manufacturer said that the Winglet can be seen as personal transport assistance robot, and that it might eventually become useful in places like malls and supermarkets as well as airports.

As far as ways of steering the Winglet are concerned, Toyota's transporter comes in two varieties. One of them has some sort of a steering wheel that drivers can use to control where they are going, while the other relies on shifting the weight of the driver in a manner similar to skiing. Leaning forward will make the transporter go forward, while shifting your weight to the right or to the left will determine the Winglet to take a left or a right turn.

The Winglet is powered by electricity and has an autonomy of about 10 km. After this, the battery needs to be recharged, a process that takes about an hour. Toyota's transporter has a maximum speed of about 3 mph, moving just a little faster than pedestrians.

Toyota officials said that they plan to test the transporter in an airport and a resort facility this year, while 2009 will be the year the Winglet will have to prove its utility in malls and supermarkets. No plans for testing the device outside Japan have been mentioned.