Better Place / Shai Agassi / battery / cars / energy / environment / transportation / videos
May 13, 2009 0
This is a demonstration of the world’s first automated battery switch technology for electric vehicles in Yokohama, Japan. Better Place will own the batteries and charging stations and it will sell subscriptions just like your mobile phone.
Steve Jurvetson (a personal hero of mine) just published this video of the very first test drive of the Tesla Model S. He’s an investor and he bought the first car….
[YouTube | Steve Jurvetson | Tesla]
Shelby is building The world’s fastest electric production car with a ten minute charge time. It’s a great time to be alive!
[Shelby SuperCars | via jalopnik]
ar / augmented reality / cars / gaming / photos / transportation / videogames / videos
October 8, 2008 0
“Carcade is a concept for an in-car videogame for the passengers, which captures the landscape and uses it as a videogame environment. Existing objects, for example trees and architecture, are recognized by the camera and enhanced by videogame assets. The game is influenced by the manner of driving of the car. If the driver accelerates, the game becomes increasingly difficult. If the car comes to a stop a different game situation evolves. We developed a small game concept and a functional prototype, with which we did a test drive on the street. A webcam is connected to a laptop running camera tracking software which recognizes the horizon and objects in the environment. The player has to maneuver a spaceship and collect points whilst trying to avoid crashing into oncoming enemies.”
Mitsubishi Motors Enters its Innovative 2025 Rally Racer for LA Auto Show’s Design Challenge. Continuing its world racing heritage and its industry leading expertise in electric vehicles, Mitsubishi Motors has introduced the most revolutionary racing technology that will defy automotive racing standards in the year 2025.
Mitsubishi’s MMR25 is an all-electric race car powered by a revolutionary drivetrain the future has not yet imagined. This forward-looking, high output powertrain is comprised of four lightweight, high-efficiency, in-wheel electric motors whose output is boosted with the help of eight supplemental motors. The batteries are next generation units, which are more powerful, fully recyclable and can run up to 1,000 miles on a single charge. Specially developed uniform composite Nano fibers give the Lithium batteries their long life and reduced weight. These powerful, yet compact battery packs are located in the center and on each side of the vehicle and are positioned low to the ground for enhanced stability and a lower center of gravity.
The MMR25 incorporates an omnidirectional wheel design that consists of eight independently-controlled electric motors within each wheel hub. This makes the MMR25 the first and only “8 x 4” wheel drive vehicle. The rotational direction of the tires allows the vehicle to be driven forward while pointing the nose of the vehicle in any direction, instead of drifting you can actually drive sideways (or at any angle.) Innovative “Oblique Aerodynamics” gives the vehicle aero advantages when driving sideways.
A driver sits inside a windowless pod just below the center wing. The center wing spoiler is located directly over the cabin, which rises and lowers as the vehicle moves sideways. This pod is surrounded by a seamless, 360-degree panoramic screen displaying images from outside cameras. Removing the heavy glass windows significantly reduces vehicle weight and enables the driver to see changing environmental and track conditions throughout the day. Special Memory Metal Alloy is used in fabricating the sophisticated front and rear spoilers, which also act as suspension blades.
Don’t think this is possible? Check this out:
(airtrax)
[via Jalopnik]
This electic car can go from driving around on the street to riding on rails and back… It’s the car of ‘the future’ according to a Cincinatti tv station! We just need a network of fugly rails everywhere. By the way 1996 called and they want their html back.
[via auto blog green]
