Located in the heart of city next to the Chénghuángmiào (or City God Temple) and Bund waterfront area, Yuyuan Station is an essential transportation hub for passengers traversing Shanghai’s 2,400-square-mile area. It is especially important for delivering tourists to nearby cultural landmarks. While the busy metro station was once simply a place to wait, XING’s renovations have transformed it into an immersive, entertaining experience.

With the help of a specialized design software, the architects cut, bent, and spliced together thousands of aluminum sheets in wave patterns. They were then suspended in cascading swells, adapting their shapes to fit perfectly between support columns. The resulting undulations are reminiscent of both the waves of the neighboring City God Temple and the ripples of the Huangpu River, which flows above the metro station.

Because Yuyuan is the deepest-underground station on the line, bringing ample light to the space was crucial. The waved ceiling panels were fitted with customized LED lighting that courses through a program of colors, pulsating like the symbolic heartbeat of the city the station has come to represent. The lights ebb and flow from one bright hue to the next, moving in sync with the rhythms of passenger traffic.

The LEDs can be programmed to perform specific color and pattern sequences for special occasions and holidays. Chinese Red throbs overhead for National Day and the Spring Festival, while pinks and other floral colors flash on Valentine’s Day.

XING Design has been creating innovative designs in the realms of architecture, interiors, landscape, and urban planning since it was founded in 2016. The name has a double meaning, being both the moniker of its founder, Xing Xiong, as well as a common abbreviation for “crossing.” The studio’s work has frequently been at the intersection of different disciplines, finding inventive solutions all across the creative spectrum.

Xiong brought extensive training and experience with him to XING Design. After obtaining a bachelors and master’s degree in architecture from Tsinghua Univsersity in Beijing, he went on to earn another master’s degree in architecture from Harvard. Before founding his own firm, he worked for notable companies like Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, BIG in Copenhagen, and UNStudio in Amsterdam.

XING Design has completed numerous noteworthy urban architecture projects, but they are also well-known for their art installations. The Yuyuan metro station beautifully embodies the firm’s name with a design at the crossroads of art and functionality. It went on to be a jury winner in the 2022 Architizer A+ Awards category of Transport Interiors.

The post Shanghai’s Yuyuan Metro Station Gets a Light Show Makeover first appeared on Dornob.

Candela Electric Hydrofoils Set to Start Stockholm Routes Next Year

Well beyond a cool-sounding concept, the Candela P-12 Shuttle will become a real commuting option in the Stockholm area by next year. Capable of carrying 30 passengers at a time, this 40-foot flying electric boat relies on hydrofoils that lift it out of the water so can zoom along at up to 30 knots (34 mph or 55 km/h). It uses the equivalent of a mere 0.1 kWh of electricity per passenger kilometer, gets a range of 50 nautical miles at typical service speed, and recharges in under an hour using DC fast charging.

Those impressive speeds make the P-12 the fastest electric ship in the world, according to Candela. It’ll also be among the greenest watercraft ever produced, reducing energy usage per passenger kilometer by 95 percent compared to commercial diesel-powered ferries that are currently in use.

“Our shuttles use 80 percent less energy than conventional ships and have the ability to travel far and fast on pure electricity,” Candela states on its website. “This means a 100-percent reduction in local emissions, particulate matter, and NOx. Moreover, there is no need for oil changes and thus no risk of oil leakages. Given the reduced energy consumption, low maintenance needs, and possibility to increase passenger volumes, we estimate that operational costs [in Stockholm] will be reduced by at least 40 percent.”

The P-12 Shuttle will slash commute times between the Stockholm city center and the suburb of Ekerö from 55 minutes by subway, bus, standard ferry, or car down to just 25 minutes. Part of that time savings stems from the fact that the P-12’s hydrofoils produce virtually no wake at all, allowing it to cruise within Stockholm’s no-wake zones, which usually require conventional boats to slow down to 12 knots or less. If Candela’s nine-month trial period with the city is successful, the company will likely make additional ferries available to help free up traffic from Stockholm highways. It could also pave the way for expansion into cities like New York and San Francisco.

The Candela P-12 shuttle features a carbon fiber keel and computer-controlled hydrofoils that make up to 100 micro-adjustments per second for the smoothest possible ride, increasing comfort for passengers. It has a 180 kWh battery and is small enough to easily jet around on the water. Candela also offers a consumer version called the C-8, if you’re interested in buying one of your own (starting at €290,000).

Seagliders Slash Channel Crossings Between England and France

Another interesting idea takes the “flying ferry” name a bit more literally. Brittany Ferries says its battery-powered craft “foils like a hydrofoil, hovers like a hovercraft, and flies like a plane… with the comfort and convenience of a ferry.” This concept glider can carry 150 passengers at a time and travel at speeds of up to 180 mph (290 km/h), quite a bit larger and faster than the P-12 and a whopping six times faster than conventional ferries. Brittany Ferries says it’ll get a battery range of 180 miles (290 km).

This flying ferry works by rising on foils as it departs from a port, taking off and riding a cushion of air just a few meters above the surface of the water until it reaches its destination. The company aims to test the concept by crossing the English Channel between Portsmouth, England and Cherbourg, France in just 40 minutes, a journey that currently takes 5 hours by conventional ship.

Since it’s rising considerably higher above the water than Candela’s hydrofoil ferry, the Brittany Ferries watercraft will face additional technical and regulatory challenges, but the company says it could be operational as soon as 2025. Brittany Ferries brings its proven expertise earned through development of its high-speed catamaran Normandie Express to assist US-based startup Regent Craft with the process.

“We are particularly pleased to contribute now because it means we can bring real-world challenges and potential applications into the company’s early thinking,” says Brittany Ferries’ Ports and Operations Director Frédéric Pouget. “We hope this may help bring commercial success in the years that follow. Who knows, this could well be the birth of ferries that fly across the Channel.”

The post “Flying” Electric Hydrofoil Ferries Could Slash Commutes in Coastal Cities first appeared on Dornob.

“The opening of Air-One, backed by government funding, will revolutionize the way people and goods travel across the nation,” said Robert Courts, the UK’s minister for Aviation. “This step forward puts Britain at the vanguard of clean transport, bringing investment and high-skilled, green job opportunities to the nation.”

Urban-Air Port founder and executive chairman Ricky Sandhu agrees, adding: “The opening of Air-One is a momentous moment — the starting gun for a new age of transport, an age of zero-emission, congestion-free travel between and within cities that will make people healthier, happier, and more connected than ever before.”

The airport was constructed in just 11 weeks across a 17,000-square-foot plot sectioned off into different zones. At its center is a 56-foot circular platform that can raise 19 feet into the air for vertical vehicle takeoff and landing. Surrounding that locus are zones for a vehicle hangar, a cargo and logistics base, a command center, a security screening area, a passenger lounge and café, and retail pop-up sites.

Even though this breakthrough airport is officially open, the aircraft to carry all the future loads of passengers and cargo aren’t quite ready for business. There are plenty of zero-emissions drones in the works and even some that are operational, but there is not yet a commercially viable eVTOL fleet.

While building the airport, Urban-Air Port also teamed up with Washington, D.C.-based Supernal, and has the company’s concept S-A1 eVTOL on display in the Air-One hangar. “The Coventry demonstration is an important first step forward to reimagining how people across the world will move, connect, and live,” says Supernal Chief Commercial Officer Mike Whitaker.

Coventry Air-One is currently more of a model, and the first of what the company intends to be a 200-site network of global air pads for eVTOL vehicles, including projects already underway in the U.S., Australia, South Korea, France, Germany, Scandinavia, and Southeast Asia. It envisions these unmanned aircraft charging from off-grid hydrogen fuel cells as part of the “coming green air transportation revolution.”

Their versatility will also aid that trend, as the designs call for versions to be built on land, on water with inflatable pads, and even on top of skyscraper roofs. These tiny airports in otherwise inaccessible aircraft spaces can allow air traffic into more areas, potentially reducing automobile use along with its congestion and air-polluting emissions.

“Our patented technology allows for an ultra-compact but high-capacity infrastructure,” explains Sandhu. “Precisely what is required in complex, dense urban locations – where the demand lies, where our passengers and members work and live.

The company has also designed models for emergency or disaster management, as well as for military defense operations in remote regions.

Visitors to the Covington area can order tickets to visit Air-One and get a glimpse of the future of air traffic.

The post UK Opens the World’s First Airport for Flying Cars first appeared on Dornob.

International design office Carlo Ratti Associati (CRA) has teamed up with Office for Living Architecture (OLA) and non-profit organization GAL Terre del Po to create “The Tree Path,” a dreamy route for cyclists and pedestrians that rests on two parallel rows of plants acting as pillars. The elevated path leads to Sabbioneta, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in northern Italy.

The Tree Path aims to explore sustainable mobility while “blending the natural and the artificial.” The use of a living supportive structure is one of the most remarkable parts of this project. OLA is one of the world’s leading experts in a technique called Baubotanik (“botanic construction” in German), which adapts living trees into architectural elements. The trees are incorporated into all kinds of structures, including full-scale buildings, contributing shade, natural cooling and air filtering, oxygen production, CO2 absorption, and a good habitat for local wildlife.

Roughly 1,000 trees will grow around a stainless steel platform and hand rail for this project, building and transforming the path structure over the course of several years. The path makes its ascent in three different levels, rising from the ground to a height of nearly 20 feet to bypass road traffic and waterways, entering Sabbioneta from an elevated perspective. Digital sensors will also be incorporated in the pathway to measure factors like air pollution and make sure all the living organisms along the path are capable of withstanding the structural load. This is envisioned as an “internet of trees,” connected by an artificial intelligence system provided by the Mindicity Urban Intelligence Platform.

“What if one day we could grow architecture like a tree? We are still very far from that future, but we can start exploring the convergence between the natural and the artificial. We can use trees as elements of construction, while leveraging the data from digital technologies to get a better understanding of the surrounding environment,” comments Carlo Ratti, founding partner at CRA and director of the Senseable City Lab at MIT.

The new path will connect Sabbioneta to the existing VENTO Cycle Route, a 435-mile-long bicycle path that runs along the Po River in northern Italy, via the town of Casalmaggiore. For many centuries, the Po River was a major navigable river in Europe, transporting goods and people between Turin in the south and Venice in the north. The Romans even used it to move armies and carry out their conquests throughout Europe. Following the Po honors this cultural heritage and encourages both Italians and international visitors to ride bikes instead of driving. The Tree Path adds yet another destination to explore along the route.

If you’re wondering how living trees could possibly support the weight and strain of the path and its users, check out previous Baubotanik projects created by students at the University of Stuttgart. The Tree Path is similar to an elevated pathway they completed, wherein flexible, fast-growing trees like willows are pictured wrapping their trunks around metal structural elements for stability.

The post A Treetop Bike Path Winds Through the Picturesque Italian Countryside first appeared on Dornob.

Forward-thinking visionaries like creator Stephan Henrich are leading the way with advances in “robotic design and architecture in physical realization and speculation,” and one only has to feast their eyes on his latest work to see just how much is possible through the combined powers of 3D printing, mechanistic robotics, and modern ground transport.

Dubbed “The Infinity,” the project is (surprisingly) not a Batman-esque reimagining of the Tron bike, nor is it a souped up, hyper-sleek sports car like the Bugatti Bolide. It’s actually a beach cruiser – a mode of transport that’s usually not considered quite as sexy.

But this isn’t just any beach cruiser. It’s a true example of Henrich’s penchant for design that’s anything but simplistic. Built around a “continuous construction element,” the bike, though not motorized, is just one short step away from inking itself into the history books as a perpetual motion machine on wheels. Henrich explains that this is “driven by a revolutionary monotyre clip chain construction…propulsed by a central wheel getting its force by a crank over a short chain and a 8-speed gearbox.” Sound complicated? That’s because it is – but would you really expect the cruiser of the future to be anything less?

Set aside all that techno-babble, impressive construction, and sleek, industrial composition, and the bike remains just that: a bike. There’s pedals, handlebars, and wheels — they just so happen to be arranged in a way that makes non-robotically enhanced rides look like that trike you had as a kid.

While it’s only a prototype for now, “The Infinity” all-wheel beach and city cruiser has the potential to make a big splash with its innovative design concepts, 3D printed origins, and central “continuous construction element,” though Henrich believes it has the potential to make an even bigger splash as a two-wheeled transport for bike riders everywhere. As the design itself proves, with a little time, imagination, and creativity, anything is possible.

The post Stephan Henrich’s Infinity Bike is the Beach Cruiser of the Future first appeared on Dornob.

In an interview with Business Insider, North Miami Beach commissioner Michael Joseph said the plan would alleviate a lot of traffic, and that commuters and visitors alike would benefit from a tunnel connecting the city center to the beach. The cost per mile would be “a fraction of what is seen in other types of mass transit projects proposed in South Florida, while the construction would not be disruptive to the local economy.”

If you’re wondering how, exactly, this would work, look to the Las Vegas Convention Center Loop as an example. Part of The Boring Company’s plan for an eventual 29-mile tunnel system which will connect Teslas to more than 50 stations across Las Vegas, this 1.7-mile tunnel network opened in April 2021 and has three stops. Built in about one year using the Godot Tunnel Boring Machine at a cost of $47 million, the tunnel is able to ferry thousands of visitors around the Las Vegas Convention Center area, reducing a 45-minute walk to about two minutes. The company says it will eventually enable large conventions with upwards of 100,000 attendees to occur without road closures or disruptions to street traffic. Even better, the trip is free for convention center visitors.

The Boring Company’s renderings for such tunnel projects once included 16-passenger public transit vehicles, but now, they’ve been replaced by Tesla Model 3 cars holding up to five people at a time. And while the company previously said the vehicles could go up to 155 miles per hour, the cars within the Las Vegas loop are only going about 50. The point seems to be using existing technology to make a difference now, with Musk claiming that incremental advances in technology could allow different types of vehicles or connections to subterranean Hyperloop rail systems. But Musk has a penchant for making big announcements and then changing his mind, so it’s unclear exactly how this project will evolve.

Skeptics have called these tunnels little more than brief Tesla test drives, and a bid to sell more of Musk’s cars. The tunnel proposals for various cities have also drawn a lot of criticism and controversy. Projects in Los Angeles, Chicago, and Baltimore seem to have faltered, and The Boring Company website no longer even mentions them. Civil engineering experts and tunneling industry veterans call into question Musk’s claims that his company can bore tunnels faster and cheaper than ever before. In Los Angeles in particular, the Boring Company dug a tunnel 40 feet beneath a low-income part of the county without even informing the local community.

In Florida, where the water table is much higher than average, one has to wonder just how safe the tunnels will be from flooding. It seems like there are a lot of kinks to be worked out in these plans, but as usual, Musk is simply boring straight ahead with his plans, apparently planning to figure it out as he goes.

The post Elon Musk Aims to Solve Miami Traffic Problems with a 6.2-Mile Tunnel first appeared on Dornob.

Likely taking cues from Smacircle, a company that produced a popular electric folding bike, industrial designer Rice Mak showcased plans on Behance for a “Mini Folding Electric Scooter” under the company’s name that would fit right into their repertoire.

The actual Smacircle electric Folding Mobility bike can fold down to about the size of a tennis racket and weighs just 15 pounds. It can run at a top speed of roughly 13 miles per hour and carry someone weighing up to 220 pounds. While those specs are impressive, Guangzhou-based Mak seems to have invented an even more compact mode of transportation that could be that much easier to carry around.

Mak says he was trying to solve the “last kilometer” problem when creating this concept. In most large urban cities, car traffic is horrendous, so many residents or commuters rely on the well-linked subway systems instead. However, data shows that the average distance between each subway station and the riders’ destinations is still approximately one to two kilometers (0.6 miles to 1.2 miles). Having a foldable electric scooter would make things a lot easier for these people, allowing them to easily carry it onto the subway and unfold it outside for quick use. Owners of the Smacircle scooter could also head into the bike lane, avoiding foot traffic while still keeping up with vehicles in their path.

Thanks to the scooter’s three hinge points (one on the foot plate, one at the front wheel, and one in the hand support bar), it could then get folded down to be stored away at the office or in a backpack. Images give us a better look at just how narrow the scooter’s build is, and the folded size looks to be no more than about two feet, maybe less.

As an added benefit, the e-scooter’s schematics also highlight built-in shock absorbers, making for an all around more comfortable ride and enhancing its maneuverability.

To measure speed, battery life, and mileage, the Smacircle scooter plans call for a digital display panel on the handlebars. A USB socket is also included on this panel so you can easily charge your devices on the go. And for safety, the scooter also boasts a pair of powerful high beam headlights to help riders navigate dark city streets. Finally, a kickstand makes it easy to keep the scooter upright when not in folded mode.

While the designer (also a self-described graffiti artist) doesn’t give specs on the speed or weight of this folding scooter concept, if taken on by Smacircle, it would likely have similar measurements to their folding e-bike, which itself has a rechargeable lithium battery that can travel 13 miles on a single charge. And of course, it’ll still provide faster transportation than walking even when the battery runs out, as it can always be used as a traditional kick scooter.

This isn’t Mak’s first foray into green transportation design. His Behance page features his previous creative plans for an X-Motos electric off-road motorcycle, an electric folding childrens’ balance bike, and even an electric golf caddy.

The post Mini Electric Scooter Folds Down to a Third of Its Size for Extreme Mobility first appeared on Dornob.

Innovator Elon Musk, known among many other things as the founder of Tesla Motors, was the first to unveil the technology as early as 2014. Branded as futuristic transport meant to shuttle passengers at extremely high speeds sustainably by sourcing energy from renewable resources, Hyperloop tech is (quite rightly) being branded as a “turning point for the future of transportation.” But how exactly does it work?

This is where the enticingly futuristic phrase “passive magnetic levitation” comes into play. Hyperloop vehicles use this technology to transport both cargo and passengers by propelling them through low-pressure tubes meant to minimize friction. If that isn’t amazing enough, this extremely sophisticated system also uses up way less energy than the modes of transport we currently rely so much upon. This is all accomplished through the system’s reliance on renewable energy sources, its regenerative braking system, and its ability to create more energy than it uses.

Not only is the technology meant to be eco-friendly, but it will also be designed to be exceptionally safe, convenient, and economically sound. Passengers will travel with ease and comfort while seated in capsules that are climate controlled and propelled via the aforementioned passive magnetic levitation.

With technology so dynamic, it comes as no surprise that Hyperloop would seek to collaborate with a big name like Zaha Hadid. ZHA is known for several groundbreaking forays into the world of transportation and infrastructure, including the Hungerburg Nordpark mountain railway in Austria, the Beijing Daxing International Airport, and the Napoli-Afragola high-speed railway station, to name a few. Patrik Schumacher, Principal Architect of Zaha Hadid Architects, expressed the firm’s enthusiasm for the partnership, explaining that together the two would be “marrying transformative architecture, engineering and urban planning with the most efficient and sustainable transport network to significantly improve accessibility, connectivity, and well-being in our cities.”

A lofty goal, but surely one that can be accomplished through the innovative, proven design of ZHA. For its part, Hyperloop Italia marks the collaboration as “another step forward…[toward] the development of the fourth industrial revolution.” Surely, this claim is not exaggerated if the technology, architecture, sustainability, and integration into daily urban transportation can be completed with the aim of creating accessible and efficient means of travel for both passengers and cargo.

Of course, Hyperloop Italia is not the first project using Hyperloop systems. Several other companies are in the process of both developing and testing the same technology, most notably Virgin Hyperloop, who has already tested a system out in Nevada and is currently developing another India.

Through their agreement with Zaha Hadid Architects, Hyperloop Italia has made a statement that they are ready to move forward into the future of transportation. And for their part, ZHA is up to the challenge. According to Filippo Innocenti, Director of ZHA, “Our designs look to the future with great consideration to the environment and all our communities.” And that’s a future we can all hope for.

The post Zaha Hadid/Hyperloop Italia Collaboration Marks a Turning Point for Transportation first appeared on Dornob.

The self-driving electric ferry zips to either side of the Trondheim Fjord on demand, stopping only briefly to charge wirelessly at the dock in between crossings. To call it, pedestrians simply press a button. Up to twelve passengers and their bicycles fit on the ferry at any one time, and there’s no charge for the service.

First unveiled in 2018 in response to a need for climate-friendly water-based transportation options, the zero-emissions ferry design was completed by Norwegian mobility company Zeabuz, itself a spin-off of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). The university has spent years researching ship control and autonomy, not just for safe passenger transit but also managing ship traffic at ports.

Safety is a major component of the project. With autonomous vehicles still so new, many people are nervous they’ll malfunction or fail to sense dangerous scenarios like obstacles or people in their path (though human drivers certainly don’t always do a great job of that, either). In the latter case, at least, it sounds like the Zeabuz ferry is in good hands. Each one is equipped with cameras, radar, 5G antennas, and “Lidar,” a collision-avoiding sensor system that measures distances with lasers.

They also won’t be completely unmanned. CEO Erik Dyrkoren says the ferries will still be monitored and managed by human workers at central operations offices, from which they’ll be able to remotely step in and take over if anything goes awry.

“Our autonomy solution is world-leading and can enable self-driving ferries that safely maneuver among other boats, dock to the quay by themselves, and handle passengers safely,” says Susanne Jäschke, innovation manager at Zeabuz. “We worked with DNV GL, the Norwegian Coastal Administration, and the Norwegian Maritime Directorate to test two prototypes in Trondheim. The unique technology has been developed at NTNU and will be made available to the company.”

The ferries are expected to be in operation by next year, and Zeabuz hopes to sell the technology to other coastal and port cities around the world, where they’ll operate as a free public service. Though the self-driving aspect is novel, Norway is already a ferry pioneer, having launched the world’s first electric ferry for passengers and cars in 2015.

The use of ferries is expected to grow across the globe in the near future as more cities rediscover the utility of their waterways amidst attempts to reduce vehicular traffic. Zero-emissions water transit could certainly help eliminate a lot of pollution and greenhouse gas emissions in many locations. Plus, it’s easy to imagine how the convenience of a free service like this could encourage more people to leave their cars at home or go car-free altogether while visiting, living, or working in urban centers.

The post Norway Takes Electric Ferries One Step Further With Self-Driving Capabilities first appeared on Dornob.

The levitating pod made a 15-second sprint on the company’s 500-meter Nevada desert test-track. It reached a top speed of 107 miles per hour in just 6.25 seconds. The velocity was limited by the amount of track available, but the forward-thinking group anticipates its final product will be able to transport people through vacuum tubes at speeds of up to 640 miles per hour. That will allow travelers to make a trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles in roughly 35 minutes, twice as fast as commercial jet travel and three times faster than high-speed rail.

The practice run is a huge milestone toward making hyperloop transit a reality. After more than 400 passenger-less maneuvers, putting humans inside demonstrates the viability of the enterprise’s technology.

“I can’t tell you how often I get asked ‘is hyperloop safe?,'” Jay Walder, CEO of Virgin Hyperloop, said in a prepared statement. “With today’s passenger testing, we have successfully answered this question, demonstrating that not only can Virgin Hyperloop safely put a person in a pod in a vacuum environment, but that the company has a thoughtful approach to safety which has been validated by an independent third party.”

Hyperloop technology uses networks of pneumatic propulsion tubes (much like the ones that outside bank customers use to send deposit-filled canisters to inside tellers) to create a near-frictionless environment. The conveyances are propelled by both that vacuum system and magnetic levitation, which uses two sets of magnets to push and repel the transports above the tracks and through the tubes.

The company obviously has confidence in its product, as it allowed two of its executives to volunteer as the inaugural journey guinea pigs. Describing the ride, Virgin Hyperloop Chief Technology Officer and Co-founder Josh Giegel told the New York Times it “felt not that much different than accelerating in a sports car,” while his thrill-seeking comrade Sarah Luchian, head of Passenger Experience, said “it was much smoother than I expected.”

The pair were strapped into five-point harnesses in an experimental two-seater capsule nicknamed Pegasus. Future pods for mass transit will be able to accommodate up to 28 commuters, with separate cargo convoys following behind. For intercity connections, the corporation’s blueprints call for either digging underground tunnels or constructing above-ground rails. So far, they have only concentrated on the above-ground variety.

There are plenty of competitors in the field vying to beat Virgin to the market. The Boring Company, headed by Elon Musk, has said its on schedule to complete an underground system for the Las Vegas Convention Center by January 2021.

Rival company Hyperloop Transportation Technologies procured an official classification from the U.S. Department of Transportation in July of this year, which actually helps the entire industry as the new designation applies to all pneumatic navigation companies, putting them under the Federal Railroad Administration. With official recognition, hyperloop tech is more likely to receive regulation and funding.

Virgin Hyperloop is pressing forward with development, having recently announced plans to build a $500 million testing center in West Virginia. The company hopes to gain official certification by 2025 and float its trains into commercial use by 2030.

The post First Human Passengers Get (Almost) Supersonic Ride on Virgin Hyperloop first appeared on Dornob.

German company Dethleffs came up with the concept vehicle back in 2017, though they still have yet to outline plans for production. Still, early renderings encourage an interesting vision of a future filled with solar-powered RVs traveling highways and parked at campgrounds.

The e.home Solar Motorhome concept is a true beauty. It’s an electric vehicle in its most basic form, though the design also calls for it to be completely wrapped in thin-film solar cells that can be used to top-up the van’s batteries while stationary or traveling down the road.

The motorhome’s cabin is built onto the base frame of an existing Iveco Daily Electric van. It offers a battery pack that can last between 100 and 175 miles on a single charge, depending on the load it’s carrying. The mock-up also includes infrared heating elements in the floor and furniture to keep the space comfortable, as well as latent heat accumulator plates that capture excess heat during the day and allow it to be used after the sun goes down. In addition to a film-wrapped exterior, foil technology is used in the RV’s windows and lighting to reflect heat and provide privacy. All of the major systems including heating, lighting, electrical, and central locking can be controlled via a central smart hub.

Providing power and sustainable features doesn’t mean forfeiting luxury features, of course. This concept vehicle is loaded with all the comforts of home including all-electric appliances, multiple sleeping areas, a kitchen, and a bathroom.

Anyone who currently owns an RV can attest to the fact that they’re really lacking in the way of fuel efficiency, averaging around 10 miles per gallon. And that’s just optimistically speaking if the rig is empty. Load it down or climb a hill, and you can expect a big drop to about four mpg. In addition to the monetary savings of having a big rig without a gas tank, the environment would benefit from the reduction in exhaust fumes.

Of course, there are a host of potential issues with the technology, too. For example, only half the solar film will receive a charge at any given time, begging the question about how efficient it will actually be and what output it can provide. How to charge it, where to charge it, funding the installation of charging stations or charging strips built-in to the road, waste of the solar components, and limitations on the distance traveled are other considerations that will benefit from further R and D. In the end, the company hopes that other businesses will run with the idea to help forge deeper into the electric and solar markets.

“There are also a number of new technologies which will change the comfort, quality of life, plus the safety of future generations of motorhomes. Through this evolving process, systems will be further developed — and we expect rapid progress over the coming years for our e.home concept,” says Alexander Leopold, Dethleffs Managing Director.

The post Are Solar-Powered RVs Part of Our Future? first appeared on Dornob.

Grandiose plans for smart cities are being unveiled all over the world as more and more people realize the need for a better, cleaner vision for the future if we’re to secure our survival. All the proposals include environmentally advanced infrastructure, a wealth of emerging AI technologies, and thousands of other sophisticated systems to help their inhabitants live and thrive. What makes Stefano Boeri Architects’ vision unique is the concentration on incorporating a a sprawling vertical forest into its “Smart Forest City.”

Overview

Smart Forest City, still in its conceptual phases, would cover 1,376 acres of land originally earmarked for a conventional shopping mall. But instead of weaving together a mega-cluster of retail endeavors, the Stefano Boeri enterprise has almost 1,000 of those acres devoted to green space, with the rest of the land going to architecture and environmentally advanced support systems to house and serve some 130,000 residents.

Green Details

The green space of Smart Forest City would be populated with a whopping 7.5 million plants, spanning over 400 unique species and meticulously evaluated and chosen by botanist and landscape architect Laura Gatti. Not only is all that plant life visually appealing to the city’s residents, it’s also physically good for them. The assortment of bushes, shrubs, flowers, and trees (2.3 trees for every inhabitant) will not only occupy personal gardens and public parks, but also be incorporated into energy-boosting structural facades and green roofs. The firm projects that the city will annually absorb 116,000 tons of carbon dioxide and supply 5,800 tons of oxygen.

A Learning Experience

Beyond the aesthetic appeal of endless greenery, Smart Forest City is also planned to be a knowledge hub where researchers develop and implement solutions to ecological crises. The research center planned by Stefano Boeri is already set to include university researchers and visionary international research organizations, all of whom will focus on six fundamental issues: astrophysics and planetary science, bio-healthcare, coral reef restoration, mobility and robotics, precision farming and regenerative technology, and smart city innovations.

Self-Sufficiency

No Shangri-La would be complete without total self-sufficiency. Smart Forest City is designed to be powered by a circle of solar panels around its perimeter and receive its water supply through an intricate conduit of channels connected to a cistern at the city’s entrance that constantly gathers water from the atmosphere. Transsolar, a German company that leads the industry of built environments, collaborated with the Stefano Boeri team on all these designs.

To streamline public transit and keep congestion and pollution at a minimum within the city, residents will park their cars just outside the city limits and make their way around using only semi-automatic and electric modes of transportation.

Boeri unveiled his project to Mexican land and planning authorities in March 2019 and still anxiously awaits their feedback. In the meantime, he’s focused on his visualization of an idyllic urban environment becoming a reality.

He adds that “Smart Forest City Cancun is a Botanical Garden within a contemporary city based on Mayan heritage and its relationship with the natural and sacred world. An urban ecosystem where nature and city are intertwined and act as one organism.”

The post Stefano Boeri Plans Utopian Smart City Near Cancun With Over 7 Million Plants first appeared on Dornob.

One of the most exciting categories to be covered at the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is that of “smart cities.” While the fair’s other exhibits focus more on specific aspects of electronic and AI innovation, the Smart City sector addresses different ways to bring aging infrastructures up to par by repurposing the old concurrent with incorporating new technologies into the renovations.

These were just a few of this year’s most interesting developments in the field:

Toyota Woven City

Near Mount Fuji, Japan, Toyota is constructing a smart city. Their project, scheduled to launch in 2021, will transform a former factory into an actual town where families will live, work, and research mobility options and advancements. The 175-acre locale designed by Bjarke Ingels’ BIG company will focus on converging transportation options, housing alternatives, a conglomerate of smart power sources, water distribution technologies, and research that benefits the community’s sustenance and growth.

BIG previously designed Two World Trade Center and Google’s latest headquarters, so this undertaking fits well on their résumé of projects. Their transportation scheme for the “Woven City” is three-fold. One road is dedicated entirely to self-driving vehicles, another to scooters and bikes, and for pedestrians, the firm plans to construct a large park chock-full of walking paths. All three options come together in the center of town. The goal is for residents to use one or more of these every day to get around.

The houses in the Woven City will predictably be constructed from sustainable wood and be powered by photovoltaic tiles. A subterranean level of the city will also house hydrogen cells to store power and a water filtration system. Another underground system will deliver supplies to residents via conveyor belts — or even a mass of little androids.

Power to the People

For a futuristic city to flourish, the people who live there need to thrive as strongly as the emerging infrastructure. Many exhibits in this year’s CES Smart City category concentrated on taking care of the inhabitants.

Vayyar, headquartered in Israel, presented a sensor-based system called Walabot that monitors the movement of people inside their homes. Raviv Melamed, the company’s CEO, explained in an interview that “the idea is to have something that the person doesn’t need to wear, so it just sits over there monitoring the house … we have a 3D imaging sensor that can look at you without actually having your picture so basically we can track people if they go around the house if they fall down, if they sit, if they lie down in bed sleeping. We can monitor day-to-day kind of living and tell you things about yourself or alert someone if you fall.” Walabot also detects children left in hot cars and alerts parents and caregivers through an accompanying mobile app.

Addison Care, developed by Electronic Caregiver, is a voice-controlled 24-hour virtual caregiver. CEO Anthony Dohrmann says that “she is a 3D virtual smart health home virtual caregiver [that] manages behavioral health, chronic disease, supports caregivers, and even takes care of child patients. So she can through that visual sensor verify you’re taking medications, see how you’re feeling, look for signs of distress, or if you’re doubled over in pain. She can see if your fall risk increases. She can see how you’re adjusting to a prosthetic or a new rehab exercise. She can even demo a rehab exercise, verify you’re doing it with that visual sensor, monitor your progress as you improve, and keep providers informed.”

Platform House HED-Net, the latest innovation from Sekisui House, uses contactless sensors to improve health, wellness, and happiness in homes. The system can detect strokes and heart movements. Company President Yoshihiro Nakai clarifies: “Let’s think of a bedroom because what we use for sensing is contact-less, it is not under a mattress, not like a watch or a pad put onto the [chest]. Instead, we install a sensor recessed onto [the] ceiling. By monitoring vital data such as heart rate, perspiration rate, and blood pressure and using our proprietary algorithm, we [can] detect the onset of acute diseases.”

Again, this is just a sampling of all the fantastic smart city fantastic innovations on the horizon. CES 2021 is sure to introduce even more spellbinding advancements to help make mankind as happy and healthy as possible, so be sure to stay tuned!

The post CES 2020 Gives Us a Peek Into the Future of Smart Cities first appeared on Dornob.

“Acton is the leading smart, personal transportation company,” says the team on their website, adding that their goal “is to make transportation so fun and intuitive that it feels like a part of your body.”

Of course, “transportation” might not be the first word that comes into your head when you think about skateboards, but the Blink boards will definitely get you from A to B at a clip, with no pushing required over hills.

“The pro mode has very high acceleration,” the Acton team explains. “We recommend starting with the slower modes first to get accustomed to the board.” They also recommend a full complement of safety gear in case you and your board part ways unexpectedly.

You operate the Blink skateboard with a remote control, and when you connect it to the accompanying Acton app via Bluetooth, you’ll be given the option of adjusting its power and other settings. Want to impress everyone with some cool tricks? Sorry, not with the Blink — it’s designed for transit, not flair. In fact, the board’s designers warn that attempting stunts on it will likely damage its engineering components.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWTGTSEmpc4

The Blink “S2” model has a dual-hub system and three different riding modes, the highest of which allows you to get up to 18 mph. That’s pretty fast when you’re not inside a vehicle! You can tease a full 14 miles out of a charge, too, so you can really “go the distance.” The skateboard also has a regenerative braking system (much like some electric cars), so when you brake, all that kinetic energy is stored in the battery.

Want more speed? Take a look at the upcoming Blink “Qu4tro.” Acton has been prototyping this model recently, but it’s on track to start shipping later this month. The price tag is steep ($1,699), but you’re sure to get a lot of bang for your buck.

The Qu4tro has a four-hub system and can take you a whopping 22 miles on a single charge. Plus, it can reach a top speed of 23 mph.

While the Qu4tro may be as top-of-the-line as it gets, Acton does offer a more budget-friendly model with the Blink “Lite”. It has a single-hub system and a range of just five miles, but you’ll still be able to travel at a respectable 10 mph.

Safety LED Lighting is standard on all Blink skateboards, which is an especially important feature when you’re traveling at a decent speed. Just be prepared for pedestrians to shout out questions about your ride!

The post Blink E-Skateboards first appeared on Dornob.

Carrying the load at the top of the tire rather than the bottom is a key part of developing an airless tire that actually works in the real world, as it allows it to maintain a smooth ride and prevent issues caused by compression. Removing the sidewalls also gives the tires a unique look, and you can see just how well the tire reacts to obstacles in the road as a result of it, flexing slightly to protect the wheel. Michelin says the Uptis tires will just last as long as regular tires, too, because they eliminate the kind of irregular wear and tear caused by under and over-inflation.

Michelin is co-developing the tire along with Detroit-based auto manufacturer GM, which expects to start testing the prototype tires in Michigan later this year — fittingly enough, on a fleet of its Chevrolet Bolt electric hatchbacks. If all goes well, they’re hoping to have Uptis-style tires on passenger vehicles as soon as 2024.

Once it makes its debut on the consumer market, different versions of the tire will likely be available for different vehicles and driving characteristics, according to Cyrille Roget, Technical and Scientific Communication Director for the Michelin Group. GM’s testing will simply help the Uptis developers finalize details like the right number of spokes and type of rubber for the outside of the tire.

The Uptis is the latest evolution of Michelin’s VISION concept, which was first presented at the Movin’ On Summit in 2017 as an illustration of the company’s strategy for research and development in sustainable mobility. The concept introduced four main pillars of innovation: airless, connected, 3D-printed, and 100-percent sustainable (meaning it’s made from entirely renewable or bio-sourced materials). The Uptis will specifically reflect achievement of the first pillar, and Michelin hopes to keep refining the design over the next few years.

In addition to keeping passenger vehicles safer on the road through a reduction of blowouts, Michelin says the Uptis could help operators of passenger vehicle fleets “minimize downtime and improve efficiency resulting from flat tires and near-zero levels of maintenance” while also introducing environmental savings “through reduced use of raw materials for replacement tire or spare tire production.”

“The Uptis Prototype demonstrates Michelin’s capacity for innovation — in both the mastery of these high-tech materials, and also the development approach in close collaboration with GM, which validates our VISION concept as a roadmap for innovation,” says Eric Vinesse, the company’s Executive Vice President of Research and Development who also unveiled Uptis at the Movin’On Summit. He adds: “Uptis represents progress toward Michelin’s vision for tomorrow’s mobility, and also embodies our commitment to better sustainable mobility for all.”

The post Michelin’s New Airless Tire Design Will Never Go Flat first appeared on Dornob.

Whether a passenger is departing or arriving, they’re sure to be shocked by the scale of West Kowloon Station. Boasting the same grandiosity as many airport terminals in Asia, the soaring roof here twists and rises like the back of a monstrous beast: a dragon of steel and glass helping to bring influence from mainland China, sneaking its way into Hong Kong only to rise its head right in the middle of West Kowloon Cultural District.

If someone wanted to take such a nefarious view of the station, they’d probably be right. Another view of the station is that of a grand palace celebrating the triumph of advanced transportation. Then there’s the benign political view — surely in the minority in the city if recent events are any indication — that the station represents a coming together of mainland China and Hong Kong. Mixed in with all of the politically-charged symbolism around the site, there are also those who see it as just great civic architecture. But no matter what, there’s no denying that the scale of this building provokes people to consider all of these competing interpretations of its form.

Since it first opened in September of 2018, visitors to West Kowloon Station have used it, and the seven acres of public space around it, as a park. Its curtain wall is made up of over 4,000 curved glass pieces, reflecting sunlight and giving the area’s many plazas and paths an extra glow. And since the roof of the station begins from the ground on one end, visitors can gently walk up steps between its garden spaces, taking in the view of the city as they climb. Don’t worry, though — this ascent is gradual and understated. Before visitors realize it, they are right on top of the highest point of the building, some 80 feet above the ground.

Aedas, the international architecture firm known for its stunning large-scale projects, designed the station’s interiors to be chalk-full of memorable moments for visitors. Here, people move through a capacious public atrium framed by 8,000 tonnes of curved steel. The ceiling is a representation of the relationship between mainland China and Hong Kong, in that it is hard to demystify patterns that exist elsewhere, either from the inside or the out. The fluidity between ceiling and roof, and between the station’s different ribbons of fenestration, is also difficult to predict. Columns rise from one part of the slab, seemingly curving to form a part of the roof, but then curving unexpectedly again to support another part of it. However, within that visual chaos are opportunities for sunlight to shine deep into this mainly underground station. As the bands of windows follow the form of the roof, they contort to create these moments where the arriving passengers can catch their bearings as they ascend from the trains. The flowing interchange between clerestories and skylights gives people an even greater sense of the city outside as they take their first steps back into the real world.

For departing passengers, the high-speed trains featured in West Kowloon get them faster to mainland China than ever before. Hongkongers now have easy access to 44 cities in the Chinese mainland, and they can even get to major Chinese hubs like Beijing and Shanghai in under 9 hours. The station has 15 tracks in total: nine of which are for long-haul trains, and the other six for regional ones. The overt division between those two types is another aspect of the architecture that has proved controversial in the country.

Although it takes several hours to get there, the influence of Beijing is still right there in the station thanks a co-location arrangement that allows mainland Chinese customs officers to screen passengers prior to boarding. Yes, departing passengers must first pass through Hong Kong customs, after which they enter a corridor called the Mainland Port Area. Along the way, they walk over a yellow line demarcating where the laws of Hong Kong end and the laws of mainland China begin. Once across the line, even before passing through mainland customs, passengers are no longer subject to Hong Kong law, even though they are still physically in Hong Kong.

This co-location operation creates a series of checks for passengers to navigate, and it all takes place underground out of reach from the sunlight in the atrium above. The arrangement can also be interpreted as yet another example of Beijing trying to encroach upon Hong Kong territory.

West Kowloon Station is a symbol of many things. It represents the converging of high-speed train lines from across China at a single massive hub. This convergence is also represented architecturally in the structure of the building, especially on the ceiling and roof. Last but not least, the station represents the converging of disparate world views. It is a work of architecture loaded in meaning: attractive enough to be a favorite location for selfies, but unsettling enough to start an uprising.

The post High-Speed Trains Converge at Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Station first appeared on Dornob.