‘Tata chairman Ratan Tata has confirmed via the South Korean Maeil Business Newspaper that his company intends to launch a hybrid version of the ‘Nano‘.

The ‘Tata Nano’, a four-passenger city car developed and sold in India, has become famous for being the world’s cheapest car. At just $2,200, the ‘Nano’ has also gained a reputation for its fuel efficiency (51.7 mpg).

Tata hasn’t provided any details, but a hybrid version of its car could bring hybrid vehicles to an entirely new group of people: bargain hunters. Ultimately, Tata also plans on building an electric version of the Nano, dubbed E-Nano.

Via: www.autoblog.com.

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‘CO2 Cubes: Visualize a Tonne of Change’ is a digital media art exhibition produced by Millennium ART presented in partnership with the United Nations Department of Public Information for the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP-15) taking place in December 2009.

‘The cube will be up during the COP-15 events (December 7 – December 18), seeking to engage and educate people by making visible the monumental scale of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere by human activity.’

Using shipping containers, artist Alfio Bonanno and architect Christophe Cornubert have created the 27′ x 27′ x 27′ cube which is situated near St. Jorgens Lake and the Tycho Brache Planetarium.

The cube features an interactive media delivery system with multiple screens programmed into a 24-hour cycle, providing a visual sense of what one metric tonne of CO2 looks like in a solid form. Developed by Obscura Digital, the system incorporates video streams, real-time data, and practical solutions, engaging the public in a virtual and global dialogue to share ideas and solutions about how to reduce their own individual impact on climate change.

‘You have to see the size of your CO2 CUBE  to believe it! This is the amount of CO2 the average European releases in one month, and the average American releases in just two weeks.

With greenhouse gas emissions being invisible to the human eye, the CO2 CUBES make visible the monumental scale of carbon dioxide being generated, and helps us foster a profound understanding of how we contribute to climate change.’

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Tokyo-born designer Jun Yasumoto graduated in 2001 from Ensci-Les Ateliers, Paris, where he currently lives and works.

His diploma project called ‘Suburban Train Seating’ was created in 2001:

‘Made of 12cm wide modules, this folding seat system for suburban trains allows a variety of postures and uses. It can be used as a support for a “half-seating” position, and act as an armrest or simply a seat.

Suburban trains have the particularity to have strong occupancy variations throughout their trips, usually starting almost empty in the far suburbs, and ending heavily crowded as they approach the center of town.

Thanks to this seating system, the train interior becomes reactive to its occupancy. Depending on how crowded the coach is, users can whether comfortably sit using the modules as armrests, or half-sit to make more space for others in very crowded situations.

Commute trips can be very repetitive. The train interior’s asymetric lay-out enlarges the possibilities to vary the users’ positions and point of views while they travel, in addition to the flexibility offered by the seat modules’ functionalities.

When not in use, the retracted seats offer more floor space and give a lighter and more spacious feeling to the train’s interior, making it also easier to circulate through the coach.’

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In December 2008, architects Foster + Partners with car manufacturers Aston Martin won joint first prize in Transport for London’s competition to design a new Routemaster bus for the capital. The two iconic British brands worked together to challenge preconceptions of bus design with a vehicle that is environmentally sensitive, accessible, convivial and reinvents a much-loved symbol of London for the modern era.

The £25,000 first prize was jointly awarded to Aston Martin and Foster + Partners, and bus, coach and truck design company Capoco Design.

Runners up included Héctor Serrano Studio in the UK, and Miñarro García and Javier Esteban from Spain with their design ‘Welcome Back’, and Jamie Martin from the UK with a design called ‘The London Navigator’.

The winning designs and ideas will be developed into final designs by bus manufacturers. The first prototype of the new bus will be on the streets of London in 2011.

The competition, run by Transport for London, received around 700 entries. Winners are divided into two categories- ‘design’ and ‘imagine’, which included also entries from children.

Description of entry

‘Two emblematic British brands– Aston Martin and Foster + Partners– worked together to challenge preconceptions of bus design. Gathering first-hand research and canvassing passengers, drivers and conductors, the team worked from the inside– out.
Designed in response to the needs of its users, the new bus is zero emissions ready, accessible for all and will set new standards for sustainable vehicles. The bus will reinvent a much-loved London icon for a new era and re-establish the city as a world leader in the design of public transport.’

Read more about the competition entries and the winning companies: www.london.gov.uk.

The following is the statement from Foster + Partners website:

‘Designed in collaboration with Aston Martin in response to Transport for London’s competition to design a new bus for the capital, the joint first prize winning design challenges preconceptions with a vehicle that is environmentally sensitive, accessible and reinvents a much-loved symbol of London for the modern era. After an intense period of research which included canvassing opinion from passengers, drivers and conductors, the team worked to design a new bus from the inside-out. In doing so, consideration was given to a wide range of issues including layout, use of materials, motive power, passenger experience and the impact of the bus on the environment of the city.

The bus is designed to navigate the dense and varied streets of London, employing innovative technologies to allow for greater manoeuvrability and energy conservation. Optimising safety, the driver’s cabin provides panoramic views as well as incorporating screens to supervise CCTV images and radio communications with the on-board conductor. Much like a car or a building, the design evolved in response to the needs of its users. The layout, lighting and wooden floors are conceived to encourage a spirit of warmth and community. The arrangement of the decks is driven by comfort and particular consideration is given to the selection of reconstituted leather upholstery to create a tactile ‘living room’ feel, especially in the saloon-like lower deck.

The new bus is zero emissions ready, accessible for all and will set new standards for sustainable public service vehicles. Passengers benefit from views from the top of the deck through a glazed roof which incorporates solar cells to absorb sunlight and generate energy. By filtering daylight the internal temperature is well controlled. The bus design re-introduces the rear open access platform that made London’s Routemaster bus so popular up until its withdrawal from general service. This is supplemented by a side door to facilitate access for those with impaired mobility as well as families with young children.’

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Called ‘Ring-o-Star’ it can be attached to handlebars of the bicycle by tightening the expander bolt. It is made of silicone and aluminum and comes in 6 different colors.

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With the demand for electric vehicles increasing with every passing day, researchers and designers are focusing on a completely different issue – electricity to charge all those electric vehicles. Finding green sources of electricity and harnessing them to power the green vehicles is what the world needs today…

Industrial designer Neville Mars has tried to solve the problem by designing a unique car port where cars will be kept cool under the shade of solar panels, which will also generate electricity to charge the EV’s parked under. Solar Forest, as Neville refers to his design, incorporates a wide array of solar panels that function as trees to harness solar energy and provide shade at the same time.

Solar panels are mounted on poles, which carry power outlets. Whenever you park your EV under any of these poles you can directly connect your car to the socket for a green recharge.

More pictures: www.burb.tv.

Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. recently announced the development of a new ‘Forest AC’ air conditioning system, which systematically controls cabin temperature, ventilation, aroma and humidity to create an optimal interior environment. Utilizing a number of advanced technologies, the system is designed to recreate the refreshing climate, fragrance and natural breezes of relaxing forest settings. It was developed based on the results of a joint research study with the Tokyo University of Science on the effects of aroma on human mental activity.

Along with the air-cleaning and temperature control effect of conventional car air conditioners, the new Forest AC system offers additional control of air flow, humidity, aroma and other ambient factors that can influence the physiological state and senses of the driver and passengers. This is the first automotive system in the world created to make driving more comfortable based on studies of drivers’ mental activity.
This system is scheduled for use on the new Fuga which will be released later in Nissan’s current fiscal year.

The major features of the Forest AC are as follows:

* Breezy Air
Another unique feature of the Forest AC is its creation of gentle, fluctuating ‘natural breezes’ by randomly changing the volume of air flowing through the upper and front vent outlets for greater occupant comfort. The system senses sunlight and outside temperatures and controls the ventilation patterns accordingly, supplying just the right amounts of air so, for example, occupants on both the sunny and shady sides of the vehicle feel comfortable.

In developing the system, the first such design for a passenger vehicle, Nissan employed an original body-temperature model that determines skin temperature by simulating heat conduction and the human body temperature mechanism.

* Aroma
Taking a hint from the pleasant effect of forest air on people, Nissan studied the effects of aromas on human mental activity. The resulting Forest AC system intermittently and alternately furnishes two unique aromas, borneol*1 and leaf alcohol*2, to alleviate boredom and stimulate the driver’s brain. Borneol combines a compound made from fragrant Kapur wood, lavender and other essential oils to promote calm and focus, while leaf alcohol is found in most plants and is thought to have a calming effect and reduce fatigue. The system utilizes a special interchangeable aroma cartridge (with a one-year life) to produce the forest effect.

Development of the Forest AC was based on results of a joint Nissan research study with Professor Kikunori Shinohara of the Tokyo University of Science, Suwa, Japan. ‘The relaxed state,’ said Professor Shinohara, ‘is one in which the person calms down from external conditions or the consequences of what he or she has done and achieves mental acuity, resulting in good work.’ Test subjects simultaneously exposed to these aromas and controlled ventilation simulating a natural breeze exhibited changes in cerebral blood flow. This, Shinohara says, can create the relaxed state of a person sitting for calligraphy or a tea ceremony – alert and focused, yet with tension relieved.

* Humidity Control
The Forest AC’s newly developed humidity sensor accurately detects condensation on windows and eliminates it, while also preventing cabin air from drying out through optimal control of the system’s onboard dehumidifier. To increase sensor precision, Nissan’s original control system factors in both exterior temperature and vehicle speed. This is the first time Nissan has employed a dehumidification function in an air conditioning system for humidity control. The system maintains comfortable humidity levels (roughly 35 – 55%), preventing the ‘over-drying’ feeling of conventional A/C systems (with typical humidity levels of around 20%).

* Automatic Inside/Outside Air Control with Odor/Exhaust Sensors
Nissan’s new Forest AC provides active control of the ventilation system, increasing ventilation flow accordingly to optimize the oxygen levels of the vehicle’s cabin. The system utilizes an automatic intake control system, coupled to multiple wide-range, highly sensitive micro-sensors, to prevent the inflow of unpleasant air into the cabin.

In addition to a conventional exhaust sensor, the system includes the world’s first sensor system for detecting various other odors, such as from animals, from outside the vehicle – opening or closing the intake vents as needed without constant driver input. The system also utilizes an inside sensor, located at knee level, to detect cigarette odors and other unpleasant interior smells and increase airflow if necessary.

* New-generation Plasmacluster Ions
The Forest AC’s new-generation plasmacluster ion*3 system generates and supplies plasmacluster ions (through ventilation system) at higher densities than previous systems. These ions maintain cabin air quality, not only improve reduction of airborne microbes, also minimize adhere odors on the interior trim surfaces (odor substances are destroyed by OH radicals produced from the ions).
This new NISSAN system achieves ion densities 10 times higher than previous one, and this system has introduced since Skyline Crossover with the same adhere odor reduction and improved microbes deactivation effect.

* High-Performance Filter for Removing Pollen, Odors and Allergens
The Forest AC utilizes a special high-performance filter, made from material impregnated with natural grapeseed polyphenol*4, which is designed to more effectively remove pollen and deactivate allergens drifting in the cabin than conventional filters. Similar filters are already in use in high-end, intelligent room air conditioners.

Betsabeé’s art is about carving awesome tires and make prints out of them.

More: www.arte-mexico.com.

Belgian studio Pleaseletmedesign comprised of two young graphic designers Pierre Smeets and Damien Aresta created ‘IQ Font‘ using Toyota ‘IQ’ car in collaboration with professional race car driver Stefan van Campenhoudt.

The idea of ‘IQ Font’ was from skidmarks from driving the car. The 4 dots on the roof of the car was tracked in real time using a camera and a custom software designed by interactive designer Zachary Lieberman.

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‘TopUp’ is a compactable honeycomb structure helmet made from robust textiles that folds flat for easy transport. It’s currently a prototype being developed by DoYouVélo?, but anyone who rides a bike will immediately see the advantages of this highly portable marvel.

Inspired by the Paris Vélib’ public bike rental system, TopUp Head Protection is for those times when biking would be convenient but carrying around a traditional helmet isn’t. Because the TopUp can be folded flat to a fraction of a regular helmets’ size it can more easily be carried about.’

For further information viisit the designer’s website: www.adrienguerin.com.

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