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The End of Driving: Mike and Maaike introduce the Autonomobile
Either the Thunderbird or the Beetle had to go.
With a baby on the way and two vintage cars in our garage, one a red 1963 VW Ragtop Mike's owned since age 15 and the other a champagne 1963 Ford T-bird, a tough decision had to be made. One of them had to be replaced...
The year was 2006, and, believe it or not, these old-timers were pretty much the only cars we'd ever owned. With our purchase of a new car that winter, we made a 43 year leap in automotive technology overnight.
Today's car industry is brainwashed by its own car culture, with its obsession for speed, styling and fantasy. The car business has become one of repackaging, steering people's focus towards style and a narrow definition of performance, not on our true needs.
We quickly realized, however, that despite 43 years of automotive progress, with its advances in safety, efficiency, and manufacturing, the driving experience remains basically the same as it was in 1963.
After experiencing this somewhat disappointing time warp, we wondered how we could contribute a new point of view and perhaps spark more significant progress for the next 40 years.
The current climate gave us the final push--with the car industry lost, an urgent focus on global warming, awareness of oil dependency, and the economic down turn, the stars had aligned. It is time to sow seeds, to experiment. Armed with a small design studio, we set out to design a concept car in search of an optimistic new future. And it quickly became clear to us:
A shift must take place from styling cars to redefining them.This year at the Detroit Auto Show, we expected the industry to shed some light on a confident path ahead. Instead, we were shown their usual speed demons, nostalgic muscle, and a few seemingly very last minute answers to the electric future. It dawned on us: today's car industry is brainwashed by its own car culture, with its obsession for speed, styling and fantasy. The car business has become one of repackaging, steering people's focus towards style and a narrow definition of performance, not on our true needs.
Speed and "performance" have been the driving factors for car design, styling, and engineering for a century. Most cars on the road today can go 120 mph. Why? The reality is that cars are mostly used at moderate speeds and for sitting in traffic.
It's time to look at performance in a new way.
During our first brainstorming session, an honest discussion revealed an intriguing and consistent desire: the desire not to drive. Sure, everyone wanted to get from A to B, but they'd just rather be doing something else while en route: talking to friends, sleeping, or, as our French intern Laure suggested: "I want to enjoy the view with a nice wine, some cheese and a baguette."
It became obvious to us: Driving is like putting your life on hold. None of us liked the daily monotonous act of driving. After years of incessant advertising, we have subscribed to a false sense of freedom, the freedom to waste countless hours strapped behind the wheel.
Research revealed that self-driving cars, once a fantasy requiring an entirely new infrastructure, are now technologically possible, even inevitable. Savvy robotics are here and real. Advances in GPS, sophisticated sensors, and navigation databases will allow driverless vehicles to operate on the same roads we have today.
Each day we are required to maneuver a heavy object through complex traffic and pedestrians, all the while trying to obey hundreds of obscure traffic laws in constant fear of sudden brake lights ahead, of making a wrong turn, of unpredictable drivers and police.
And did we mention the countless distractions along the way?
Inevitably, in these complex and stressful situations, humans will make mistakes. We were moved by the numbers: over 6 million car accidents and 43,000 highway fatalities in the US each year, 13,000 of them alcohol related. Our conclusion? Humans are not meant to drive, nor should they have to.
From Driving to Riding Research revealed that self-driving cars, once a fantasy requiring an entirely new infrastructure, are now technologically possible, even inevitable. Savvy robotics are here and real. Advances in GPS, sophisticated sensors, and navigation databases will allow driverless vehicles to operate on the same roads we have today.
As with many robotic developments, the future of self-driving cars is being determined mostly by engineers and the military. Positive design visions are desperately needed if this technology (and other robotic technology) is to have a positive impact on society. We decided driverless technology would be the perfect starting point for our design exploration.
Covering the wheels communicated "electric", lowering the panels generated "train", tall windows are "bus". These experiments helped us decode the formula that makes a car a car in order to arrive at something new.
Not only will this technology save people millions of hours each year, it has the potential to virtually eliminate car accidents. Dismissing the need for extreme speed and acceleration as irrelevant, performance can be measured by time savings and safety instead. Inspired by this new outlook, it was to time to imagine what the driverless car for 2040 would look like...
A Different Approach to Car Design It is pretty safe to say that every designer has a terrible urge to draw on any piece of paper they come across, and the most mindless thing to draw is the side view of a car. Resisting the typical car sketching formula (draw two large wheels and something cool in between), we felt a new approach to car design was needed.
We started with a series of experiments--collaging, dissecting, montaging--to help us see the object and the experience in a new light. By taking photos of existing cars and manipulating them, we created objects that are not driver-oriented but passenger-oriented.
Altering the proportions of these vehicles helped us create new archetypes. Covering the wheels communicated "electric", lowering the panels generated "train", tall windows are "bus". These experiments helped us decode the formula that makes a car a car in order to arrive at something new.
Collage: driverless rover
Summoned by phone, your ATNMBL arrives. You enter from the curb side through an electric glass sliding door into a standing-height entryway. Upon entering, you are presented with a simple question: "Where can I take you?" There is no steering wheel, brake pedal or drivers seat.
But that still wasn't enough. We also needed to redefine the experience. Through a series of montages, we visualized our dreams of the ultimate riding experience: a beautiful view with the addition of basic elements for riding comfortably: seat, floor, table, roof.
Montage: idealized ride through the country
Montage: the ideal commute
Thinking about what we really want to do in our cars
Thinking about cars as architectural spaces
Sketch: a space for living
After reviews, collages, sketches and full scale volume studies, we arrived at a direction: the vehicle would be designed from the inside out with elements influenced by architecture. It should offer living comfort, views, conversations, and social connectedness. Unencumbered by driving, the new vehicle should be a space for living.
We labeled the concept the ATNMBL.
The ATNMBL Summoned by phone, your ATNMBL arrives. You enter from the curb side through an electric glass sliding door into a standing-height entryway. Upon entering, you are presented with a simple question: "Where can I take you?" There is no steering wheel, brake pedal or drivers seat.
If the interior feels familiar to you, it should. The wrap around seating arrangement is a direct reference to the typical living-room setting: a couch, side chair and low table. Up to seven riders are oriented towards each other and to the view outside through the large floor-to-ceiling panoramic windows on both sides.
Centrally oriented is a large flat display that features live trip information, maps, and entertainment. The display can slide up to reveal a bar behind. Yes, a bar. In a driverless vehicle, you can't drink and drive...but you can drink.
ATNMBL interior
ANTMBL from above
A new and comprehensive sense of control is introduced through voice recognition and a touch screen remote (or one's personal phone), offering riders a wide range of trip planning, ride sharing and performance settings that can be very detailed for those who want elaborate control or extremely simple for those who would rather just relax and enjoy the ride.
From the outside, ATNMBL looks like micro-architecture. Large windows, a pitched roof and asymmetrical from every view, the concept is designed without any reference to automobiles of the past. Absent are the myriad of design details and tricks that car designers have perfected over the years: large wheels, fluid forms, aggressive stance, character lines and shiny trim.
Transition from one architectural space to another
In contrast to today's automobiles, where much of the car's space is reserved for the engine and drive train, the ATNMBL's mechanical components are densely packed and simplified, providing dramatically more interior space in a vehicle that is shorter than most cars on the road today.
Electric motors in each wheel provide all-wheel drive. Power is stored underneath the seating and floor with additional power provided by solar panels on the roof. Within a gridded pattern front and rear is an array of headlights, tail lights and sensors.
At last, we're ready to leave speed, styling and fantasy behind for a moment so we can enjoy the much more compelling benefits in store for us:
- accessibility for the young, the elderly and the disabled (no drivers licenses)
- saving hours each day by reclaiming our commute time
- no searching for parking (it will drop us off and park itself)
- cars that work for us (think autonomous grocery pickups, deliveries and car maintenance)
- cars that make money for us
- less congestion with increased carpooling and carsharing
- did we mention the bar?
- and most importantly, there will be far fewer fatalities and there will always be a designated driver.
We admit it, we miss our old T-bird. With its swing-away steering wheel, elegant stance and velvety ride, it was hard to part with it. But with 11 miles per gallon, the constant smell of gasoline in our house, and frequent trips to the mechanic, it was time to let go of the past to make room for a new future.
The need for efficient, affordable, zero-pollution cars is vital for the future of humanity and the planet but is obviously not the only problem to be solved. Think about it, 40 years from now, many of us will no longer be able to drive. But with a little bit of optimism and a newly inspired car industry, we may still have the freedom to enjoy the ride.
Mike and Maaike is an industrial design studio that takes an experimental approach to design, creating progressive solutions for high and low tech products, furniture, wearables, environments, and now vehicles. Maaike Evers is Dutch; Mike Simonian, Californian. Their distinct backgrounds and unique approach create strong conceptual foundations and a clear point of view. The studio, which has received recognition and awards from design publications and museums around the world, is based in San Francisco. They recently collaborated with Google to develop Android-based smart phones.
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What a revolutionary concept; a single occupancy bus... I mean REALLY?
Think about last anti collision technology into Honda and Mercedes cars...We're close to stop driving.
Probably won't be that extreme, we need transition.
Tomorrow, i won't drive home, i'll call a "Taxi robot". I won't possess, i'll share. What a change!
And judging by the style of those "cars" I would say that if these type of cars comes in to production - cars and car design is dead. Go back in time instead, look historically how cars have developed, and how you can "hybrid" the cars technology with the driver - and not taking away the control from the driver permanently.
R
A for political rhetoric
B+ for style
F for actually solving to the real problem it proposes to solve.
I like to drive for pleasure but I commute by subway. I suggest Mike and Maaike do the same and leave transport design to the professionals.
If there is no basic difference nor advantage (I always used to study, and now even do part of my work while commuting by train), why even bother to concoct it. Oh, because public transportation is somehow "for poor people", and it doesn't get to Suburbia. Well, move to accessible neighbourhoods! Whatever!
For commuting, electric public transport. Period. Something like this for *any long trips* (I do supermarket rides by tram also without any problem), now *that* seems like an excellent idea!
I like the design of the ANTMBL. However, I feel like the refrigerator inside is a little unnecessary. A big reason for this design is to help with the pollution problem, why does there need to be a fridge to take up space and essentially pollute some more. With that said, I think that will be a selling point to this contraption, because people will be able to "drink and drive" and not have to worry about have a sober. I think that this a unique idea, and they should start working towards making it happen!
This concept isn't solving anything and is nothing new in the slightest
Im sorry but no
I'd like to inhabit that future. Thanks for sharing this concept.
Honestly, get your heads out of the clouds, and go and spend some time living in the real world, with real people, with real problems and perhaps one day you may turn out something worthwhile.
For me, the outcome of this project is a tiresome, totally cliched, regurgitated take on very old Utopian concepts, lightly veiled in the most up to date technology.
Sure its great to try and make suggestions for how the car could be redefined, and to at least strive for some real innovation in the automotive world, but when you make such sweeping statements, you're going to need something a little more than this to stand a remote chance of being an alternative. Creating an asymmetric, autonomous, moving shop- window certainly doesn't redefine the car.
Honestly, get rid of a few of the 'bluesky cookoos' in your brainstorming group and replace them with real people who can actually give you some useful input.
Surprisingly there is a sizable proportion of the population to whom cars represent a little more than just getting from A to B... And that's because people aren't vegetables. People have complex emotional relationships with the products around them. - A consideration overwhelmingly absent in this project.
In the comments, lots of people make the point that its easy to knock 'out of the box' design thinking and that these kind of people push the boundaries, and move the game on from the dreaded comfort zone. This I think is true and I completely agree that real conceptual thinking is undeniably important . But this is beside the point here.
The point here is that for a highly acclaimed up and coming studio, this is a quite below-par, unoriginal and ill-informed piece of design, which I only think will be detrimental to their future...
This would make life so much more boring
Not impressed with the focus on drinking, either. I like a good drink every now and then, yes, but you seem to support the idea of arriving at every destination in a reduced state of awareness. Last thing I want to encounter, as I'm walking through a city, is a handful of sauced people stepping out of a large vehicle.
Needs to be smaller, too. I like to travel alone, and I'm sure there are millions of others who do, too. It's "quiet time" for me, many times. I'm also one of the (apparently) few who don't necessarily have a 'need for speed', so being able to 'floor it' isn't a requirement for me.
Commendable idea, though. If it's affordable, smaller, and symmetrical, I'm in.
I have seen concepts like these for years in Design Schools that focus on Transportation. Its nothing all that new. People have been thinking along these lines for decades now - even since the fifties i would argue. At the end of the day we can make a difference by attacking the problems in transportation systematically one at a time. (i hate to say that). I have dealt a lot with engineers and i must say the biggest issues i often have is taking them out of their safe zone (the box). Some designers on the other hand don't even know where the safe zone is. They 'think' they are constantly thinking 'out of the box'. However they don't even know where the box is. As is the case in the above concept. When something like this comes from a somewhat respected design house I really expected to see more. Instead I feel like I am seeing another junior level transportation design project. This really looks more like some type of a Marketing PR exercise rather that a realistic attempt at solving a problem.
i don't mean to be offensive, but i'd just like to again comment on how silly this is. designers everywhere slip into the language of vapor and mirage from time to time, with their "ethos", "emotion", and etc. that's fine, and necessary.
but it's juvenile to make a design with an utter lack of regard for what will make it work. this is clearly not a product that will be made in the next 50 or even 100 years, because you simply don't know what goes into your idea. it has a "sensor grid" robust enough to guide it to any location, obeying all traffic laws, with a very low margin of error. it's "solar powered". are you implying that it's a perpetual motion machine? i don't see it being plugged in anywhere to charge. it has a powertrain, but where are the batteries and the battery management systems and the controller and the heavy motor with its mounts and the heating and cooling systems, not to mention everything else that goes into the simplest of electric cars.
your line of reasoning is apparently that computers are better at avoiding crashes than people. unfortunately, this is not so. not at all, not even a little bit. did you see some of the actual autonomous vehicles built by MIT, Stanford, and other prolific engineering universities? they were giant gas-guzzling SUVs filled up to the brim with electronics. and they had problems and failures. quite a few, actually.
now, you want to build a fucking glass house on wheels with a sofa in it, which avoids crashes near-perfectly, is continuously recharged by the sun, and is environmentally friendly as well as safe. who is going to actually build your indulgent fart of an idea? MIT can't. Stanford can't. and, unfortunately, i don't think you will be able to either.
design and engineering are parts of a basic and essential synergy. without one, the other is pointless. a design without regard for engineering is pointless. a machine without regard for design is not pointless, but is ugly, hard to use, no fun, and etc.
disregard either one and you end up with a crock of shit.
i can "design" a beautiful watch that has a tv, chair, espresso machine, and missile guidance system in it, but it still has no basis in reality.
I really like where this idea is headed. I'm not a driver, I'm someone who relies on public transport and an occasional taxi. The lure of the personal freedom of driving is certainly strong ... while the hassle of road rage, jams and insufficient parking spots means I'm happier on a bus with my book or chatting with my wife.
I can see the petrol-head joy of driving across country, the open road ... but many folks spend their existence travelling day-to-day within a particular town or city. A driver needs to stay focused, right? They're in control of heavy metal machinery... and sitting at the wheel idly moving forward a few yards every 10/20 seconds in a typically congested town/city ... or getting a driving spurt of just a minute or so before reaching the next set of traffic lights... are not a good uses of anyone's time.
So I'd agree that this car concept is worth thinking through. It's not a new idea as it was born in science fiction long ago ... but technology is certainly getting us near the stage where this could be made. Pick it up, take it forward. It's not going to be to everyone's taste, but nothing is.
Yes it is an extension of what buses and taxi's provide for us, and it'd be awesome to have your own travel lounge, just as those people who travel first/business class actually have room to stretch out while travelling.
This concept taken forward could also be great on a sharing or community (pooling) level.
More thought required on lots of levels ... safety & security foremost.
I'll leave someone else to think about the vast market & cultural forces which would oppose this project.
Some other practical aspects could be ironed out, such as internal heating/cooling, comfort (such as ergonomics/anthropometric support, some car suspension), secure storage, provision of shade/privacy, and a design where manoeuvring around a city at even moderate speeds won't result in you sliding off your seat and smacking into a glass wall, or everything sliding off a polished table.
Keep going, take this further and further ...
Lest you forget that no matter your speed, vehicles today are often shaped by the laws that govern Crash Test and Vehicle Safety Ratings. We don't drive around in glass boxes on sofas because we tend to bump into things from time to time and I like having a bit of steel or even carbon fiber between me and that on coming bus.
Similar to designers that are only skilled on computers and cannot draw by hand. By taking away our responsibilities we will be breading a lack of commonsence and negate the freedom and enjoyment that can be had on our roads.
Should we also be conditioning ourselves to spending more time inside a livingroom esc environment, waking up to get ready for work only to fall asleep on the commute to work with obesity on such a rapid rise? What will be the bigger problem in 10 years time, obesity related health problems or road traffic accidents?
I have enjoyed this article because it has created a large debate, which a lot of people have very strong feelings for, I hope this was the aim of the its two creators instead of a eureka moment.
My major problem with this proposition is the tiny wheels that lack any apparent suspension. Anyone who has ever taken a ride in a shopping trolly outside of the supermarket will understand what I mean. I think car fans will be able to sleep easily for the time being.
PS: Many of us love to drive =)
Info on what went wrong isn't to be found anywhere, rumour says it hit a bicyclist in tests on its seperate buslane (in public space).
The Phileas'es' are driven by busdrivers in reality..
>>>>
Like the atnmbl, besides the fact I'd like to have a 360 view and no-one should be able to look at whatever I'm doing in the vehicle. If such a vehicle was reality it would revolutionize life for commuters in industrialized/urbanized areas. Brilliant!
Why text messaging? Because it applicable to blind people, deaf and mute, those on wheel chair, non English speaking users and easier for the compute to recognize rather than voice.
So basically, make the vehicle public but the key is the one that's being owned here. This way, you will get rid the need for buses and trains. No more traffic light and harrowing traffic congestion.
But what at what cost... you will need a humongous vehicle control center everywhere all over the world. Large amount of energized roads. Maintenance centers funded by everybody through special vehicle user taxes paid monthly. Changes of attitude worldwide.
See... that's the future mode of transportation especially that I dream and want. Some of it you already mentioned in your brainstorm session.
http://www.core77.com/blog/technology/magic_highway_usa_disney_envisions_the_future_of_transportation_in_1958__6276.asp
Too bad the solar panels have to be on the roof!! Wouldn't you love to see the stars while chilling on the couch on your drive through the country?
However I do think there is more to be considered, and I am sure that this concept has not ignored these factors:
Safety
The thrill of speed and the freedom of manual driving - how would users wishing to take their older cars out for a recreational drive do so if new road systems were put in place?
ATNMBL for the lower class and poorer individual - what form would these take?
Advantage to the global society
I was also intrigued by a point raised earlier about how the cars could in fact become modules interchangeable between user groups, rented for a journey, like a taxi...
Perhaps a driverless taxi is a more realistic view to the future?
Thanks for posting the article though, it has stirred a lot of creative thoughts in my head!
Mike
With computers controlling the cars instead of error prone, distracted and sometimes inebriated humans the accident rate will plummet. Not to mention the split second reaction will all but prevent multi-car pileups.
I look forward to the day when I can comfortably move around in a living room type space without "big brother" telling me that I have to be strapped in.
This process rethinks context and culture. It offers new behaviors.
Detroit's biggest problem? It can't see past the given 'car culture' to innovate. And it's obsessed with objects rather than experiences. It's an archaic remnant of the industrial era.
M&M's proposal is not 'car culture'. It's an alternative. Let's see the 30 second commercial for this!
Scott in Detroit
how can we as designers offer something better to the already speed machine brainwashed generation of today? and make it attractive to tomorrows generation?
Best of Luck,
S. Shah
I WANT AN ALL GLASS DESIGN!!
I am impressed by the product follow-though, and the prototype is quite nice. But it seems like the design process was subjectively aimed at this predetermined prototype. I don't think coffee on the coffee table would sit, and what about car sickness?
Anyway, I'm with headplow, and would rather walk. Commuting should be done by public transport, and joy riding should be with as little footprint as possible.
Automation has been gradually creeping into our cars since the first automatic transmission was introduced; cruise control, ABS, traction control, throttle-by-wire, automatic braking, active steering, cars communicating between each other, DARPA's X-prize, etc. These REAL WORLD innovations are all gradually leading us towards further semi-automation and reduction of human error.
The market will most likely want to keep the option to control the vehicle when needed. Therefore, some controls will have to be accommodated in the interior as well as a suitable driver position.
Hopefully, there will be more transportation options in the future for those who don't want to drive.
Follow the link for a blurb, unfortunately I can't find a picture unless I delve into the collection of car bumf I so avidly collected as a 13 year old and is now gathering dust under the bed!
http://www.wiki-north-east.co.uk/article.aspx?id=70926
Perhaps we rewind the clock a couple generations: “I love smoking. I can’t imagine not being able to smoke. Why on Earth would a bubble-headed designer create a restaurant or public space where no one could smoke?! And look at those coffee tables they’re proposing: where are the ash trays? Ridiculous!â€
The collective commentary of the nay-sayers here illustrate exactly why creative thinking designers continue to be shackled to a life of servitude to those with the money to produce new products or ideas. Instead creative thinkers should not shy from projects like this where the norm is challenged and truly breakthrough ideas surface. The auto industry clearly does not have answers nor does big business have the time or resources to innovate. So who’s going to do it?
And speaking of other realities: Automotive design esthetically and historically would be shameful to simply wipe off as the "solution" to our problem.
Let Enzo Ferrari approve this design. Then we'll talk.
Personal, automated transportation is not a new idea. At all. Nor is celebrating the emotive element of passive transportation. These ideas that supposedly upend our normative thought regarding automobiles do nothing of the sort. These ideas have been around for years, if not decades. Your process is solid, sure, but you two are certainly not the first to walk down that path.
Furthermore, as Luno points out, this concept presents no solutions for application in the real world. While our natural resources are dwindling, you present a concept larger than a Surburban with worse aerodynamics. You show no thought regarding powertrain packaging nor safety. The complex electronics required to make this vehicle work are decades, not years, away from commercial implementation.
I also see no need for such a radical shift away from traditional automotive semantics. Architectural semantics --- geometric, transparent, spacious, delicate --- exist for a reason. Buildings do not move, they do not face extreme performance demands, and they do not smash into one another from time to time. The essential "look" of a building communicates these traits. Automobiles, however, do move, do endure acute performance demands, and do smash into one another from time to time. Cars communicate these traits, whether through their limited use of glass, or their sweeping, dynamic lines.
The "typical" automotive aesthetic may have been around for some time; that is because it is honest about the nature of the object, what it does and how it is used. To dress a "car" up as a building is fundamentally dishonest about its use and the demands placed upon it.
Sketching a dream, or creating a lightning rod for discussion: these goals are all well and good. However, there is a need to show some appreciation for the real challenges that separate this dream from reality. This is not design. This is fantasy. M&M, a thinktank you are not.
I bleave GOOGLE and hence optimistic that this is our future car.Simply if u dream for some thing and work hard for it you can achive you dream.
I am waiting to see your dream running on roads of this world.
Autonomous Automobile
The prefix "auto-" means "self," the suffix "-mobile" means movement or travel. So an automobile is "self-travel." It's already autonomous.
I agree that it's really, really, extremely, excruciatingly difficult to drive a car, and the closer you get to a major urban area the more stressful it gets. But putting a GPS on the thing and expecting people to trust yet another layer of control does not increase the driver's autonomy; it turns the controlled process of driving into an entirely passive thing.
Seems to be the way things are going, though. This project is nothing more than a safety net, like many other safety nets we're seeing lately. Soon enough we won't be able to go to the bathroom without some machine trying to intervene.
In short, sometimes low-tech is good. I'll take the stress of driving, and the true autonomy that comes with it, over this Big Brother version of the automobile any day.
The problem with robotics and computers are that it gives a false perception that they are perfect and fail proof and for centuries we have seen how efficient they are.
For eg. I command the "car" to go to a place that is half way around the country, I have no clue where it is and I go to sleep or enjoying myself with a drink or two - get stoned and I wake up to see that I am in the middle of the desert or much worse.
As Mike Solo says " This project simply screams delusional thinking" I absolutely agree.
Hey look its a "cheesecake" no its a "room on wheels" no its one of those techy crap and its "saves earth" COOL I want one...
Its a shame to see time wasted in such " out of the box" visualization.. Someone needs a reality check here!
What I really don't like is the styling. I feel that this vehicle is very minimalist. This style is popular with the ID and Interior design crowd, but I don't feel that many people agree with this aesthetic. I think the idea can be pushed further as a mobile living room. Jeremy Clarkson had the right idea:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0qdHEBo3UU
Personally, I enjoy driving and I love looking at cars. I would be afraid if cars will be replaced by this.
Besides, if such a system were in place, I'm sure a whole new sector in renting luxury cars for track driving would emerge. Think of it as high-end go karting if you will; except instead of driving your Toyota (because it's all you could afford) you could actually be taking performance cars out and pushing them to their limits. No doubt that would slake your lust for speed. How much actual driving does one get the chance to do on their daily commute anyways? I don't think sitting in traffic would compare to flying down a track in an italian sports car.
Open your minds, drivers of the world.
We make a brief mention of the Autonomobile on episode 021 of my podcast, which can be found at www.sciencetastic.net. Check us out.
Hey ID guys quite reinventing things, try designing them, its harder but much more rewarding.
This stuff should be on yanko not a real ID site
I love to drive. And enough people out there love to drive enough to put companies like Porsche, BMW, Audi, Ferrari, and all the rest of them in business.
This "art project" masquerading as a car insults the designers and engineers who make functioning, mobile artwork that society wants.
This project simply screams delusional thinking. If people hate driving enough, then use the existing public transportation, or get a taxi.
People love to drive, and they have for the past 100 years.
P.S. One terrorist GPS jammer would cause such a disruption with this computer controlled network, I shudder to envision the carnage.
P.S.S. GPS jammers cost less than $1000, and are widely available.
Some people don't like to be bothered with the extra involvement, and prefer an automatic transmission. Now there are some times when I can see this view point, and these days automatics are getting much better. Instead of doing what they want and frustrating us, they do what we'd expect them to do, what we would've done if we were making the gear changes ourselves.
When the technology and infrastrucutre are advanced enough to allow driverless cars, there will be less traffic and less acccidents, and I think this will make people want to drive more. The reason people don't like to drive is they don't like being stuck in traffic or cut off by careless drivers. If you could drive without having to worry about the negatives I wouldn't be content to sit in a box, completely unattached from the experience. Who wouldn't want the chance to take the jet for a few loops, or be the conductor of the train every once in awhile.
A design that ignores all the natural human desires to interact with their enviorment, to use this tool, to ask "what can I make this car do" seems like a cop-out. This design tells me what the car is going to do for me, not what it will let me do.
The presentation looks really good, but that doesn't make you a designer.
... and car design by people who don't like cars.
And what do you get?
Thinking outside the box, that puts us in an even smaller box than the one we started with.
you have outlined a glass shape that can go anywhere, is powered by solar power, and shows little to no room for the components making it work. you wanted to redefine what a car is, but you forgot why a car is what it is. it's design with a respect and appreciation for the limitations of engineers. this is almost disrespectful because your design shows a great lack of thought for what is needed to make it work.
Where are the large wheels, fluid forms, aggressive stance, character lines and shiny trim?
A very american concept yet still, with too much design, too many features, complete lack of D.O.T. safety understanding Yawn its so boring I forgot what I was saying.
One big question I have: If something goes wrong, does the computer programmer get hauled into court?
--S
Couple of thoughts:
- Cars are designed to be aerodynamic, this doesn't seem to be
- One of the biggest problems of cars today is that they are unnecessarily big for most commutes - ie one passenger in 5 or 7 seater
- Car styling is, to me, is one of the strongest expressions of visual design and art. I agree with Chris Bangle that cars are art and their emotional connections with their users is not something I think could be easily or should be easily lost.
- I love driving and would hate to never be able to do it.
I think if I was to attack this kind of brief the car would be highly expressive, modular and computer assisted not controlled.
Interesting though
Second: Unfortunately, Not all of the world is Portland or Seattle or NYC Metro. How would you address those in rural areas? or those, who, unlike your specific demographic queried, actually enjoy driving. Be careful with peer review, and ensure it's not unintentionally biased. Nearly every one I know loves to drive & would rather spend our time in a vehicle under our independent control, even for commuting. These area the people I associate with, due to our common interests. Your immediate peers are that, simply due to that common bond. Do not assume 'everyone,' hates to drive, for it would be just as egotistical as if I were to assume everyone loves sports cars, and drive them at trackdays, as well as commuting.
People buy products not just according to their basic need but also according to their emotional needs. And the level of emotional needs differ from person to person, from one society, nation to another. So the assumption here that people don’t want to drive, or the assertion that people should not drive might only be valid for some people and by no means if all the people involved in the research here think that ways, it would be valid
for everybody else as well. It depends on the context, like so many people in cities like Tokyo prefer public transport.
Sociology around a Product is very critical and we have to aware of the impact of products on our society which makes us mere passive recipients. Like watching TV (passive) over active dialogue over the Internet (active). The proposed Autonombile seems to me one another such passive product and below are some points why? :
• Driving a car is an act which requires our participation and hence it is active and also provides a sense of achievement when we complete the task.
• Whereas, sitting in a glass box which is just an another extension of living room (whether we actually need this extension, I am not sure) and watching some TV or drinking wine seems like feeding the vices like laziness, self indulgence etc making us even more passive than what we are today.
• And if I want to enjoy a scene, I wouldn’t want to be so superficial and appreciate it from inside a glass box….I would rather get rid of this separation. That is the reason why people drive open roadsters because this direct contact with wind makes you more close to then surrounding around than in a closed car, it give this sense of connectivity.
• So, its not such a basic question of getting from point A to B, only which is taken into account here….It is the way you go there is more important and how it makes you feel….In open environment on holidays this act of driving is relaxing and beautiful but in the City the same act becomes stressful. So it is perhaps more about the way our cities and our lifestyle is than only this act of driving.
And the way it is mentioned here, about the car being Asymmetrical from every view, It seems the designers have a heavy assumption that highly asymmetrical things are better than the symmetrical things.
Talking about styling and fantasy….the vision of living room like interior here is infected with no less desire of styling and fantasy….everbody wants to have a nicely designed and styled living room…then why not cars ?… Why do we spend so much time in preparing and serving Food, which tastes, looks, smells, good....why not then just cook all the ingredients separately and eat them one after the other ..after all we are going to get the same amount of energy from it, perhaps even more….but we still care… It our emotions that makes us humans, but at the same time if we stay sensitive enough and are aware of impact of our actions then we will be in better harmony than today.
Why cars need to be sculptural?
….as in the case here as well the car will go and park itself and stay stationary for good amounts of time. And why would anybody want to have millions of lifeless and dumb boxes around, that don’t evoke any emotions in us. Compare an old hand written letter on paper to todays e-mail and you would see how that piece of paper has so much emotion and life in it.
Talking about accidents, to avoid that we don’t need to take all the control from the driver and put it in the hands of machine….for, if something will go wrong (after all we have viruses in the digital world) you’ll never know what to do in order to stop the mishap, Because the smart machine has made us Dumb and Dependent ….Today we have enough technology that we can employ in the cars that no matter how hard we try we cannot crash into another car or a human….we can have sensors and smart feedback systems which would take car of any such hazardous situations and would take control from our hands and prevent the accident.
Having said all that, I think we need to be aware and define a proper context around a product and not just get carried away by our assumptions and bias either for or against the existing system….but observe it more closely and try to work sincerely and honestly and not in a hurry.
I think that if this wouldn't be out until 2040 then I guess maybe I will be able to enjoy it in my next life lol. If I am still alive at age 70 when this comes out then it will be the last thing that makes me happy until I die lol.
A massive cultural revolution will be needed in order to radically change the way we think about the automobiles.
But i like very much your human approach to the idea.
My humble technical opinion:
Your ATNMBL seems too big for the narrow heavy-traffic streets (it'll have to cohabit with today's cars for quite a lot).
Maybe i could want to be driven alone to my work, so much space would be a waste.
A modular vehicle that you could add-take off depending on your needs would be more flexible.
The ATNMBL could also be a "part" of the house which detaches and stands alone driving away..
I like how even as professional working adults, designers can still present the "magic box" as their OWN innovative design idea.
Just to clarify, the magic box is a basically formless concept ( in this case lacking aerodynamics for example ), stuffed with all the latest technology, and top it off with a completely new infrastructure system while dictating a new social behavior (people don't want to drive).
In reality these are "systems" that grow naturally in a collective of users, companies, and technologies ( for example
Mobile Phone+Facebook+You Tube+Iranian protesters )
I don't see the harm in posting these ideas when there is an abundance of free time, but I don't see the need for attacking the professionals in the auto design industry.
Thanks for sharing!
It fact this doesn't need to be a car that one OWNS, you could share it or even rent it as a taxi on demand. In a way it could blur the boundaries between public and private transport.
Similar thoughts have been around for a while (i.e. Shaun Hutchinson at RCA, 2001), and automation is almost becoming an obvious way to evolve the urban mobility, but it is incredible that the car industry still doesn't wake up... I wonder when.
How about a few variations to show how the concept could serve humanity on a wider scale, for example:
- low-cost
- developing nation
- smaller
- convertible
- optionally rail mounted
- off road (remote location access)
- work truck
I also don't see any safety equipment (although I assume active restraints like air bags would be there) nothing beats a seat belt.
You might look into peer to peer vehicle networking too for assisted navigation. Interesting ideas emerging there.
Good Luck,
Moti Barzilay
I do however really like the approach you took.
A question i have is, are these cars personal, or shared? Is it your own car that picks you up or is it just one of many ANTMBL's?
Nice concept, M&M...hopefully people wake up and realize that the traditional iconography of cars is both outmoded and archaic....and in dire need of some real design THINKING...not drawing.