Toyota i-unit

Last updated
Toyota i-Unit. TOYOTA i-unit.jpg
Toyota i-Unit.
The i-Unit in the low position at the IAA 2005 in Frankfurt. Toyota I-Unit low position with passenger.jpg
The i-Unit in the low position at the IAA 2005 in Frankfurt.
The i-Unit in the high position at the IAA 2005 in Frankfurt. Toyota I-Unit high position.jpg
The i-Unit in the high position at the IAA 2005 in Frankfurt.

The i-unit is an ultra-compact single seater four wheeled Toyota concept car. It debuted at the World Expo 2005, held in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. The vehicle is a cross between a microcar, a motorcycle, and a vehicular exoskeleton. The goal of Toyota is to provide a personal mobility, which can be used on roads but also does not hinder interaction with pedestrians. For this the i-unit has two possible setups. First, there is an upright low speed setup, where the rider has a higher position and can have conversations face-to-face with pedestrians and can move among people. This upright position can be transformed while driving to a low position, where the rider sits much lower and more reclined. This high speed setup has a much lower center of gravity and is for driving at higher speeds.

Toyota Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer

Toyota Motor Corporation is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota, Aichi, Japan. In 2017, Toyota's corporate structure consisted of 364,445 employees worldwide and, as of September 2018, was the sixth-largest company in the world by revenue. As of 2017, Toyota is the largest automotive manufacturer. Toyota was the world's first automobile manufacturer to produce more than 10 million vehicles per year which it has done since 2012, when it also reported the production of its 200-millionth vehicle. As of July 2014, Toyota was the largest listed company in Japan by market capitalization and by revenue.

Concept car an automobile manufactured to showcase design features that may be present in a future production model

A concept car is a car made to showcase new styling and/or new technology. They are often shown at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not be mass-produced. General Motors designer Harley Earl is generally credited with inventing the concept car, and did much to popularize it through its traveling Motorama shows of the 1950s.

Aichi Prefecture Prefecture of Japan

Aichi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region. The region of Aichi is also known as the Tōkai region. The capital is Nagoya. It is the focus of the Chūkyō metropolitan area.

Contents

The i-unit weighs 180 kilograms (400 lb). It contains a lithium ion battery and features Intelligent Transport System technology. The rear wheels are powered by electric motors, and the device is steered with the front wheels. In the upright position it has a turning radius of 0.9 metres (35.4 in), which means it can turn on the spot. The vehicle is controlled by two joystick-like devices at the front of the armrests, and uses a Drive-by-wire technology. An Intelligent Transport System (ITS) technology aims to reduce the likelihood of accidents.

Joystick input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base

A joystick is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. A joystick, also known as the control column, is the principal control device in the cockpit of many civilian and military aircraft, either as a center stick or side-stick. It often has supplementary switches to control various aspects of the aircraft's flight.

Accident unforeseen and unplanned event or circumstance, often with a negative outcome

An accident, also known as an unintentional act, is an undesirable, incidental, and an unplanned event that could have been prevented had circumstances leading up to the accident been recognized, and acted upon, prior to its occurrence. Most scientists who study unintentional injury avoid using the term "accident" and focus on factors that increase risk of severe injury and that reduce injury incidence and severity.

The color of the lights can change according to the preferences or emotions of the operator. The shape was designed to symbolize a leaf, and the design incorporates environmentally friendly materials such as kenaf.

Leaf organ of a vascular plant, composing its foliage

A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant and is the principal lateral appendage of the stem. The leaves and stem together form the shoot. Leaves are collectively referred to as foliage, as in "autumn foliage".

Kenaf species of plant

Kenaf [etymology: Persian], Hibiscus cannabinus, is a plant in the family Malvaceae also called Deccan hemp and Java jute. Hibiscus cannabinus is in the genus Hibiscus and is native to southern Asia, though its exact origin is unknown. The name also applies to the fibre obtained from this plant. Kenaf is one of the allied fibres of jute and shows similar characteristics.

This concept vehicle is used by Toyota for public relations, and they state that The "i-unit" is a form of "personal mobility" that seeks to attain a greater balance of meeting individuals' wishes to enjoy freedom of movement, harmony with society, and harmony with the Earth's natural environment. They also refer to these vehicles as wearable personal mobility vehicles. A representative at the IAA 2005 in Frankfurt stated that Toyota may plan to offer these type of vehicles for sale, but did not provide a date when the vehicle will be available. Currently the vehicle lacks features such as a storage compartment (i.e. Trunk or glove compartment), and the protection against bad weather is inadequate.

Public relations (PR) is the practice of deliberately managing the spread of information between an individual or an organization and the public. Public relations may include an organization or individual gaining exposure to their audiences using topics of public interest and news items that do not require direct payment. This differentiates it from advertising as a form of marketing communications. Public relations is the idea of creating coverage for clients for free, rather than marketing or advertising. But now, advertising is also a part of greater PR Activities. An example of good public relations would be generating an article featuring a client, rather than paying for the client to be advertised next to the article. The aim of public relations is to inform the public, prospective customers, investors, partners, employees, and other stakeholders and ultimately persuade them to maintain a positive or favorable view about the organization, its leadership, products, or political decisions. Public relations professionals typically work for PR and marketing firms, businesses and companies, government, and public officials as PIOs and nongovernmental organizations, and nonprofit organizations. Jobs central to public relations include account coordinator, account executive, account supervisor, and media relations manager.

Frankfurt Place in Hesse, Germany

Frankfurt is a metropolis and the largest city of the German federal state of Hesse, and its 746,878 (2017) inhabitants make it the fifth-largest city of Germany after Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, and Cologne. On the River Main, it forms a continuous conurbation with the neighbouring city of Offenbach am Main, and its urban area has a population of 2.3 million. The city is at the centre of the larger Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region, which has a population of 5.5 million and is Germany's second-largest metropolitan region after the Rhine-Ruhr Region. Since the enlargement of the European Union in 2013, the geographic centre of the EU is about 40 km (25 mi) to the east of Frankfurt's central business district. Like France and Franconia, the city is named after the Franks. Frankfurt is the largest city in the Rhine Franconian dialect area.

Glove compartment

A glove compartment or glovebox or glovie is a compartment built into the dashboard of an automobile, located over the front-seat passenger's footwell, and often used for miscellaneous storage. The name derives from the original purpose of the compartment, to store driving gloves. They were sometimes in a box on the floorboard near the driver, hence the word "glovebox". In most vehicles, the glove compartment closes with a latch, with the option of being locked with a key.

Twelve i-units together with two Toyota i-foots (two legged walking seats for one passenger, maximum capacity 60 kg) performed at the Toyota Pavilion at the 2005 World Expo in Aichi.

DimensionLow SpeedHigh Speed
Length1.100 metres (43.3 in)1.800 metres (70.9 in)
Height1.800 metres (70.9 in)1.250 metres (49.2 in)
Width1.040 metres (40.9 in)0.540 metres (21.3 in)
Wheelbase 0.540 metres (21.3 in)1.300 metres (51.2 in)

The i-unit has been superseded by the i-swing, a three-wheeler that leans in curves. One of the i-units produced is on display in the London Science Museum, where its bio-plastic panels are featured. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

Anti-lock braking system safety anti-skid braking system

An anti-lock braking system (ABS) is a safety anti-skid braking system used on aircraft and on land vehicles, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, and buses. ABS operates by preventing the wheels from locking up during braking, thereby maintaining tractive contact with the road surface.

Hybrid vehicle vehicle whose powertrain uses many power sources

A hybrid vehicle uses two or more distinct types of power, such as internal combustion engine to drive an electric generator that powers an electric motor, e.g. in diesel-electric trains using diesel engines to drive an electric generator that powers an electric motor, and submarines that use diesels when surfaced and batteries when submerged. Other means to store energy include pressurized fluid in hydraulic hybrids.

Recumbent bicycle Type of bicycle

A recumbent bicycle is a bicycle that places the rider in a laid-back reclining position. Most recumbent riders choose this type of design for ergonomic reasons: the rider's weight is distributed comfortably over a larger area, supported by back and buttocks. On a traditional upright bicycle, the body weight rests entirely on a small portion of the sitting bones, the feet, and the hands.

Tricycle three-wheeled vehicle

A tricycle, often abbreviated to trike, is a human-powered three-wheeled vehicle.

A velomobile, velomobiel, velo, or bicycle car is a human-powered vehicle (HPV) enclosed for aerodynamic advantage and protection from weather and collisions. They are similar to recumbent bicycles and tricycles, but with a full fairing. A fairing may be added to a non-faired cycle, or the fairing may be an integral part of the structure, monocoque like that of an airplane.

Steering collection of components, linkages, etc. which allows any vehicle to follow the desired course (for directional control)

Steering is the collection of components, linkages, etc. which allows any vehicle to follow the desired course. An exception is the case of rail transport by which rail tracks combined together with railroad switches provide the steering function. The primary purpose of the steering system is to allow the driver to guide the vehicle.

A mid-engine layout describes the placement of an automobile engine between the rear and front axles and generally behind the passenger compartment.

Hybrid Synergy Drive (HSD) is the brand name of Toyota Motor Corporation for the hybrid car drive train technology used in vehicles with the Toyota and Lexus marques. First introduced on the Prius, the technology is an option on several other Toyota and Lexus vehicles and has been adapted for the electric drive system of the hydrogen-powered Mirai, and for a plug-in hybrid version of the Prius. Previously, Toyota also licensed its HSD technology to Nissan for use in its Nissan Altima Hybrid. Its parts supplier Aisin Seiki Co. offers similar hybrid transmissions to other car companies.

Tilting three-wheeler

A tilting three-wheeler, or tilting trike is a three-wheeled vehicle whose body and or wheels tilt in the direction of a turn, and is usually a narrow-track vehicle. Such vehicles can corner without rolling over despite having a narrow axle track because they can balance some or all of the roll moment caused by centripetal acceleration with an opposite roll moment caused by gravity, as bicycles and motorcycles do. This also reduces the lateral acceleration experienced by the rider, which some find more comfortable than the alternative. The narrow profile can result in reduced aerodynamic drag and increased fuel efficiency. These types of vehicles have also been described as "man-wide vehicles" (MWV).

Carver (automotive company) tilting three-wheeled vehicle, officially launched in 2007

Carver Europe B.V. is a Dutch automotive company that develops and manufactures three-wheeled enclosed man-wide vehicles. The company's core technology is the Dynamic Vehicle Control (DVC) system, which enables narrow vehicles to make banked turns, aiding stability when turning at higher speeds.

Mobility scooter mobility aid

A mobility scooter is a mobility aid equivalent to a wheelchair but configured like a motorscooter. It is often referred to as a power-operated vehicle/scooter or electric scooter as well.

Automatic parking

Automatic parking is an autonomous car-maneuvering system that moves a vehicle from a traffic lane into a parking spot to perform parallel, perpendicular, or angle parking. The automatic parking system aims to enhance the comfort and safety of driving in constrained environments where much attention and experience is required to steer the car. The parking maneuver is achieved by means of coordinated control of the steering angle and speed which takes into account the actual situation in the environment to ensure collision-free motion within the available space.

Hybrid vehicle drivetrains transmit power to the driving wheels for hybrid vehicles. A hybrid vehicle has multiple forms of motive power.

Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility

The Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility (PUMA) was an experimental electrically powered road vehicle created by Segway and adopted by General Motors as a concept vehicle representing the future of urban transportation. It operates on two wheels placed side by side, a layout that differs in placement from motorcycles which instead have their two wheels placed at the front and rear.

Toyota i-REAL

The i-REAL is a 'Personal Mobility Concept' made by automotive giant Toyota that was planned to be put on sale sometime around 2010. It is a development of previous Toyota Personal Mobility vehicles including the i-unit and i-Swing. As with said previous vehicles, the i-REAL is a 3-wheeled electrically powered one-passenger vehicle, running on lithium-ion batteries.

Honda U3-X

The Honda U3-X is an experimental self-balancing one-wheeled personal transporter shown in 2009.

Toyota Type 73 Medium Truck

The Type 73 Medium Truck is an all-terrain four-wheel drive (4x4) truck of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force known as the 1 1/2 Ton Truck.

Cony Guppy

The Cony Guppy is a small pickup truck manufactured by Aichi. The vehicle had suicide doors and rotating amber beacons on the B-pillar. The brake lights were tiny and circular. The engine, which rests behind the seats, is a two-valve, 199 cc single-cylinder unit that produces 11 horsepower. It can power the vehicle to a top speed of 50 mph. Aichi rated the Guppy's fuel economy at 50 km/l. They also claimed the Guppy is able to carry 100 kilograms of cargo. Its low price of ¥225,000 made it attractive to small business owners and cargo transporters. Other features include a four-wheel independent suspension and a torque converter for clutchless driving.

Personal transporter compact portable electrically-powered electric vehicle for transporting an individual

A personal transporter is a class of compact, mostly recent, motorised vehicle for transporting an individual at speeds that do not normally exceed 25 km/h (16 mph). They include electric skateboards, kick scooters, self-balancing unicycles and Segways, as well as gasoline-fueled motorised scooters or skateboards, typically using two-stroke engines of less than 49 cc (3.0 cu in) displacement. Many newer versions use recent advances in vehicle battery and motor-control technologies. They are growing in popularity, and legislators are in the process of determining how these devices should be classified, regulated and accommodated during a period of rapid innovation.

References

  1. "Plasticity Exhibit at the London Science Museum". Archived from the original on 2010-07-21. Retrieved 2010-06-30.