Toyota is bringing to life its vision for the future of mobility at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2018), displaying a range of concept vehicles and technologies that demonstrate the potential of automated driving, connected networks and vehicle electrification, including:
- A highly customizable, automated, battery electric vehicle flexible enough to handle logistics and delivery, ride sharing and retail;
- The growing Concept-i series of vehicles that offer responsive mobility opportunities for everyone;
- An automated driving test vehicle with technology that can detect potential hazards at even greater distances; and
- A fuel cell vehicle designed for comfort and minimal environmental impact.
“At Toyota, our mission isn’t just to make vehicles that people love, but to help provide mobility for all through technology-powered products and services,” said Zack Hicks, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer of Toyota Motor North America and Chief Executive Officer and President of Toyota Connected. “Our vision harnesses the benefits of artificial intelligence and predictive analytics, connected networks, and electric vehicle technologies to get people where they want to go safely, conveniently and in an environmentally friendly way – whether across the room or across the country.”
e-Palette Concept
The e-Palette concept vehicle is a fully-automated, next generation battery electric vehicle (BEV) designed to support a range of Mobility as a Service (MaaS) offerings. Created as part of a new mobility service business partnership, the e-Palette Alliance, the concept vehicle provides an open interior design layout that is scalable and customizable for various uses — including logistics services, ride sharing, and other on-the-road e-commerce. Its open-source vehicle control interface will allow partner companies to install their own automated driving system and vehicle management technology. When a partner company’s automated driving system is installed, Toyota’s Guardian mode automated driving technology will supervise its function to help ensure appropriate function.
Expanded Concept-i Series: Concept-i, i-Ride and i-Walk
The “Toyota Concept-i Series” embodies Toyota’s vision of a future where artificial intelligence (AI) enables personal mobility that is more responsive to the needs of its users by recognizing emotions, anticipating preferences, and allowing people and cars to become partners. First unveiled as the Concept-i vehicle at CES 2017, Toyota expanded the Concept-i Series to include a universal small mobility vehicle and a walking area mobility vehicle. The AI Agent embedded in each of these vehicles is able to disengage and re-engage with the driver, thereby supporting seamless mobility that is better equipped to achieve safe and fun mobility.
Toyota Concept-i
The Toyota Concept-i is a four-wheel model representing the vision and technology of the Toyota Concept-i Series. It combines AI technology that understands people (“LEARN”) with automated driving and agent technology that provides drivers with safety and peace of mind (“PROTECT”) and new Fun to Drive experiences (“INSPIRE”) that enrich the enjoyment of moving.
Toyota Concept-i Simulator
Visitors will be able to experience a significantly more advanced Concept-i simulator than at last year’s CES. Through the simulator, visitors will be able to interact with the AI Agent, which will propose hobbies and restaurants based on the user’s preference. The Agent will gauge the user’s degree of interest based on the conversation and driver’s emotion, and recommend activities based on this judgment.
Toyota Concept-i RIDE
The Concept-i RIDE is a small mobility vehicle designed to deliver “user-friendly city mobility.” While the seat layout and automated driving functions make it possible for anyone to drive safely and securely, its gull-wing doors, electric universal sliding seat, and joystick offer particularly user-friendly operation for wheelchair users.
Toyota Concept-i WALK
With its compact size, the i-WALK can operate safely on sidewalks and other areas alongside pedestrians. Equipped with an easily operated steering function as well as an automated driving capability, this mobility vehicle helps increase the user’s range of movement with safety and peace of mind. And, with its lowered floor, people can ride without being restricted by their age or health issues. Toyota’s vision for the i-WALK is to help users traverse short distances, such as walking around sightseeing locations.
TRI Platform 3.0
Toyota Research Institute’s (TRI) next-generation automated driving research vehicle, Platform 3.0, combines more sophisticated automated driving technology and new harmonized styling into the Lexus LS model’s design. Its sensor-rich package makes it one of the most perceptive automated test cars on the road. The vehicle includes a powerful LIDAR architecture strategically positioned for a sensing range of up to 200 meters around the 360-degree perimeter of the vehicle, giving the automated driving systems more time to react to potentially hazardous scenarios. Toyota is demonstrating the power of Platform 3.0’s perception system at CES 2018 with a real-time display of the point cloud generated by the vehicle’s LIDAR system.
Fine-Comfort Ride
Toyota’s “Fine-Comfort Ride” is a fuel cell vehicle (FCV) that envisions mobility in a low-carbon society through the advanced utilization of hydrogen and renewable energy. This FCV features a flexible layout unique to electric-powered vehicles and utilizes hydrogen as an energy source to generate a large amount of electric power. The Fine-Comfort Ride discharges no CO2 or substances of concern (SoC) while offering a generous cruising range and a hydrogen refueling time of about three minutes.
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