VIPA Autonomous Vehicle

The VIPA, one of the most futuristic vehicles displayed at the 2011 Challenge Bibendum, is nothing other than an elevator. The VIPA has been designed by Ligier and is a vehicle which can drive by itself even if no person is inside it. VIPA is originally a French acronym which stands for Autonomous Individual Passenger Vehicle.


The vehicle can go from a fixed point to another point which has been fed into it. All that a person needs to do is to drive the VIPA along that particular route using a keyboard and a joystick that plug into the vehicle when needed. The system records the entire route and the important landmarks, and thus, no one needs to be on board to get to that place. The VIPA would drive to that place on its own, thanks to its network of electronic eyes and two top-mounted cameras: one in front and the other at the rear to find the landmarks. The VIPA is also embedded with laser sensors to help it in driving.

Besides so many positive qualities, the VIPA also suffers some drawbacks. The suspension of the vehicle is almost non-existent. The VIPA has a top-speed of up to 20kmph, but interestingly enough, it can run continuously for eight hours i.e. 80kms on just 8.5kWh of energy in a full battery pack. The pack comprises of four lead acid gel batteries which take 4 hours to charge from a standard European outlet and 45 minutes if charged using the on-board DC fast charger. But if some sort of cooling or heating system is incorporated into it, then the power consumed would be increased considerably, which would ultimately result in the costing of the vehicle.



Source: EcoFriend.com

KIA Naimo Concept

The all new Kia-Naimo, the electric crossover concept by South Korean designers, stole the show single handedly in its world premiere at the 2011 Seoul Motor Show. The masculine touch is the distinguishing feature adding to its huge sale figures.


The electric car has been appropriately fitted with a wrap-around windscreen, an asymmetric sunroof, and the front and rear ends are enmeshed with dot-styled LED heads and positioning-lamps.
After Ray and Pop, Naimo is the third electric car to be launched by Kia in the past year. Their ideas are unique, that’s for sure. Geared with a power output of 110hp and 206 pound-feet of torque, the four seater crossover has an inbuilt Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor, and to top it all, the car can reach a top speed of 93 mph.

Some other good to know information about this compact little Korean machine is; it comes fitted with a twin-pack 27 kWh battery located under the boot, a Lithium Ion Polymer battery which can make the car run at 124 miles on a single charge, the charging time being around 5 hours or so. The battery charging also is a hassle free technique. You can charge your battery with a regular household power outlet, avoiding frequent trips to the garage.

Kia is proud of this contraption as it is the 3rd car to have been introduced in its existing zero emission fleet of hybrid cars and they look forward to many more in the near future. If all companies start producing such kind of cars, it would not take us very long to get rid of the high levels of pollution our earth suffers everyday.
Source:  AutoMotto.com