The InMotion concept car was revealed by NEVS, in the CES Asia auto show in Shanghai. NEVS is famous as the company which bought Saab, after it went bankrupt in 2011. It has a worldwide portfolio of premium electric cars and other mobility solutions including sustainable city cars. Most automobile giants have revealed their versions of autonomous concept cars and NEVS is no exception. The InMotion design is quite futuristic and does not resemble any car on the street today. Take a look at some of its features:
Outstanding body design
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The car looks stunning and it seems as if it has just stepped out from a science fiction movie. The podlike shape reminds one of the futuristic cars that we often see in sci-fi movies. The passengers enter and exit through the huge gullwing doors on the curbside. The InMotion is powered by electricity, and supports wireless charging, which is not surprising, as NEVS is known for its electric cars.
A comfort zone on wheels
The InMotion car is designed to be the place you relax. You can reach your office or other destinations in virtually the seat of luxury, as the InMotion would drive you around. It’s the perfect ‘chill out’ zone, where you can have a good time with your friends.
It’s fitted with everything that you can possibly imagine a car could have. You can control the car with the accompanying smartphone app. With the help of the app, you can control the ambient lighting of the interior, control the ‘climate’ inside and the adjustable seats. The seats have three modes –meeting, social and private.
The main benefit of the car’s interior design seems to be its flexibility. You can move the chairs around according to your requirement – you can conduct a meeting in the InMotion as it drives you around. Or you can catch up on your sleep as the chairs can recline to make it possible for you to lie down and relax. Of course, you can watch your favourite videos or watch a new movie, or work on your presentations, check your mail on the way to office, as screens are embedded in all the side glasses.
Vehicle sharing concept
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NEVS highlighted the fact that the InMotion is perfect for car sharing due to it being both autonomous and electric. After you reach your destination, it can drive on to the next person who needs the car, which gives the opportunity to remove the need for several cars to be on road. Of course, good old-fashioned car pooling is also possible. But this new use of ‘vehicle sharing’ of autonomous cars certainly makes them more attractive. A huge amount of traffic can be reduced resulting in less pollution and congestion. In the distant future, autonomous cars would be the norm and everyone would share their self-driving cars.
NEVS mentioned in its press release that they had designed this concept car for the time when car ownership would be a thing of the past.
NEVS have envisioned the InMotion to be SAE level 5, that is, humans would have no responsibilities at all, except to sit back and enjoy the ride.
When would concept cars like InMotion become mainstream
Automobile giants have come up with partially autonomous cars, which probably is more realistic and profitable than completely autonomous cars. Autonomous cars, when they start arriving on the roads are expected to be prohibitively expensive. Even the manufacturing process is complicated and costly, forcing major rivals to join hands and form collaborations. The safety aspect requires more research to perfect it, as the car would have to make intelligent decisions such as choosing between hitting someone or going over the legal speed limit to avoid accidents. The data that has to be fed into an autonomous car is mind-boggling and the technology would definitely take some decades to be perfect.
Car makers are also extolling the virtues of ‘vehicle sharing’ as the huge cost of autonomous cars could be shared between a few owners. This would reduce the number of cars on road, as well as reduce the fuel consumption and pollution. It would be worth the wait to enjoy a ride in the InMotion, whenever the concept becomes a reality.
