Not satisfied with the fact that vehicles come with innovative electric technology, major manufacturers are betting on futuristic and multifunctional designs on their prototypes. Cars merged with motorcycles or capable of transforming into homes, set the trends of recent times.
One of these innovative projects is being carried out by the British company Mini, with the “Vision Urbanaut”, a car that also serves as a small van for camping. The idea, according to the company, seeks to completely revolutionize the way we travel.
It has the virtue to transform itself into a living room with a bedroom and an entire wall of windows to enjoy the scenery. The totally original proposal aims to build the vehicle as a large object, whose interior, like a kind of disk, rotates and turns the dashboard into a bed and the windshield into a balcony.
How Was the Sketch Made?
It was designed from the inside out. The designers first conceived the internal living experience and then developed the exteriors, using floor plans, furniture and scaled wooden mock-ups to get a sense of the dimensions.
Augmented reality was used to create a digital model, then systematically optimized. Tall for a Mini, but only 4.46 m long, the Vision Urbanaut is equipped with interiors that can be used in different ways.
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Passengers access through a large sliding door located on the side of the car. The sliding mechanism is the design for urban driving where space is limited. Notably, there are no other doors on either the driver’s or front passenger’s side. The two main seats are designed to swivel, while the rear seat backs can be folded and rotated manually.
When the car is stationary, the dashboard lowers and the driver’s area becomes a seating corner. This is supplemented by the windshield, which when parked can be opened upwards.
The darker environment at the rear of the passenger compartment offers a quieter area, a cozy sitting corner. A fabric-covered loop with LED backlighting option extends over the rear seat. Between that corner and the driver’s area is the ventilated, open center section of the car, which offers access to all seating areas.
The British manufacturer points out that with the door opened, it is also possible to sit on the floor. On the side of the car facing the driver’s entrance, a small table with an integrated system adds a finishing touch to the décor. The table represents the new focal point of the vehicle, the place where passengers meet, look at each other and converse.
Mini expects to launch the Vision Urbanaut on the market soon, and a price will be known at that time.
Written by I Jhonattan González
