1/X Concept Car
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Engineering first
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 5,613
From: Huntsville, AL
1/X Concept Car
http://techon.nikkeibp.co.jp/english...071026/141410/
Concept cars have many purposes but mostly I've grown to see them a PowerPoint engineering if done by mechanical engineers. They should be taken with a grain of salt but building a body from carbon fiber . . . this is radical and from a price standpoint a serious 'shot across the bow.'
If Toyota has figured out how to make carbon fiber bodies, affordable, they will have pulled off one of the greatest coups in history. We are used to seeing carbon fiber jet parts because of the significant fuel savings. But to have a carbon fiber, mass produced body, this would be totally awesome. Of course, it could be a teaser.
Bob Wilson
[TMS] Toyota: '1/X' Concept Car Weighs 1/3 of Prius w/ CFRP in Base Frame Oct 26, 2007 19:25
Tsunenori Tomioka, Nikkei Monozukuri
Toyota Motor Corp. exhibited 1/X, a concept car whose weight is reduced to about 1/3 of that of Prius, at 40th Tokyo Motor Show 2007.
The weight reduction was achieved by the adoption of carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) for body frame. The interior space of the 1/X is the same as the Prius, the company said.
CFRP is used for the base frame of the vehicle body, namely, underbody (floor frame), B-pillar (column between the front and rear doors), A-pillar (column located on both sides of windshield) and part of the frame extending from the A-pillar to the rear side.
CFRP plates formed to have a wavy cross section are placed in the area on the underbody located under the front seat and behind the front and rear lights. They are provided as reinforcement to ensure safety in collision, the company said.
The reduced frame weight resulting from the adoption of CFRP enabled the vehicle to employ a smaller engine, lighter powertrain and narrower tires, thereby significantly reducing the total vehicle weight. Specifically, 1/X features a 500cc engine and weighs 420kg
. . .
Tsunenori Tomioka, Nikkei Monozukuri
Toyota Motor Corp. exhibited 1/X, a concept car whose weight is reduced to about 1/3 of that of Prius, at 40th Tokyo Motor Show 2007.
The weight reduction was achieved by the adoption of carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) for body frame. The interior space of the 1/X is the same as the Prius, the company said.
CFRP is used for the base frame of the vehicle body, namely, underbody (floor frame), B-pillar (column between the front and rear doors), A-pillar (column located on both sides of windshield) and part of the frame extending from the A-pillar to the rear side.
CFRP plates formed to have a wavy cross section are placed in the area on the underbody located under the front seat and behind the front and rear lights. They are provided as reinforcement to ensure safety in collision, the company said.
The reduced frame weight resulting from the adoption of CFRP enabled the vehicle to employ a smaller engine, lighter powertrain and narrower tires, thereby significantly reducing the total vehicle weight. Specifically, 1/X features a 500cc engine and weighs 420kg
. . .
If Toyota has figured out how to make carbon fiber bodies, affordable, they will have pulled off one of the greatest coups in history. We are used to seeing carbon fiber jet parts because of the significant fuel savings. But to have a carbon fiber, mass produced body, this would be totally awesome. Of course, it could be a teaser.
Bob Wilson
Old Boomer Techie
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 572
From: Pacific Northwest (WA)
Re: 1/X Concept Car
100 MPG easily. The challenge here is robotics good enough to lay mat and roving and embed CF structural preassemblies. That would requre some very serious automated quality controls as any fibre technology has heretofore been a major challenge for automated buildup.
Another area is crash-worthiness. The CF could absorb the impacts and protect the occupants from trauma injury well enough, but the extremely light weight of the vehicle would mean some very nasty body acceleration/deceleration shocks that even current airbag technology would have trouble dealing with.
Another area is crash-worthiness. The CF could absorb the impacts and protect the occupants from trauma injury well enough, but the extremely light weight of the vehicle would mean some very nasty body acceleration/deceleration shocks that even current airbag technology would have trouble dealing with.
Thread Starter
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Engineering first
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 5,613
From: Huntsville, AL
Re: 1/X Concept Car
. . .
Another area is crash-worthiness. The CF could absorb the impacts and protect the occupants from trauma injury well enough, but the extremely light weight of the vehicle would mean some very nasty body acceleration/deceleration shocks that even current airbag technology would have trouble dealing with.
Another area is crash-worthiness. The CF could absorb the impacts and protect the occupants from trauma injury well enough, but the extremely light weight of the vehicle would mean some very nasty body acceleration/deceleration shocks that even current airbag technology would have trouble dealing with.
Bob Wilson
ps. Something like this but more like a whole body suit:
Last edited by bwilson4web; Oct 29, 2007 at 03:36 PM.
Thread Starter
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Engineering first
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 5,613
From: Huntsville, AL
Re: 1/X Concept Car
This just looks too good to me:
Now if the doors will pop out and slide back in the rear and slide forward in the front, I'd be perfectly happy. Think 'minivan' side door, that is the type of action I'd like to see. No more dinged edges and problems with folks parking too close!
Also, at speeds above 45 mph, the suspension squats 4 inches. When put in "P", it rises to a comfortable height to get in or out. At speeds between 10-45 mph, it adjusts depending upon either driver override or 'roughness' of the road.
Bob Wilson
Now if the doors will pop out and slide back in the rear and slide forward in the front, I'd be perfectly happy. Think 'minivan' side door, that is the type of action I'd like to see. No more dinged edges and problems with folks parking too close!
Also, at speeds above 45 mph, the suspension squats 4 inches. When put in "P", it rises to a comfortable height to get in or out. At speeds between 10-45 mph, it adjusts depending upon either driver override or 'roughness' of the road.
Bob Wilson
Last edited by bwilson4web; Oct 29, 2007 at 03:11 PM.
HypoFueler
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 405
From: Ohio
Re: 1/X Concept Car
wonder if hexagonal celled walls (aluminum or resin impreg cloth/fiberglass) like those used in aircraft structures might give good strength to weight for a high FE car? Probably be pretty boxy though as forming would be a pain.
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