My knowledge says, a Solid thing can’t reduce or shorten its length without transforming from one phase to another. But, Hiriko Electric Car (EV) has made me confused. Hiriko is just a simple electric car like other EV. President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso revealed the car at the end of January. But, the fact is, this car is able to reduce its length up to 40 inch. It means, the length of this car can be turned into its width. Unbelievable!
Hiriko is a 2 seat based electric car. Normally (while driving), its length is only 100 Inch (2.5 Meter). But, because of this car’s spectacular folding mechanism, it’s length can be shorten up to 40 Inch (1.016 Meter) and the length of the car turns into 60 Inch (1.524 Meter). The special folding mechanism is designed to park the car more easily in a tight space. Besides, the car takes very tiny space to turn and it can roll constantly in a small defined area.
The most interesting thing is, 3 Hirikos can be parked at the same space, where a normal car can be parked. In fact, the word ‘Hiriko’ derives from 2 Basque words. One is hiri which means town or city and the other one is kotxe which means car. In collaboration with Denokinn (the Basque Center for Innovation) and a consortium of Spanish business, the Hiriko is an evolution of MIT’s CityCar project.
While the car is being folder, neither the driver nor his/her companion need to leave the seat. Hiroko’s windshield is 2 times bigger than the usual car door. The function of car’s wheels is quite unusual. Hiriko’s wheels are called ‘Robot Wheels.’ This robot wheels allow the car to turn more or less on the spot about its center. Each wheel of this car integrates a motor, steering actuators, suspension and braking right inside the wheel. These all are controlled by a drive-by-wire system. The car totally runs on battery power. With a single-charge it can cross 75 miles (120 km). The price of the Hiriko is £11,000 (US $17,430) and this electric car is supposed to run on the streets in 2013.
Source : Hiriko
Image Credit : William Lark Jr. Smartcities MIT
Special Thanks : Electric Car News, The Telegraph
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