Ford Presents ‘Autolivery’ Concept at Mobile World Congress
Earlier this year at NAIAS, Ford outlined its vision for a “City of Tomorrow,” a futuristic utopia where mobility challenges are met and overcome in sustainable and intelligent ways that becomes increasingly more improbable every time the gross thing that people call the president opens its hideous maw and uses the gears hidden beneath its fleshy throat wattle to say something brazenly untrue, deliberately fascistic, or just plain idiotic.
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Still, Ford is pushing its vision of a better, smarter future where, for example, self-driving vans and drones facilitate the process of delivering goods and supplies to their final destinations without causing gridlock or excessive air pollution. Enter the “Autolivery” concept, which Ford is allowing attendees of the Mobile World Congress to experience via virtual reality.
The idea of Autolivery emerged from Ford’s Last Mile Mobility Challenge. In the example on display in Barcelona, a necessary ingredient needed for a dinner party is delivered just in the nick of time, but Ford posits that it could have utility in terms of delivering vital medical supplies to hospitals and clinics in need.
“Ford has at its heart a culture of disruption and innovation designed to come up with solutions that put people first, to save them time, money and aggravation, and also to make our cities easier to navigate and better to live in,” said Ken Washington, vice president, Research and Advanced Engineering, Ford Motor Company. “While the scene shown today is not yet possible, ‘Autolivery’ suggests how our ongoing mobility research could enrich our lives in a more sustainable ‘City of Tomorrow.’”
Autolivery was developed by Ford designers Euishik Bang, James Kuo, and Chelsia Lau, all of whom are based out of Shanghai.
“It’s all about making life in the city easier. The possibility of harnessing autonomous and electric vehicle technology with drones to quickly and easily send and deliver parcels could help to make life better for everyone,” said Bang.
Perhaps there’s hope in a world where some still dream of ways to improve the lives of others.
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Kyle S. Johnson lives in Cincinnati, a city known by many as “the Cincinnati of Southwest Ohio.” He enjoys professional wrestling, Halloween, and also other things. He has been writing for a while, and he plans to continue to write well into the future. See more articles by Kyle.