With its recent self-driving vehicle concept, Volvo wishes to talk about the airline sector. Without a need for a steering wheel, Volvo opened-up the core of its 360c project to accommodate a coffee table, a desk, a card table, and even a luxury airline style bed.
The manufacturer says the independent ability and IKEA like interior finishes could let the 360c take over short airline tours, where the tourists spend a bit more time driving back and forth to the airport and waiting in baggage or security lines than actually flying. The company notes that many famous trips fall into this sub 200m category, including NYC to WDC, Houston to Dallas and LA to San Diego.
In Europe, tourists would take trains, which also often provide dining vehicles, tables to work on, and even comfortable sleeping bunks. Perhaps the company is suggesting the self-driving car as a substitute for the train ride.
Volvo has taken the vehicle as a cabin plan to the NTH degree with a 360c plan. The Swedes have forever excelled at core furnishing and an automatic cabin is ideal for cramming IKEA like features into minimal spaces. Riders can sit opposite each other around a table off to the other side, in the 4 corners of the cabin, sitting across the small table, or around the back of the car to minimize motion sickness and please the site.
In the company’s general focus on security, Volvo has developed a special airbag safety blanket to secure sleeping passengers in the time of a crash – presumably single reasoned by one more car since independent cars are supposed to reduce crashes.
Manufacture acknowledges that it does not know what the independent driving feature will bring, but it sees the 360c venture as a conversation starter about how self-driving cars should reshape ride, the environment, city planning, and even social interaction.
