One would think that CES 2019 won’t be weird, however; that’s the thing about technological development. It sure does get weird at times. Take the example of the latest concept car, Elevate, from Hyundai as an example. According to Hyundai, the conventional car wheel is soon going to be outdated.
During the CES 2019 in Las Vegas, the automaker took the veils off of a new vehicle that resembles an insect more than it does conventional cars. It features legs that can enable the vehicle to go anywhere without the need of roads, traverse intensely rugged terrain, climb stairs, and walk across rivers.
The company is calling this vehicle ‘Elevate’ or the Ultimate Mobility Vehicle. The vehicle sure is a sight to see. Despite all that, the company is in no way portraying it as your daily commute vehicle. Rather, this design is being put forward as a vehicle that can help the first responders.
The company has made the Elevate modular and customizable. This means that specialized platforms can be attached to it depending upon the situation at hand. An unusual case that Hyundai showcased for the Elevate was a scenario where it worked as a taxi. The vehicle could climb the stairs and provide the person in a wheelchair easy access. Seems like a feat of overengineering if you ask us, but who knows; we might be dependent on such tools in the future.
Instead of four wheels, the Elevate features robotic legs with 5 degrees of freedom. It is completely electric. In fact, the hub-mounted electric motors seem to be very similar to the Mars Curiosity Rover’s design.
There is some sort of normalcy in the design of the Elevate though. Thanks to a strange shape of wheels, it can actually transform into a vehicle that can traverse roads the way cars do. Although, the transforming phenomenon is again, simply a concept. One of the advantages that Hyundai has put forward of such a design is let’s say your car gets stuck in a ditch, with Elevate – it could simply stand up and walk back to the road!
There were no details about when or if this design will be created and brought to reality. However, we believe that it designs such as these that really help us push forward with the technological advancements. What do you think?
