JMU AFV Lab Blog

This article was on the gizmag.com blog. I linked to it from this article posted on the same blog this morning. Looks like a fascinating vehicle. Maybe the AFV Lab “Supermileage Vehicle” could serve as a platform for such a vehicle with electric assist?

Source: http://www.gizmag.com/httpwwwgizmagcombeyss-evolution13735/13735/

Beyss Go-One Evolution: the next step in the Evolution of human-powered vehicles

Source: http://www.gizmag.com/httpwwwgizmagcombeyss-evolution13735/13735/

Came across this article on the “GreenCarReports.com” Website. I thought it was rather interesting coming so soon after my last Blog Entry on bamboo bicycles. Maybe bamboo could stand some investigation?

Source: http://www.greencarreports.com/blog/1043593_biodiesel-bamboo-cabs-philippines-town-turns-taxis-green

Biodiesel Bamboo Cabs: Philippines Town Turns Taxis Green

By John Voelcker Senior Editor March 19th, 2010

March 19th, 2010 It’s not a particularly new story, these days, but hey, it’s also Friday. So we thought we’d revisit one of the more unusual attempts at green cars we’ve seen. This morning, a friend sent us an e-mail with photos of two taxis commissioned by the Philippine town of Tabontabon, in the province of Leyte, whose bodies are made of indigenous bamboo. More than that, they burn biodiesel fuel made from locally available nut oils. The ECO taxis built by Tabontabon Organic Transport Industry [TOTI] come in two sizes: ECO1 seats 20, whereas ECO2 carries eight passengers. Each is said to run for eight hours on a gallon of biodiesel, which in this case is derived from coconut oil. The bamboo-taxi story first surfaced last summer; it’s one of numerous attempts around the world to turn taxis more green. In the States, for instance, many fleets are now using Ford Escape Hybrid taxis, including some that have now been retired after 300,000-plus miles. Tabontabon mayor Rustico Balderian is the inspiration behind the unusual vehicles, which are fully 90 percent bamboo. They provide employment opportunities for local youth, and safer transport for families who otherwise ride four or five together on a single motorcycle. ECO1 is covered in the woven Filipino mat called banig, making it almost as colorful as the Jeepneys in use elsewhere in the Philippines. As the TOTI Eco site expains, though, Jeepneys didn’t work as public transit in Tabontabon. Drivers often waited for a full load of people before starting. In a town of 10,000, that often didn’t happen. Instead, passengers hopped on their motorcycles, known as habal habals. The hope is that locally made vehicles may be less costly, providing cheaper and safer transport for residents. A third vehicle, ECO3, is now under construction, this one with a frame made of bamboo too. [TOTI Eco Via Inhabitat via Fast Company via Autoblog; hat tip: Rick Feibusch]

TOTI bamboo ECO taxis in Tabontabon, Philippines

Enlarge Photo

It’s not a particularly new story, these days, but hey, it’s also Friday. So we thought we’d revisit one of the more unusual attempts at green cars we’ve seen.

This morning, a friend sent us an e-mail with photos of two taxis commissioned by the Philippine town of Tabontabon, in the province of Leyte, whose bodies are made of indigenous bamboo. More than that, they burn biodiesel fuel made from locally available nut oils.

TOTI bamboo ECO1 20-passenger taxi in Tabontabon, PhilippinesGallery

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The ECO taxis built by Tabontabon Organic Transport Industry [TOTI] come in two sizes: ECO1 seats 20, whereas ECO2 carries eight passengers. Each is said to run for eight hours on a gallon of biodiesel, which in this case is derived from coconut oil.

The bamboo-taxi story first surfaced last summer; it’s one of numerous attempts around the world to turn taxis more green. In the States, for instance, many fleets are now using Ford Escape Hybrid taxis, including some that have now been retired after 300,000-plus miles.

Tabontabon mayor Rustico Balderian is the inspiration behind the unusual vehicles, which are fully 90 percent bamboo. They provide employment opportunities for local youth, and safer transport for families who otherwise ride four or five together on a single motorcycle.

ECO1 is covered in the woven Filipino mat called banig, making it almost as colorful as the Jeepneys in use elsewhere in the Philippines.

As the TOTI Eco site expains, though, Jeepneys didn’t work as public transit in Tabontabon. Drivers often waited for a full load of people before starting. In a town of 10,000, that often didn’t happen. Instead, passengers hopped on their motorcycles, known as habal habals.

The hope is that locally made vehicles may be less costly, providing cheaper and safer transport for residents. A third vehicle, ECO3, is now under construction, this one with a frame made of bamboo too.

[TOTI Eco Via Inhabitat via Fast Company via Autoblog; hat tip: Rick Feibusch]

Source: http://www.greencarreports.com/blog/1043593_biodiesel-bamboo-cabs-philippines-town-turns-taxis-green

Gizmag.com has this interesting article about University of Louisiana students putting legs on a Segway and making a vehicle that literally “walks.” This is a fascinating project. Go to http://www.gizmag.com/cajun-crawler-segway-concept/11259/ to see it.

March 18, 2009 Take one DIY Self balancing electric vehicle project, replace the wheels with 6 pars of short legs based on Theo Jansen kinetic sculptures and the result looks like something out of “Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy”. A dynamically stabilized, ride-on robot that crawls.

The Cajun Crawler was built by a team of mechanical engineering students at the University of Louisiana and was inspired by Theo Jansen’s leg mechanism. During their research the students found no application where Jansen’s leg mechanism was used in a weight-bearing application or on a vehicle.

The six pairs of insect like legs are machined from 5052 Aluminium and driven with two 18V hand-drill motors that drive the legs via a crankshaft. The electronics and battery packs from the cordless drills were also used to power the crawler. The Cajun Crawler uses the same Dynamic Stabilization used in the Segway, but the multiple feet give it a more stable platform with a top speed of 3mph.

The materials used to make the Crawler cost approximately USD$1100-1200 in total. Thanks to the low cost of microcontollers and electronic components DIY Segway projects have become a popular choice in university mechanical engineering labs around the world with many variations on the idea but this is the first we have seen that crawls.

The original Segway came out of the first product that used Dean Kamen’s balancing technology, the iBOT wheelchair which could climb stairs. We shall have to wait and see if any students try to build a balancing robot with human sized legs.

Check out the video of the Cajun Crawler in action below.

Paul Evans

Source:  http://www.gizmag.com/cajun-crawler-segway-concept/11259/