Ride sharing giant Uber has announced it will work with NASA to bring flying taxis to Los Angeles by 2020.
Project Elevate will develop four-person, electric, vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft, regulated by an air traffic control system to be developed by NASA with a number of industry partners as part of its Space Act Agreement.
The agreement aims to ensure safe and efficient operations of small aerial systems like drones and eventually small aircraft flying at low altitudes, to keep sky traffic orderly.
Uber envisions commuters catching air taxis from the top of skyscrapers, and delivering them to their homes in the suburbs.
It hopes to build a fleet of electric jet-powered vehicles – part helicopter, part drone, part fixed-wing aircraft – running multiple rotors to take off and land vertically, and fly horizontally at 322km, or 200 miles per hour.
Trials are planned for Los Angeles by 2020. Dallas, Texas and Dubai are also possible demo sites.
The company acknowledges the many regulatory and technological hurdles it will face.
“We are very much embracing the regulatory bodies and starting very early in discussions about this and getting everyone aligned with the vision,” Chief Product Office Jeff Holden told The New Daily.
Each day millions of hours are wasted on the road worldwide, says Uber, and with its network of drivers collecting traffic data, it should know.
The company says it has partnered with five aircraft manufacturers Two NASA veterans will run its aircraft vehicle design team and air traffic management software program.
Image: Uber.
Smart cities are boring
City dwellers haven’t been wowed by transformative Smart City applications because they are unresponsive, writes TechCrunch.
“Cities may be getting smarter, but they haven’t noticeably changed from a user perspective,” says Colin O’Donnell, Chief Innovation Officer with smart cities consultant Intersection.
“It seems like most of the digital advances in cities have been invisible and focused on city operations, rather than on the parts of the city that people can see, touch, and use.”
Channelling the data collected from sensors into real-time action will create truly engaging smart cities.
Successful products are often followed by copycats. Over the past year we have become aware of an increase in reproductions of the Linea range attempting to create a similar aesthetic at a lower price. This can compromise the overall durability and environmental credentials of projects being delivered, affect ongoing maintenance requirements, and in some instances pose a risk of injury to the public. The design of Linea is deceptively simple while delivering exceptional attention to detail. Details matter not only for beauty, but also for providing durability, and safety, that will last decades. Linea strictly uses the highest quality and sustainable materials, has passed rigorous strength tests, and is designed for longevity, with easily replaceable parts. The product range is the result of hundreds of hours of research and development …
Melissa Gerke, our Communications and Education Specialist, is bringing a fun, interactive and informative presentation about our carbon neutral journey and latest products to customers in cities around Australia and in the US. In 30 minutes (plus Q&A) we will explore materials and finishes, touch and feel samples, and bond with your colleagues over delicious treats. There will also be a mystery prize for a lucky winner (optional). 2024 cities and dates include: Select from three catering options (optional): To book, contact Melissa Gerke mgerke@streetfurniture.com
Street Furniture Australia’s entire product range and manufacturing operation has received carbon neutral certification through Climate Active™. Achieving carbon neutral certification marks a significant milestone in our operation and the culmination of a four year long process of detailed measurement and analysis. Climate Active™ is the only Australian government-backed carbon neutral certification programme for businesses to measure, reduce, and offsets their carbon emissions. It is one of the most rigorous carbon-neutral programs in the world. An approved Emissions Reduction Strategy (ERS) is central to achieving certification through Climate Active. Street Furniture Australia has elected to use SBTi validated science-based targets to ensure their ERS is meaningful and aligns with the 2015 Paris Agreement – to limit global temperature rises to 1.5℃ above pre-industrial levels. For those emissions that can’t be …
Rich millennials drop golf for ‘agrihoods’: Twenty-five years ago moving near a golf course was a status symbol, largely for the green space and views, but millennials aren’t interested in that type of manicured neighbourhood, writes the Business Insider. Forget empty swathes of green, millennials are more interested in farm-to-table living, with around 150 master-planned housing communities built around working farms, known as agricultural neighbourhoods or ‘agrihoods’ appearing around the US. The homes feature solar panels and composting, and are often minutes from city centres so as to not sacrifice work opportunities for lifestyle. The trend means that in some places, communities are doing away with golf courses to make room for sustainable living. Read more. Photo by Rancho Mission Viejo, Facebook. The war on sitting: US and UK city councils can’t …
Why Are Little Kids in Japan So Independent? Parents in Japan regularly send their kids out into the world at a very young age, even six or seven years old, CityLab reports. By giving them this freedom, Japanese parents place significant trust in their kids, and in the whole community. One stepmother said she wouldn’t let a child ride the subway alone in London or New York – just in Tokyo, where any member of the community can be asked for help thanks to a greater sense of social responsibility in shared spaces. A popular television show, My First Errand, follows kids as young as two or three as they buy groceries by themselves for the first time. The show has been running for more than 25 years. Small-scaled urban spaces and a culture of …
CityTree: intelligent air purifier A German-based start-up, Green City Solutions (GCS), has developed an intelligent natural air purifier, CityTree, that uses moss to trap pollutant particles. With the environmental benefit of up to 275 normal urban trees, the compact and mobile unit improves the air, cools it and protects the environment from noise. “We’re building a climate infrastructure,” says GCS co-founder Zhengliang Wu. The moss-covered air purifier, with inbuilt timber bench seats, harnesses the ability of moss cultures to filter pollutants out of the air, bind them to the leaf surface and integrate them permanently into their own biomass. The technological design of CityTree ensures the survival of the moss through an adequate supply of shade, water and nutrients; at the same time, the filter performance and the plants’ requirements …
