Toyota uBox Concept
When Gen Z is in charge, this is what we have to look forward to. Toyota had
graduate students at Clemson University’s International Center for Automotive
Research design a car for young entrepreneurs and they came up with the uBox.
The collaboration, called
Deep Orange, puts students in charge of all aspects of building, marketing and
engineering a new vehicle.
"Deep Orange gives
students hands-on experience with the entire vehicle development process, from
identifying the market opportunity through the vehicle build," says
Johnell Brooks, an associate professor in Clemson's graduate engineering
program. "It's like automotive boot camp for the real world."
According to Toyota, the
uBox includes a “bold, youthful and distinctive exterior design that aligns
with generation Z's personality trait to stand out”... the same way a box
stands out in a crowd of cool cars. Also it has a “versatile interior that can
be rearranged for various activities, from working or operating a business, to
hauling bulky cargo.” No real problem with that. The vents, dashboard and
display bezels can be personalized, and it has an all-electric powertrain with
enough juice to “power consumer electronics, power tools or other devices
through various 110-volt sockets located throughout the interior and exterior.”
During the process, the
students actually developed a new technique that allows composite carbon fiber
rails to bond with aluminum to support a curved glass roof.
“The roof pultrusion was
something unexpected and very interesting when they first started talking about
the concept,” said Toyota executive program manager Craig Payne. “The fact that
they were able to achieve an industry-first manufacturing technique as students
speaks volumes for this program.”
