Japanese automotive manufacturer Toyota has revealed plans to build a prototype “city of the future” on a 175-acre site at the base of Mount Fuji in Japan.
Called Woven City, Toyota described the development as a “living laboratory” with a fully connected ecosystem powered by hydrogen fuel-cells.
Woven City will serve as a home to full-time residents and researchers who will test and develop technologies such as autonomy, robotics, personal mobility, smart homes and artificial intelligence in a real-world environment.
Akio Toyoda, president, Toyota, said: “Building a complete city from the ground up, even on a small scale like this, is a unique opportunity to develop future technologies, including a digital operating system for the city’s infrastructure.
“With people, buildings and vehicles all connected and communicating with each other through data and sensors, we will be able to test connected AI technology in both the virtual and the physical realms, maximising its potential.”
Toyota said it will extend an open invitation to collaborate with other commercial and academic partners and invite interested scientists and researchers to come work on their own projects in Woven City.
Bjarke Ingels, the commissioned architect of the project, and founder and creative director of Danish firm Bjarke Ingels Group, said: “A swarm of different technologies are beginning to radically change how we inhabit and navigate our cities.
“Connected, autonomous, emission-free and shared mobility solutions are bound to unleash a world of opportunities for new forms of urban life.
“With the breadth of technologies and industries that we have been able to access and collaborate with from the Toyota ecosystem of companies, we believe we have a unique opportunity to explore new forms of urbanity with Woven City that could pave new paths for other cities to explore.”
The masterplan of the city includes designations for street usage into three types: for faster vehicles only, for a mix of lower speed, personal mobility and pedestrians, and for a park-like promenade for pedestrians only, to help accelerate the testing of autonomy.
The city is planned to be fully sustainable, with buildings made mostly of wood to minimise the carbon footprint, using traditional Japanese wood joinery, combined with robotic production methods.
Rooftops will be covered in photo-voltaic panels to generate solar power in addition to power generated by hydrogen fuel-cells.
Residences will be equipped with the latest in human support technologies, such as in-home robotics to assist with daily living. The homes will use sensor-based AI to check occupants’ health, take care of basic needs and enhance daily life.
To move residents through the city, only fully-autonomous, zero-emission vehicles will be allowed on the main thoroughfares.
In and throughout Woven City, autonomous Toyota e-Palettes will be used for transportation and deliveries, as well as for changeable mobile retail.
The plan is for 2,000 people to live and work within the development, adding more as the project evolves.
The groundbreaking for the site is planned for early 2021.
