Toyota's new mobility products image

Designed to meet the needs of those with reduced mobility, Toyota has showcased its “production-ready” battery electric vehicles (BEV) at the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show, highlighting its modern take on mobility products.

Enabling individuals to have greater independence and freedom, these BEV products are designed to give people a short-distance mobility solution while simultaneously limiting the impact on the environment.

“We want to create a mobility solution that can support Japan’s ageing society and provide freedom of movement to people at all stages of life,” said Akihiro Yanaka, Head of Development at Toyota. “With the Ultra-compact BEV, we are proud to offer customers a vehicle that not only allows for greater autonomy, but also requires less space, creates less noise and limits environmental impact.”

The flagship product Toyota revealed at the Tokyo Motor Show was its ultra-compact, two-seater BEV, which has a planned commercial launch in Japan in 2020. It is designed to meet the daily mobility needs of people who make regular, short-distance trips, such as the elderly.

Toyota ultra-compact BEV
Toyota’s Ultra-Compact BEV

It can be driven a range of approximately 100 km on a single charge, reach a maximum speed of 60 km/h, and features an extremely short turning radius, says Toyota.

Alongside this flagship two-seater BEV, Toyota revealed three other futuristic mobility products to help meet the needs of those with restricted mobility.

The first is its ‘Walking Area Standing Type’ which looks similar to a Segway or the Rollerscoot, enabling those who can stand to move around assisted, with Toyota suggesting the device can be particularly useful in large buildings, such as airports and factories. This is due to be released in winter 2020.

Toyota Walking Area Standing Type image
Toyota’s Walking Area Standing Type

The next mobility aid – the ‘Walking Area BEV Seated Type’ – is a sleek, futuristic device that looks similar to a mobility scooter. This aid can help people who have difficulty walking or who are handling large amounts of luggage, says Toyota.

Toyota Walking Area BEV Seated Type image
Toyota’s Walking Area BEV Seated Type

Toyota’s final product – the ‘Walking Area BEV Wheelchair-linked Type’ – is a wheelchair power assist that connects to manual wheelchairs, providing additional support to active wheelchair users.

Toyota Walking Area BEV Wheelchair-linked Type image
Toyota’s Walking Area BEV Wheelchair-linked Type

Both the Walking Area BEV Seated Type and Walking Area BEV Wheelchair-linked Type are due for release in 2021.

These three mobility aids revealed by Toyota all have a range between 10km-20km on a single charge and take roughly 2-2.5 hours to charge.

To see the full specs of Toyota’s new futuristic mobility products, look at the table below:

Ultra-compact BEV Walking area BEV standing type Walking area BEV seated type Walking area BEV wheelchair-linked type
Release 2020 winter 2020 winter 2021 2021
Capacity 2 people 1 1 1
Length 2,490 mm 700 mm 1,180 mm 540 mm
Width 1,290 mm 450 mm 630 mm 630 mm
Height 1,550 mm 1,200 mm 1,090 mm 1,090 mm
Max speed 60 km/h 2, 4, 6, 10 km/h (switchable) 2, 4, 6 km/h (switchable) 2, 4, 6 km/h (switchable)
Range on single charge 100 km 14 km 10 km 20 km
Charging time Approx. 5 hours (200V) Approx. 2.5 hours (replaceable battery) Approx. 2 hours (replaceable battery) Approx. 2.5 hours (replaceable battery)

 

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