Mercedes shows vision for future vehicle inspired by movie Avatar
The Vision AVTR puts ideas from James Cameron’s fictional world Pandora into a car where human and machine merge.
Mercedes has unveiled a striking vehicle of the future inspired by the sci-fi movie Avatar at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
The Vision AVTR puts ideas from James Cameron’s fictional world Pandora into a car where human and machine merge.
Instead of a steering wheel, the driver connects to the car biometrically via a central controller, which projects a menu onto the palm of the hand. Selections are made intuitively.
The outside world is presented on a curved display while bionic flaps on the back of the car – reminiscent of reptile scales – allow the driver to communicate to other vehicles with “naturally flowing movements”.
Mercedes says the distinctive design, which blurs the lines between inside and outside, draws on creatures from Avatar. It features renewable and recyclable materials including trim in rattan, a fast-growing plant from Indonesia.
Vision AVTR is powered by a revolutionary battery based on graphene organic chemistry which is free from rare earths and metals. The battery is “compostable” and shows how electric vehicles can become independent of fossil resources.
The wheels can be driven in opposite directions, allowing the vehicle to crab sideways in an animal-like movement.
Avatar, which was released a decade ago, featured fictional creatures on another planet and was acclaimed for its visual effects. A sequel is due to be released in December 2021.
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