Korean automaker Hyundai has just filed a patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The patent, filed just a few days ago, states that the invention is a “new-concept foldable vehicle that occupies a minimum space by folding when parking and can be converted into a complete vehicle when it unfolds.”
In detail, the foldable car, as elaborated by Hyundai, comprises of a front floor coupled with front wheels, and a rear floor coupled with the rear wheels. The “floors” can then increase or decrease the wheelbase of the car, by sliding over and under each other.
Hyundai states in its patent that while foldable vehicles currently exist, they would still occupy large spaces. It explains, “because it is difficult to change their wheelbases, and the overall length cannot be minimised because the roof or the rear side cannot be fully folded.”
In addition to that, the other issue involves height. “Even if their roof or rear side can fold, the overall height increases instead when they fold, so it is difficult to park the vehicles in a parking space with a small height and their external appearances are unnatural,” the patent notes.
This, then, is Hyundai’s solution to this “problem.” What do you think of it?
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It would be interesting to see this vehicle fares in a crash test
What would happen if driver accidentally hit the fold button while driving? Become like transformers?
Have you ever heard of something known as inhibitor switch? It is in every automatic transmission car. The reason why we cannot start engine in D or R.
If the Korean car makers are now in top 5 of world sales, that means they are not stupid and know better than you.
U may call it “tapau” over here :-P
Let’s hope the price tag is affoldable as well ;)
The car already look like a Smart fortwo. still need to fold somemore??
is good idea actually can eliminate parking. we have parking problem. if all cars can be fold or make smaller put into briefcase that is good for storage.
Easier to be placed in a car muncher