Self driving world

Envisioning design and viable opportunities 10-20 years out in the future when more work force move to cities, level 4-5 self autonomous driving technologies start hitting the road, and when everything is connected. Here are some of my thoughts around the future of autonomous technologies.

Future Projection

How might the road map of autonomous vehicles look like? What are some challenges and questions that needs to be addressed to open up new frontiers?

Key opportunity areas

 

When autonomously technologies become wide spread in the mass market, what are some viable opportunity areas that we can anticipate based on future implications? How might we benefit from this emerging technology and what are some value propositions and competitive advantage of Autonomous Driving Technologies?

/time

On average, Americans in major metropolitan areas spend about 47 minutes a day and 4 hours a week commuting to work. If people no longer need to spend time behind the steering wheels, what would people do?

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/redefined space(s) + ownership

If moving goods and people become more efficient and there are less congestion on roads, requiring less space on the roads for vehicles, what kind of new opportunities are there utilizing the pre-existing spaces? 

 

/data for efficiency and relevance

If cities and enterprises better understand how goods and people move around, what are some implications of viable opportunities and business models that open up new design and business opportunities?

Key challenge areas

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What are some challenges and obstacles that needs to be addressed and how can design facilitate wider market adoption and implementation of the technology?

/infrastructure

Infrastructures today were designed and built for human drivers over 50 years ago. There are standardized systems and norms that people abide by. In the future, how might we design for shared and systematic infrastructures optimized for self-driving vehicles that abides to current norms.

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/interaction + interface

In the near future when human drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists and self driving vehicles share the same road, streets could become more risky and confusing. 

How might we design for clear interactions, communication and safety between people and vehicles?

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/public perception + adoption

Many innovative technologies fail to succeed due to public refusal and slowed adoption. How might design positively impact the perception of autonomous vehicles to help market adoption and open up to establish new regulations.

Sidewalk Pod

Responsive to on-demand needs. Suitable for light weight, small quantity, near distance task for small and local businesses.

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Fast Pod

Cater towards projected demand and needs with mid weight, quantity and distance tasks. Suitable to fulfill city-based tasks.

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Slow Pod

Most suited for pre-planned demand and services. Advantages in cross-city fulfillment and stays on local roads and transports during non traffic hours.

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Truck

Periodic demand and services for larger distribution. Can access specific lanes on highway to carry high quantity of goods for long distances from specific point to another.

Viable Design Opportunities

Decentralized + distributed energy generation and storage system for vehicles and infrastructures

Macro

How might today's power systems challenge installation and accessibility of services in the future? How might we rethink and grasp opportunities to provide power to micro infrastructures and facilities scattered around cities?

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Designing flexible demand-based delivery send off + drop off + pick up areas for businesses and customers

Meso

There is an opportunity for designing a non-permanent and demand-based city infra-vehicle that allows businesses to send goods/products to remote customers in different parts of the city.

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Building clarity in human, vehicle and infrastructure interaction for safety and efficiency.

Macro

Would self-driving technologies make our streets safer and more efficient? How might human drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists and autonomous vehicles communicate with each other? There is a need and demand to create a system for co-existence.

New methods and business models of shared transportation and integration ​of brands+services.

Meso

How would access to transportation and services change in the future? There are opportunities to create new horizontal and cross-industry business models and new concept of car ownership.

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New sustainable distribution channels for small and local businesses to reach wider markets

Meso

For many local and small businesses, labor cost and distribution cost is the biggest barrier to scaling. How might we leverage self-driving technologies to help small+local businesses to be competitive and thrive?

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Scalable and sustainable package solutions for businesses to deliver full experiences from door to door.

Micro

In the future, more and more people will purchase and access goods and services through delivery through both air and ground. How might businesses and brands  deliver experiences from store to home?

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How could we understand the past and today to make informed predictions of tomorrow?

Given our understanding of the current and future prediction of autonomous technologies and the understanding of past and current trends to make an educated forecast of the future, what are some viable opportunities that we can explore? In addiction, by understand the challenges and latent needs of moving goods and people today, how can we drive a human-centered approach to innovate and create change through emerging technologies?

/ work in progress

All Works © Joshua Han 2019