1. CityCar Mobility-on-Demand proposes reinventing urban transportation with small, lightweight electric vehicles tailored for city driving needs rather than long-distance travel. 2. By 2050, over 60% of the world's population will live in cities, increasing inefficient energy use and emissions from private vehicles which dominate transportation today. 3. CityCar aims to address issues of congestion, parking, and the first-last mile problem through a modular, shared fleet of zero-emission vehicles requiring half the space of a compact car.

1. CityCar Mobility-on-Demand
SmartCities Group, MIT Media Laboratory

2. Big Problem: Buildings and Transportation
In the 21st century about 90% of population growth will be in urban areas; these will account for 60% of the population and
80% of the wealth. Hence, the pattern of future energy demand will increasingly be determined by urban networks.
Transportation and building operations typically account for at least 60% of urban energy use.
In congested urban areas, about 40% of total gasoline use is in cars looking for parking.
-Imperial College Urban Energy Systems Project

3. World Population Estimates (UN report 2007)
1. 50% of Global Population – Currently live in dense urban areas (red line)
2. Increased Urban Densification – Urbanization trend will continue for the foreseeable future (rural populations will flatten
and decrease)
3. Increased Inefficient Energy Use – leading to climate change

4. 1. Private Automobiles – Major source of pollution and carbon emissions; massive congestion, parking, and noise problems
2. Public Transportation – Does not cover the entire city; inconvenient and inflexible schedules
3. First Mile-Last Mile Problem

5. Rethinking Systems
Communication
Systems
Smart
Sustainable
Cities
Energy Mobility
Systems Systems

6. The typical automobile weighs 20 times as much as its driver, requires more than 100 square feet for parking,
travels over 300 miles without refueling, and attains speeds well over 100 miles per hour. Each of these
characteristics is considerably more than what is needed in major cities worldwide, where most of the world’s
people now live. In fact, while today’s vehicles are designed to meet almost all conceivable needs for transporting
people and cargo over long distances, these requirements drive considerable cost, energy, mass, and space
inefficiency into the vehicle.

7. Energy and Space Efficient

9. Today's Vehicle Urban Personal Transportation Needs
range (miles) 300 40‐50
weight (lbs) 2500 ‐ 4000 < 1000
speed (mph) 100+ 20‐35
capacity 5 passengers, full luggage 2 passengers & carry‐ons
parking area
(sq ft) 175 <50
CityCar core principles:
Substitute & Simplify
Regionalize function
minimize the amount of “stuff”

10. Wheel Robot
Animation: Michael Chia-Liang Lin

11. Reinventing the Wheel

12. Exploiting the vehicle’s modularity Supply Chain
Rear Module
Storage and Supplementary Power Energy and Control Bus
Li-Ion Batteries
Exoskeletal Chassis
Safety Cage and folding Chassis
Cabin Shell
Structural Protection and glazing
Interior Module Wheel Robots
Vehicle Control and passenger seating In-Wheel Drive-by-Wire Electric Motor, Suspension, and Steering

13. The vehicle’s platform can be radically simplified and has the potential to reduce its part count an order of magnitude –
resulting in lighter, more energy efficient, zero emission greener solutions. In addition, the supply chain can be streamlined
CityCar Features
by exploiting modularization allowing assembly procedures to be simplified and opened to more flexible processes.
The CityCar enables new functions to enhance the user’s experience through eased negotiation of space and customized
user interaction without incurring unacceptable performance, safety, or cost penalties in an urban environment.
Simple Drive-By-Wire Interface
offers eased and customizable control system Structural glazing Dynamic Front Impact Dampening
while allowing or greater interior space allows for more transparent decelerates passengers in a crash in the
surface while providing micro-sized CityCar to emulate the crumple
greater cabin protection zone of a larger vehicle
Lightweight Aluminum Chassis Front Door Access
provides exo-skeletal safety cage and provides eased exit and
eliminates need for delicate and expensive entry allowing users to
painted surfacing step right out on to the
sidewalk
Micro Footprint
alleviates parking difficulties
while occupying half the
space of a Smart Car
Foldable Frame
Decoupled rear storage reduces footprint in
maintains a low center of gravity, half, simplifies egress,
Full Electric Powertrain reduces energy used to fold, and and provides impact
Omni-directional Robot Wheels
offers a clean zero-emission, facilitates effortless trunk access dampening
give nimble movement from a highly
modular unit highly modular platform

14. Exploiting the vehicle’s modularity End-user
Less bounded…

16. Encouraging Trends in Industry
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Oil barrel hits Collapse of
$150 Car Market
Automotive industry Government Incentives
Lithium-ion
battery realizes they need a and funding
peaks in Quantum leap to for automotive
capacity survive manufacturers
Growth of shared mobility
Velib
Bicing
Bixi
Emerging smart grids
Rapid prototype …to rapid manufacturing

18. GPS
V2V
Cloud Mobility: the future vision that ubiquitous
connectivity will eventually provide for seamless I2V
navigation, energy balancing, space negotiation,
real-time information sharing, and other services
applicable to assisting users in more efficient,
V2Grid effective, and enjoyable commuting.
Smart Grids
V2Green
Mobile
Vehicle sensing Communications
Mesh Networks

19. Navigation
Cloud
Energy
management
cloud
Fleet
Management
Cloud
Image by Michael Lin and Will Lark

20. CityCar Details
Connectivity
Digital Control
Electric Compatibility
Accessibility
Reusable Energy

21. Dynamic Pricing: Simulation of a Rack using System Dynamics
Simulation Analysis Demand Rate
40
30
20
1
1
1
1 1 1
1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1
10 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1
1 1
1
1
1
1
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24
Time (Hour)
Demand Rate : Current5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Users in Queue
20
1 1
15 1
1
1
1
1
1
1 1
1
10 1 1 1
1
1 1 1 1
1 1 1
1
1
1
5
1
1 1
1
1 1 1
1 1
1
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24
Time (Hour)
Us ers in Queue : Current5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Actual Service Rate
60
1
45
30
1
15
1
1
1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24
Time (Hour)
Actual Service Rate : Current5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Vehicles in Rack (Inventory)
10
1
7.5
5 1
1
1
1
1
2.5
1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24
Time (Hour)
"Vehicles in Rack (Inventory)" : Current5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Inventory Shortfall
0.6
0.3
1
0
1 1 1
1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1
1
‐0.3
1
‐0.6
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24
Time (Hour)
Inventory Shortfall : Current5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Price Adjustment Rate
600
300
1
0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1
1
1
‐300
‐600
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24
Time (Hour)
Price Adjus tment Rate : Current5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Rack Price
40
20
1
0
1 1
1 1
1
1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1
1
1
‐20
‐40
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24
Time (Hour)
Rack Price : Current5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Loop Number 2 of length 9
Departure Price
40
Demand Rate
20
1
0
Users in Queue
1 1
1 1 1
1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1
1
1
‐20
Departure Rate ‐40
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24
Vehicles in Rack
Time (Hour)
Departure Price : Current5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Utility of Outgoing
4
Inventory Shortfall 3
Price Adjustment Rate 2
1
Rack Price
1
1 1 1
1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1
1
1 1
1 1
1
1
Departure Price 0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Time (Hour)
14 16 18 20 22 24
Utility of Outgoing
Utility of Outgoing : Current5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Demand Rate

22. Dynamic Pricing: A Trip Market Economy

23. With large‐scale use, car stacks throw enormous battery capacity into the
electrical grid.
Effective utilization of inexpensive, off‐peak power and clean but
intermittent power sources – solar, wind, wave, etc.
A smart, distributed power generation system composed of these sources
(the entire city as a virtual power plant) minimizes transmission losses.

29. Load balancing with clean local storage
Simplify on board vehicle by capitalizing on existing city infrastructures keep cars simple, light, and efficient
Diversify energy sources
New energy markets

30. MIT Media Lab | Smart Cities Design Team
William J. Mitchell, Professor of Architecture and Media Arts and Sciences
Claire Abrahamse, M.S. Candidate
Ryan Chin, PhD. Candidate
Chao-Chih Chuang, MS Candidate
Charles Guan, B.S. Candidate
Itaru Hiromi, B.S. Candidate
William Lark, Jr., PhD Candidate
Michael Chia-Liang Lin, MS. Candidate
Arthur T. Mak, M.S. Candidate
Dimitris Papanikolaou, Research Affiliate
Arthur Petron, M.S. Candidate
Raul-David “Retro” Poblano, PhD Candidate
Somnath Ray, SMarchS Candidate
Website: http://cities.media.mit.edu
Contact: wlark@media.mit.edu
rchin@media.mit.edu

31. SmartCities
Contact: Will Lark wlark@media.mit.edu
Ryan Chin rchin@media.mit.edu