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‘Tokyo 2020 Version’ e-Palette vehicles by Toyota to provide autonomous transport at Olympic villages

Japan hosted the Olympics in 1964 (although it also hosted the Winter Olympics in 1972 and 1998) and on that occasion, the country showed off its technological, industrial and economic advances to the world. Notable in the advancements in transportation was the introduction of the Shinkansen or ‘Bullet Train’ which could reach 210 km/h. That speed was achieved in 1964 and today, the sleek trains can reach top speeds of 260 km/h.

At the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, the country will once again showcase advanced transportation technologies, some of which have been specially developed for the event by companies like Toyota Motor Corporation.

Dedicated transport around the event villages
Among the many different types of vehicles Toyota will provide will be specially-designed ‘Tokyo 2020 Version’ e-Palette vehicles to support athlete mobility. Up to 20 such vehicles will provide automated, loop-line transportation in the Olympic and Paralympic villages for athletes and personnel involved in the event. The battery-electric, automated vehicles have been adapted specifically for use during the Games based in part on feedback from athletes about their mobility needs in the past games.

“Olympic and Paralympic athletes work tirelessly to achieve the impossible, and we wanted to provide them with a vehicle specifically designed and calibrated to fit their mobility needs during Tokyo 2020,” said Takahiro Muta, development leader for the unique version of the ‘Tokyo 2020 Version’ e-Palette.

“Throughout the development process, athletes, especially Paralympians, helped us to better understand how we could adapt and upgrade the e-Palette to better meet the need for simple, convenient and comfortable mobility. We are proud to work with them on a vehicle that will not just move athletes physically throughout the Olympic and Paralympic villages, but will also offer them new opportunities to interact with others, share new experiences, and be moved emotionally,” he said.

Developed for autonomous mobility
First announced in 2018, e-Palette is Toyota’s first vehicle developed specifically for autonomous mobility as a service application. It reflects Toyota’s ongoing transition to a mobility company and combines electrification, connected networks, and advanced driving technologies to support new shared mobility businesses and business models.

Measuring 5255 mm long and 2065 mm wide, the Tokyo 2020 Version has been adapted to meet the unique needs of the Olympic and Paralympic villages, featuring large doors and electric ramps to allow groups of athletes, including Paralympians, to board quickly and easily. The 20-person vehicle will be controlled by an automated driving system capable of operating up to 20 km/h at SAE Level 4, supported by an on-board safety operator.

Deploying the e-Palette to support athlete and staff mobility is a key element of Toyota’s program to provide advanced mobility solutions for Tokyo 2020 as the first worldwide mobility partner of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. In addition, Toyota plans to leverage the knowledge gained from operating e-Palette at Tokyo 2020 to continue developing the vehicle to support future ‘Mobility-as-a-Service’ applications.

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Childseats with equivalent approval standards will be permitted, thanks to NGO’s proposal

Child Passenger Safety Malaysia (CPSM), a NGO passionate in educating the public on the importance of using child restraint systems in moving vehicles, says a proposal it submitted to the authorities has been accepted. The proposal was tabled at the 60th Annual General Meeting of Malaysia Road Safety Council (MKJR Malaysia).

The organization said it had submitted a proposal to allow the use of other international equivalent standards of approval for child safety seats in Malaysia. CPSM, as one of the regular members of Selangor Road Safety Council (MKJR Selangor), raised the motion to allow other equivalent standards of approval for child safety seat or child restraint system (CRS) such as the US Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards 213 (FMVSS 213) to be accepted in Malaysia other than only UNECE R44 and R129.

Why allow other standards?
The basis of the proposal is inclusivity of use for non-average children in Malaysia particularly those between the age of 2 to 5 years old. According to World Health Organisation in their data published in 2017, Malaysia is the second highest among ASEAN countries with obese children between the age of 5 to 19 years old. In a survey among children aged 6 months to 12 years old done by South East Asia Nutrition Survey which was published in The British Journal of Nutrition in 2013 shows the prevalence of Malaysian children being overweight and obese is high (21.6%) as compared to stunted or thin children (13.8%).

These above average children will have issues in using safety seats if only UNECE R44 and R129 is approved to be used in Malaysia as most of these seats available in the market does not cater for higher weight and height harnessing.

As best practice, an appropriate CRS for a child should be determined by the child’s age, weight, height and developmental stage. An overweight child above 18 kilograms at two years old will not be able to use a normal harnessed CRS. The child will be forced to use a booster type CRS which is still not yet appropriate for the child’s age.

“CPSM are delighted that majority of the members in the council accepted this proposal, showing a united voice to provide inclusivity in safety on the road for our children, our future leaders. This proposal was also supported by the Chairman of Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS) Board of Directors, Datuk Suret Singh who also reiterated that Malaysia should accept other international equivalent standards as well,” the statement by CPSM said.

*If a child is not restrained properly in a child seat, the forces during an accident can send him or her flyting around the cabin and sustain serious injuries.*

“CPSM welcomes the acceptance and hope that with the additional standards the obstacles in implementing the mandatory law on child safety seat use will be lessened once it is launched and enforced in 2020,” the statement added.

Members of the public who wish to know more about the CPSM’s activities and initiatives can visit its website at cpsmalaysia.org or Facebook Page at www.facebook.com/cpsmalaysia.org/.

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