The world in which we live makes us face strong changes in order to make everything around us more sustainable and to be more and more mindful of the environment. This requires each of us to change part of our behaviors and adapt our routine accordingly: use the car less for travel, check that you have turned off the light from the room from which you left and many other "small" measures. What would happen if all this was solved by the place where we live?
The smart city prototype is here to meet our needs, but what is it? Here it is: Woven city.
It is a project of the automotive giant Toyota Motor. Based on the urban plan designed by Danish architect Bjarke Ingels, it will rise on the slopes of Mount Fuji on the ashes of the former plant of Japanese giant Higashi-Fuji closed at the end of 2020.
The city of the future, designed keeping in mind the seventeen objectives set by the United Nations, combines within it new methods concerning mobility, home automation, energy self-sufficiency, without neglecting the human interpersonal sphere. All immersed in the green, the houses will be built with roofs covered with photovoltaic panels and the entire urban core will be developed so that everyday actions are made easier with the help of automated robots. The entire home environment is equipped with sensors, which will also monitor the health of the tenants.
Thanks to the massive installation of photovoltaic power and the use of hydrogen fuel cells, this smart city is able to meet the electricity demand of all its residents.
Mobility is rethought on the basis of the concept of the "15-minute city" and beyond. There will be routes divided by type of movement: medium speed, which will be driven by self-driving vehicles; reduced speed, used for personal micro-mobility and finally those pedestrian. In addition, the goods will no longer be moved exclusively by surface vehicles, but through underground routes with automated handling systems and without the need for human drivers.
The human component, pampered by these technologies, is not neglected even when it comes to public relations, in fact, meeting places have been designed within the neighborhoods, as well as a large park in the center of the innovative complex. These shrewdnesses derive from the idea that the meeting and circulation of ideas is a focal point for the creation of further added value.
A particularity lies in the design study done for the realization of the complex: since a similar reality had never been built, a version entirely in digital format was realized. This approach made it possible to solve problems related, for example, to sunlight, which would not have been enough with the original height of the buildings, saving a considerable amount of time and money.
In short, we can only say that, without a doubt, this model of urban environment will represent a springboard to new horizons in urban planning, as well as in the physical modernization of our planet.
Written by Roberto Del Bo of the VGen Engineering Hub
