KAIST: Armadillo-T
Electric car folds into half to save space on streets
August 2013 saw KAIST (the Korean Advanced Institute of Science and
Technology) announce the Armadillo-T: an electric car that can fold itself
in half. Created to save parking space in traffic-congested cities, the
compact two-seater can ‘tuck’ its rear structure away during parking, to
occupy only one-third of a regular five-meter-wide parking lot. Drivers
can operate and fold their cars remotely via a smartphone app.
Apostrophy’s: Living in the City
Micro-home prototype
May 2013 saw Thai firm Apostrophy’s debut Living in the City: a 97
meter2 micro-home prototype. To create the illusion of space, the design
utilizes ‘floating’ mezzanine levels, mesh walls, open-plan communal
areas and dual- purpose interiors (including a staircase that doubles as
shelf space and vertical gardens-cum-kitchen walls that grow herbs and
produce).
Peruri 88
Vertical ‘micro-city’ in Jakarta
Proposed for construction in downtown Jakarta, Peruri 88 is designed
to accommodate Jakarta’s high population density. Resembling ten
vertically stacked blocks, the 88-storey co