There was a collective gasp from the audience after Carter's announcement, likely because the decision could help jumpstart this area of the automotive industry, which is exactly what Toyota is counting on.
"We think fuel cells have the potential to become mainstream technology over the next 100 years," says Bob Carter, "By having more (automakers) and suppliers in on the development of fuel cells, we think this will help accelerate the adoption through the market."
Carter says the goal is to make fuel cells go mainstream. He compared the adoption of them to the company's fuel-saving gas-electric Prius hybrid, which took a few years to catch on with consumers.
The move comes as Toyota, Honda and Hyundai are introducing new hydrogen models to consumers.
Toyota's model will be called the Mirai when it hits the market later this year. The cars are considered environmental wonders because they emit only water vapor. Even though costs of them have fallen, they remain costly to build and there few stations to refuel them. The move is similar to one last year by electric car maker Tesla Motors, which opened up its patent book as well in hopes of building the market for plug-in cars. CEO Elon Musk told.
Just before Carter made his announcement, famed theoretical physicist Michio Kaku delivered a speech about the future of technology in general, as well as the future of cars as represented by the Mirai. (For fans of Kaku, it was both a treat to see him, but also a slight letdown that one of the leading minds behind superstring theory is promoting cars — no matter how futuristic those cars may be.)
All in all, Toyota's point was clear: It is focused on future tech, and the Mirai (Japanese for "future") is a big part of that focus. Toyota's patent announcement will bring to mind Tesla's 2014 decision to make its electric-vehicle technology open to competitors. It's unclear what this new approach to patents means for the automotive industry, but when a major company like Toyota follows Tesla into the royalty-free patent space, it suggests a clear trend toward greater openness.
"The first generation hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, launched between 2015 and 2020, will be critical," Carter said. " a concerted effort and unconventional collaboration between automakers, government regulators, academia and energy providers."
Toyota's model will be called the Mirai when it hits the market later this year. The cars are considered environmental wonders because they emit only water vapor. Even though costs of them have fallen, they remain costly to build and there few stations to refuel them. The move is similar to one last year by electric car maker Tesla Motors, which opened up its patent book as well in hopes of building the market for plug-in cars. CEO Elon Musk told.
Just before Carter made his announcement, famed theoretical physicist Michio Kaku delivered a speech about the future of technology in general, as well as the future of cars as represented by the Mirai. (For fans of Kaku, it was both a treat to see him, but also a slight letdown that one of the leading minds behind superstring theory is promoting cars — no matter how futuristic those cars may be.)
All in all, Toyota's point was clear: It is focused on future tech, and the Mirai (Japanese for "future") is a big part of that focus. Toyota's patent announcement will bring to mind Tesla's 2014 decision to make its electric-vehicle technology open to competitors. It's unclear what this new approach to patents means for the automotive industry, but when a major company like Toyota follows Tesla into the royalty-free patent space, it suggests a clear trend toward greater openness.
"The first generation hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, launched between 2015 and 2020, will be critical," Carter said. " a concerted effort and unconventional collaboration between automakers, government regulators, academia and energy providers."
No comments:
Post a Comment