MINILUX Concept Car by Jukka Rautiainen

Produced for his MA degree project at the Royal College of Art, in London, Jukka Rautiainen’s Minilux concept car explores the visual language for an entirely solar powered vehicle. Jukka states that he envisioned the car for modern urban dwellers as an alternative transport mode that contributes to the preservation of the environment, reduces city parking problems and facilitates ease of mobility.

The highly technical car generates all its energy from the sun, reducing its carbon footprint to a carbon free range of up to 25,000 kilometers (or over 15,000 miles).

The Way it works:

The Minilux is plugged to a local point that enables two way energy exchanges. Once fully charged, the car can then feed the excess energy to the main grid and similarly substitute the lack of solar energy by charging from the main grid, like a regular plug-in electric vehicle.

Aesthetically, the exterior shape is beautiful with smooth lines. Jukka was highly attentive to the vehicle’s design details. The top is comprised of solar curtains, small tiles of Gallium Arsenide solar cells, attached to a support matt. The matt is embedded with thousands of microscopic shape-memory trusses that allows for the curtains to be retracted without any additional mechanic parts.

The car’s wheels are airless, which promises to improve handling and maintenance, and the interior is customized with inflatable seats, thus saving space and reducing its weight.

The Minilux also has a pair of solar wings, which opens when the car is parked. Their support arms enable the wings to shift in order to adjust to the Sun’s angle.

We are always happy to report on the continuous efforts of designers who are looking to reduce our carbon footprint for the betterment of our ecosystem, but especially blissful when the design is done in such good taste. To see more pictures and for further information visit Jukka’s website on www.jukkarautiainen.com.

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