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At the Paris Motor Show, Groupe Renault unveiled EZ-ULTIMO, its robo-vehicle concept, an autonomous, electric, connected, and shared mobility service solution offering a premium travel experience. Available on-demand, for a single trip, for an hour or for a day, EZ-ULTIMO caters to people looking to enhance a special moment through a private trip in a city, a premium tourist experience or businesses looking to offer premium journey services to its clients.

“As consumer trends change and people are enjoying ride-hailing services more and more, a new paradigm for mobility will emerge. Embodying this revolution, EZ-ULTIMO offers a unique luxurious experience aboard a robo-vehicle that can be adapted depending on the service provider,” said Laurens van den Acker, SVP Corporate Design. “Inspired by contemporary architecture, and completely integrated in future smart cities, EZ-ULTIMO will provide an exclusive experience for all. With autonomous, electric and connected cars, we are entering a new exciting era in automotive design.

Attractive and refined design, inspired by French style

EZ-ULTIMO opens-up new arenas for Renault design. Because it’s a robo-vehicle, the traveller can truly enjoy the journey in a space designed like a personal lounge, equipped with all the comfort and services needed to either relax or concentrate.

Welcoming and comfortable, EZ-ULTIMO embodies the Renault brand's EASY LIFE promise with easy access through a wide automatic opening and a rotating seat on a slide that welcomes the passenger. For more privacy, passengers are hidden by glass facets on the upper part of the car. EZ-ULTIMO’s refined interior, directly inspired by interior architecture, is tailor-made from upscale materials such as wood, marble and leather for a relaxing and enjoyable drive.

Equipped with level 4 autonomous driving technology, EZ-ULTIMO covers a wide range of use cases. This robo-vehicle is connected to infrastructures, can adapt to an urban environment, to the motorway or to a shuttle service on dedicated roads.

Re-inventing Life on Board

As mobility continues to evolve with connected and autonomous cars, Renault believes customers will seek more enriched on-board experiences, reinventing travel time, personally and professionally. To embrace this revolution, the Group has invested in Groupe Challenges and collaborated on a first concept: the Augmented Editorial Experience. AEX is a realist immersive experience which combines personalized premium content, multi-media experiences and mobility - so as to turn travel time into a learning experience for future EZ-ULTIMO passengers for instance.

The EZ concepts trilogy

EZ-ULTIMO is the third in Renault’s family of concepts focusing on autonomous, electric, connected, and shared urban mobility services. EZ-ULTIMO uses the same flexible platform of Renault’s on-demand shared robo-vehicle for ride-hailing EZ-GO, and the autonomous last-mile urban delivery solution, EZ-PRO. Inspired by the same ambition to bring sustainable mobility to all, this trilogy of 100 % electric, autonomous and connected vehicles present an expanded vision for a future-friendly shared mobility system.

With its new 360c autonomous concept, Volvo Cars tackles one of the main challenges around the introduction of autonomous technology and calls for a new, global standard in how autonomous vehicles can safely communicate with all other road users.

Autonomous drive and safety are closely linked, and the technology has the potential to deliver the most significant improvement in traffic safety since Volvo Cars invented the three-point safety belt in 1959.

However, autonomous technology will be introduced gradually rather than overnight. As a result, fully autonomous cars will be introduced in a mixed traffic situation where driverless cars without a human driver will share the road with other road users.

In such a traffic situation, it will no longer be possible to make eye contact with and learn about another driver’s intentions, a central element of today’s everyday traffic interaction.

As part of the development of the 360c, Volvo Cars’ safety engineers decided to tackle this challenge of how to establish a safe means of communication between fully autonomous cars and other road users.

Additionally, the focus was to create a universally applicable standard, so that other road users do not have to consider the make or brand of individual autonomous cars.

The 360c addresses this challenge with a system comprising external sounds, colours, visuals and movements, as well as combinations of these tools, to communicate the vehicle’s intentions to other road users. This means it is at all times clear what the car will do next.

Crucially, while the design of the 360c safety communication technology focuses on making the car indicate its own intentions to other road users, it will never issue directions or instructions to other road users.

“We strongly believe this communication method should be a universal standard, so all road users can communicate easily with any autonomous car, regardless of which maker built it,” said Malin Ekholm, Vice President at the Volvo Cars Safety Centre. “But it is also important that we do not instruct others what to do next, in order to avoid potential confusion. Our research shows this is the safest way for fully autonomous cars to communicate with other road users.”

The 360c represents Volvo Cars’ vision for a future of travel that is autonomous, electric, connected and safe – and which may allow Volvo Cars to enter new growth markets.

It presents four potential uses of autonomous driving vehicles – a sleeping environment, mobile office, living room and entertainment space – which all reimagine the way people travel.

Inside the sleeping environment, Volvo Cars’ safety engineers have also looked at the future of safety technology and how a different passenger positioning could influence safety. A special safety blanket included in the sleeping environment envisions a future restraining system that works just like the three-point safety belt, but is adjusted to people lying down while travelling.

The 360c also envisions a range of new potential customer groups for the company’s business and considers the possible implications for the future of city planning, infrastructure and modern society’s environmental footprint.