Short commute with urban transportation was a social experiment into developing a new transportation interactive system to the urban individual. Deriving cues from relating the cultural and sociological features of virtual interaction, my goals were to develop a product that made full use of the large scale integration achieved in virtual environments. Design goals were to develop a compact scooter with an automated dispenser to be used as rental scooters for residents and tourists alike.

The main goals i wanted to achieve here was the compatibility and flexibility of the product. There have been instances of the same idea achieved before with the Bike Dispenser® and other systems in europe, but i wanted to create a more collaborative and interactive experience. Indulging people in the city urban lifestyle greatly benefits tourists. I also envisioned that the system would be placed in crowded cities like NYC, los angeles and so on.

The base system has the controls and screen to provide all the interaction with the users. With a nice brushed aluminum plate cut out with luminous blue buttons provides a definite focal point. Also the right symbols and simple text lettering make the buttons easier to read. They reflect more than 6 languages when selected at the startup so that the machine is truly global and also keeping in mind tourists.

The concept model mainly focusses on the variables and factors that affect social dynamics. The model explores the difference and similarities with social and virtual interaction.

Depicting the journey map. The trip is planned online by registering on the website and providing enough info for the system to present the best trip routes, places of interest on the way and also familiarize yourself with the unique culture of each city. Locations are easily available and conveniently placed. Using your credit card pulls up the information and account and if you need to you can make changes on the time and hours and the schedule.

Once everything is satisfactory hit the vend button and the scooter is unlocked and vended. The scooter has a unique interactive system with which you can interact with other users on Scouts. The system matches your profile with similar users and creates a sort of a geo tagging and shows the users and you can plan your trip so you can have company. It also recognizes the items on your wish list, compares it to get you the best price using RFID technologies and can be bought right on spot.

Thumbnail sketching helped me refine the outer form. I wanted to give the vehicle a modern but retro look, so i looked at a lot of references. I firs played with the idea of designing a retractable scooter front end which could slide in and be portable, but more and more the small fixed scooter idea was more appealing.

This was the final form that inspired the design, even though i made a few more changes in 3D coz of the break in the form, which looked really ugly in 3D, which made me shift the tool box and the first aid box to the sides of the schooter and also embossing the symbols on them to make a break in the surface.

Showing a few design details. The scooter can be charged from a normal electrical outlet.The seat release buttons open the seat to give access to storage space. The vehicle is run by a fuel cell which gives the scooter a steady supply of power and also the main hub is run by the collective power from the idle time when parked in the main unit. This also recharges the scooters and keep them ready to use.