AV-Topia
August 2023-Now
Individual Thesis Project
Advisor
Tim Durfee
Softwares
Unity, Logitech G27 Steering Wheel Sets, Blender, Rhino7, Epic Twinmotion
Overview
A future where the road system and technologies will enhance, instead of diminishing, our connection to the landscape and other human-beings.
Many visions of fully-automated traffic systems relegate humans to be mere passive cargo in their moving bubbles, cut-off from the outside social and physical world. To respond to this potential disengagement brought by automated traffic systems, I propose a future where the road system and technologies will enhance, instead of diminishing, our connection to the landscape and other human-beings. Imagine riding home on the freeway in your autonomous car, and a traffic sign points the way to a FUN ride designed for your car, where your idle commute experience becomes a thrill-ride detour, connecting you with your surroundings.
AV-topia is a distributed playground to de-normalize the normal passenger experience, while creating a unique urban spectacle.
AV-TOPIA
proposing a future where the road system and technologies enhance, rather than diminish, our connection to the landscape and each other.
CONCEPT: A speculative future design of drive-thru rides for autonomous cars
Many visions of fully-automated traffic systems relegate humans to mere passive cargo in their moving bubbles, cut off from the thrills of driving. AV-TOPIA proposes a network of integrated urban amusements for the entertainment of these bored future passengers. A simple exit from the freeway leads to looping thrill-rides through buildings, public fountain carwashes, or slow and scenic drives that evoke the traffic jams of a bygone pre-AV era.
AV-TOPIA is designed for the “new individuals,” a persona emerging from the symbiosis of humans and autonomous cars, akin to our kinship with smartphones today. While benefiting from technologies, these new individuals face unintended isolation from the outside world. AV-TOPIA is designed to reconnect them.
AV-TOPIA throws questions into the automated future: What are the possible purposes beyond efficiency? How do we balance technological control with human autonomy? When the “new individuals” are prioritized, what can we do for those left behind? My project questions whether the progress towards automation in mobility inevitably turns our control interfaces into entertainment portals. It raises the question of whether the future of travel is not just about giving up control for convenience, but transforming the very essence of interaction into a fundamentally different engagement, subtly shifting from drivers to gamers.
Slow Jam
Slow down to the rhythm of Slow Jam.
A replica of the complex Los Angeles freeway intersections. Since the entire traffic system became automated and interconnected, no one has experienced a traffic jam. This place simulates the slow pace of traffic congestion, providing an ideal time and space for views in a ‘SLOW JAM’ vibe.
Energize Your Journey!
Boost Loop
An extra ramp from the freeway of San Bernardino Fwy and I-10 Express Ln in San Gabriel, offering a thrilling ride through looping paths, while charging your car.
Where Every Drop Dances and cleans.
Shower Rhapsody
A redesign of Columbus Circle in New York, where cars pass through public fountain carwashes, creating a refreshing and entertaining experience for passengers.
