@xguntherc
| 1 min read
Electric vehicles and becoming more and more mainstream, and now a group of students are looking past traditional cars and into campers. Twenty-two students from The Netherlands’ Eindhoven University of Technology have created the world’s first fully solar-powered camper. Complete with pop-out side panels and a pop-up roof for more room, delivering a 450-mile range.
This isn’t your typical mobile home or house on wheels that runs on gas. Instead, the entire Stella Vita vehicle is self-sustaining, thanks to a teardrop design and multiple sizeable solar panel arrays on the roof. The pop-out sides, which give inhabitants more room, also have solar panels on top, all of which combine to deliver enough battery power for endless adventures.
As you can see, it might not be the prettiest electric vehicle we’ve seen, and it’s quite long. The teardrop design slopes to the rear, giving them enough room for bigger solar panels and less drag for improved eMPG.
Inside, you’ll find a cozy area with a spacious cooking area and fridge, not to mention a bathroom, couch, and another full-size bed. All of this runs off solar power, obviously.
Every aspect of the design is about maximizing space to make it as comfortable as possible. Like many popular campers available today, the Stella Vita features several pop-out or pop-ups in the design.
To maximize solar space and give users more room to enjoy the inside of their home, two compartments just below the roof extend outwards. Furthermore, just like those old-school trailers, the roof pops up, giving you enough room to stand up comfortably, and have more room to sleep.
The side doors give users easy access to the cabin, while there are two more suicide doors at the rear to quickly access the roof-top bed.
Unfortunately, there are no details about the battery or propulsion system that powers the Stella Vita camper. That said, the team did confirm if it’s a nice sunny day, it can go upwards of 453-miles on a charge, although it might take a few days to fully top-off again.
Solar Team Eindhoven is currently in the middle of a long road trip with the mobile home, traveling nearly 1,500 to test its capabilities. It may take several years before this project becomes a consumer product, but I want one already.
via Motor1
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