Thesis

Renewable Road Trip is a VR experience designed to marry automotive design and sustainable education. Through a series of sustainable charging stations (i.e., solar, wind, hydro), the user will drive up a virtual mountain side while listening to a radio station that provides history, information and benefits on each type of sustainable energy.

Design process flowchart

We started with terrain section and car body/model.

Then we realized car was hard to work and drive.

We researched how to make the car drive smooth.

Mid-Review feedback made us go from not focusing on terrain visuals as much to wanting to implement some change in the area you are driving in as you drive up the road.

We tweaked more visuals and added some cosmetics to get to our current model

We also added a terrain section with a road to drive on.

Assetto Corsa map

We wanted to create our terrain in the same visual way that this game map was made.

Renewable energy

charge

Implementing renewable energy sources to car charging ports

Research & Inspiration

History of

renewable power

• Water wheels were the first renewable energy source in 200 BC

Inspired Design Choice

We wanted to implement hydro, wind, and solar power to charge electric cars in a virtual reality game.

History of electric

cars

• Electric cars are better for the environment and provide a use for renewable energy.

Inspired Design Choice

Implementing electric cars and connecting renewable energy to them was our preferred design choice.

First Concept Sketches

Twisty roads surrounded by trees.

Start of the road and first renewable energy charger

Evolving terrain as you

drive.

What Worked?

What Didn't?

1. The body worked and didn't fall apart
2. Wheels could turn
3. Had camera attached to preferred interior view

1. Car would not go forward or turn
2. Camera would sometimes fall out of view
3. Car would wheelie every time you tried to go forward along and had no brakes

We made a car from scratch in Unity with some physics to move and steer around.

First Prototype

Change #1: Adding cosmetics and decor

Change #3:

We added some trees, different terrain texture, and charging

Explain what you added / changed for the next iteration

Change #2: Re modeled

Took original frame and re did body, rims, and other cosmetics

Wind Power Charging Station

Car

Solar Charging Station

Environmental Design

Final Result

Final Image

Reflecting & Looking Forward...

With more time...

• Make Charging stations functional
• Add Radio station with

information and history

• Add more sustainable

features.

Restarting we would've focused on story line elements and create a better picture explaining how sustainable energy is used.

Questions?