Author Topic: Disappearing car door  (Read 4249 times)

Offline krissel

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Disappearing car door
« on: January 18, 2008, 08:16:10 PM »


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Offline Bruce_F

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« Reply #1 on: January 19, 2008, 12:37:18 AM »
That's pretty cool!
-Bruce-

Offline gunug

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« Reply #2 on: January 19, 2008, 02:53:52 AM »
I'd seen that awhile back but not the video.  I would think it would add some complexity to the undercarriage and can you imagine if it were to get stuck under there or even worse. . .if it refused to open?  It's pretty neat though!
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Offline kimmer

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« Reply #3 on: January 19, 2008, 03:15:23 AM »
Cool.

Plus I love the drop down arm rests on the outer side of the seats.

Offline Gregg

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« Reply #4 on: January 19, 2008, 05:23:18 AM »
It mentions safety in the write up, but I wonder how many crash tests it has actually endured. Plus, I suspect the video is in Super Fast Motion!
Ya gotta applaud those bunnies for sacrificing their hearing just so some guy in Cupertino can have better TV reception.

Offline george

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« Reply #5 on: January 19, 2008, 11:57:20 AM »
Somehow I am reminded of De Lorean (if you are old enough)
George

Offline Xairbusdriver

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« Reply #6 on: January 19, 2008, 03:11:39 PM »
Somebody watching the video over my shoulder, not being very mechanically inclined, wanted to know how they kept the inside of the doord from getting dirty, since the underside of most cars have a lot of road crud on them. I sugested that the cars only drive on freshly cleaned streets and never in the rain... wallbash.gif smile.gif
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Offline RNKIII

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« Reply #7 on: January 19, 2008, 03:29:46 PM »
And certainly not where winter produces "Snow Snot" hanging all up under the car!!!
OR
Where winter 'breezes' cause many things of an 'intricately mechanical' nature to freeze up tighter than a witch's watch!! brrr1.gif

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Offline Gregg

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« Reply #8 on: January 19, 2008, 03:34:04 PM »
Watching the video again, I have to wonder about the malleability of the materials; metal and glass. They tout it's usefulness in tight quarters, and show you that it does not "swing out" as it opens up. Ok then, does it bend? Does the glass bend? And where does it go? If it's not going under the car and getting dirty, it's going into a pocket beneath the front seat and both knee spaces. So, what holds the weight of the front seat and its occupants?

And I still don't like the structural implications of removing the center support between front and back. It appears to be a 4-door sized opening, not a smaller 2-door size. I think the whole body frame has to be weakened with that large of a door and no support "rib".

I'm so skeptical, I checked for it on Snopes, but nothing came up. It sure looks cool. But I still doubt it could open in that fashion as quickly as the video shows.
Ya gotta applaud those bunnies for sacrificing their hearing just so some guy in Cupertino can have better TV reception.

Offline Xairbusdriver

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« Reply #9 on: January 19, 2008, 06:02:17 PM »
There is no bending involved. Glass and car doors don't recover from bending well. If you'll notice, there is a rather large flap that opens under the door just before it retracts. That probably helps seal the new compartment that is built to chold the door. I would assume that not only the center 'post' was removed but also a portion of the floor right over the outer frame rail. That would also help provide more room for the door to retract. Since most doors, especially the ones shown, are rounded on the outside, the optical illusion is that the door 'rotates' into the box below. I suspect that it more likely rolls on tracks at the front and rear that guides rollers at the top and the bottom of the ends of the door. The one on the top could very well be articulated so that the top part of the door actually swings outwardly a few inches to help clear the frame at the floor level. Reinforcing the frame and roof certainly can be done and I think the narrator even mentioned that. If the engineers doing the design work for this thing forgot about strenghthening that part, we'll know sooner than later. eek2.gif smile.gif I don't see any major problem with this kind of design nor do I see much of a market, this thing has got dollar signs all over it! You could probably carry the cash in the under floor 'bins,' but I'm not sure you'd want that to be one dollar bills! Maybe twenties would fit in there though. wink.gif If you want to see some amazing structural designing and works, take a close look at a modern commercial jets wing flap system. Many of them increase the size of some parts of the wing by nearly 50%! Where does all that stuff go when the flaps are retracted?! smile.gif
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Offline Gregg

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« Reply #10 on: January 19, 2008, 07:47:05 PM »
I didn't get any sound with the video. I did read the little blurb under the picture window.

Yes, I know that glass won't bend (unless heated). That's part of the credibility problem I have with this. Metal will "bend" if made in sections, like a garage door or a fire shutter, but that door is "wrinkle free".

But the problem of supporting the driver and front passenger remains. Let's assume there is an operable door on each side of the car. (I suppose it's possible that they tell you you only get one, but...) With that assumption, the entire floor below the front seat is a compartment, a void, for receiving the opened door. How do you put weight on air and expect an equal and opposite reaction? To span that void from front to rear would take a "beam" of considerable depth, perhaps at least as deep as the void is tall, and you'd need more than one for the entire seat, so just one down the middle doesn't cut it.

I'll believe it when I see it - in person. I don't believe the video.
Ya gotta applaud those bunnies for sacrificing their hearing just so some guy in Cupertino can have better TV reception.

Offline Xairbusdriver

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« Reply #11 on: January 19, 2008, 08:39:59 PM »
QUOTE
I don't believe the video.
But Gregg, if it's on the Internet, it must be true! I'm surprised and dismayed by your scepticism! tease.gif
« Last Edit: January 19, 2008, 08:41:00 PM by Xairbusdriver »
THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF COUNTRIES
Those that use metric = #1 Measurement system
And the United States = The Banana system
CAUTION! Childhood vaccinations cause adults! :yes:

Offline Paddy

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« Reply #12 on: January 20, 2008, 08:47:52 AM »
Well, here's another video that shows the inside and a bit more detail (including the sound effects!)

http://jalopnik.com/cars/found-on-ebay/the...oors-276295.php

Certainly not a new car...
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Offline Gregg

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« Reply #13 on: January 20, 2008, 01:51:10 PM »
That helps. It appears to create a "drop down" compartment for the door to "roll" into. That would mean it's below the frame of the car, and thus the support for the seat an passengers. I'm starting to see how it might work.
Ya gotta applaud those bunnies for sacrificing their hearing just so some guy in Cupertino can have better TV reception.

Offline Mrious_be

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Disappearing car door
« Reply #14 on: January 21, 2008, 06:48:19 AM »
It does look very cool... but when you check the second move (from the inside) you can see that the door itself is not very well covered (it's just a sheet of material over the mechanics?)...
So what about the safety and crash tests?
Let's hope they tested that out.

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