This is the Mercedes-Benz Alpha concept and it is light years away from anything that you have ever seen before. The Alpha would be manufactured not by some complicated expensive procedure, but by nature, with a minimum number of devices and less pollution.
The Mercedes-Benz Alpha concept features a 2-part wood frame. Its manufacturing process starts from the very first day the seedling is planted. Using grafting and tree-shaping techniques, the automobile would be the world’s first to be created in a perfect eco-friendly method. After harvesting the pre-shaped timber, each section can be carved to the appropriate shape to form parts of the frame.
Nature would turn into a car plant, the most efficient of the manufacturers, rational and clean. The only obstacle would be the slow growing pace of trees, therefore, the amount of raw material would be limited. But experts at the University of Manchester are working on it.
Furthermore, the final production unit’s electric power brings its total carbon footprint down to almost zero. The procedure would fully replace the conventional engineering manufacturing and expensive materials with wood, guaranteeing strength, lightweight, elasticity.
The number of technical devices used in a vehicle would be reduced, which would automatically lower the total weight, energy consumption, the ejected gases, the energy in the production and, naturally, the costs.
Two wooden modules would make up the chassis with high capability of deformability, adapting to road bumps without the necessity of further technical components like dampers and suspensions. The light and digested fiber structure would effectively absorb the impact energy.
Following the “Tree shaping” technique, a tree can be shaped into any specific form. The most famous user of this technique is a Swedish-American farmer named Axel Erlandson. Owner of the “Tree Circus” back in the 50s, he was able to give his trees any shape he wanted. This technology is based on the ability of trees to grow together through the grafting.
Source: Yanko Design.
