EASI RIDER Project

 

What is the current status of the EASI RIDER vehicle?

We have created an interactive platform that people can evaluate. It will be open to the pubic at The 108th Purdue Road School Transportation Conference & Expo on March 15, 2022 in West Lafayette, IN.
https://roadschool.purdue.edu/

 

This is a non drivable vehicle. This platform allows individuals to enter the vehicle, be wheelchair secured or seated, and independently operate secondary controls such as horn, lights, door and ramp, and vehicle display.

 

 

Why are there no seatbelts?

We decided from the beginning not to focus on seatbelt functionality because our test bed was based on the Local Motors Olli and thus the seatbelt would be difficult to universally design (see question regarding cost below). In addition, any good seatbelt design would need to be rigorously crash tested to ensure safety.

 

 

Are you reaching out to OEMs?

For the scope of the DOT Inclusive Design Challenge, our design solutions are meant to be implemented in any type of future autonomous vehicle. We have not looked at this problem for any specific vehicle make or model, but our solution is something that would be universally applicable to all.

 

 

How much does the EASI RIDER autonomous vehicle cost?

Regarding EASI RIDER cost, the Olli by Local Motors is our test bed for the ramp, securement, seating, and interaction solution. However, our inclusive design solutions can apply to any autonomous vehicle. While vehicle cost is out of scope for EASI RIDER, the discoveries we make in this project will be useful for AV design in future vehicles (of all prices!).

 

 

If you have any other questions or concerns reach out to the EASI RIDER Team at bsd@purdue.edu.