This smart little car does it all, compacting to smaller sizes on demand, sliding horizontally into parking spots (no more need to try and parallel) and linking up to form fleets of semi-automated vehicles.

The EO Smart Connecting Car 2 (or: EOscc2) grew out a project by the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence, and has more than a few tricks behind its up-swinging doors.

The biggest feat is the app that allows the car to be connected to other vehicles on the road, forming an invisible chain led by a single automobile.

Having an individual master controller frees up other drivers to become passengers, sitting back and relaxing while someone else steers the modular fleet.

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Ford engineers are working on a system that would allow vehicles to collect and recycle condensation produced by vehicle air conditioners, turning waste water into potable drinks on hot days demanding AC use.

The On-The-Go H2O prototype unveiled by the company is a much simpler version of the envisioned device, but does basically the same thing: humidity is turned into drinking water stored in a tank and ready to dispense.

Drivers and passengers will be able to tap into the system via a dispenser faucet situated between the front pair of seats. The technology can generate more than 64 ounces of water per hour, or about four drinking bottles’ worth. It could be particularly handy in hot and remote locations, not to mention saving on bottle production and waste.

While there is a ways to travel between concept and reality, the team in Detroit, Michigan, hopes to see this gadget hitting the road as part of vehicles sometime in the near future.

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In an effort to get self-driving cars on the road by the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, Japan is working to digitally chart the nation’s major roadways with special mapping technology to create detailed 3D data sets. Dynamic Map Planning, a joint venture of various automotive companies,  is crunching data on hundreds of miles of expressways to producing highly accurate positioning data.

The 3D maps will contain road grades, structures, signs and other elements of the built environments, helping vehicles slow down ahead of traffic lights, sharp turns and reducing traffic congestion. Sensor data can help cars navigate their immediate surroundings but struggle with complex road patterns like off ramps, especially in wide roads with fewer close-proximity clues (or multi-level highways).

The combination of high-resolution 3D maps and sensors will enable the accurate detection of which lane a car is in and the distance to junctions. High-precision surveying technology is required to make the maps, so Mitsubishi Electric developed equipment that will be installed on a canvassing vehicle. GPS will track the location of the car on the map, and sensors designed to detect the inclination of the car will measure the road grades.

At the same time, data including the locations of road signs and traffic lights, as well as right- and left-turns and pedestrian crossings, will be collected using lasers. The survey data will be displayed as a collection of dots. Lines on the road, such as lanes, noise barriers and road signage, will be plotted on that image to faithfully recreate road conditions for 3D maps.

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The Vision from Mercedes-Benz comes equipped with a set of detachable rooftop drones to make the last steps of a delivery smooth, reliable and efficient.

It works on both ends, too: the drones can load up the compact freight vehicle from a distribution center then detach and deliver goods at a destination. Packages can be taken out of the back or simply raised through a hatch in the roof and handed off to a waiting unmanned aerial vehicle.

In a future where driverless vehicles are an impending reality, the design makes sense: it obviates the need for human intervention anywhere in the delivery cycle. The deliveries would also be more predictable, which is helpful for waiting consumers, and easier in cities, where parking can be hard to find.

“With the Vision Van we are presenting the intelligent, clean and fully interconnected van of the future”, said Volker Mornhinweg, head of Mercedes-Benz Vans. “The Vision Van integrates many concrete concepts for future delivery operations in the urban environment.”

“We are integrating the intelligence of a state-of-the-art logistics depot into a van,” Mornhinweg continued. “We estimate that this vehicle would enable an increase in productivity of up to 50 per cent in last-mile delivery services.”

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Somewhere between a luxury car and a personal airplane, the Lilium is a two-seat electric vehicle designed to take off and land vertically, obviating the need for runways and making it a candidate for flying to and from your suburban driveway.

Developed in a European Space Agency business incubator in Bavaria, Germany, the flier is scheduled for release in 2018 and will be the first of its kind.

The fixed-wing design will likely be limited initially to conventional airports, despite its advanced capabilities, but its makers hope that as adoption of the new technology grows new laws will also be made to accommodate fresh capacities for departure and landing anywhere. As of now, the Lilium only needs a patch about 50 by 50 feet to get off and back onto the ground, and has a cruising speed of 250 miles per hour (and range of over 300 miles) – definitely more than your typical commuter car.

“Our goal is to develop an aircraft for use in everyday life,” said Lilium CEO and cofounder Daniel Wiegand. “We are going for a plane that can take off and land vertically and does not need the complex and expensive infrastructure of an airport. To reduce noise and pollution, we are using electric engines so it can also be used close to urban areas.”

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