Nissan unveiled its latest concept creation in an ongoing series of design studies that will go on display at this year’s Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo. The third concept in the series is Nissan’s idea for a minivan of the future, and it comes packed with tech that the company says can sense your mood.
Called the Hyper Tourer, the concept is an all-electric minivan that Nissan says was created to reinforce “the bond between people as they journey together.” To do this, it’s full of lovely touchpoints like comfortable looking seats that can swivel round when the car’s autonomous driving tech is engaged.
But the headline tech here is a system that Nissan says is capable of reading your mood. According to the company, the Hyper Tourer uses an AI system to measure biometric signals such as heart rate, breathing and perspiration. With all this data, it is able to monitor your mood and select “ complementary music and adjust the lighting to fit your mood.”
Now, Nissan doesn’t say how the music will fit your mood, so we can’t tell if that means the soundtrack will enhance or intensify your feelings. Personally, I like to think the car will be able to sense when a bout of road rage is bubbling up and will then play out calming tracks from Alex Turner’s solo work. That makes much more sense to me than opting to blast out Stormzy when it senses temperatures are rising.
To up the mood-tempering atmosphere inside the car, Nissan has given the concept car a flat LED panel in the floor, which it says will display imagery like a riverbed and sky. If you want to truly escape reality, there’s a set of “wearable displays” that allow rear-seat passengers to immerse themselves in the vibes of the car, and also operate the navigation and audio .
To power this self-driving mood ring, the Hyper Tourer could be powered by “high-energy density all-solid-state batteries,” once they’ve been developed. These long-range cells will run an advanced all-wheel control system that Nissan says will be able to produce ultra smooth acceleration.
All of this futuristic technology is wrapped up inside a funky-looking design, which does a pretty good job of looking like both a bonkers concept car and a real vehicle that you could actually see on the road.
The sleek copper color looks good, as does the contrasting dark greenhouse up top. There’s also a neat angular front end, that’s echoed at the space shuttle-like rear end. It’s neat, I like the way this thing looks.
Sadly, there’s no word from Nissan about how much of this car, if any, will actually make it out onto the highway. However, the full-scale concept will be on display at this year’s Japan Mobility Show for anyone in Tokyo to gawk at starting October 26.
