Toyota Motor Corp affiliate Hino Motors and Israeli startup Ree Automotive will jointly develop modular electric vehicles(EV) to transport people and goods, joining a growing number of partnerships in the still young, but fast-paced commercial EV sector.
Ree has developed a flexible electric skateboard that combines motor, batteries, steering, suspension and brakes into a flat chassis on which different vehicle configurations – among them vans and buses – can be built.
Ree has a twist: Each corner of the skateboard features a modular wheel/tire combination that also incorporates suspension and other chassis components.
Hino and Ree plan to jointly develop an electric commercial vehicle chassis that employs Ree’s corner modules and features a detachable “mobility service module” that can function as a stand-alone unit. The partners plan to begin developing prototype vehicles in 2022.
Hino said the starting point for development is a concept called FlatFormer for a modular electric commercial vehicle, first displayed at the 2019 Tokyo auto show.
Ree said its skateboard can accommodate self-driving hardware.
This is a Businesswire Feed; edited by Clean-Future Team