Austrian design studio Eoos Nexthas developed and unveiled an electric tricycle that can be constructed using a 3D printing machine, and which they built using 70-kilograms of recycled plastic.
Built for the Vienna Biennale for Change 2021 for the exhibition Climate Care, the ZUV – a zero-emissions utility vehicle – is a purely electric cargo tricycle that can be produced easily and cost-effectively by industrial robots in a 3D printing process.
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Built in collaboration with The New Raw production studio in Rotteram, which uses 3D robotic printing and recycled plastic waste, the ZUV can mostly be made in a 3D printer using recycled plastic waste – with only wheels, an electric motor, handlebar, and brakes unable to be printed.
Of course, these are not insignificant additions to any bicycle – and as you can see in the picture below, what Eoos Next have designed is essentially a sled. But many modern-day bicycle stores are able to fit electric motors and have plenty of stock for the other pieces necessary to fit out the ZUV.
The tricycle body that has been designed and 3D-printed from waste material is nevertheless impressive, able to provide seating for two and can carry a payload of as much as 200-kilograms.
Given that a significant portion of the ZUV’s components need to be fitted as extras, there are probably no firm speed and travel specifications – as these could theoretically be modified depending on what type of motor and battery you use.
However, the model that EOOS NEXT has printed out and will be displaying at the Vienna Biennale for Change 2021 has a top speed of 25km/h and can travel 50-kilometres on a single battery charge.
Joshua S. Hill is a Melbourne-based journalist who has been writing about climate change, clean technology, and electric vehicles for over 15 years. He has been reporting on electric vehicles and clean technologies for Renew Economy and The Driven since 2012. His preferred mode of transport is his feet.