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Eco Cars: Owl-inspired Halcyon electric concept car offers a silent ride

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Eco Factor: Zero-emission all-electric car designed to be constructed from lightweight materials.

Inspired by an owl, the Halcyon, by auto designer Ralph Tayler-Webb is a clean, efficient, ultra-lightweight and eerily silent concept car that has been targeted towards nature-loving individuals. In harmony with the landscape for which it was formed, it treads lightly and leaves the wilderness just as wild as you found it.

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Ralph’s research and development included photographing birds in flight, carving an owl in hardwood and sketching them in charcoal and with water colors. He took a flight in a glider over Dartmoor’s national park, handled and flew living owls and experimented with numerous 15th scale clay models.

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The final model was made by hand from clay, and then cast in resin. Ralph chose not to machine the model from a computer model, as is increasingly the trend, as he believes that the tactile interface with clay imbues this kind of organic form with something instinctive, quite intangible, but very special.

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More at peace with the natural world, Halcyon embraces naturally quiet electric power and in turn eliminates emissions on the vehicles immediate surroundings. Reducing aerodynamic disturbance to a minimum, covered wheels and a tapering teardrop cabin are assisted by gently twisting surface transitions to coax the air around the body with a mere whisper.

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With a structure made from porous aluminum foam, Halcyon mimics the owl’s hollow bones and makes it surprisingly light for its generous volume. Aluminum foam also benefits from high impact and acoustic absorbency, keeping the occupants safe and (without) sound.

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The unobstructed panoramic viewpoint that a glider offers led to a cab-forward layout in this design, free from window pillars and even without a dashboard. So that in the Halcyon concept, it feels as if you glide rather than drive through beautiful landscapes, whilst your cradled vantage point treats you to breathtaking panoramic vistas.

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Thanks: [Ralph Tayler-Webb]

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