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Japan's government gives hydrogen vehicles a big boost

The Japanese government is really paving the way for hydrogen fuel cell technology on its roads. Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry is changing regulations on fuel tanks to make hydrogen cars more appealing to drivers, which should help put the country ahead of others in the race to develop a viable H2 fleet. Japan is raising the allowed pressure of hydrogen tanks from 700 atmospheres to 875, which has the effect of increasing driving range by 20 percent. This move puts the country in line with others with high-pressure fueling regulations. Japan is also in talks with the United Nations and the European Union to streamline inspection rules to make it easier to export Japan's fuel-cell vehicles. Toyota premiered its hydrogen-powered FCV Concept at the Tokyo Motor Show last year and plans to release a production version as early as next year. Honda also plans to build its own fuel-cell cars for 2015, and it debuted its FCEV Concept at last year's Los Angeles Auto Show. Nissan is sending mixed messages on hydrogen, both questioning the availability of a refueling infrastructure and working on developing the vehicles. In Japan, a relatively small country, increasing the range of fuel-cell vehicles makes creating a usable infrastructure a bit less daunting. Will hydrogen-fueled electric cars see the same sort of success as Toyota's Prius hybrid or battery-powered EVs? Only time will tell, but we can keep our fingers crossed that it will, and that the popularity spills over beyond Asia. Featured Gallery Toyota FCV (Fuel Cell Vehicle) Hydrogen Concept View 24 Photos News Source: Nikkei via Green Car Reports Government/Legal Green Honda Toyota Hydrogen Cars charging station infrastructure fcev fcv

Honda patents show technology that could give you X-ray vision

A pair of patent applications from Honda appear to show technology that will bring us one step closer to augmented-reality driving. The patents involve head-up displays (HUDs) and technology that can show people and vehicles that would otherwise be obscured. It'd be like being Superman behind the wheel. The first of the patents is for pedestrian detection. Many vehicles have a version of pedestrian detection that will alert a driver of a possible collision and automatically brake. This system from Honda would go a step further. Rather than just intervening when someone steps in front of the car, the proposed system would be able to detect multiple pedestrians and display their locations on an augmented reality HUD. It would also be able to locate pedestrians that are out of the driver's field of view, whether obscured by blind spots or something else. With this system, drivers would have information that would allow them to actively avoid a situation before the car has to intervene. The second patent adds vehicle-to-vehicle communications for keeping track of cars in traffic. In the patent, Honda explains how the system would work with a line of three cars. Provided the cars were connected with a V2V system, the lead car would communicate with the middle car to calculate the distance between them. Then, the middle car would relay that information to the last car, which would display an icon representing the lead vehicle with its position and status on the augmented reality HUD. This would allow the driver to effectively see through the middle car to know where the lead car is and what it's doing. The system would also be able to keep track of when the lead car starts braking, giving the driver advance notice and more time to react to a sudden slowdown or stop. This isn't the first time Honda has looked into advanced pedestrian technology or short-range communications. A few years ago, the company experimented with a system that would allow a car to communicate with pedestrians' cell phones to see their position, even when the sensors couldn't. The detection technology described in the first patent appears to rely only on sensors. Honda also experimented with V2V communication on motorcycles, so it's possible that project laid some groundwork for the augmented reality system in the second patent.

Honda rolls out six-seat Jade Hybrid wagon in Japan

Honda has tried its hand at making hybrids of all shapes and sizes – whether dedicated or adapted to partial electric propulsion. There was the original two-seat Insight, the five-passenger Insight that followed, the 2+2 CR-Z hatchback and the hybrid version of the Vezel crossover – to say nothing of hybrid versions of the Civic and Accord. And now there's one more... in Japan, anyway. That would be the Jade, a wagon developed for the Chinese market but which Honda is now bringing home for the JDM, with a few key differences. For starters, while the Civic-based, low-slung wagon/minivan is produced under joint venture with Dongfeng principally in five-seat configuration, the Japanese version is being offered with three rows of two seats each for a total of (you guessed it) six chairs. The six-seat configuration, also offered on the conventional Chinese-market model, does away with the middle seat in the middle row in favor of more elbow room. The JDM Jade is also ditching the conventional 1.8-liter inline four in favor of the 1.5-liter hybrid and seven-speed DCT from the Vezel and Fit hybrids. Now if we could just get it Stateside with the Civic Type R engine, we could have a real sleek power wagon on our hands that would make us forget all about the Seat Leon ST Cupra unveiled just last week and let us play British touring car champion on our daily commute. Featured Gallery Honda Jade Hybrid (JDM) View 15 Photos News Source: Honda Green Honda Minivan/Van Wagon Hybrid JDM