NEXT HITACHI
Total design for limited express　

2007

CD:Tatsuya Matsui
CCD: Tatsuya Matsui
D:Hiroyuki Hoshino, Motoi Nakamikawa, Kanako Homan
TC:Marika Hayashi, Hirohiko Yoshida
P:P.M.Ken
"TITLE" ( Bungeishunju Ltd.) 2007 No.10

We had a request to design "Dream Railway" for a project to be published in a magazine. When we design, specific conditions considerably limit our creativity. As we were allowed to design anything freely, we first examined closely the conditions of a train's set-up. Thinking of an idea to design "Super Hitachi", a medium distance railway in service, we made a new proposal for the environment. The lead vehicle is two stories, and the driver's seat is upstairs. To ward off the wind, the curved glass surface at the tip of the vehicle is molded into an egg shape, being the face of the vehicle. The sides of all cars are sloped at an angle of 45 degrees to move fast through air. A hybrid fuel cell is ideal. In our planned layout are thermal storage batteries in the ceiling, and in the section of wheels, we have a hydrogen tank, fuel cell, control device, and motor. According to the survey of passengers and their objectives in traveling by the Super Hitachi train, the most users are businessmen, and they spend two hours on the train doing their job-related work. Therefore, we made the interior extremely simple, and proposed a relaxing environment so that they were able to concentrate on their work. As the usual cart sales on the train blocked the passage, we shortened the width of the cart, and raised its height. In addition, we planned that a rail was to be laid in the train so that the cart could move electrically. We also suggested electronic cards with IC chips and USB memory so that booking via the Internet and automatic ticket payment would be available through the electronic money system.