The Open Source Hydrogen Car

UK firm Riversimple are designing a truly alternative car. It runs on hydrogen power, has a carbon fibre body, and is completely open source. Anyone will be able to download the vehicle design and the software the car needs to operate.

The Riversimple approach has five key elements:

A lightweight network electric vehicle, constructed from carbon composites and powered by hydrogen fuel cells.

Open source design and development. Riversimple will invite the community to help develop its vehicles, by licensing its designs to the independent open source foundation 40 Fires.

A service concept - we will lease cars not sell them. This aligns the interests of the manufacturer with the interests of the consumer and of the environment - everyone wants cars that have a long life span with maximum efficiency and minimum materials usage.

Distributed manufacturing - The economies of scale of carbon composites frames are very different from those of steel-bodied vehicles. Riversimple vehicles are likely to be produced in small factories producing 5,000-10,000 vehicles per year.This allows for considerable local variation in the car.

Broader ownership - The corporate structure of Riversimple is designed to ensure that all stakeholders in the enterprise have a fair say and share in the benefits of a successful business.

Riversimple's website: http://www.riversimple.com/

For more on hydrogen fuel cells: http://www.appropedia.org/Hydrogen_fuel_cell