Baobab Project
One of the leading leaders in the production of autonomous aircraft Ehang, together with the Italian architects Giancarlo Zema Design Group (GZDG), presented the Baobab project, which involves the construction of a number of landing platforms – vertiports, which are a large tree-like tower designed to accommodate EH216 drones and passengers. waiting for departure.
The electricity to power these vertiports will be generated by built-in solar panels, while independent plug-and-play charging points will provide wireless charging for the autonomous ships themselves. The project is currently under development and Ehang and GZDG expect it to be as responsive as possible to the emerging global eco-tourism sector. The first vertiports are planned to be located on the lake in the Chinese city of Zhaoqing, as well as in the Maldives, the United Arab Emirates and Italy.
What is a vertiport?
A vertiport is a collective term referring to areas specially designated for vertical take-off and landing of autonomous aircraft, in the same way that a heliport is a designated area for helicopter landings.
inspired by the baobab
This vertiport design is reportedly inspired by the majestic baobab tree native to the African savannah. The company believes that with such an environmentally friendly design, the landing sites will organically fit into the surrounding nature. Ehang’s vertiport is a 30m steel and laminated wood structure. The closed part of the vertiport includes a large waiting room, a cafe, a restaurant with an area of 200 sq.m with a panoramic view, as well as an elevator for lifting and lowering passengers.
The open area includes the so-called green areas with seating and three areas for the landing of Ehang electric drones, which will be charged in the air from the floor of the landing area. This special floor consists of the latest generation of non-slip photovoltaic panels manufactured by the British company Solapave, capable of generating more than 300 kW of energy. Interior and facade lighting will be implemented from LED components.
