New Stellantis BOW van is quite literally a ‘Box on Wheels’

‘Box on Wheels’ might sound like an endearing term for an old Volvo, but here, it’s the official name of a new vehicle.

Revealed at the IAA Transportation Hannover commercial vehicle show, the BOW or ‘Box on Wheels’ is a collaboration between Stellantis Pro and Chinese Robotics company UQI. It’s described as “an autonomous, fully electric logistics concept vehicle designed to explore new approaches to urban operations.” 

It’s a familiar concept we’re most used to seeing in futuristic films (both dystopian and utopian), although this one is more than just a prop. Along with a static version on the Stellantis stand at the Hannover show, there’s also a BOW. demo model outside of the exhibition area for visitors to experience. 

Giving some idea of the intended uses for the vehicle, Stellantis says that the BOW. “opens new possibilities for goods distribution, city logistics and operations within controlled environments such as factories, hospitals and airports.”

Technical details are thin on the ground, but we can at least see that there’s a large screen at the front fashioned to look like a windscreen. Above this is what looks like the characteristic ‘hump’ of a LiDAR sensor array. 

At the rear is a roller-shutter door hiding a cargo bay of undisclosed capacity. It’ll almost certainly be able to carry much more than a regular van of the same footprint, given the lack of cabin to get in the way. 

UQI already makes something called the Chitu α (or 'Alpha') logistics vehicle, which does indeed have LiDAR. It’s intended for industrial settings, with warehouse logistics, deliveries and material sorting listed as some of its potential uses. 

The BOW. appears on stage alongside the also rather quirky Fiat TRIS three-wheeler last-mile delivery vehicle, and plenty of more conventional commercial vehicles, including the Fiat eDUCATO Fridge, which can power its onboard refrigeration directly from the electric van’s high-voltage battery. 

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