Cars On The Roads, Winglets On The Sidewalks

Toyota Motor Corp. is successful in establishing a good name in the auto industry. Matter of fact, its name is deemed synonymous with quality. As the leading manufacturer of hybrids, the Japanese automaker is worthy of its green credo crown. And in less than no time, it is also expected that the automaker will be crowned as the largest around the globe.

But ToMoCo isn’t satisfied with road invasion alone. While the company’s cars are running on the roads, Toyota wants its winglets to conquer the sidewalks.

It was reported by the Financial Post that Toyota has filed a trademark application with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office in late November for a motorized wheelchair it calls "winglet." It can also be recalled that at the 2007 Tokyo Auto Show, the automaker launched a similar product with different name.

"We are very interested in mobility of all kinds," said Pat Clement, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada spokeswoman. "It's very possible that [the Winglet] is something along the lines of the personal mobility devices that have been shown. Toyota's Canadian manufacturing arm nevertheless has little to no information about the vehicle in the filing.”

The filing of the application is an indication that Toyota is getting closer to commercializing its PMVs - short for personal-mobility vehicles. To note, the automaker has earlier launched 4 generations of concept PMVs - the PM, i-Unit, i-Swing, and i-Real.

Beyond the need to wow a Japanese audience, however, Toyota has recognized that there are "cities within cities," in airports and other places, where such vehicles can be used, said Jessica Caldwell, an analyst with Edmunds.com. "They're a big company and they've got the budget to look beyond just cars and trucks and SUVs."

With the tight competition, automakers are finding new ways to reach out to consumers. Toyota’s officials said that they intend to market the PMV globally. However, they did not divulge a particular timeline.

As General Motors envisions how to enhance the GMC wheels and other car parts, Toyota thinks about how best to meet the needs of the ageing populace. This is why more PMV are expected to be launched by the Japanese automaker. That’s a nice focus Toyota!