How Tech Wizards are Dreaming Sustainable Cities into Life
Every step forward taken by the human race was powered by creative, inventive minds.
All that we take for granted today was once non-existent and then new – thought and fashioned into life by an inventor.
So, when we are overwhelmed by the environmental and social challenges of today and tomorrow, there is comfort in knowing that somebody is working on a solution.
With 40% of global carbon emissions coming from the built environment, there are few places where solutions are as urgently required as in our cities.
So what are the world’s inventive minds working on to make cities smart and sustainable?
From the lab to our homes and streets
Anthony Vetro is a man who is driven by the desire to see ideas become solutions.
Anthony is a one-company man, having worked at Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories (MERL) for 28 years.
As its President and CEO, he oversees and empowers the extraordinary work being done in the company’s labs.
MERL’s parent company is the global giant Mitsubishi, with its experts designing tech and solutions for the Japanese-headquartered firm to implement.
One of his chief passions is sustainable cities and he is excited about how MERL and Mitsubishi can contribute.
Anthony says: “In the lab we work on a broad range of technologies, so I’ve been able to get involved in many things. I’ve managed teams dealing with speech, computer vision, controls, fluid dynamics, robotics and AI.
“Our ultimate goal is to transfer technology into the business divisions of the parent company, Mitsubishi.
“That’s what I’ve found to be very rewarding. It’s this happy balance between working on state-of-the-art technology, pushing the frontiers of science, then having the opportunity to see it have an impact and be commercialised through the business divisions.”
Making an impact on the quest to hit net zero
So much of the process is now focused on sustainability, Anthony says.
“I think I’m most interested in things that can have a global impact on people or address a key social challenge.
“The environment is the biggest challenge and Mitsubishi as a whole is highly motivated and focused on solutions that drive us towards carbon neutrality.
“It’s very satisfying to see our technology making an impact on some of these big environmental challenges.”
But that has only happened through a change of mindset.
“Mitsubishi is traditionally a very hardware-oriented company, like motors and air conditioning systems,” Anthony explains.
“For years, people designed them based on physics principles. But they have limitations. These days, with a lot of AI and machine learning, you can overcome some of those limitations.
“When you put together the people who know about physics and those who know about machine learning, this could help push performance boundaries and get us closer towards building a sustainable future.”
Sustainable cities need integrated approach
The difficult issue is how to turn that creativity into integrated solutions. For cities are huge, with a vast ecosystem of people, buildings, transportation networks and more.
Anthony continues: “We want to be able to create cities that have low carbon emissions and support a more environmentally-friendly approach to energy efficiency.
“But it’s too big for any single company to take on alone. Mitsubishi has its hands on a lot of it, but we need partners, for example for communication – or partnerships with each of the cities because they need to incentivise different behaviours. Public transportation versus commuting in your car, for example.”
He adds: “Mitsubishi Electric is a pretty diverse company. We do business on the energy generation and distribution sides, but also consumption – the buildings, factories, aircon, automotive, etc.
“I think sustainable cities will need a large-scale, integrated solution.”
There are already ways to drive sustainability in cities, Anthony says, including:
Variable capacity heat pumps
“One area that Mitsubishi is heavily invested in is heat pumps – specifically, variable capacity heat pumps,” explains Anthony.
“These use an inverter-driven technology to maintain the desired temperature. Typical heat pumps have an on and off cycle, but variable speed ones oscillate and change things in a more dynamic way.
“Our US factory for air conditioning and heat pump systems is in the Atlanta area. They did a study with the Georgia Public Service Commission and the State Commissioner said, if everyone in Georgia adopted these pumps, they could close their largest coal-burning power station.”
Distributed Energy Resource Management
“This is looking at ways to better integrate renewable energy sources into the grid,” Anthony goes on.
“In Boston, we're not getting much solar power today. Wind also could be very variable. So you can't necessarily rely on it for the sole source of energy in a city.
“So I think the question is, how do you integrate those renewable sources in such a way that you can supplement traditional power plans?”
The answer – or an answer – is DERM.
Anthony says: “It comes down to good models that can predict the load on the consumption side and know what's coming in on the energy generation side.
“We have a weather forecast. We can predict what the solar power might be on a given day.
If we know what's happening on the generation and the consumption sides, we could then optimise the distribution and reuse of those sustainable sources and make sure there's no disruption of service.”
Electric vehicles and integrated transport
Anthony calls transportation “the other big one” and it presents enormous challenges.
He says: “With EVs, we look at everything from the component level – can we create and develop more energy-efficient motors? – to how we optimise systems in a big city with different modalities of transportation.
He asks: “How do we optimise the whole transportation flow of people?
“How do I incentivise a driver to take a different route that might require 15 more minutes of their commute, but it's less congested, and it helps the overall traffic move better?”
If you think it doesn’t add up, fear not – the experts are doing the maths.
Anthony says: “You have hundreds and thousands of destinations that people want to get to in a city and you have these modes of transportation.
“You could really formulate that mathematically and try to come up with a good solution.”
MERL is also working on digital twin technology – modelling how buildings, factories, components and couplings are interrelated.
“We can simulate how it should operate and check with real-world measurements,” Anthony continues. “It means accurate forecasts and energy-efficient solutions.”
Letting ideas fly – if they are allowed to
The issue of smart tech and sustainable cities was at the forefront of discussion at the Oliver Wyman Forum’s South by Southwest (SXSW) panel discussion on urban mobility.
It heard that technologies like flying taxis are poised to transform the way people get around. But, for these solutions to have the greatest impact, they must be implemented sustainably and equitably, according to experts who participated.
Bryan Willows, Americas Director of Advanced Air Mobility at Bristow Group, pointed out that one company was seeking regulatory approval to launch an air taxi service in Paris for the Olympics.
To get there, though, providers must convince regulators that the technology is safe and engage with local communities to win their support, he added.
“The last thing we or consumers want is for us to build a vertiport in their backyard and have them unable to see the benefit of it.”
Los Angeles is investing in terrestrial improvements for its staging of the 2028 Summer Games to accommodate a flood of tourists who might otherwise add to the city’s notorious gridlock.
Metro, Los Angeles County’s transit authority, is expanding metro lines, active mobility and multimodal projects under a 30-year programme.
Heather Repenning, Executive Officer for Sustainability Policy for Metro, says it requires seamless planning and implementation: “We want to make it easier to navigate between different modes that are available, help people understand their options to travel, pay in one place and know they can use their device to do it.”
How smart are the UK’s cities?
This is not one of those inbox surveys, which use mysterious measurements to conclude: “Norwich is the Smartest City in the Milky Way”.
There are, however, some cities that are setting the pace, as Compliance Chain Founder Robbie Blackhurst explains.
He says: “The concept of smart cities is gaining traction across the globe. In the UK, several cities are at the forefront of this transformation, integrating cutting-edge technology and sustainable practices to enhance urban living.
He selects London, Manchester, Bristol and Glasgow as pioneers.
London: Smart Pioneer
Robbie says: “London is a pioneer in the smart city movement, with initiatives aimed at making the city more efficient, sustainable and livable. The Smart London Plan focuses on harnessing data and technology to improve public services, transportation and housing. Key projects include Crossrail (Elizabeth Line) and Greenwich Smart City.”
Manchester: Innovation Hub
“Manchester's CityVerve project is a flagship initiative that aims to create a blueprint for smart cities in the UK,” says Robbie. “The project integrates IoT technology to enhance various aspects of urban living, including healthcare, transport and energy.
“It’s also known for its smart lighting initiatives, where street lights are equipped with sensors to adjust brightness based on real-time data.”
Bristol: The Living Lab
Robbie says: “Bristol stands out as a living lab for smart city experimentation. The Bristol Is Open initiative transforms the city into a testbed for new technologies, focusing on IoT, 5G and data analytics.
“Bristol has also implemented extensive cycling infrastructure, electric vehicle charging stations and urban green spaces to improve air quality and enhance residents' well-being.”
Glasgow: Smart Urban Infrastructure
Robbie says: “Glasgow's Future City Glasgow programme leverages technology to address urban challenges and improve quality of life. Key initiatives include using advanced CCTV systems to enhance public safety and traffic management and developing an integrated transport system that combines real-time data from various modes of transport to improve connectivity and efficiency.”
With experts working tirelessly in laboratories to invent and integrate sustainable tech, city leaders finding innovative solutions to transportation issues and businesses jumping on board with the money and the ideas, maybe the smart money should be on cities becoming sustainable.
If nothing else, there are plenty of examples to learn from.
Robbie concludes: “As these cities continue to innovate and grow, they provide valuable insights and models for other cities around the world to follow in their quest to become smarter and more sustainable.”
To read the full story in the magazine click HERE
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