The Lexus LF-30 Electrified Concept was unveiled at the 46th Tokyo Motor Show 2019. Lexus unveiled its latest "Electrified" concept car on Wednesday with newly designed augmented reality features and drone support. The Japanese automaker revealed the Lexus LF-30 Electrified Concept at the 46th Tokyo Motor Show 2019. One of the standout features is the vehicle's cockpit, which houses steering wheel-mounted switches that control navigation and audio. The concept car is also packed with gesture controls and augmented reality displays.

The 46th Tokyo Motor Show slated to kick off Thursday will not just focus on futuristic, cutting-edge vehicles, such as self-driving cars, it will also shine a light on unconventional mobility devices and exhibitions for children aimed at reversing flagging attendance. The show once enjoyed a reputation as one of the world's five biggest auto expos along with the Frankfurt, Geneva, Detroit and Paris shows. But it has recently lost its position as Asia's top venue to the Chinese expos in Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou. The 46th biennial exhibition, to be held at Tokyo Big Sight convention center and its vicinity through Nov. 4, will be attended by 192 carmakers and organizations from eight countries, down from a peak of 361 in 1995, according to the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, the nation's largest auto lobby and the show's organizer. Along with U.S. giants General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV -- which are again skipping Tokyo's show this year, BMW, Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche, Citroen, Volvo and Peugeot will also be absent this year despite participating in 2017.

An international drone race will be held in November as one of events of the Tokyo Motor Show, which will start in late October, the organizing committee said Monday. The event will be the first drone race in Japan officially approved by the World Air Sports Federation, the international body for sky sports, according to the committee. The drone racing will be held on Nov. 1-2 at a venue of the Tokyo Motor Show, among 60 professional and licensed racers. A meeting to discuss the air traffic control systems necessary for drones will also be held, in a bid to promote the use of drones in society.

Toyota is very invested in love. The automaker has a central philosophy of making vehicles that inspire'Aisha,' a concept that literally means "beloved car" in Japanese. But the nature of'Aisha' is changing, necessarily, just at the nature of automobiles themselves are fundamentally changing as we usher in automated and semi-autonomous driving. The key to making'Aisha' work in this new era, Toyota believes, lies in using artificial intelligence to broaden its definition, and to transform cars from something that people are merely interested in and passionate about, into something that people can actually bond with – and even come to think of as a partner. To create a bond between a person and a car that's more than just skin (or topcoat) deep, Toyota believes that learning and understanding drivers, combined with automated driving, and an AI agent that's more companion than virtual assistant, is key.

Honda didn't just unveil a slick-looking EV coupe concept at the Tokyo Motor Show. It also had a robot... though it's definitely not the kind of robot you'd expect from the company. Its RoboCas Concept is a super-cute cargo bot that can follow you around while hauling whatever you like in its large, customizable carrying space. Honda imagines people using it to open pop-up curry shops or haul pumpkins home from the farm. We could see this being incredibly helpful if you don't have a car, or if you'd rather not drive just to haul some food and drinks to the park for a picnic.

Honda on Wednesday showcased a new motorcycle that can stand unaided with or without a rider, using technology the firm learned from developing a walking humanoid. Unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show, Honda's Riding Assist-e is an all-electric concept motorbike that constantly assesses its position and moves the steering bar to ensure the heavy machine stays upright. For years, international bike manufacturers have experimented with various forms of gyroscopes to stop motorcycles falling over, said Hiroyuki Nakata, the engineer behind the idea. Unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show, Honda's Riding Assist-e is an all-electric concept motorbike that constantly assesses its position and moves the steering bar to ensure the heavy machine stays upright'But if you wanted to keep something as heavy as a motorcycle standing, you need a large and heavy gyroscopic device and you need to keep turning it,' he told AFP. Honda's device, however, is only the size of a lamp and can be rigged above the front wheel.

Green-energy vehicles, self-driving technologies and internet connectivity are expected to be the rage at this year's Tokyo Motor Show slated to open to the public Saturday at the Tokyo Big Sight convention center in Koto Ward. The 45th biennial exhibition, will see participation from a total of 153 carmakers and auto suppliers, including 13 overseas firms from 10 different countries. The expo will run until Nov. 5, with the opening ceremony being held on Friday. During Wednesday's media preview, major automakers showed their visions of the future with concept cars equipped with cutting-edge technologies. Toyota Motor Corp. unveiled the prototype for its hydrogen-powered Fine-Comfort Ride, its latest fuel-cell vehicle model.

Toyota Motor Corp. is set to unveil a fuel cell concept car that aims to offer 50 percent more driving range than its current hydrogen-powered sedan in a technology push that defies a rising wave of battery-powered vehicles. The nation's biggest auto manufacturer is targeting a 1,000-km (620-mile) range for the Fine-Comfort Ride concept saloon under local standards, compared with about 650 km for the current Mirai fuel cell vehicle, according to a statement Wednesday. The concept car, to be introduced at the Tokyo Motor Show next week, will include artificial intelligence and automated driving features. Toyota is continuing to champion fuel cell vehicles as the ultimate zero-emission cars, even as the falling cost of lithium-ion batteries have lured a majority of automakers to plug-in technology in the face of ever more stringent environmental standards worldwide. China, the world's largest market, said last month that it was working on a timeline to end the sale of internal-combustion vehicles, joining countries including France, India and the U.K. While Japan has created a Hydrogen Society Roadmap to increase the number of fuel cell vehicles on its roads to 40,000 by 2020, there are currently just 2,200 or so.

At this month's Tokyo Motor Show, Mitsubishi will make the world debut of its e-Evolution Concept, an all-electric concept with Artificial Intelligence that will suggest the near-future direction of Mitsubishi Motors. The concept is intended to build on the Japanese automaker's EV and all-wheel drive expertise, with the Artificial Intelligence (AI) taking it to a new level. Augmenting the driver's capabilities, the AI system will deploy an array of sensors allowing it to instantly read changes in road and traffic conditions, as well as the driver's intent. Coordinating driver intent with vehicle performance, Mitsubishi says the system will provide support to drivers by augmenting their abilities. A special coaching function allows the AI system to educate the driver, constructing a training program that provides advice through voice dialogue and a large dashboard display. Mitsubishi says this high-tech wizardry is designed to use voice recognition and natural-language processing to correctly understand what occupants are saying.