The Zombie Apacolypse (Part 2)

I have returned from my brief hiatus, and as promised, I bring you the ADOT MCV – the zombie apocalypse version!

The ADOT MCV - Civilian Version

The ADOT MCV - Zombie Apocalypse Version

For this version, I decided to show the vehicle all “buttoned up”, that is all of the doors are closed, all of the stairs are folded in, and the outriggers are retracted.

The interior of the vehicle really hasn’t changed, as the ZA edition of the MCV really focuses on beefing up the exterior.  The first and most noticeable addition to the MCV is the giant plow (aka, the “zombie catcher”) mounted on the front of the vehicle. The purpose of this attachment, other then mowing down hordes of the undead, is to push abandoned vehicles out of the way, as well as to punch through the occasional concrete wall.

The Zombie Catcher

The next most noticeable attachment is all of the window guards.  Obviously you don’t want any weak points in your mobile zombie stronghold, and windows are in fact, the number one weak spot.  Therefore, every window and door has been fitted with plate steel, heavy bars or a combination of the two.   

Window and door guards provide extra security.

Rear doors in lock down with rear ramp up.

All of the larger spotlights have also been fitted with protective grills.  The roof is also lined with razor wire for added protection for the gun crew.

Razor wire at the roof line.

Yes, the gun crew.

Gun crew station on the roof.

Their post is located on the roof; built off the roof rack.  There are two gunner stations, one forward left, and the other rear right.  Both stations are semi-protected from the elements with impromptu constructed overhead covers.  The turrets are salvaged from either a military installation or military vehicles (you have to figure that during the zombie apocalypse, military equipment would have been deployed, and possible abandoned as the zombie epidemic spread and overran military bases and checkpoints). The forward section of the roof rack (the narrow portion) can be used to store ammo boxes for the turrets.  

Gun turrets with ammo boxes beyond.

Overhead view.

This was definitely a fun a little project to work on.  Most of the time, as I have stated before, my work is pretty straight forward – a client tells me what they need, and I create it.  Even my promo stuff is usually rooted in architectural design and theory.  This was a fun departure from my usual stuff.  Please, write back, tell me what you think, and feel free to describe (or show) your ideal zombie apocalypse survival vehicle! I hope you enjoyed it!

The Zombie Apocalypse (Part 1)

At this point, I think a lot of my readers know that I really enjoy my job and my work.  However, with the economy still in the toilet, work can be hard to come by, and I have to make sure that I am still good at what I do, and I have to find a way to pass the time.  Usually, I do this by creating rooms or buildings – something to show my design and rendering abilities.  However, every now and then, I take a different path by endeavoring in more creative pursuits.  Up until now, my non-architectural creations have been relatively small; Workbench, No. 3 and the Modern Art Gallery featuring several original art concepts.

I also keep myself busy by creating various vehicles such as the Raptor and Rabbit aircraft concepts, along with the “Low Rider” aircraft that will be featured in a later post, but here is a sneak peak:

The Low Riders over New York City

So, during some recent downtime, I decided to design a new vehicle for the zombie apocalypse – strap in folks. First, a congrats to Allie and Sami for correctly guessing the answer to the “Snapshot” posts – yes – the new vehicle is a mobile command center. 

Of course, during the ZA, it’s not like Detroit is going to be pumping out any new custom cars or trucks, so a vehicle is going to have to be salvaged and converted for its new found mission: transporting survivors through the never-ending hordes of the undead.  Before I can convert a vehicle into a zombie killing machine, I first must design a vehicle to be converted, but what to convert? A bus, an RV, how about a large SUV?  Eh, it’s all been done before.  So, I had to create a “civilian” (non ZA vehicle) first; that is, a vehicle that you might see on the road today, and then from that, create the ZA version. 

I drew my inspiration from my father-in-law, Daniel Doyle.  This is a guy that has busted his butt as a highway paving inspector for, among other companies, the Arizona Department of Transportation.  This is not easy work – the pavement can get upwards of 150 degrees at the surface along with 110 degree ambient air temperature.  On top of that, he needs site plans, maps, his cell phone, a 2-way radio, soil and asphalt testing equipment and a myriad of other paper work that he has to have by his side.  Currently, he does all of this from a cab of a stripped down F-150 – what a pain (and clearly inadequate for any kind of zombie killing application).

A standard "no frills" Ford F-150 Pick Up Truck - Dan's current mobile office.

Enter the ADOT Mobile Command Vehicle (MCV).

The ADOT MCV.

This vehicle can hold a 6 person crew, all the maps and charts that he would need, computerized work stations and a tool garage at the rear of the vehicle with ramp access. 

Map and chart room.

Workstations and central light table with overhead monitors.

Rear storage and access ramp.

Rear bay tool shed.

The entire vehicle sits 3 feet off the ground and features a liquid cooled floor as well as a commercial grade HVAC system.  It would be designated as a “wide load” vehicle, meaning that it is 10’-0” wide, allowing for plenty of room to work and move around.  It also features a left and right side drive along with multiple video cameras along the hull to make it easier to drive in tight areas as well as construction zones.  The vehicles oversized tires and chassis height allow it to go just about anywhere, and its massive flood lights allow work to continue at night, when in general, it is cooler to work.

Left and right side driver seats.

Oversized tires provide additional clearance.

An abundance of high powered floodlights provide the ability to work at night.

The MCV also boasts a massive exterior storage rack on the roof with additional tires, a water tank and a compressed air tank.  Toward the front of the vehicle on the roof, there is a collapsible antenna that can link up to the Internet and the ADOT intranet for fast access to changing and updated plans.  The smaller antennas are for local communication between work crews and maintains a streaming real time feed for work progress, including GPS updates to show the exact position of the vehicle and how much road has been paved each day.

Roof rack with collapsible antenna on the left.

Roof rack with water and air tanks on the right.

This is the base vehicle that was created for the ZA – thanks, Dan. 

Next up, the conversion – stay tuned!

PS – there will be more images of this concept posted on my website in the very near future – check it out!  www.lonewolfdrafting.com

"The Rabbit" Conceptual Aircraft

Hello All - it has been some time since my last post on this blog. Between the severe economic recession and a bit of "designer's block", I haven't had the time or motivation to do anything new until recently. I decided to sit down and create a new theoretical/ conceptual aircraft design called "The Rabbit". Here is the description as seen on my website, http://www.lonewolfdrafting.com/: “The Rabbit” is a new aircraft concept that I have been working on for the past few weeks. This aircraft is designed to be a short range fast attack aircraft with reconnaissance capabilities. The Rabbit’s 3 over sized engines give the aircraft a tremendous amount of speed and maneuverability, while its 18 30 mm wing mounted rapid fire machine guns make it a formidable dogfight opponent. The downside to this aircraft’s engine design is its ravenous appetite for fuel. The Rabbit’s range is significantly decreased when all 3 engines are operating at full throttle. However, the Rabbit can cruise at a modest speed at altitude for an extended amount of time with just the center engine running, giving the aircraft an extended range. The other two engines are reserved for fast flight, or increased maneuverability. The folding wing design allows for more compact storage in tight hanger bays, as opposed to the space robbing fixed wing design. The Rabbit is the second model of theoretical aircraft that I have developed, and I will be working on more soon. Here are a couple of images of the newest images, more can be seen on the site.

New Promotional Projects

As many of you know, the economy is kicking everybody's teeth in. So, in an effort to not lose my mind, I have been creating some new promotional projects to keep me busy. I have decided to post those images here for review, and if anyone has any comments, please feel free to share.

Raptor Concept:

This first project is called "Raptor Concept". Before I go on, I should warn you that I am a Sci-Fi genre geek (big surprise there, right?). I have grown up on Star Trek, and the 'Alien' franchise, the 'Predator' franchise, and many more Sci-Fi shows and movies. More recently, I have become a huge fan of "Firefly" (which spawned the movie "Serenity") and the reimagined version of Battlestar Galactica. I am also very excited about JJ Abrams version of Star Trek due out later this year. One of the concepts in all of these movies and shows is the small shuttle vehicle used for transporting people and goods on short trips. Just about every good Sci-Fi show some how manages to incorporate this rugged, and most often used little vehicle. So, I decided to design my own version, however, it is not for space travel, but for terrestial travel. My version uses present day technology in slightly different ways. Of course, this is a concept only, whether or not if would actually work is another story. My shuttle, called a Raptor (an homage to BSG) is capable of vertical take off and landing (VTOL) and can hold up to 8 passengers, 1 gunner, and 2 pilots. The Raptor is designed to be tough, rugged vehicle whos function overrides its form. In other words - it was not designed to be pretty. Below are images of my concept - and as always, comments are always appreciated. (click on the thumbs for larger images)

Battlestar Galactica - Serenity Hybrid Seal (CIC emblem):

Here is were my real inner Sci-Fi geek comes out. As I had mentioned before, Battlestar Galactica (aka BSG) and Firefly are two of my all time favorite series. In the series, BSG, the area typically called 'the bridge" is known as the CIC, or the Combat Information Center. Over the entry door to the CIC is the BSG 75 Seal - it hangs over the door much like the Presidential Seal or any other company emblem might. In the TV series "Firefly", the ship that is featured is a firefly class transport named "Serenity". While Serenity does not have an emblem of sorts, it does have a beautiful logo with the words "peace" and "serenity" written in Chinese. Below are the original emblems from both shows (the first is from Battlestar, and second from Firefly/ Serenity):

Below is my version of a hybrid seal from these two shows. While I was at it, I decided to experiment with different lighting and texturing effects. Please click on the thumbs to view the full image, and as always, comments are appreciated.