Technology just keeps on reinventing itself. Volvo is now on the works with world-renowned Italian artist Bertone and top scientists to produce a radical new city car.

Volvo’s £2million budget for the endeavor was given to scientists at Rome University a couple of years ago. Bertone’s sketches reveal to us that something highly innovative is being planned by Volvo.

What is shown is a small console that operates the car which can either be folded away or removed completely. On the outside, each wheel of the fuel cell hybrid will be fully steerable through 90 degrees, making on-street parking simpler. The wheels have electric motors in their hubs.

These are powered by batteries which are topped up by a hydrogen fuel cell, and all the controls are drive-by-wire, with no mechanical links.

Who knows what tomorrow brings to the automotive world, but for sure, Volvo has an idea in mind.

The 2007 World Traffic Safety Symposium cites Volvo’s booster seat for its “innovative safety feature” on providing a safe and comfortable travel experience to children. Composed of representatives from the Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Automobile Association of America Foundation for Traffic Safety, National Road Safety Foundation, and the New York Police Department Traffic Safety Division, the symposium conferred Volvo Cars the Automotive Manufacturer award at the New York Auto Show held April 13.

“Our goal is to help protect car occupants. This award acknowledges our efforts to help protect our smallest passengers, our children,” said Thomas Broberg, senior safety advisor of the Volvo Car Corp. “This new seat, in conjunction with our refinements in side body structure and the inflatable curtain, will have a significant reduction in child injuries.”

The Volvo booster seat, equipped with an extended inflatable curtain and a new, stronger side body structure and load limiting seat belts, is the world’s first two-step integrated booster cushion seat. It is particularly designed for young adults who have outgrown their toddler seat. Aside from winning the judges’ nod for its booster seat, Volvo likewise won the Public Service, Media Activity and Aftermarket Product Design awards.

A study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that 39.5 percent of the 664 children inspected in belt-positioning booster cushion are considered a “critical misuse.” The most common misuse is the improper fit of the shoulder belt followed by loose belt, improper fit of the lap belt and inappropriate age/fit. The Volvo booster seat is designed to hold the belt firmly across the pelvis or thighs. The overall effectiveness (Measured Abbreviated Injury Scale 2+) of the Volvo booster seats is estimated at 31 percent greater than using only a seat belt, and as high as 75 percent as compared to no restraint at all.

“We took into account the child’s physical size and weight, seat belt misuse, child physiology, along with redesigning our vehicle side body structure and side impact inflatable curtain to come up with this new integrated two-step booster seat,” noted Broberg. “There will be better fit of our three-point seat belt, a wider age and weight range, and better attitude for the child who can now easily see outside with the added benefit of reducing driver distraction. Hopefully we will hear less often: ‘Are we there yet?’”

This new child safety feature will be available this fall in the all-new 2008 XC70 crossover wagon, followed in February 2008 in the all-new 2008 V70. The single option includes two rear-seat mounted integrated booster seats and two pyrotechnically pretensioned seat belts with new load limiters to accommodate children using this booster cushion and normally positioned adults. Both seats fold flat to expand the cargo compartment and are indistinguishable from rear seats without this option.