The Toyota Mobility Foundation, in collaboration with the City of Vichy, Vichy Communauté and Les centres de ressources, d’expertise et de performance sportive (hereinafter referred to as “CREPS”) of Vichy and three innovative startups, are proud to  announce the launch of a project aimed at improving mobility for individuals with reduced mobility. This initiative underscores TMF’s dedication to fostering inclusive mobility solutions that enhance independence and accessibility, reflecting their broader mission to enable more people go more places and realize their full potential.

Building on the successful partnership announced earlier this year, TMF, the City of Vichy and Vichy Communauté collaborated with three innovative start-ups – Andyamo, Evelity (by Okeenea), and Genny Mobility – to develop and implement the first fully adapted solution tailored specifically for individuals with reduced mobility.

Monica Perez Lobo, Director at Toyota Mobility Foundation Europe

We envision a future where mobility solutions are inclusive and accessible to everyone, regardless of their physical abilities. This project in Vichy is just the beginning. Our aim is to develop a scalable and transferable wayfinding application that can benefit  people with reduced mobility in cities and regions worldwide. We are committed to driving innovation in mobility and making a positive impact on communities globally.

Sylvain Denoncin, President at Okeenea, the editing company of Evelity

We are excited to bring our expertise in accessible navigation to the CREPS campus. By mapping the facility, we aimed to provide athletes with mobility challenges the freedom to navigate independently and confidently. This project underscores our commitment to inclusivity and ensuring that all athletes have equal access to top-tier training environments.

Andyamo: Andyamo developed an accessible pedestrian and multimodal trip planner adapted to each user mobility level (family with kids with stroller, senior, people in manual or electric wheelchair etc.). The trip planner guarantees the accessibility of the public transport lines, stops (to get on and off with a ramp) and the pedestrian routes of the City of Vichy (precision of the sidewalks and pedestrian crossings). This included creating the first pedestrian turn-by-turn navigation system that displayed the right pedestrian instruction at the right moment and improved user position accuracy. Our mission is to improve mobility for all and provide autonomy, safety and freedom especially to people with reduced mobility.

Genny Mobility: Genny Mobility brought its cutting-edge connected personal mobility technology to the project. Known for their innovative mobility devices, Genny Mobility enhances the mapping capabilities across diverse terrains. Their flagship product, the Genny ZERO, is the world's first self-balancing wheelchair

Through GPS, Genny Mobility could locate the vehicles and place them on a map, adding other available information about the space in which they moved. The terrain on which the Genny vehicles moved had an identifiable profile through thorough data analysis. By continuously passing through the same points, Genny Mobility validated information about the terrain morphology more precisely. The analysis focused on three key patterns: obstacle detection, terrain profiling, and slope detection, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of the environment.

About the Toyota Mobility Foundation:

TMF is committed to contributing to a sustainable society by leveraging the technologies and expertise gained from our various projects and working with a diverse range of partners to promote activities aligned with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Toyota Mobility Foundation (Chair Akio Toyoda) was established in August 2014 by the Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota) to support the development of a more mobile society in which everyone can move freely. The Foundation underscores Toyota’s ongoing commitment to continuous improvement and respect for people. It utilizes Toyota’s expertise and technologies to support strong mobility systems while eliminating disparities in mobility. TMF works in partnership with universities, governments, non-profits, research institutions and other organizations, creating programs that are aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to address mobility issues around the world.

About Toyota Motor Europe NV/SA (TME):

Sales and Marketing of Toyota, GR (Gazoo Racing) and Lexus vehicles and parts and accessories, as well as Toyota’s European manufacturing and engineering operations. Toyota directly employs over 26,000 people and has invested over EUR 12 billion in Europe since 1990. Its eight European manufacturing plants are located in Portugal, the UK, France, Poland, Czech Republic and Turkey. Today, there are approximately 14.7 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles on European roads, whose drivers are supported by a network of 28 National Marketing and Sales Companies and around 2,800 retail sales outlets in 53 countries (EU, UK, EFTA countries , Israel, Turkey and other Eastern European countries). In 2024, TME sold 1,217,132 vehicles in Europe for a 7.1% market share. For more information, visit www.toyota-europe.com.

Toyota believes that when people are free to move, anything is possible. In the pursuit of "Mobility for All", Toyota aims to create safer, more connected, inclusive and sustainable mobility to achieve its mission of producing “Happiness for All”. In Europe, TME launched the KINTO mobility brand which offers a range of mobility services in 20 countries, and is growing its business-to-business sales of zero-emission fuel cell products and engineering support. Contributing to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, Toyota is working to achieve carbon neutrality in its entire business across Europe. A historic leader in CO2 reduction in Europe, TME aims to achieve 100% CO2 reduction in all new vehicles in Western Europe by 2035 and will continue to offer a full range of electrified powertrains to customers across the region with its hybrid, plug-in hybrid, battery and fuel cell electric vehicles.  

Source: Toyota Motor Europe