ECHNA was conceived in the second half of 1965 by fifteen engineers of the Ford Car Systems Research Activity, and engineered in detail in 1966 by a team of fifty engineers and designers, and built in the first half of 1967 by the Company Fabrication and Services facility, with the assistance of five manufacturing divisions of Ford Motor Company and fifty-eight suppliers. The basic concept is SPACE more space, of course. The objective was to design, build, and demonstrate a novel relationship between occupant accommodations and component in response to the want for more space for a 6-passenger vehicle, that is: More space inside the vehicle, and more space at and through the apertures providing access to the vehicle. A further objective was to submit the concept to two constraints, thus making its achievement more difficult. First, obtain a low silhouette and, second, provide safety in comfort.
Abstract