bJapanese company Nissan exhibited a model of a solar tree (see pic below) at CEATEC Japan 2010, an IT and electronics trade show held just outside Tokyo. The solar tree is a wireless non-contact charging station for electric vehicles. Standing at about 39 ft tall, it has a 30% efficiency rate and harvests sunlight throughout the day, just like a real tree. It can be used in cities as well for supplying homes with electricity, with the possibility of forests of electric trees eventually replacing power plants. The whole idea is part of Nissan’s zero-emission mobility society, which they’ve imagined for 2030. Their design for the eco-city of the future also features their “smart house,” powered by a solar electric system with network-connected home appliances and an in-home charger for the Nissan LEAF, a 100% electric, zero-emission vehicle.That little guy next to the tree in the photo below is an EPORO Robot Car—debuted at last year’s CEATEC—which repowers on a non-contact charging lane it uses with other EPORO Robot Cars, mimicking the movements of a school of fish, avoiding any collisions by using lazers to sense the EPOROS around it. Take a look at the video above to see them in action. But while we have cars moving like schools of fish, sadly, there’s still no sign of them flying like birds. Perhaps that will have to wait until 3030.[via Pink Tentacle]