sustainable – DesignApplause

yves behar designs unagi model eleven the smartest e-scooter in the world.

Nov 19, 2021

at 232 pounds, the beautifully designed model eleven is the lightest full-suspension, dual motor scooter in the micro-mobility scooter space. and it’s smart!

while the scooter isn’t autonomous, with an onboard advanced driver assistance system (adas) just like a car, the scooter knows the difference between a stoplight, stop sign, person, car or inanimate object, and provides both audible warnings with its integrated audio system, as well as visual warnings on the display.

the round touchscreen display provides turn-by-turn navigation and with its integrated led ring that animates in different colors to alert battery, collision detection, lane departure warning, adas, signaling, and other functions. the audio system provides instructions and warnings during navigation and if you’re not using the gps navigation feature, riders can connect to the scooter via bluetooth to play music.

gps is also built into the scooter as a theft deterrent. if the motion-activated alarm doesn’t stop a thief, the gps tracker displays its location and riders can remotely lock the scooter via the scooter’s smartphone app.

the mechanical side of things – the frame, forks, and handlebars – boasts the first two-wheel object to use a space age material designed in switzerland called long carbon composite that allows molds and shapes traditional carbon fiber is incapable of.

the wheels are unique – the motors are integrated into each wheel-well and each tire is hot-swappable making replacement seamless. the tires are foam-filled and puncture resistant.

the version with an adas for object detection will be $2,500, while the simpler model starts at $2,100. both come with different color options including stealth black, electric yellow, a matte black, mint green, and desert sand.

[ fuse project ] [ unagi ]

us-china joint glasgow declaration on enhancing climate action in the 2020s.

Nov 11, 2021

china and the united states, the world’s top two carbon polluters jointly pledged wednesday, 10 november, to work together to accelerate the emissions reductions required to meet the temperature goals of the 2015 paris agreement on climate change. china agreed for the first time to crack down on methane leaks and both countries agreed to share technology to reduce emissions. in a joint declaration, both countries expressed ‘alarm’ by scientific reports detailing the progress of what they both term the climate crisis.

critics say this declaration is a step in the right direction but was short on commitments that would significantly reduce heat-trapping gases. both countries called for accelerating the phasing out of coal and fossil fuels – the biggest source of man-made emissions – although there was no set timeline. greenpeace international director, jennifer morgan, said that the call in the draft to phase-out coal would be a first in a u.n. climate deal, but the lack of a timeline would limit the pledge’s effectiveness. also, the latest declaration is not as strong as the 2014 obama pre-paris agreement was.

can the two largest economies deal with globalization, trade, human rights and climate – competition and cooperation – at the same time?

what may be the best line item in the declaration, the two countries will also establish a bilateral working group that will meet regularly to address the climate crisis, focusing on enhancing concrete actions in this decade. as the countries have fallen behind their 2015 goals, we need a dose of urgency.

the idea of a science and technology-based effort that ignores political and economic roadblocks is inspiring and has the exciting feeling of a race to space led by the two biggest offenders.

above> greenhouse gas emissions by top emitters, 2018 // below> cumulative emissions, 1751-2017

[ us-china joint glasgow declaration on enhancing climate action in the 2020s ] [ c2es – emissions ]

ge ginormous haliade-x 14mw wind turbine a great fit for world largest wind farm.

Jan 10, 2021

the buoyant offshore wind market wants the biggest and most powerful turbines only.

in the u.s.a., 2021 reopens the prospect of revitalizing a climate agenda which encompasses renewable energy, which, as the name suggests, is always available. global governments and companies have figured out that solar and wind are the best prospects for the future, though location and seasonal variables come into play. for example, solar and wind energy are a strong combination and wind energy is currently a better option to supplement solar energy in winter.

the buoyant offshore wind market wants the biggest and most powerful turbines only. conceived in 2008, the dogger bank wind farm, located off the north-east coast of england, is slated to be the largest in the world with offshore construction expected to begin in 2022 with contractors using specialist vessels to install the offshore infrastructure. the first phase is expected to be operational in 2023. the wind farm will be completed in three phases before reaching full commercial operations in 2026.

two weeks ago ge made an end-of-the year announcement which boasts that their ginormous ge renewable energy’s haliade-x 14 mw had just been awarded for the final phase c. in 2019 the 13 mw model had already been awarded the first two phases a&b. ge renewable energy has been working on this wind turbine concept since 2018.

[ key features ]
> designed for all wind speeds
> recommended for offshore high wind locations
> has a 220-meter rotor and a 107-meter (longer than a football field) blade
> the wind turbine offers three models: a 14 mw, 13 mw or 12 mw
> one rotation could power a household for two days
> one 13w turbine can light up a town of 12,000 homes
> sensors gather data of wind speeds, output, and component stresses
> wind farm first two phases will total of 190 haliade-x 13 mw offshore wind turbines. the final phase features the 14 mw turbine.
> upon completion the wind farm is expected to power up to 6 million homes annually in the uk, equivalent to 5% of the uk’s total electricity demand.

above > dogger bank wind farm

the battle for size continues unabated. siemens-gamesa has announced its next model, the 14mw sg 14-222 dd offshore wind turbine. the race is expected to end at about 20 mw.

note: at this writing the haliade-x is only a prototype

#climatechange #climatecontrol #windturbine

#stayathome #climate #goodcovid-19. a brief breath of fresh air.

Apr 28, 2020

we’re in an unexpected natural experiment. the opportunity in the crisis. a real reckoning moment. a picture is worth a thousand whatevers.

the before and after images on this post leave little room for debate: covid-19 successfully took us off the roads. add a little fortuitous rain plus the amping down of our fossil fuel use gave us clean air. and the world noticed.

this timely vivid graphic of clear skies perfectly aligned with the recent vivid graphic of a climate-induced world with catastrophic weather, fire, agriculture, and health problems.

the importance of this accidental moment can’t be understated or wasted. covid-19 has quickly put us in an ugly mood, a fighting mood, a uniting mood. many get the feeling that now is also the time to implore our leaders to ponder america’s long-term big picture handling of pandemics and climate initiatives.

it’s ironic, the covid-19 country lockdown should keep our skies blue but it also mutes our most vocal activists because they can’t congregate to protest. and if our leaders miss this opportunity and the economy cranks up, along with our return to our dirty ways, the blue skies will be just a memory.

[ what you can do ]
> will our clean air last after covid-19? ucla study says it’s possible
> ten simple ways to act on climate change
> top 10 things you can do about climate change
> 12 things you can do right now for climate change

[ what others are doing ]
> the guardian has renounced fossil fuel advertising

above/below > new delhi 1 november 2019 / 20 april 2020 | photo manish swarup / ap

above top/bottom > india gate war memorial new delhi 17 october 2019 / 8 april 2020

above/below > nitrogen dioxide (red) levels prior to and during stay at home lockdown. the los angeles graphic is a vivid glimpse of what an electrified world would look like.

above > a nearly empty interstate 280 in san francisco 22 march 2020

below > notice the nitrogen dioxide readings at height of chinese lockdown in mid-january and march when stay-at-home was relaxed.

a dystopia is a community or society that is undesirable or frightening. It is translated as bad place and is an antonym of utopia,

uk court over climate concerns blocks heathrow expansion.

Feb 27, 2020

above left > aircraft landing at heathrow airport over horses in a nearby field. photo: chris j ratcliffe / getty images

uk walking the talk and the world says bloody good news. ~ DA editor

heathrow airport’s plans to increase capacity of europe’s biggest travel hub by over 50% were stalled when a british court said the government failed to consider its commitment to combat climate change when it approved the project.

“the paris agreement ought to have been taken into account by the secretary of state,” lord justice lindblom wrote thursday, referring to the landmark climate deal in which nearly 200 countries vowed in 2015 to reduce their greenhouse emissions.

last year, the u.k. also became the first of the major group of seven countries to enact a pledge aiming to bring all greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050 — a pledge that the office of chris grayling, then the secretary of state for transport, failed to keep in mind when crafting the plans in its airports national policy statement.

“that, in our view, is legally fatal to the anps in its present form,” lindblom said.

ultimately, the legal challenge decided thursday succeeded on environmental grounds. plan b, the climate-focused legal charity that brought the claim, cheered the decision as a landmark that “will be hugely influential across the uk and around the world.”

“the message is finally getting through,” the group said in a statement released thursday. “the bell is tolling on the carbon economy loud and clear.”

greta thunberg, the teen climate activist named time magazine‘s person of the year in 2019, also celebrated the decision: “imagine when we all start taking the paris agreement into account,” she tweeted thursday.

“we have not decided, and could not decide, that there will be no third runway at heathrow,” he wrote. “we have not found that a national policy statement supporting this project is necessarily incompatible with the united kingdom’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions and mitigating climate change under the paris agreement, or with any other policy the government may adopt or international obligation it may undertake.”

still, the plan isn’t exactly dead — a point that justice lindblom himself made clear in the judgment. he said the decision rests on a failure to consider the country’s climate commitments, not a fundamental incompatibility with those commitments.

and heathrow airport holdings has no intention of backing down, saying “the court of appeal dismissed all appeals agains the government – including ‘noise’ and ‘air quality’ – apart from one which is eminently fixable.””

we will appeal to the supreme court on this one issue and are confident that we will be successful. in the meantime we are ready to work with the government to fix the issue that the court has raised.

heathrow has taken a lead in getting the uk aviation sector to commit to a plan to get to net zero emissions by 2050, in line with the paris accord. expanding heathrow, britain’s biggest port and only hub, is essential to achieving the prime minister’s vision of global britain. we will get it done the right way without jeopardizing the plant’s future. let’s get heathrow done. [ npr ]

“airlines, for all intents and purposes, are becoming more fuel efficient. but we’re seeing demand outstrip any of that,” said brandon graver, who led the new study. “the climate challenge for aviation is worse than anyone expected.” [ nyt ]

unregulated carbon pollution from aviation is the fastest-growing source of the greenhouse gas emissions driving global climate change. in fact, if the entire aviation sector were a country, it would be one of the top 10 carbon-polluting nations on the planet. [ wwf ]

fluoride-ion battery brings better stability and stamina than lithium.

Dec 7, 2018

researchers with honda, nasa, and caltech have announced a new breakthrough battery chemistry using a fuoride-ion within a liquid electrolyte.the most popular current lithium batteries may step aside for a new flouride-ion battery.

the lithium-ion carries a positive charge while fluoride is an anion – a negatively-charged ion – which means it has greater energy density but which means that they may last longer – up to eight times longer than batteries in use today. at this writing the fluride-ion will travel within a new electrolyte liquid is known as bis(2,2,2-trifluoroethyl) ether (btfe).
[ full story ]

there’s a new all-electric pickup in town : 2021 rivian r1t.

Nov 26, 2018

the world’s first electric adventure vehicles™ [ rivian ]

thinking when general motors got wind of this new detroit(!) upstart all-electric pickup truck packing performance, innovative features, and…supercar stylishness, they announced in 2019 they’re dumping their losses and focusing on self-driving and electric vehicles for their future. smart.

“gear tunnel” — a storage area that spans the width of the vehicle

[ vitals ]

> up to 400 miles per charge – $90,000 usd / 230 miles – $70,000 usd
> zero-to-60 mph in three seconds
> quad motor system – for superior on road control and way off
> wading depth of three feet
> a debut at the 2018 los angeles autoshow

a conversation with patricia urquiola and a peek at her nuez chair for andreu world.

Nov 27, 2017

DesignApplause spoke to spanish designer patricia urquiola in the andreu world chicago showroom during neocon. we talk about her the nuez seat collection, which obtained a hip award in the category hospitality: seating at neocon. the chair is described as enveloping, suggestive, warm and at the same time technological. made of injected thermoplastic, it offers different options for the shell interior: fully upholstered, with upholstered seat or with padded seat and backrest. the different bases versions – four wooden legs, aluminum star, five casters or cantilever – come with a range of ten distinct colors for the shell and numerous upholstery options for the seat and backrest. a versatile design, capable of integrating into any type of corporate environment and also at home. the chair launched at salone del mobile 2017.

[patricia urquiola] we’re speaking about a new product introduction, nuez, which means ‘nut’ in english, from valencia-based [ andreu world ]. i’m very proud of our relationship, one we’ve kept for years that’s grown into friendships. we now know each other’s approach well enough where words easily translate into feelings and shapes.

why do this chair? they asked for formal and discrete, very gentle, very easy. though the company does incredible work in other materials, they were looking for a new material not in their workspace portfolio. our discussions led to plastic and they know that my injection approach is always striving for little details that are a bit curious and distinctive. what evolved was a shell concept.

we liked the concept of one shell using two elements, because of the way the two elements, like two papers, came together, like in a nut. from the back of the shell the elements created little wings which felt natural and just right. we pleated the plastic shell for aesthetics and textures giving it a materiality, a sense of touch. compared to our prior collection called nub, which was very… crafted, nuez represents a completely dissimilar notion.

[DesignApplause] nuez is crisp yet shapely. very light and does feel good to the touch. what’s her character like?

[PU] both my company and andreu philosophies are similar on many fronts. we’re all concerned, about who we work with and the way we proceed. we work with nature with a high regard for sustainability and social responsibility. we’re efficient, we produce functionality, durability, timelessness and our work, well it looks like our work. and in the end i’m very proud of this project.

[DA] what’s big on your mind right now? what’s important?

[PU] this is a conversation about a process. a company gives you a brief, you give an answer and you work in this kind of duet. it’s a beautiful established way a designer works within an industrial project. now i’m not a young designer, i’m a mature designer who’s been working this way for awhile. lately i’m doing a lot of experimentation with a group at haworth contributing to define a future vision for the group, creating an umbrella over everything. // in 2015, patricia became cassina’s art director tasked with creative management.

in the beginning it was an object and then a collection. but now we also talk about the relations of objects and space, the experiences, the services the company can offer, about everything! i’m working this way with cassina, haworth, mutina. and with andreu world i’m not doing that but i’m a good friend and they’re accustomed to my opinions and conversations. these conversations are important because they always lead to something new.

in this conversational role, the designer operates in this huge space, to re-think things, to ask more questions, it’s so open ended, so many possibilities. really, at this point the only bad decision is not to try something. and we’re just beginning.

<strong>[DA] stay tuned. [ formafantasma ] (andrea trimarchi and simone farresin) while lecturing at the school of the art institute of chicago was asked if designers are important, is design important. simone said this… the designer and the design is not important in and of themselves. formafantasma’s projects are complete once they leave the studio. it’s rare to know if their projects are a success and are rarely asked to improve what they created. their business model does not involve the relationship you’re experiencing right now.

in contrast simone felt the entrepreneur is more likely to be important. there’s a degree of control over a long period of time whereby something important could evolve.

[PU] “design thinking”, for me a label used too much, has become like a big inclusive net over everything in the world of design. i feel one starts as a specialist in design, like an industrial designer. for those who grow into more systemic integrated spaces the space opens up to expand your reach over the project. the more aspects you touch in sense the more important you are.

we can be a kind of catalyst in between society and ideals for living. we’re not only solving problems, we’re also questioning a lot of problems. i like the idea that this is a new attitude for designers: question and not only solving.

beijing embraces solar while u.s weighs tariff on chinese solar panels. sad.

Nov 10, 2017

above> the datong panda power plant – as u.s. wavers on #climatechange the chinese invest in green energy

beijing embraces solar while u.s weighs tariff on chinese solar panels. sad. “if [trump] imposes tariffs, tens of thousands of u.s. jobs will be lost — jobs in blue-collar, middle-class america,” said abigail ross hopper, president and chief executive of the solar energy industries association, a trade group. “imposing tariffs will not create a manufacturing renaissance in the u.s. it will raise prices and kill demand.” [RK] via wapo

bmw i vision of the future concept does just that. ces 2016.

Jan 5, 2016

several years ago, with the debut of the i3, bmw offered the most refined of the electrics and in 2016 presents yet another evolved look, this time of a fully autonomous car.

at ces 2016, the bmw group is introducing a new concept known as the i vision future interaction. the statement, vehicles with highly automated driving are an important milestone on the road to vision zero, the idea of accident-free individual mobility. the i vision future interaction is based on the i8 concept spyder that was shown at the 2012 edition of the beijing motor show, and it was built to highlight what the sports car of tomorrow could look like inside.

above/below> ces16 concept is doorless and topless so you can enjoy the goods

above/below> most new features are centered around a technology called airtouch that lets the driver control the car’s navigation, entertainment, and connectivity functions with simple gestures made with a flat hand. the driver receives pivotal information on the heads-up-display ‘hud’ – a panoramic 21-inch screen, which shows speed and speed limits and navigation within the field of vision on the front windscreen.

there are three driving modes – pure drive, assist and auto. pure drive creates a driver-focused environment while in assist mode, the car is driven manually but the driving aids automatically kick in if they sense that a collision with another car or with an object in the road is imminent and unavoidable. in auto mode the interior creates an opportunity to relax and unwind thanks to innovatively designed seats and expanded content is available on the central information display.

surely the focus is on the i vision future interaction technology as the i8 concept spyder at the show is not equipped with doors. there’s no technical details on engine so we don’t know if this i8 is powered by a gasoline-electric plug-in hybrid.

the concept car combines intelligent lightweight construction with the advanced drive technology of bmw edrive. it is finished in e-copper orange exterior paint, with highlights being accented in frozen grey (kidney-shaped grille, tank cover and front and rear sills), and in high-gloss black below the entrance. the bmw i vision future interaction uses the lifedrive architecture with the carbon-fibre reinforced plastic life module producing a very lightweight passenger cell.

click on above picture to engage lightbox | 12 images

[ official press release ]
“vehicles with highly automated driving are an important milestone on the road to vision zero, the idea of accident-free individual mobility. this increases the aspirations of drivers for the user friendliness of vehicles, for the presentation of information and for digital networking of the information. occupants are increasingly also wanting to communicate with the outside world supported by unrestricted quality and in the scope they are normally accustomed to.

at the ces 2016, the bmw group is using the concept car bmw i vision future interaction to show what the user interface of the future might look like – including support from high-resolution vehicle displays where the content responds to the situation. in order to make the interaction of the passengers with the vehicle as intuitive as possible, all functions are controlled using touch-sensitive surfaces, gestures and voice.

interior compartment responds flexibly to the demands of the future. the vision car is based on the bmw i8 concept spyder. the interior has a thoroughbred, sporty and flexible profile. on the one hand, it supports the driver in manual driving mode with a clearly defined focus. on the other hand, when the vehicle is in its highly automated mode, the interior provides an opportunity to relax in the innovatively designed seats and to make proactive use of the time gained through the expanded content available on the central information display.

just as the vehicle adjusts automatically to drive mode and the surrounding environment, the digital content is optimally presented at any given time. drivers look at data such as the charge status of the vehicle batteries or the routes offered before commencing the journey on their smart phone, smart watch or mobility mirror. these are then automatically transferred to the appropriate menus, map displays and driver information on the panorama display in the bmw i vision future interaction. the transition from mobile device to display in the vehicle takes place seamlessly. innovative instruments, panorama displays, 3d views.

the bmw i vision future interaction

the driver receives key drive information on the high-resolution head-up display, which reflects the most important data such as speed, speed limits or navigation information within the field of vision on the front windscreen. the instrument cluster is located directly behind the steering wheel and information is shown here in three-dimensional display (autostereoscopically). as well as the usual information about speed, consumption and range, the driver is also provided with information here about vehicles on the road ahead or oncoming vehicles which are not yet in his or her field of vision. the driver is consequently able to respond at an early stage to all conceivable traffic situations. this also applies during highly automated driving. if the driver needs to take over command of the vehicle, the system provides an appropriate alert. the technology acts predictively so that the driver has at least five to seven seconds to respond.

information prepared to suit the situation

the central panorama display is the most striking interaction element of the bmw i vision future interaction. it extends from the centre console across the entire passenger side and appears to flow harmoniously out of the dashboard panel. the display height of eleven centimeters means that the dashboard panel is not higher than in the bmw i8 and it permits an optimum view to the front of the vehicle. the high-resolution panorama display in the bmw i vision future interaction is almost 40 centimeters wide while the screen diagonal is 21 inches.

when the driver gets into the vehicle, this panorama seamlessly displays the content which is provided by the vision of the open mobility cloud from bmw and it can also be seen automatically using the bmw connected app on a smart phone or other digital end devices. the display adjusts automatically, in response to the drive mode of the bmw i vision future interaction. in future, for example, the system could switch automatically from pure audio to video transmission during phone conversations, if vehicles are driving in fully automated mode. drivers and passengers also have the option of unrestricted access to web content, mails or audiovisual offerings.

while the driver remains active at the steering wheel, information in reduced scope is displayed on the large panorama display in order to minimise distraction and maintain the focus entirely on what is happening on the road. the number of control elements is reduced to a minimum in the bmw i vision future interaction. the most important of these elements – the drive mode selector switch – is located on the left-hand side of the steering wheel. this is used to select between the three drive modes. the “pure drive” mode meets the typical bmw high aspiration for sheer driving pleasure at all times.

assistance systems are used passively here and they only give warning alerts without actually intervening in the control of the vehicle. the “assist” setting provides optimum networking with the surrounding environment.

the best route is calculated in real time and fed into the navigation system. the vehicle supports the driving performance of the driver and intervenes actively if there is danger of an event such as a shunt accident, or if an obstacle on the road appears to be a safety risk. when the vehicle is in “auto mode”, the vehicle itself takes over control of sideways and forward orientation, accelerates independently, brakes and steers – without the driver having to intervene at all.

in the near future, this could already be permitted on certain approved stretches of road, for examples sections of german motorways or in car pool lanes in the usa.

the bmw i vision future interaction proactively gives drivers an alert if they are in a zone for highly automated driving. the driver can then change the drive mode as appropriate. the steering wheel is illuminated in blue in the highly automated drive mode. the colour scheme therefore provides a visual cue that the driver is in this drive mode. if the vehicle leaves the approved lane for highly automated driving and has to take control of the steering wheel again, a red light signal conveys this requirement. the bmw i vision future interaction is therefore already providing an indication today of what the control functions might look like in the future in highly automated vehicles. interaction with airtouch, sensitive surfaces and voice.

the development engineers are using new human-machine interfaces to control and select the content on the large panorama display, and this offers a large number of new options for interaction. one of them is airtouch, gesture control for all communication, information and entertainment functions in the vehicle. it allows the big screen to be operated like a touchscreen – without actually having to touch it.

sensors are installed in the area of the dashboard panel which responds to hand movements. a movement of the hand can be used to go to a position on the panorama display and the selected icon is highlighted visually. if the hand is moved forward (push gesture), the icon is activated or the menu displays the next level.

airtouch has a second option for carrying out this confirm action. an airtouch switch is located on the steering wheel which briefly illuminates if a menu or icon can be activated. a tap is sufficient to select the desired program in this way or to select a preset. there is also a similar button for the passenger located on the side panel. this enables passengers to use one hand to navigate through the menu and very quickly confirm inputs with the other hand.

the menus in airtouch are not in the form of lists but appear as large tiles. four of these tiles are located beside each other on the display. the system provides car occupants with context-sensitive option menus – for example, if music is currently running on a streaming service, buttons are displayed on one of the tiles that allow you to go forward or backwards to titles, stop playing or start again. the intelligent menu control of airtouch reduces selection steps. airtouch recognizes which control steps are necessary next and shows these in the display. this allows the driver to concentrate on what is happening on the road or offers additional convenient control options if the vehicle is driving in highly automated mode.

touch-sensitive surfaces in the wide and generously proportioned central console offer an additional control element. a sensitive control surface is provided beneath the leather upholstery which can be used by the driver or passenger in order to navigate through the menus or option lists by tapping, swiping or sliding movements – as in a smart phone or tablet. the entertainment and information systems in the bmw i vision future interaction can also be conducted by spoken control commands, in other words by recognition of natural language.

the character of the interior changes depending on the drive mode. if the driver changes to highly automated mode, the color of the steering wheel is not the only thing that changes. when the vehicle takes over control, lots of additional space suddenly becomes available for the people inside. the steering wheel moves forward by several centimeters and this opens up more space. at the same time, the contoured, sculpted sports seat changes its character. elements in the side upholstery give the seats a lounge profile which enables the driver to turn more to the right in order to look at the panorama display in a more relaxed position. the new freedom of movement is also supported by an extended headrest and the generously dimensioned central armrest.

the objective is to enable drivers to make relaxed and effective use of the freedoms offered by highly automated driving – and when drivers want to take the wheel themselves and enjoy sporty driving fun, the ideal enablers typical of bmw are provided in the ergonomic design of the seat and steering wheel. this extends through to support from vehicle technology which shows information like the ideal line or braking points on a selected stretch of road in the bmw head-up display.

open sportiness of the bmw i vision future interaction

the athletic design of the bmw i vision future interaction reveals the qualities of an open two-seater which unites dynamic driving, efficiency and visual elegance with a rather special aesthetic appeal. the concept car combines intelligent lightweight construction with the advanced drive technology of bmw edrive. it is finished in the exterior color of e-copper orange, with highlights being accented in frozen grey (kidney-shaped grille, tank cover and front and rear sills), and in high-gloss black below the entrance. the bmw i vision future interaction uses innovative lifedrive architecture which is structured with separate function units that operate independently of each other.

the life module made of carbon-fibre reinforced plastic (cfrp) forms the very lightweight passenger cell. meanwhile the drive modules, which are primarily manufactured from aluminum – drive train, chassis and safety structure – take over the functions relevant for driving. the characteristic binary division of the lifedrive concept is also reflected in the design and deliberately emphasizes the basic elements. highly expressive surfaces and precise lines create a harmonious transition from one module to another.

the headlamps designed with bmw laser light technology are a defining element at the front. they are configured in the u-shaped design of bmw i. the flat engine bonnet is styled with a v that opens up to the windscreen. it forms the starting point for the typical black belt, which continues on the rear cover and constitutes a characteristic feature of the bmw i models. the side view is defined by the short overhangs typical of bmw vehicles. they combine with the wedge shape of the sills to generate the athletic character – contours and lines create a sense of strong forward motion even when the vehicle is at rest. similar to the front, the rear of the vehicle is flat, while a powerful rear diffusor, air vents in a three-dimensional design and the u-shaped tail lamps with led technology give the impression of exceptional breadth to the bmw i vision future interaction and define its sporting aspirations.

a top priority for designers was to integrate the architecture of the large panorama display into the basic concept of the interior design and to accommodate elements in the surface structure which are typical for bmw i vehicles. the instrument dashboard therefore has a structure which is comprised of overlaid pentagons and hexagons. this design is a hallmark of bmw i and is simultaneously a symbol for the seamless networking of the bmw i vision future interaction.

the interior compartment is styled with a mix of color and material made up of plastic, carbon and leather, which creates an aura of high quality, emotionality and thoroughbred pedigree. the seats are upholstered in leather amido and textile, and a leather core made of natural leather. the same leather is also used on the dashboard, combined with a monofilament technical textile which also provides the floor covering for the bmw i vision future interaction. dark leather amido is combined with semi-aniline leather in ice grey to cover the central console. buttons on the steering wheel made of polished aluminum emphasize the high-tech character of the bmw i vision future interaction.

[ bmw group ]