On April 19, Audi unveiled a new urbansphere concept car, showing the world the forward-looking design concept of high-end urban mobility in the future. Through this concept car, we see the great potential of future intelligent electric vehicles in the field of flexible use of space, vehicle functions and interior and exterior design, automatic driving, and human-computer interaction.
The urbansphere is the third concept car in the Audisphere series, the previous two being the Skysphere and Grandsphere, which were launched last August, an electric roadster and an electric four-seater luxury sedan, respectively.
It is worth noting that the interior design of the urbansphere concept car was completed by the Audi China design team, and the Chinese customer was also invited to participate in the design process. This means that the aesthetics of Chinese consumers are integrated into it, which also reflects Audi's emphasis on the Chinese market and the definition of China's future urban high-end travel blueprint. Dr. Wen Zeyue, President of Audi China, said: "Through this concept car, we can see that we are constantly committed to providing Chinese users with innovative products and technology roadmaps, and it will also be the first strong proof of Audi China's enterprising 2030 strategy." ”
So, in what ways does the Audi urbansphere concept car show the vision of the future of mobility?
More space and flexibility
First of all, it is a further flexible use of the interior space of the car, so that the car completely gets rid of the single attribute of the means of transportation, but evolves into a mobile office, living room and third living space.
The urbansphere concept car is 5.51 meters long, 2.01 meters wide, 1.78 meters high and has a wheelbase of up to 3.40 meters. It is not only the largest of the Audi sphere concept cars, but also the largest of all Audi concept cars to date. The large body space makes it possible to flexibly use the space inside the car.
Audi said the car was not developed with the idea of placing as many seats, storage and functional elements as possible in a limited space, but rather to prioritize the user's need for spacious space and list it as an important consideration for ride comfort.
In fact, the design structure of this car is from the inside out, the first step of the designer's work is to focus on the interior of the car, and then the overall structure, exterior lines, body proportions and other aspects.
Two rows of four separate seats offer luxurious comfort like first class. The rear seats are particularly spacious, with the backrest tilting up to 60 degrees and leg rests stretching simultaneously in relaxation and entertainment modes. The central armrests on the side of the seat and the door armrests create a high degree of security. Each seat can be rotated to allow occupants to communicate face-to-face, and all have a separate sound zone with speakers located inside the headrest.
Between the two rows of seats is a large transparent OLED screen that runs through the interior of the vehicle, which can be used by the two passengers in the rear row to participate in video conferences or watch movies together. The large screen can also be used in split screens. When not in use, its transparent design does not affect the passenger's line of sight. This screen can also be folded upwards and integrated into the glass roof.
The interior spaces are clearly defined and serene, and the interior, seat covers and carpets are made of wood, wool and synthetic textile fabrics for a soft touch. The interior is decorated in pastel beige and grey tones. The seat shell is dark green for better eye soothing. The interior is heavily made of sustainable ingredients, such as goose ear panels. The seat cushion is made of ECONYL material. It is a recyclable polyamide, a bamboo pulp fiber fabric that is applied to the armrests and the rear of the vehicle.
Human-computer interaction is more humane
The human-computer interaction approach of the urbansphere concept car is more humane and has surpassed the current concept and experience of the smart cockpit.
First of all, the interaction methods are more diverse, and functions such as eye tracking, gesture control, speech recognition, and physical touch are suitable for all modes of operation.
Secondly, human-computer interaction is full of humanistic care, such as occupant stress monitoring, through facial interpretation and speech analysis, the vehicle can judge the passenger's feelings and provide personalized relaxation suggestions, such as using the "meditation" app through the private audio area on the separate screen and headrest, soothing the body and mind anytime, anywhere.
Human-computer interaction begins before the passenger gets on the bus. As you approach it, the entire interior space opens up to you. At the same time, the seat rotates outwards, and a "red carpet of lights" is lit up, and the sense of ceremony is full.
Before entering the car and turning on the driving function, both the circular dashboard and the black screen of the virtual driving system are hidden. You can wake up the car with just a tap of your fingertip and activate the features immediately.
Solid wood panels under the front windshield can be used for projection. Different driving modes, such as traditional manual driving mode or L4 level autonomous driving mode, project or transversely distribute throughout the interior space of the vehicle, or display separately in front of the driver or co-pilot, presenting all the information required for the journey in high resolution.
Below the projection is the sensing area, where functions such as music or navigation can be quickly switched, and this area will display all the functions and applications that the vehicle has activated. At the same time, the icon will flash with the different function menus.
Near the inside cut-out of the door, a unique and innovative control element is installed: MMI inductive control. When the user sits up straight, at a certain distance from the control area, he can manually select various function menus through the knobs or buttons on this control element, click the corresponding interface, and the operation is simple and intuitive. In addition, thanks to the combined operation of eye tracking and gesture control, users can still use this convenient function when the seat is fully reclined backwards. Sensors will track eye movements and identify gaze and line of sight. Users only need to make simulated hand movements similar to touch operations, without leaning over or making any contact, and can easily operate the system.
In addition, the control panel is integrated in the door armrest. In this way, the car can always provide passengers with a touch screen with visual information and show its position through an optical indicator. At the same time, VR glasses are equipped with THE armrests of the left and right doors, which can be combined with infotainment systems including Holoride.
L4 autonomous driving makes the space inside the car more free
The three concept cars of the Audi Sphere series all have automatic driving functions and reach the level of L4 automatic driving, in addition to road driving, urbansphere concept cars can also automatically pick up passengers in the user's place of residence, and can independently find parking lots and charging facilities.
At the same time, the advanced automatic driving function also greatly enhances the sense of space and freedom of the interior space. Because during autonomous driving, the steering wheel, pedals and conventional dashboards can be hidden, thus freeing up more space for passengers to relax and relax.
Longer battery life, faster charging, and more comfortable driving
The Audi urbansphere concept car is based on the PPE platform, the battery module capacity reaches 120 kWh, according to the global light vehicle unified test procedure (WLTP), the total cruising range is expected to reach 750 km. Because the battery pack has a flat layout, it does not encroach on the space inside the car.
The concept car also features an electric quattro four-wheel drive system, with one motor on each front and rear axles, four-wheel drive through electronic control if necessary, a total output of 295 kW and a torque of 690 Nm, and the front axle motor can be deactivated as needed to reduce friction during taxiing, thus maintaining a balance between driving dynamics and energy economy.
Thanks to its 800-volt charging technology, the charging power in fast charging mode is up to 270 kilowatts, and the cruising range of more than 300 kilometers can be increased in ten minutes of charging. Charge the battery from 5% to 80% in just 25 minutes.
The front suspension is a separate five-link suspension optimized for electric vehicles, while the rear axle suspension is a multi-link structure. Both the front and rear axles are made of lightweight aluminium alloy. With a wheelbase of up to 3.40 meters, it features rear-wheel steering for increased driving agility. For improved ride comfort, the concept car also features adaptive air suspension – an air suspension system with semi-active damping control.
Summary: The largest interior space and flexible use of space ever for Audi models, the humanized human-vehicle interaction enabled by intelligent interconnection technology, L4 automatic driving, and efficient electric drive systems and high-power fast charging are all beautiful visions of the future of urban mobility that Audi urbansphere concept cars show us, and these visions are not out of reach, and some of them are already in the process of gradually realizing.