In 2016 BMW constructed the ‘Imaginative and prescient 100’ idea which provided us a glimpse of issues to return. The ‘Imaginative and prescient 100’, constructed to have fun BMW’s centenary, explored BMW’s imaginative and prescient of driving in a altering world. It was a waypoint in the direction of the longer term, one the place driving might nonetheless be a ardour in an age when self-driving vehicles would turn out to be frequent. BMW emphasised the rules of Electrification, Digitalization, and Circularity with the ‘Imaginative and prescient 100’.
Electrification, Digitalization, and Circularity Outlined
Whereas electrification needs to be self-explanatory, digitalization encompasses car management, the person interface, and importantly, the person expertise. Circularity could be described as a aware try and, the place doable, rethink, scale back, recycle, and reuse supplies and sources. BMW then constructed additional ideas to reveal these rules which paved the way in which for the ‘Imaginative and prescient Neue Klasse’. Whereas electrification was on the coronary heart of the entire ideas, the BMW i Imaginative and prescient Round demonstrated the circularity precept whereas the i Imaginative and prescient Dee demonstrated the digitalization, particularly from the person’s perspective.
BMW’s basis is motors, particularly engines – the premise for the corporate’s origin and the pleasure of its engineers and workforce. What occurs in an all-electric world, how can BMW reply and stay related and true to its previous? And the way does ‘Freude am Fahren’ translate in a world filled with self-driving automobiles? The important thing, BMW believes, can be within the expertise, not merely the expertise. This text will discover technical options – at a excessive stage, however BMW needs to outline a driving expertise – an emotional expertise, and, don’t have any worry, the act of driving will nonetheless be a big a part of the BMW ‘Neue Klasse’ expertise.
From i3 to CLAR: The Platform Studying Curve
BMW discovered beneficial classes from the manufacturing of the i3, together with the best way to develop and manufacture electrical automobiles. As well as they gained beneficial insights into some great benefits of electrical automobiles in addition to their constraints. BMW then made the choice, within the 2010s, to provide ICE, hybrid, and all-electric automobiles on the CLAR structure. This made sense given the unsure way forward for the marketplace for all-electric automobiles and that electrical car expertise was nonetheless evolving.
Efficiency electrical vehicles, nevertheless, uncovered the prevailing automobile management expertise’s limitations. This was noticed whereas going broad open throttle on a BMW i4 M50 from 5 mph. It was entertaining however not fairly as refined accurately. The torque tugs on the steering wheel, not not like the Saab 9-3 Viggen used to. The electrical motor’s instantaneous torque, versus a fuel engine’s transitional buildup of torque, pushes the bounds of the car’s management software program. A brand new strategy to car management was wanted for all-electric automobiles, particularly in the event that they have been supposed to be efficiency vehicles.
Tesla’s resolution to all-electric driving is the benchmark and their System-on-Chip (SoC) is used of their electrical and totally self-driving succesful automobiles. The SoC implements an actual time working system (RTOS) that makes use of a neural processing unit (NPU), and a graphical processing unit (GPU), and infrequently a redundant pair of central processing items (CPU), together with a excessive bandwidth reminiscence bus and shared reminiscence areas between the processors. The CPUs are used to regulate the car, the NPU evaluates the car’s sensor knowledge, and the GPU could also be used to help with notion duties and likewise current knowledge to the driving force and passengers.
Introducing the Coronary heart of Pleasure: BMW’s Customized Automobile Mind
That is precisely what BMW’s ‘Coronary heart of Pleasure’ ECU will do. The ‘Coronary heart of Pleasure’ is a dense built-in system on a chip that makes use of a better bandwidth knowledge bus structure than the present structure, ten instances the throughput in reality. It’s the bandwidth of the bus – what number of bits of knowledge it will probably carry – in addition to bus size that determines how shortly the car can reply to inputs.
BMW will make the most of a customized in-house RTOS that takes benefit of the ‘Coronary heart of Pleasure’ management unit’s capabilities. It’s optimized to cut back latency, reacting to interrupts just about instantly. It additionally ekes out each doable vitality financial savings, gaining additional effectivity than an off-the-shelf RTOS might present. BMW’s RTOS brings the ‘Coronary heart of Pleasure’ to life.
Whereas the ‘Coronary heart of Pleasure’ acts on driving dynamics, three different excessive bandwidth processors take care of automated driving; infotainment; and local weather, lighting, and car entry. The ‘Coronary heart of Pleasure’ will synchronize drivetrain, braking, steering, and vitality recuperation with the processing scale and bandwidth to securely tame the torque tiger.
The ‘Coronary heart of Pleasure’ has proven off its capacity to handle excessive powered electrical automobiles with BMW’s Imaginative and prescient Driving Expertise (VDX), which presents a peek at future M all-electric automobiles. The ‘Coronary heart of Pleasure’ system manages the over 13,000 lb-ft of torque accessible on the VDX wheels seamlessly.
To handle the various electrical subsystems within the automobile, BMW divides the ‘Neue Klasse’ into 4 electrical zones, entrance, heart, rear, and roof. BMW makes use of sensible eFuses to observe voltage, present, and/or temperature for units which are inside a zone and are in a position, utilizing firmware embedded in them, to speak via a knowledge bus particular to the zone. Alerts are then despatched on to the ‘Coronary heart of Pleasure’. The eFuses afford higher safety to important circuits and scale back weight. They use field-effect transistors to interrupt energy supply to a defective module, slightly than a conventional fuse’s gradual sacrificial failure, or cumbersome relays. Energy is delivered to car modules, like lights, radio, heater controls, from a standard energy bus then via an eFuse; that is one space the place car wiring weight discount happens.
The Energy of 800 Volts: Lighter, Sooner, Extra Environment friendly
BMW can even use an 800 volt electrical structure for the powertrain. This brings a number of advantages like the power to make the most of greater efficiency motors, to cut back cooling necessities, present quicker charging, and scale back weight. Larger voltage means much less present is required to provide energy which permits for a discount in wire diameter and, subsequently, weight.
BMW’s newest technology of electrification – Gen6 – will use electrically excited synchronous motors (EESM) for RWD and on the rear axle on AWD automobiles. For potential FWD and AWD the vehicles will use asynchronous motors (ASM) on the entrance. Power losses are lowered by 40%, weight by 10%, and manufacturing prices are lowered by 20% in comparison with Gen5 tech. Right here is the ‘Circularity’ precept in motion. This can enhance vary and scale back charging instances. The motors will be capable to present a driving expertise from gentle to wild, with the potential for over 1,300 HP in a future M mannequin.
BMW can even use cylindrical battery cells in Gen6 electrification. They can be utilized with out the necessity for a separate container, not like the present prismatic battery cells. This reduces weight and may ship area financial savings. The brand new batteries have a higher vitality density, over 20%, than the present technology of batteries. This interprets to prolonged vary. Using the 800v structure, charging time can be lowered. The batteries use recycled lithium, cobalt, and nickel. The price to fabricate the brand new batteries is subsequently as much as 50% lower than the previous batteries. The very form of the cylindrical batteries present superior thermal administration when in comparison with prismatic cells. This reduces the danger of ‘thermal runaway’ in comparison with the earlier technology batteries.
This new Gen6 structure will, after all, be managed by the ‘Coronary heart of Pleasure’, promising excellent car dynamics. The driving force’s enter on steering, braking, acceleration will really feel crisp given the excessive processing bandwidth employed. The driving force will see data displayed on a panoramic heads-up show projected onto the bottom of the windshield. It is going to be customizable and is supposed to be as intuitive as doable. The thought is to make use of expertise to help slightly than resist the driving force. The panoramic show is consistent with BMW’s slogan, “Eyes on the highway, palms on the wheel”.
Design Reimagined: Retro Cues With a Futuristic Edge
The styling of the ‘Neue Klasse’ is a return to its roots for BMW. It’s meant to be an emotional tug in the direction of the acquainted and comfy. The wheels are exceptionally properly executed. Movement photographs of the automobile present nifty styling and BMW has managed to keep up the ‘5 spokes’ look whereas static. The headlamps/grille and back lights of the Imaginative and prescient Neue Klasse’ are gorgeous – the 3D impact is nice from nearly each angle. Whereas it doesn’t want a grille it’s good that it’s there, the equal Tesla entrance fascia, with no grille, is boring. The combination of the rear spoiler into the back lights is intelligent. The higher accent line on the perimeters of the automobile, that gives a horizontal reference entrance to rear, seems to be a part of the window – it will likely be fascinating to see how that makes it into manufacturing.
Incorporating the Hofmeister Kink within the door panel was very intelligent. One is admittedly impressed with the angularity of the design, sharp creases and muscular wheel arches. Wanting on the design and drawing on reminiscence of small sedan designs of the previous, it could seem that Italian influences are current in addition to Paul Braq’s E12. Regardless, this might properly be a basic.
From the ‘Imaginative and prescient 100’ idea to the ‘Neue Klasse’, BMW has proven what it believes the way forward for ‘Pleasure of Driving’ can be. Right here’s to the following 100 years.
