Trends in Automotive

What are the trends at the IAA this year?

The IAA is a platform for the industry, where different manufacturers seek to go one step better than each other with various innovations. But there are tangible trends to be seen. For instance, in the field of driver assistance systems, there are many innovations, some also relating to the networked vehicle and themes such as car-to-car communication. In e-mobility and e-vehicles, everything is focussed on the first vehicles that are now coming onto the market, such as the i3 and i8 from BMW. But in parallel to all these developments, it should not be forgotten that in the future 95 per cent of all cars will still continue to run on combustion engines. For this reason, the question of gains in efficiency and new engine generations is one that looks set to be with us for at least 20 years to come.

This year you will be exhibiting two demonstrators on the Altran stand. What are they going to be about? 

One of the concepts that we are presenting at the IAA is all about connected cars, infotainment based on GENIVI and the connection to the Internet itself – which is the backbone to all these developments. In another demonstration, we will show how important early simulation is in automotive manufacturing. For this, we are implementing Opal RT technology to reduce the complexity of testing for Hardware in the Loop (HIL) processes and achieve shorter time-to-market. 

What is the state of play on the software and user interface market right now?

Automakers have to act now if they want to prevent Apple & Co. becoming the dominant players in the field of networked vehicles. This is why all major manufacturers are developing their own application stores. It is a huge market, which is still very much in its infancy. 

In addition, Altran is also showing an electric vehicle on its stand. Can you tell us more about that?

The e-car that we will have on show is a result of our partnership with Quimera, a company which intends to build electric vehicles and electric race cars.

The All-Electric GT on display generates 700 HP and can reach a top speed of 300 kph. The chassis is fully made out of carbon. The batteries, which weigh in at 500 kilograms, currently have a lifetime of 15 minutes (soon to be increased to 30 minutes) and are simply changed when the car comes into the pits. While Altran had thus far only worked on individual vehicle parts, here we were also responsible for the overall integration of all components. Within the framework of the partnership, we have also developed two lower performance vehicles.

Is the vehicle also to be used as a test vehicle for the mass production of electric vehicles?

That is exactly right. The vehicle is made of carbon. One of the biggest challenges when working with such a lightweight material is that it shatters very easily in the event of an accident and can therefore be dangerous. Another issue is that any dents cannot simply be hammered out, with it instead being necessary to replace parts in their entirety. For this reason, we know have to gather experience in these respects. As for standard automotive construction, Formula 1 also serves as a testbed here.

What developments do you expect to be achieved with carbon?

The technical issues will surely be resolved at some stage. In the meantime, chassis and bodywork parts for the mass market will almost certainly continue to be made of metal. I do believe, however, that carbon is very well-suited for use in the passenger compartment. In particular for e-mobiles, this would be a way of helping to offset the heavy weight of the batteries. Though as I have already mentioned for this to happen we first need to overcome the challenges which we are faced with currently.

What is the next step for this new generation of vehicles?

Overall, I am convinced that this new class of vehicles, as well as the concepts which go with it, will be implemented more quickly than expected. Electric vehicles will however also lead to a shake-up of the market, for instance by bringing about completely new approaches to car sharing – something the market is very receptive to here, as it is very suitable for urban transport.

Another major topic at the IAA are the Chinese manufacturers. How is the Chinese market going to develop?

Chinese manufacturers have made enormous progress, not least through joint ventures with western companies. In addition, the government has made it very clear that they intend to become leaders in the field of electric vehicles. Furthermore, no other market is seeing such fast growth as the Chinese market. Based on the size of the market, Chinese manufacturers have a market which is very rich in prospects right on their own doorstep and that puts them in a very strong position.

Let's dare to take a look into our crystal ball for a minute. What do you think we will be driving in 20 years' time?

The Connected Car is something that in my view has a great future ahead of it. When the day comes when system platforms will be able to interact with each other, vehicles will even be able to communicate with traffic lights and adjust vehicle speed accordingly. Another concept is for the vehicle to automatically seek the optimum speed so as to consume as little fuel as possible. When it comes to traffic jams, another possibility is that cars will be able to communicate with each other and avoid traffic jams via different alternative routes. Perhaps one day, with the help of more advanced driver assistance systems, the car of the future will even be able to drive with no driver at all.