Volkswagen I

Volkswagen I.D. : An Autonomous Compact Electric Car That Can Revolutionize Mobility 

Vo9lkswagen I.D> electric car Paris Motor Show

Volkswagen has showcased its I.D. concept car at the 2016. The first of the new generation of Volkswagen electric cars, the I. D. is meant to be a highly automated electric car that will cover a distance of 400 to 600 kilometres on a single battery charge. I.D. is driven by an electric motor with an output of 125 kW or 170 hp. The car would accelerate from 0-100 km/h in 8 seconds with a top speed of 160km/h.

The production version of the I.D. is due to be launched in 2020 at a price on a par with the Golf. In “I.D. Pilot” mode, the electric car is capable of fully automated driving – this technology should be ready for series production in 2025.  The ID also has a low centre of gravity, like that of a racing car and an optimal weight distribution of 48:52 per cent.

I.D. is Volkswagen’s first compact concept car based on the new MEB vehicle architecture. MEB stands for “Modularer Elektrifizierungsbaukasten” (“Modular Electric Drive Kit”). The car features a long wheelbase with very short overhangs.

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The driver can activate the fully automated mode “I.D. Pilot” just by touching the Volkswagen logo on the steering wheel. With this, the electrically adjustable and retractable steering wheel disappears into the dashboard to enhance the feeling of openness and space.

What does the name I.D. stand for?

The idea is that anyone who drives a Volkswagen in the future will be given their own Volkswagen ID. The ID is an individual profile, in which the personal seat and air conditioning settings, the favourite radio stations and songs etc are saved. This profile can be accessed via mobile devices to recognise the legitimate user to know who is about to get behind the wheel.

volkswagen-i-d-paris-motor-show-2016-6

Here’s a quick description of some other unique features on the I.D.

Home-Net

The I.D plans to connect your home automation devices with your car. Thus, with the I.D. and Volkswagen Home-Net, it will be possible to interconnect your car and home.

Parcel Delivery Service

Volkswagen thinks that pretty soon it could become perfectly normal to receive parcels on the road, with the new Delivery Service in the boot of your car acting as a mailbox. The parcel delivery agent is able to locate the car by GPS and is granted temporary permission to open the boot via an app. The car’s owner is then notified via an app or e-mail as soon as the parcel has been delivered and the boot is locked again. Volkswagen is currently working with international logistics service providers to implement this innovative concept.

Pilot for multi-storey car park

In multi-storey car parks Volkswagen’s concept car can find a parking space all on its own.

Quick Charging

The battery can be charged by cable or using an inductive charging interface. The rapid charging system gets the battery 80% charged in just 30 minutes.

E-Mirror

In place of the rear-view mirrors there is now a system that looks exactly the same and performs the same function – the e-Mirror. This combines data from three external cameras on a monitor. Doing away with the wing mirrors improves the aerodynamics of the vehicle. The only button in the I.D., for the hazard warning lights, is to be found in the base of the mirror.

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Automated Driving

The car gets four laser scanners on the roof. In fully automated driving mode the laser scanners are active. Four protrude from the roof of the I.D. in “I.D. Pilot” mode, but the roof sensors are also visible thanks to indirect blue lighting, like the diffusers and side sills, to indicate that the I.D. is in fully automated mode. The fully automated mode is also indicated by blue illumination of the diffusers at the front and rear of the car, as well as the side sills. The I.D. is capable of detecting other road users not only using its laser sensors, but also with ultrasonic sensors, radar sensors, side area view cameras and a front camera. Traffic data is also constantly collected and compared with the vehicle data via the cloud.

Activating manual driving

Fully automated mode is deactivated by pressing the brake or accelerator pedals.

Light show

When the I.D. is “woken up”, it greets its driver and the passengers with an all-new 360 degree multi coloured light show. The I.D. eventually opens its “eyes” and, last but not least, white lines of light shine in the four door handles. Over and above that, Volkswagen’s designers and engineers have come up with different light scenarios for each operating mode. The various lighting patterns for various modes are described below

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Charging:  While the batteries are charging, the blue light panels on the diffusers and side sills pulsate, while the headlights remain in sleep mode.

Driving: In manual drive mode the Volkswagen logos and the daytime running lights are on. As the car accelerates, the lights adopt a more dynamic light signature.

Autonomous Driving Mode: To signal that the ID is in fully automated mode (from 2025), the laser scanners on the roof get extended and the front & rear diffusers are lit in blue. As the car speeds up, the LED “eyes” (watch video) look ahead, giving the car a sporty appearance.

Dynamic eyes: The VW “eyes” are interactive in fully automated mode. If, for instance, the I.D. wants to turn left or right, the LED headlights look in the direction that the car is going to turn. What is more, if the I.D. notices people at the side of the road it looks at them. This very human form of interaction draws the attention of pedestrians and cyclists to the I.D.

Autodesk VRED Professional 2016 SP1

Goodbye gesture: When you shut the car and move away, is what is termed a goodbye scenario. The daytime running lights get deactivated and the door handle illumination gets activated. The car then turns off the blue illumination of the diffusers and side sills along with the white lines of light in the door handles. Finally, only the Volkswagen logos are illuminated. They stay on until the driver and passengers walk away from the car and the I.D. goes in standby mode.

Interior

There are four separate seats. The seats in the back can be folded up like cinema seats to save space or flattened to floor level. Depending on the seating configuration the I.D. has up to 960 l of boot space. The interior gets ample daylight through large windows and a panoramic roof. If the sunshine is too bright, the transparent roof can also be darkened electronically.

Display and controls

At the centre of the new car is a retractable multifunction steering wheel, along with a new Active Info Display, an electronic interior mirror (e-Mirror), an AR-Head-up Display (where AR stands for augmented reality) that is also new and newly designed door panels on all four doors. The menus and controls are also available to the rear-seat passengers, thanks to the four individual door panels.

Check out the video of the new Volkswagen I.D. below followed by an image gallery

https://youtu.be/P4xd2bnbgr0

 

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