LA 2015: Volvo’s sweet seat
Concept 26 offers a novel approach to interior design
From a design point of view, we’ve covered a number of attempts at rethinking the car interior if the driver doesn’t actually have to worry about taking the wheel.
The Volvo Concept 26 takes its name from the average length in minutes of a daily commute by US drivers. The aim of the concept is that its autonomous tech would give you back that time for use as you see fit.
Volvo began with the seat, rather than the more obvious infotainment tech. The seat is an evolution of the one designed for the SPA platform, but rather than the simple pivot at the intersection of the seat’s back and base, the concept seat has a new bi-hinged base that keeps your pelvis and spine aligned regardless of the seat’s angle.
This means that when you transition from manual ‘Drive’ mode into either ‘Create’ which motors the steering wheel out of the way to let you work, or ‘Relax’ which reclines the seat, your body is constantly cradled and kept very comfortable on the type of long, unbroken journey an autonomous car could provide.
Concept in ‘Drive’ mode
Concept in ‘Create’ mode
In addition to the seat, the concept includes a revolving passenger-side IP that has a large screen in it for when the car is driving itself. To facilitate this, the portrait infotainment screen now moves with the seat, which also preserves its ergonomy.
The appeal of this concept is its simplicity – it doesn’t radically alter current interior paradigms, but the comfort, tech and time saving it offers makes autonomous drive that bit more appealing.