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Andreas Thurner presented 'Spirit of BMW Luxury in the Future' with a theme that suggests a custom-made suit. Based on the 7 Series, the vehicle appears to be cloaked in floating surfaces, with air flowing underneath the outer surface from the front lamps to the surface breaks at the rear end.
The rear decklid is raised through the middle, and together with the domed roof it suggests the power of BMW's rear wheel drive. The raked C-pillar pushes the upright cabin forward, while the upright front windscreen gives the car a strong character, and reduces exposure to the sun and excessive reflection.
The graduating Masters students were:
Andreas Deubzer, Feng-You Gong, Jong-Hyun Heo, Henning Holstein, Matthias Junghanns, Robert Leeman and Adrianus Obers.
Fengyou Gong presented 'Volkswagen-by-Wire 2010', an interior for a mid-class car with drive-by-wire technology. With mechanical components housed in the 'skateboard' base of the car, the entire space above becomes available for driver control and passenger comfort. The interior concept uses flexible components to allow the driver and passengers to set up and change the configuration of the interior, using five interchangeable styles.
The 'VolksSportWagen' by Matthias Junghanns is a modular concept for a Volkswagen sportscar. To be suitable for mass production, easy maintenance, upgrade, and transport and an attractive price, the vehicle consists of a vertical space frame structure to which all modules are attached. The 'rolling chassis' principle of the car reduces the body to stylistic and aerodynamic purposes only. The VolksSportWagen has a life of its own: in 'park'-mode the car stands closed and sculpture-like on the street. When the driver approaches the vehicle 'wakes up': The chassis lifts up, the wheel spokes open, the air intakes at the front and back open and the neoprene mattress that closes the cockpit slides down and forms the ergonomic seating shell.
Henning Holstein presented a revival of the Borgward brand in the form of a coup�. The Borgward customer is 35-40 years old, in the middle-range of the market. The Borgward Coup� is intended as both a business and private vehicle. It should project an individual, practical, economical and comfortable image, and compete with vehicles such as the Mercedes CLK, BMW 3 Series Coup� or Alfa Romeo 156.
First semester Masters students presented a Paris-Dakar race vehicle, which were presented as digital renderings and animations.
For the Volkswagen-sponsored project, 5th semester students designed exterior proposals, while the 7th semester focused on interior design.
The 4th semester students presented a Taxi project, designed for a range of cities from New York, to Peking, to Baden-Baden. The solutions were designed to suit the local traffic situation, climate and inhabitants. The proposals were developed fully as digital models.
Patrick Faulwetter designed a taxi that would connect the Turin Airport with the centre of Turin, carrying three passengers and luggage. The central driver position allows an optimal overview in the often chaotic Italian traffic.Luggage is stored beside the driver. A protective bumper/base element which is allowed to build up a patina in use, contrasts with the smooth and transparent upper body elements. Traditional Italian flair is blended with the innovative spirit of an industrial city.
The first three semesters of the Pforzheim University Transportation Design course are taught in conjunction with the Industrial Design course, and in the 4th semester of the course the students begin to specialize in Transportation Design. During this semester the students develop their design projects from 2D to 3D using digital models rather than clay, using Alias Autostudio for modelling, packaging studies, renderings and animations. Only in the 5th semester do the students develop their projects with the use of clay models.
The school has a great deal of support from the car industry through sponsored projects and regular visits from designers who tutor students in the various aspects of Transportation Design. BMW, Audi and VW regulary offer internships while Porsche and Mercedes are just around the corner.
The school has a Master of Transportation Design program (MTD) which is a 3 semester course. A diploma or degree in Industrial design is required for acceptance on this course but students gaining entry will have a certain level of freedom in planning the course structure. The school aims to take on a wide variety of students who will eventually be capable of working in all aspects of transportation design.
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