As the auto industry contemplates the impact of technology and Covid-19, designers are reinventing the interior of the automobile and how its passengers experience the ride, with an emphasis on cars as a safe place.
Covid-19 may reorder which advances come first. Smart surfaces, with materials that would replace the dials and buttons on the dashboard as input devices, could be self-cleaning. Such a function could be essential for car-sharing and ride-hailing vehicles used by many people.
Designs that completely transform the car’s interior into a working or relaxing space can only be realized once fully autonomous vehicles are on the road. Cars with retractable steering wheels, or seats that swivel so the driver can face the other passengers while the car’s robot drives are on the drawing board today.
Read the article at Fox Business.