News
What will the races of the future be like?
Date
15 July 2022
IED Barcelona anticipates and conceives what races of the future will be like: circuits that connect the real world with the virtual one. Virtual obstacles, wild nature in its purest form, races around the world, teams of drivers made up of physical and digital members, and circuits that propose competing by air, land and fire, are some of the proposals.
For each environment and circuit devised, Transportation Design students have designed a vehicle in collaboration with CARNET Volkswagen Group Innovation Barcelona and the CUPRA design team. Among the proposals presented are electric cars that allow the personalisation of the exterior design through the use of holograms, cabins to drive horizontally and provide an enhanced driving experience, modular designs that adapt to different surfaces, and aerodynamic vehicles that fly over salt flats.
The briefing proposed by the automobile company challenged the students to design a new concept of a sports racing car for the digital age. Following the values of the brand, it was required to maintain the essence of sportiness in driving, elevate the user experience, and design a 100% electric vehicle.
Over the course of six months, fourth-year students researched the latest digital trends, such as virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality and artificial intelligence, in order to incorporate these technologies into their projects. Some of them even designed a virtual space where they could exhibit their proposals in the form of a showroom. Others gathered influences from the past, such as designs inspired by the Formula 1 cars of the sixties, or reviving the historic Montjuïc circuit.
Blank Interface
Taking Ernest Cline’s book Ready Player One as a starting point, it focuses on the driving experience with augmented reality.
Tribal Run
Team race in natural environments around the world based on the tribal concept, with vehicles based on the designs of the Formula 1 cars from the sixties.
Transrace
A vehicle inspired by the human body that can be divided into two depending on the environments in which it is driven.
Cupra Barkeno
Conceived as a car to compete on the historic Montjuïc circuit, which is updated with virtual and real obstacles.
Cupra Dimension
Earth, air, fire and water are the four conceptual elements of a competition across different surfaces where the most important thing is teamwork.
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