Photo: Volkswagen
In a move meant to expedite the creation of future driver assistance technologies, Volkswagen on Monday said it will start relying on virtual reality more and more for future development processes.
Currently, Volkswagen is in the process of developing the in-house software that would govern this virtual reality. Most of the technologies to be researched this way will make it into the future line of ID electric vehicles.
Until now, the carmaker has been using the good old fashion way to test autonomous features: physically connecting components to test rigs via data interfaces. But as the number of functions for these systems grows, so does the complexity of the tests to be conducted.
By using virtual reality, the Germans plan to cover millions of test kilometers before actually tacking the tech and fitting it onto a car, and without spending a fortune on creating new hardware.
Also, testing could be done round the clock, training these systems for days-on-end without interruption, in a wide range of scenarios.
First tests of the new VW VR software are already being conducted. The first use of the software is the simulation of thousands of individual car parks, considered to be a good example of environments automated systems will have to tackle.
“We are continually developing Volkswagen vehicles and taking innovations into all segments,” said in a statement Frank Welsch, VW’s exec in charge with development.
“We are building on our strong global development team and grasping all the opportunities offered by digitalization. This also includes virtual validation. We are developing this technology for our work as it will make for faster and more efficient development processes.”
The first Volkswagen to represent the transition to partially autonomous cars is the ID, which will be launched next year. Several yet undisclosed assistance systems will be featured on the car.
Until now, the carmaker has been using the good old fashion way to test autonomous features: physically connecting components to test rigs via data interfaces. But as the number of functions for these systems grows, so does the complexity of the tests to be conducted.
By using virtual reality, the Germans plan to cover millions of test kilometers before actually tacking the tech and fitting it onto a car, and without spending a fortune on creating new hardware.
Also, testing could be done round the clock, training these systems for days-on-end without interruption, in a wide range of scenarios.
First tests of the new VW VR software are already being conducted. The first use of the software is the simulation of thousands of individual car parks, considered to be a good example of environments automated systems will have to tackle.
“We are continually developing Volkswagen vehicles and taking innovations into all segments,” said in a statement Frank Welsch, VW’s exec in charge with development.
“We are building on our strong global development team and grasping all the opportunities offered by digitalization. This also includes virtual validation. We are developing this technology for our work as it will make for faster and more efficient development processes.”
The first Volkswagen to represent the transition to partially autonomous cars is the ID, which will be launched next year. Several yet undisclosed assistance systems will be featured on the car.
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