BMW shows world’s first color-changing car at CES
This year’s CES in Las Vegas, BMW disclosed a slew of futuristic technologies, the most intriguing of which is a color-changing car.
Other projects include a 32-inch cinema screen that extends from the headliner for rear passengers and a variety of sounds explicitly designed for its electric models.
The German automaker “combines creativity and digitization to produce great moments for the driver and passengers. At the Las Vegas event BMW also unveiled the BMW iX M60, a 620hp range-topping EV from its M performance division.
The BMW iX Flow with E Ink is the world’s first car whose exterior color can be altered at the contact of a button. “By changing the color of the car, we’re taking personalization to new heights,” said Stella Clarke, project manager.
“We also see a lot of advantages in terms of usability and sustainability.”
Changing the car’s color can improve its efficiency by considering how light. And dark colors reflect sunlight and absorb thermal energy. “A white surface reflects a many more sunlight than a black surface,” BMW explained. By painting the exterior a light color, you can reduce the amount of heat that enters the vehicle. And passenger compartment due to direct sunlight and high temperatures.
The dark outer skin will help the car absorb more heat from the sun in cooler weather. In addition, selective color changes can help to reduce the amount of cooling. And heating required from the vehicle’s air conditioning in both cases.
This principle could also be use to extend the range of an electric vehicle. The technology itself consumes no energy to maintain the selected color. Only during the brief color-changing phase does current flow.
There is no set release date, but Clarke state, “This is the first try.” It has never been attempted before. We’re pioneering it and hope to put it into production. We can’t tell you when it will arrive right now.”
How does it function?
The color changes are enabled by a specially designed body wrap that is precisely tailored to the contours of the iX Flow. When stimulated by electrical signals, electrophoretic technology similar to that used in Kindle e-readers brings different color pigments to the surface. Driving the body skin to take on the color of the stains.
