Automakers have increasingly focused on attracting more tech talent who even five years ago might not have considered the auto business for a career. For Stovicek “it was a possibility” while studying for a degree in Industrial Design at Carleton University. However, it took more than 20 years for him to decide to do it. Before being recruited by Volvo in 2018, he was in charge of interaction design – the branch of IT that plans and implements points of interactivity in digital and physical systems – at Nokia, Microsoft and BlackBerry, to ensure a good user experience .
“People have to think about people first, before technology. Think about what problems we are going to solve and how we are going to make the life of the users easier, ”she says.
More software, new design challenges
But adding more and more software – today the average vehicle contains about 150 million lines of code – is changing the way a vehicle is designed and built. A decade ago, auto companies knew exactly who to hire to stay ahead of the competition: mechanical engineers, marketers, salespeople, financial experts. But today, they are casting their net beyond engineering and automotive design schools to recruit designers, psychologists, cardiologists and neurospecialists.
Jean-Baptiste Trollé, a graduate of the National School of Applied Arts and Crafts (ENSAAMA, for its acronym in French), is today the Director of Industrial Design at Forvia, a global automotive supplier of seats, consoles and emissions control technology. . Trollé observes the behavior of users in the face of new technologies, such as cameras instead of side mirrors, screens loaded with video games or movies, or headrests with integrated speakers that allow for an individualized sound experience.
“We have to think more from the user’s point of view. We have to observe the behavior of the users and when we detect a friction or some difficulty it is an opportunity for us”, she says.
Automakers have already uncovered concepts that are more like a living room, with a pod coffee machine, folding tables, reclining seats, tablets and speakers built into the headrests.
“For the last 100 years cars have had four wheels and carried four or five people, all facing the same direction. But now electrification, autonomous driving and connectivity have changed the rules of the game,” he says. Andreas Wlasak, Forvia’s Vice President of Industrial Design, during a tour of the company’s regional headquarters in Detroit, Michigan.
Among the dozens of innovations unveiled by the French supplier is a seat that uses sensors built into the seat that monitor stress, sleepiness, heart rate and other vital signs. The data can then be used to trigger alerts to wake up a drowsy driver or, in the event of irregularities, it can be sent to 911 or a family member.
Wlasak, a designer by training, looks for inspiration beyond the four walls of his office. “When I go to the supermarket I always stay a few more minutes in the parking lot to see what kind of problems a person has with their vehicle.” He then takes all that learning to be able to propose improvements. “We have a blank sheet to create,” he concludes.