Designing lightweight EV seat architecture is enormous challenge right now as the industry pushes to electrify vehicles that have bigger, heavier batteries, and there are increased electric draws from the seats. With an average seat in a vehicle weighing around 55-60kg, battery contributing significantly to the vehicle’s weight, designing a seat architecture where weight is kept low while safeguarding comfort and safety is a key priority.

The industry are focusing on modularity as a solution for reducing seat weight, with new seating concepts for electric vehicles that reduce seat weight without lowering value.

Get your copy of this insightful article written by Sahil Jain Lead - Seating Systems Arrival who explores modularity as a solution for reducing seat weight, as well as new seat architecture for electric vehicles, and the direct impact on the vehicle performance & range.

With the automotive industry facing a new end-of-life vehicle directive, and a continued push for recyclability, experts are questioning the readiness of circular economy, and what this means for automotive seating and interior industries.

• What measures are being taken by OEMs and Tier-1s to work towards and achieve high-level sustainability targets?
• What exactly does circularity mean for automotive seats?
• What are the new, more sustainable approaches, applications & production tools for seat manufacturing?
• How can the challenge to reduce the carbon footprint of the car seats without removing features & functions be solved?
• What are the innovative sustainability-driven materials for seat covers?
• What is the real value of leather alternatives (PVC), and how can sustainable materials perform against benchmarked polyurethane?

This article written by Sahil Jain, Lead - Seating Systems at Arrival, helps us to get a better understanding of these questions the industry are wanting the answers to.

• Understand how to interpret the new end-of-life vehicle directive from a seating & interior POV.
• Comparing innovative materials that are both sustainable & aesthetic for the seat.
  

This case study highlights the factors of automotive seating for L4/5 autonomy and explains how OOP seating will come into play, as well as detailing results from recent crash testing. 

Case study: The Impact of Autonomous Driving & ADAS Features on Automotive Seating, featuring insights from Dr. José Solaz, Scientific Director, Head of Innovation, Automobile & Mobility, Instituto de Biomecánica (IBV)

The drive towards vehicles operating at fully autonomous Level 4 (L4) and Level 5 (L5) is heading into the next stages of development in the industry, particularly in the seating and interiors area, with full autonomy predicting to completely change the business of seating. What will this mean for the interior and seating segment from a technical point of view and what will be the dollar impact of this evolution is unknown at this point. This case study aims to shed light on the technical implications and financial considerations surrounding the autonomy evolution and the seating transformations that will come along with it.

Case study interview: Crash Simulation and Testing for Autonomous Vehicle Seats with Dr. Christophe Bastien, Associate Professor, Coventry University

This case study interview delves into the critical aspect of crash simulation and testing specific to autonomous vehicle seats. Christophe examines the tools and methodologies required to accurately evaluate seat performance under various crash scenarios, including out-of-position seating. Christophe shares images of crash testing which demonstrate the scenario of a crash in both standard and rotated seat positions. 

Get your copy of this exclusive presentation from Seating and Sustainable Material industry experts, Adam Leker and Sean Harper at JLR, which was presented at the Automotive Seating Technology 2023 conference.

Adam and Sean detailed the industry’s strategy for using bio-based materials and answered the following questions:

• What are the credible alternatives to leather that meet the same requirements of durability, comfort, and appearance?

• What are the ‘green credentials’ of alternative materials?

• Is there a sustainable way to carry on using leather in the industry?

Sustainability is still a big topic in the industry and is being covered at Automotive IQ's 2024 Seating Innovation conference, with new angles focusing on: 

• Circular economy - what is the industry doing in terms of recycling and how are seats being designed to meet this criteria.
• How can the industry get the most out of the seat at the end of the vehicle's life to stop it going to landfill.
• How can OEMs achieve luxury seats and designs by using recycled materials?
  

Automotive IQ’s 16th Automotive Seating Innovation conference connected 70+ peers and colleagues working in the seating at the Radisson Blu Conference Hotel in Düsseldorf. As the only dedicated technical seating conference in Europe, for many of our attendees this was the first time they joined an in-person seating conference since 2019.

Throughout the conference, industry experts delivered technical presentations focused on both near- and long-term developments in automotive seating, covering the trends and challenges in sustainability, autonomy, safety & comfort. Attendees also had the opportunity to share ideas during workshop sessions & interactive discussions and make new business connections during our curated networking breaks.

Join us at the 17th Automotive Seating Technology 2024 Frankfurt, Germany February 20 - 22, 2024, and in the meantime, please enjoy some of the highlights from the 16th Automotive Seating Innovations 2023 conference.