The German company in Friedrichshafen has big plans for its steering wheels. In the near future, when the time comes for autonomous driving, the classic steering wheel will disappear, but additional controls, variablely assignable buttons or even screen integration may be realistic. For this reason, the driver's side airbag has to be moved somewhere, and ZF specialists have found a solution for this Auto Bild according to
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This raises the question: How can the airbag placed in the middle of the steering wheel be installed in another place, to ensure passenger safety in the same way as before, without compromises?
ZF, a successful global company with more than 100 years of history (primarily specializing in transmissions), has tested alternative versions of where the airbag can be moved. In the new generation of the steering wheel that was introduced recently, it is located behind the steering wheel above the steering column. For this reason, the spokes are placed at a different angle to the steering wheel, without disturbing the operation of the safety equipment and the driving experience.
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So what could the steering wheel of the future look like? The idea is as follows: “The principle of simple but exquisite solutions, which has become more and more popular in many areas of electronic components in recent years, such as smartphones, can also be found in the interiors of modern vehicles,” said the company's experts. . They pointed out that if self-driving technology achieves progress and becomes safe, the function of the steering wheel will change, and as we mentioned previously, its surface may be expanded with additional functions. For this reason, it is necessary for the airbag to find a place where it can work just as efficiently, but without detracting from innovative solutions.
ZF specialists imagine the location of the driver's airbag in the future in a similar way / Photo: Auto Bild
