Audi has taken the wraps off the Urbansphere electric concept car. It has been developed in close collaboration between Audi’s design studios in Beijing and its headquarters in Ingolstadt. For the first time, potential customers in China also took part as it has been primarily created for use in traffic of Chinese megacities. Audi Urbansphere acts as a lounge on wheels and mobile office, i.e. the vehicle serves as a third living space during the hours spent in traffic. The Concept car boasts of Level 4 automated driving technology.
Audi Urbansphere measures 5510 mm in length, 2010 mm in width, and 1780 mm in height while having a wheelbase of 3400 mm. It is the largest model in the sphere family which includes Audi Skysphere and Audi Grandsphere. The Concept offers everyone on board a wide variety of options to use this freedom to enjoy customizable experiences – communication or relaxation, work, or a retreat into a private sphere when desired. The vehicle also takes care of everyday tasks that go beyond the ride itself – such as making dinner reservations or shopping online from the car. In addition, the autonomous Audi urbansphere concept picks up its passengers at home and independently takes care of finding a parking space and charging the battery.
The doors of the Audi urbansphere concept are counter-hinged at the front and the rear as there is no B-pillar. The four individual seats in two rows can swivel outward and a red carpet of light gets projected onto the ground next to the vehicle. In addition, each seat has its own sound zone with speakers in the headrest area. Individual monitors are also built into the backs of the front seats. In Relax and Entertain modes, the backrest can be tilted up to 60 degrees while leg rests extend at the same time. There are centre-mounted armrests integrated into the sides of the seats and their counterparts in the doors. When passengers want to use the infotainment system together, there is a large-format and transparent OLED screen that pivots vertically from the roof area into the zone between the rows of seats.
The concept car has one electric motor each on the front and rear axles alongside an all-wheel drive system. An innovative feature is that the motor on the front axle can be deactivated as required in order to reduce friction and thus energy consumption when coasting. The heart of the drive system is the 800-volt charging technology. It ensures that the battery can be charged with up to 270 kW at fast-charging stations in the shortest possible time, say just 10 minutes are enough to charge the battery to a level sufficient to power the car more than 300 kilometres. In addition, the battery, which holds more than 120 kWh, can be charged from 5 to 80 percent in less than 25 minutes. This means that a range of up to 750 kilometres can be expected according to the WLTP standard.
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A mechanical engineering dropout by choice, Mayank has been in the auto journalism biz for the past 8 years. He is currently working as an Associate Editor at Droom Discovery and covering each and every aspect of the auto industry. He has worked with a plethora of renowned Auto brands in his illustrious career so far. Being a student of English Literature, his mantras of success are the Never-Say-Never attitude and self-confidence. Mayank likes to travel, read books and listen to music during his free time.
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