Volvo unveils Concept 26 interior design study

Volvo Concept 26 explores how luxury autonomous cars will integrate into daily life. and is the result of extensive research on how people want to use autonomous driving and their time behind the wheel.

The concept is built around a patented seat design that cradles the driver at all times and through the transformation between the different modes.

Concept 26 features a tablet interface in the center console, a foldable tray table and a 25-inch flat-screen monitor that flips up from the passenger side dashboard, and offers three interior modes: Drive, Create and Relax.

Volvo Concept 26 development was based on the company’s new Scalable Product Architecture (SPA). It is one of the first Autonomous Drive concepts that is built on a product platform already available on the market.

The research conducted by Volvo shows that drivers could reclaim a significant amount of time from their daily commute, and make that time more meaningful, when given an environment to do what they wish. In the United States many drivers could regain an average of 26 additional minutes for each commute and several hundred hours per year, and much more in large metropolitan areas such as Los Angeles or New York.

The interior offers different configurations that combine today’s needs with emerging trends and technologies.

Interior Modes

Each mode offers a unique arrangement for drivers to maximize what they can do with their time while the car is in autonomous mode.

Drive: This mode provides you with a great driving experience and minimizes driver distraction while driving manually. A true celebration of driving people love.

Create: Volvo research indicated a variety of activities drivers wish they could do behind the wheel safely when they no longer need to focus on the driving task. Create mode allows for a variety of configurations of the seat, table and screens enabling the driver to complete a range of activities, such as reading, working on your next big project, or consuming media and other online content whilst the car takes care of the driving – always providing the driver with overall control.

Relax: More than anything, a Volvo customer’s most valuable asset is their time. They seek experiences and products that allow them to recapture this time and make it meaningful. Concept 26 features a relax mode that transforms the seat into a comfortable reclining position. The vehicle can also curate and suggest content to the driver via the passenger dashboard mounted screen. Of course, sometimes the largest luxury of all is to just simply do nothing, relax and enjoy the ride.

(Source: Volvo)