“3D display technology not only brings a new wow-factor into the vehicle cockpit but with the right content, it also creates a more intuitive interaction between driver and vehicle and thus enhances driving safety”, said Ulrich Lueders, head of strategy and portfolio at Continental’s business unit Human Machine Interface. “As we see this especially for 3D navigation, I am very happy that we can contribute to a better UX and safer driving environment by bringing together HERE premium map content and Leia’s Lightfield software with our expertise in automotive human-machine interface solutions.”

3D Navigation

Various studies on traffic safety show that driver distraction is among the main reasons for traffic crashes worldwide. In the US, distracted driving caused more than 2,800 fatalities in 2018, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Association. It is critical to work toward intuitive UX solutions that provide drivers with the content and functions they are looking for and therefore support greater driving safety while minimising distraction in the vehicle cockpit.

“Especially in complex driving scenarios such as city traffic, it can be a real challenge for many drivers to follow navigation instructions and at the same time manoeuvre safely”, says Ulrich Lüders.

Thanks to the correct spatial reproduction of the real world offered by the 3D solution from Continental, HERE and Leia Inc drivers can grasp the necessary information quicker, better orientate themselves and stay more attentive to the driving task.

The content enabling this solution comes from HERE Premier 3D cities, consisting of HERE premium map content and highly detailed 3D representations of 75 global city centres that are fully interactive and customisable. Each building is indexed and accurate in terms of physical location, volume, elevation and façade colour. 3D terrain models also provide elevations for representative depictions of a city’s layout. Detailed 3D landmarks are included within the coverage of each city and are integrated into the 3D terrain, as well as the various styles of the surrounding buildings.

Based on Continental’s Natural 3D Display, Leia’s Lightfield technology and HERE’s 3D map content, the companies have created a joint demonstrator and plan to work with vehicle manufacturers to bring this solution into the next generation of vehicles.

Awards

Continental is bestowed with three CES 2021 Innovation Honoree Awards. Its state-of-the-art Transparent Trailer technology and its Advanced Radar Sensor (ARS) 540 were awarded in the Vehicle Intelligence and Transportation product category, while its Ac2ated sound partnership was recognised in the In-Vehicle Entertainment and Safety category.

Selections are awarded by a panel of independent expert judges, including industrial designers, engineers, and trade media members – to honour outstanding design and engineering in cutting-edge consumer electronics products across 28 categories.

“It’s always special to be recognised among the revolutionary products in the CES Innovation Awards,” says Samir Salman, CEO, Automotive Technologies, Continental North America. “The selections not only speak to the value of our technologies, but also to the dedication of our team members globally who are constantly pushing to create new, noteworthy solutions for our customers. Recognitions like this inspire us to push further to see what additional mobility and safety solutions we can develop for the future.”

The Transparent Trailer technology extends the company’s trailering portfolio to allow drivers to “see through” a trailer in the haul and check the area behind and beside it. Based on its Surround View system, the technology enables safer driving while towing. Two cameras and a control unit work together to provide a panoramic view that renders the trailer virtually invisible. The result is a seamless live feed for drivers to see the road and any obstacles behind the trailer.

Continental’s ARS 540 is the first production-ready 4D image radar. It supports automated driving systems all the way from partial to full automation. While previous systems were only capable of capturing information on range, speed and azimuth angle, the ARS 540’s long-range radar sensor calculates an object’s location in addition to the range, speed and azimuth angle also with its elevation to create a precise map of the driving environment up to 300 meters. In particular, the radar sensor’s elevation measuring capability allows the most varied of objects, even relatively small objects, to be detected even more precisely. Moreover, the extended capability allows the ARS 540 to provide high-resolution detail for object identification to manage complex driving scenarios, even in adverse lighting and weather conditions, and at higher speeds.

The final selection is a partnership that pairs Continental and Sennheiser technology to create an immersive sound experience that eliminates reality and reproduction boundaries. The joint solution offers a scalable and adaptive sound system that supports mobility evolution towards an ever more user experience-oriented future. Continental’s Ac2ated Sound removes conventional loudspeakers from the vehicle and replaces them with small and lightweight actuators that excite surfaces. The newly added headrest audio feature provides a unique experience of individualised listening zones with an entirely invisible integration. Sennheiser’s AMBEO Mobility leverages the audio specialist’s patented AMBEO 3D audio technology to deliver an immersive and natural in-car sound experience. It is designed, calibrated and finetuned to ensure an incredibly vivid soundscape and crystal-clear communication. Combining the two technologies creates an invisible, immersive, real-life experience for all listeners in the vehicle. (MT)

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German tier 1 supplier ZF Friedrichshafen and the BMW Group have entered into a long-term supply agreement for passenger car drive systems. The contract, valued at several billion euros, extends until the late 2030s.

The agreement focuses on the supply and continued development of the 8-speed automatic transmission (8HP). The partners aim to support low-emission mobility and maintain technological flexibility during the industry transition.

A central component of the partnership is the technical evolution of the 8HP transmission kit to meet the requirements of electrified drives. The development will focus on increasing efficiency and performance for future vehicle concepts.

Mathias Miedreich, CEO of ZF, said, “Together with BMW, we are sending a strong signal for innovation, efficiency, and sustainability in an industry undergoing dynamic change. This agreement highlights the strategic importance of our 8-speed automatic transmission as a key technology for the transformation of drive systems.”

The duration of the contract provides both ZF and BMW with planning stability in a changing market. ZF aims to strengthen its position as a system supplier while reducing risks through close collaboration with the carmaker.

Sebastian Schmitt, Head of ZF's Electrified Drive Technologies division, explained, “The new agreement with BMW shows how important long-term planning horizons are for technological advancements. It creates clarity and stability for both companies and enables us to align the next generation of the 8HP specifically toward efficiency, performance, and long-term viability.”

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Aumovio has entered a supply agreement with Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Leapmotor to provide safety components for the carmaker’s B and C platforms.

Several models within Leapmotor’s B platform now utilise Aumovio's long-range radar, electric parking brake and airbag control unit (ACU). Models on the C platform, including the C10, C11 and C16 SUVs, feature the latest generation of the MK C2 one-box brake system, alongside the long-range radar and ACU.

The project was completed with a development cycle approximately one-third shorter than traditional automotive timelines. Aumovio attributed its speed to ‘local-for-local’ strategy in China, where the company operates 20 sites and employs around 10,000 staff. In 2024, Aumovio held a 14 percent share of market revenue in the region.

The supplied technologies include:

• MK C2 Brake System: A unit combining the master cylinder, electronic brake system, and brake booster. It is produced locally in Shanghai.
• Long-Range Radar: A sensor with a detection range of up to 280 metres, used for driver assistance across both platforms.
• Airbag Control Unit (ACU): Integrated with crash satellite sensors, these components are manufactured in Changchun.

Boris Mergell, Head of the Safety and Motion business area at Aumovio, said, “Pairing ‘China speed’ with ‘German quality’ technologies helped us to support a rapid roll-out with our latest safety technologies. This underscores Aumovio’s course towards an adaptive powerhouse that works flexibly and closely with customers to innovate. It also shows that we continue to strengthen our customer relationships in the important market China.”

The partnership supports Leapmotor’s international presence. The B10 and B05 models, which feature Aumovio's ACU and radar technology, were showcased at the IAA 2025 in Munich as part of the manufacturer's European entry.

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Bengaluru-headquartered ER&D company L&T Technology Services (LTTS) has announced a multi-year engagement within its mobility segment from an automotive manufacturer. The agreement involves software, connectivity and digital engineering services across vehicle technology domains. This win follows the company’s investments in R&D labs and mobility infrastructure designed for programs with global manufacturers.

The engagement covers mobility engineering capabilities, including embedded systems, digital platforms, verification and validation, cloud integration and cybersecurity. LTTS intends to use its engineering expertise and delivery frameworks to support the customer's technology roadmap. 

At present, LTTS operates 22 design centres and 100 innovation labs globally.

The agreement strengthens the partnership between LTTS and the automotive manufacturer in the area of mobility engineering. The company provides design, development, and testing services across the mobility, sustainability, and tech segments. 

Alind Saxena, Executive Director and President, Mobility and Tech at L&T Technology Services, said, “We are proud to deepen our partnership with the valued customer through this strategic engagement. LTTS brings together domain-led engineering, secure development practices and excellence in global delivery to accelerate the future of premium mobility. The win reflects the trust placed in our teams and our commitment to delivering world-class engineering at scale”.

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French technology company Valeo and NATIX Network have announced a partnership to develop a multi-camera World Foundation Model (WFM). The project combines Valeo’s research in artificial intelligence and generative modelling with NATIX’s decentralised physical infrastructure network (DePIN) to create an open-source platform for autonomous driving and robotics.

The initiative aims to move beyond perception-based models by creating a system capable of predicting future states and reasoning about physical interactions in a four-dimensional environment. The model will be trained using NATIX’s data network, which has collected 600,000 hours of video data across the US, Europe and Asia over seven months. This data provides the multi-camera inputs necessary for the spatial perception required by autonomous vehicles and robots.

The partnership builds upon Valeo’s existing open-source frameworks, VaViM (Video Autoregressive Model) and VaVAM (Video-Action Model). While these frameworks were previously trained primarily on front-camera datasets, the integration of NATIX’s multi-camera network expands the AI’s field of vision to 360 degrees.

Under the open-source framework, the partners will release models, datasets and training tools. This approach is intended to allow the research community to fine-tune models and benchmark physical AI across various driving conditions and geographic regions. The collaboration seeks to accelerate the deployment of end-to-end AI models by learning from real-world edge cases captured by vehicles in operation.

Marc Vrecko, Chief Executive Officer, Valeo’s Brain Division, said, “Since our creation in 2018, Valeo’s AI research center has been at the forefront of AI research in the automotive industry, especially in the fields of assisted and autonomous driving. Our goal has always been to advance mobility intelligence safely and responsibly. By combining Valeo’s generative world modeling research expertise with NATIX’s global multi-camera data, we are accelerating both the quality and the accessibility of next-generation end-to-end AI models, enabling the research community to build upon strong open models.”

Alireza Ghods, CEO and Co-Founder, NATIX, added, “WFMs are a once-in-a-generation opportunity — similar to the rise of LLMs in 2017–2020. The teams that build the first scalable world models will define the foundation of the next AI wave: Physical AIs. With our distributed multi-camera network, NATIX has a clear advantage of being able to move faster than large OEMs.”

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