By Andy Hum

HOW WOULD YOU like to watch short news clips as you’re waiting in traffic while driving in your BMW, or enjoy the low, potent rumbling V8 from a Mini Cooper, that tells the traffic lights to turn green for it? All these features wouldn’t too far away, if BMW had their way with things.

As part of BMW’s Innovation Day in Munich, Germany, we were shown a range of technological innovations they were intending to develop, which literally included some rocket science, as well as a Mini that plays a collection of songs according to how you drive.

CarBuyer picks out the most exciting innovations

Full-coloured Head–Up Display
Fighter pilots will be jealous of this one. Head-Up Displays may have been around in BMWs for some time already, but the new generation versions will project full-coloured images – fighter pilots are mostly limited to a boring green. This improvement is not only more visually appealing, it can even show speed limit warnings as how they look in real life and also navigational instructions.

This new version also requires much less power – less than ten, compared to more than 100 LEDs originally.

While BMW did not want to provide specific details about when this feature will be available, a spokesperson was willing to say “oh, very soon”. Our guess is that it could be available in the next 5 Series which will be launched next year, as BMW’s first HUD was also offered in the 5 in 2003.

Mini Center Globe
This is how your next Mini could look. Using state-of-the-art laser technology, the centre display screen on a Mini could very well be in the shape of a globe and present information in a three-dimensional way.

A transparent ball shell, comprising two spherical moving projection areas, is used, so both driver and passenger can access different functions and view information at the same time, but each only gets to see what he or she wants. It has a huge advantage over conventional TFT displays, such as being able to show a much wider colour spectrum and also projects fast-moving images quicker.

Mini Active Sound Design
Fancy driving around in a growling V8 for the morning and maybe a straight-six in the evening, without even changing your car? That’s entirely possible with this innovation. We were taken for a spin in a Mini Cooper that, from the inside, sounded like how a rumbling V8 engine would at one point, and then, at the press of a button, emitted the sporty noise you’d get from a straight-six. No, it wasn’t been fitted with several engines.

A computer fitted in the car actually creates the sounds and sends it through the speakers, giving occupants the virtual aural experience of being in a car with all sorts of different engines. While the speakers can’t replicate the vibrations and sensations one gets from the real deal, it’s a pretty feature that lots of buyers would probably want in their cars.

Video always on BMW ConnectedDrive
Imagine the next time you get stuck in a jam or wait longer at a traffic light, instead of feeling frustrated at the situation, you’re relaxing in your car and watching the news, or even some funny video clips from the web. It sounds like it’s from a sci-fi movie, but it’s actually not very far away.

Called ‘Personal Video’, BMW has already worked with the Bavarian Broadcasting Corporation to develop 100-second news clips which drivers can watch while waiting at the lights, for example. You can even specify your preferred type of programmes so that you can watch them on the go. Well, not while driving, of course.

All this system really requires is actually a mobile broadband internet connection, and the economic viability of it all.

Bionic seats
Believe it or not, the next generation of seats could have fishes to thank. By studying the anatomy of those swimming creatures, and working with orthopaedic experts, BMW has designed seats which are not only safer for its users, they’re also lighter.

Developed with the ‘Fin-Ray’ principle, the structure of the seat, when pressed at one end, bends towards the direction of the force applied at the other end. This means that in the event of a collision, for example, when your lower back hits the backrest first, the headrest actually bends forward. The result is that it makes contact with the head 10-milliseconds earlier and reduces the risk of whip-lash.

It’s also a lot lighter – two front seats can easily weigh as much as one adult, so by lightening them, it also reduces fuel consumption.

Intelligent heat management
Did you know that energy cannot be created or destroyed – it can only change form. That’s the first law of conservation of energy, in science speak. In English, and in the case of a car, chemical energy from petrol is converted into heat energy upon combustion, and then into kinetic energy when the vehicle is in motion. But even the most efficient engines around are only able to convert a third of the chemical source into useful propulson – two thirds are wasted as the heat goes into the exhaust, radiator and surroundings.

Now what if that heat can become electrical energy as well? Utilising a thermoelectric generator (TEG), which are also found in space probes, up to 250-watts of electricity can be recovered. That’s about half the on-board consumption in a 5 Series. It can also save up to two percent of fuel.

BMW also showed us prototype designs which can trap the heat of an engine, which is particularly useful for starting up diesel engines in cold countries. Diesels typically require more energy to start and warm up.

Sustainable Traffic Management
The next time you approach a traffic light, your car tells it to turn green in your favour. How’s that sound? Does accelerating hard, with hopes of passing the next light before it turns red, and then having to brake hard because you were too slow sound like a familiar situation?

Maybe not so in the future, if this system gets implemented. BMW calls it ‘Car2X’ communication, where ‘X’ refers to traffic lights or roadwork markers. The whole highly-intelligent is capable of advising your car if the Auto Start Stop function should be deactivated (if it’s only a short stop) or not, or there’s a drop in the speed limit ahead so you can gently lift off the throttle instead of having to brake hard.

There’s also TPEG, or Transportation Protocol Expert Group. With this system, drivers can be informed of almost everything relevant to their driving route. From providing live information such as traffic jams, accidents, road closures, traffic speed and flow, weather conditions, available car park lots and even the price of fuel, the on-board computer can calculate the best route to take, or even advise you to park your car and take public transport.

But then again, why sit in a warm and dirty bus when you can be in the comfort of your BMW, right?