ZF is a massive company, and while you might know it best for building transmissions, the corporation houses several businesses. ZF Lifetec, a part of the company responsible for passive safety products, has developed a steering wheel airbag system that accommodates display screens, which may become more of a thing as autonomous vehicles start hitting the streets.
ZF Liftec’s new airbag concept inflates the bag from the top portion of the steering wheel rim when the wheel is centered. The device also features a system that corrects airbag inflation if the wheel is turned to prevent it from hitting the driver’s legs. The initial design is a fairly sedate steering wheel with traditionally placed buttons and controls, so ZF’s vision of a futuristic steering wheel is pretty close to the components we see today.
While it’s likely that steering wheel screens will become a thing, it’s hard to celebrate more distractions in our cars, even if there is some degree of automation helping to control them. ZF’s concept can accommodate sensors and other components that work with hands-off driving and driver monitoring systems and can help alert the driver of the need to take control of the vehicle in some situations. At least the company believes our future cars will still have steering wheels, so we can hold onto hope that others do, too.
[Images: ZF]
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