BMW Motorrad: autonomous driving is only the first step [PHOTO AND VIDEO]

BMW Motorrad – Last week, at the BMW Motorrad Techday 2018, BMW Motorrad presented its first autonomous motorcycle. In the test area of ​​the BMW group in Miramas, in the south of France, a BMW R 1200 GS took its first lap in public, in front of the journalists present, without any driver on board, in a totally independent manner, accelerating, facing the curves and slowing to a stop when required.

BMW Motorrad: another step towards safe riding

With this futuristic development project, BMW Motorrad does not intend to create a completely independent motorcycle as an end in itself, but rather wants to exploit the underlying technology for the development of future systems and functions that make two-wheelers even safer and more comfortable, and which increase driving pleasure. The objective for the development of this prototype is to gather further knowledge on motorcycle driving dynamics in order to immediately detect dangerous situations and thus support the driver with appropriate safety systems, for example when turning at an intersection or during a sharp braking.

BMW Motorrad: the future is now

BMW Motorrad used the occasion to present many other exciting technological projects. The headlights were among the main protagonists with their new technology thanks to which the lights follow the trajectory of the vehicle. The front has been divided with the new motorcycle frame entirely made with a 3D printing process, including the rear swingarm. As with the development of the autonomous motorcycle, BMW Motorrad has once again made use of synergies with the BMW automotive division, where this production process has already found its way into the series production of various vehicles. The advantage of 3D printing lies in
complete freedom to design components that could not be produced in other ways. BMW Motorrad also presented other motorcycle components such as a lightweight but very strong frame, swingarm and wheels, made of carbon and already industrially produced for the BMW HP4 RACE.

But that is not all. BMW Motorrad is taking on the challenge of considering the needs of two wheels in tomorrow's transport world and preparing itself on a technical level to respond to them. Firstly, V2V communication between two vehicles, and the related benefits in terms of safety and comfort for the motorcyclist due to digital interactions, represents a primary area of ​​research and also in this case, BMW Motorrad benefits from close collaboration with colleagues at BMW Auto.