BMW Group at the 2019 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

The simulation imagines a day in the year 2025, with a futuristic
megacity as its backdrop. The BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant
guides and accompanies the visitor throughout the experience.
To begin, an augmented reality mobility window displays the scenario
of the upcoming tour, including tasks, appointments, and charging
status for the all-electric BMW Vision iNEXT. The personal assistant
uses this to plan out the ideal schedule for the day, taking into
account options for bidirectional energy management.

The visitor then puts on the VR glasses and soon becomes immersed in
the virtual world. After riding the elevator, they step out into the
street of the virtual city, where the BMW Vision iNEXT awaits with a
personalized welcome and lighting effects.

As the driver takes a seat, their digital world seamlessly connects
to the vehicle and the journey begins. Initially, the human driver
takes control of the vehicle (in “Boost” mode). The windshield
becomes an augmented-reality screen with information about the drive
and surroundings. As soon as the vehicle reaches the highway, the BMW
Intelligent Personal Assistant suggests that the vehicle take over
driving from here and the journey continues autonomously. The steering
wheel and pedals disappear, creating an open and spacious feeling. A
video conference is scheduled for shortly after and to set up the
interior, the BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant suggests switching to
“Executive” mode, which transforms the cockpit into a mobile
office. The windshield becomes the screen showing the people
participating in the videoconference, while shared documents can be
viewed at the same time on the Control Display.

Once the videoconference is finished, another task that can be taken
care of on the go is displayed. For this, the driver’s preferred,
fully integrated shopping application is opened. Within the app, the
personal assistant guides the driver and assists them throughout the
buying process. The purchased item will be delivered punctually by
drone directly to the vehicle’s destination: home. A short time later,
the vehicle receives a real-time signal from the front door of the
driver’s smart home. Friends have rung the doorbell and are waiting to
be let in. The video camera mounted on the front door relays the image
directly into the vehicle, and, via an integrated remote function, the
driver is able to open the door. On the final leg of the journey, the
driver is told that the friends at home have already tuned in to the
pre-game coverage of the football game they arranged to watch on TV.
The driver starts streaming the show on the vehicle’s windshield,
arrives home in time for kick-off, and they are all able to enjoy the
game together.

3. The future of driving pleasure:
the BMW Vision iNEXT.
The BMW Vision iNEXT
symbolizes the dawn of a new age of driving pleasure. Highly
automated, emission-free, and fully connected, it brings together all
the BMW Group’s strategic innovation areas. With recent developments
in autonomous driving and increasing connectivity, the BMW Vision
iNEXT creates totally new experiences and possibilities for making the
most of driving time. All these possibilities center more than ever on
human wants and emotions. The interior of the BMW Vision iNEXT creates
a mobile environment designed to enhance quality of life: a new
“Favorite Space” where driver and passengers alike can relax
and choose what they want to do. The BMW Intelligent Personal
Assistant is a constant companion and expert. With its typical BMW
character, it is always fully connected and serves as an intuitive
interface to the digital environment using natural language interaction.

 With the size and proportions of a modern BMW Sports
Activity Vehicle (SAV), the BMW Vision iNEXT cuts an authoritative
figure. The vehicle instantly conveys its trailblazing character
through clearly sculpted forms and surfaces. Two large opposing doors,
with no B-pillar between them, make it easy to climb inside. A further
characteristic is the unusually distinct separation between cockpit
and the rear. A spacious continuous seat area gives the rear a
laid-back lounge character.

“Boost” and “Ease” mode alter the driver’s
environment.
BMW Vision iNEXT drivers can choose to
either drive themselves (in “Boost” mode) or be driven (in “Ease”
mode). “Boost” mode uses the electric drive train to deliver a highly
dynamic and virtually silent driving experience with zero emissions.
In “Ease” mode, the vehicle creates space for the driver and
passengers to engage in a wide range of activities.

Inside the generously-sized cockpit, the driver’s area is defined by
only two visible digital display panels and the steering wheel. The
flat dashboard with beige fabric covering teams with wood accents and
a clearly patterned wooden floor to create an inviting atmosphere. In
“Boost” mode, the steering wheel and displays are angled clearly
towards the driver. When switched to “Ease” mode, the driver’s
immediate environment changes: The steering wheel retracts and the
pedals drop down to create a more open sense of space. The display
panels switch from driving-related content to “Exploration” mode,
which provides the driver and passengers with suggestions for places
and events in the surrounding area that could be of interest to them.

“Shy Tech”: Innovative technology integrated out of sight, but
always available.
Apart from the steering wheel and
displays in the driver’s area, there are no other screens or controls
to be seen in the BMW Vision iNEXT. To preserve the cozy, inviting
character of the rear compartment, all technology is kept out of sight
and only becomes visible and operable when needed. For example, in the
future it may be possible to operate various functions via surfaces
made out of wood or fabric. Dynamic projections can turn any surface
into an interactive display. The BMW Vision iNEXT highlights three
different visionary applications of this “Shy Tech”: the BMW
Intelligent Personal Assistant, Intelligent Materials, and Intelligent Beam.

The Intelligent Personal Assistant switches on in response to the
prompt “Hey BMW” or any individually chosen wake word. This
intelligent personal assistant ensures that the BMW Vision iNEXT is an
integral part of the driver’s digital world and is seamlessly
interlinked with BMW Connected, smart devices, and the smart home
network, enabling drivers to make purchases or close the windows of
their house, for example, by voice command from their vehicle.

Intelligent Materials enable operating controls to be integrated
discreetly into interior surfaces. When driving in “Boost” mode, the
Control Display can be operated using conventional touch
functionality. However, in “Ease” mode, the center console’s wooden
surface assumes this control function instead. Arm and hand posture is
just as relaxed as when using the iDrive Controller: The hand simply
lies on the perforated wooden surface and, whenever inputs are made,
points of light follow the finger. The Jacquard cloth in the rear also
possesses integral control functionality. For example, music playback
can be controlled using various gestures that are visually emphasized
by LEDs that light up underneath the material.

In the use of media, as with vehicle operation, the digital and
analogue worlds will merge more and more. It is increasingly possible
to visualize information in projected form, which means displays may
no longer be needed in the long term. The Intelligent Beam technology
showcased in the BMW Vision iNEXT is already a step in this direction,
since it can serve as both a dynamic reading light and an interactive
projection screen. This enables the text in a printed book, for
instance, to be supplemented by images, moving content, and
interactive graphics – all of which can be controlled by touch.

4. 
The personal companion. 

4.1 The BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant – today and in the
future.
The BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant already
plays a key role in the vehicle and will continue to do so in the
future. At the CES 2019, visitors encounter it in different places and
discover not only the tasks it can already perform in current BMW
models, but also additional functions that will expand its range of
capabilities in the near future. In the new BMW X5 visitors will be
able to check out functions and options offered by the BMW Intelligent
Personal Assistant from March 2019. The virtual drive in the BMW
Vision iNEXT also highlights the support the personal assistant will
offer in the future.

BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant today: digital BMW expert
and ideal passenger.
The BMW Intelligent Personal
Assistant digital character is finding its way into current BMW
models. This marks the beginning of a new era, in which vehicle
operation and access to functions and information will increasingly be
performed simply by voice control. The BMW Intelligent Personal
Assistant can be activated by voice command (“Hey BMW”). Unlike other
digital assistants, it can also be given an individual name (such as
“Charlie” or “Joy”). With the BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant,
there is always a genuine BMW expert on board, who is familiar with
and able to explain vehicle functions. It also serves as a digital
passenger, who helps the driver find a parking space or use office
functions in the car. With the relevant options, the BMW Intelligent
Personal Assistant also pays attention to the driver’s wellbeing. In
response to a spoken command, for instance, it can activate an
interior experience, such as the Vitalize or Relax program, with a
combination of interior lighting, air conditioning, fragrance, seat
massage, shading, and seat heating or ventilation.

BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant of the future: the
intelligent companion inside and outside the
vehicle.
The BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant learns
routines and habits, so it can apply them in the appropriate context
in the future. It assists the driver, learns their preferences, and
becomes familiar with their preferred settings – such as seat heating
or destinations they frequently navigate to. It benefits from
continuous technical upgrades and learns more preferences and
preferred settings as time goes by. Updates performed over the air
with the Remote Software Upgrade facility constantly add new functions
and capabilities.

In its future form, the digital companion will be even more
intelligent, forward-looking, and better connected: It will bridge the
gap between the vehicle, its extensive functions, and people’s digital
lives. The BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant manages mobility needs,
organizes the day, and performs complex tasks that extend beyond the
vehicle. As an intelligent digital guide for mobile life, it plans the
daily schedule, manages personal calendars and to-do lists, makes
suggestions, and handles a variety of digital services.

4.2  
Digital services for electric-vehicle charging.

BMW Digital Charging Service and BMW ChargeForward:
intelligent charging – to support the energy transition and lower
costs.
With BMW ConnectedDrive networking technology as
standard and the BMW Connected app, BMW, MINI, and BMW i electric and
plug-in hybrid models are perfectly suited for digital services that
intelligently manage charging of their high-voltage batteries. The BMW
Digital Charging Service offers customers the option of charging their
vehicle at the most favorable hours, depending on individual
electricity tariffs and their planned departure times.

BMW ChargeForward takes things a step further. Over 300 drivers of
BMW i cars in the San Francisco Bay Area in the state of California
are participating in this pilot project. BMW receives a projection of
hourly renewable energy generation from the local utility (Pacific Gas
and Electric) and uses this information to align charging with times
when renewable energy is most available on the grid. Participants
receive a financial incentive for doing so, reflecting the fact that
charging at times of high renewable generation will be most
cost-efficient to the grid in the long-term. Not only do participants
drive very inexpensively and locally emission-free – they are also
able to use CO2-neutral electricity for a much higher percentage of
their travel. In addition, with a digitally managed, flexible charging
strategy, BMW can send signals to interrupt the charging process
whenever general demand for electricity is particularly high, thereby
relieving the burden on the public electric grid while still meeting
drivers charging needs. Going forward, high-voltage batteries from
electrified BMW and MINI automobiles will not only use renewable
electricity to the maximum extent, they will also feed energy back
into the grid whenever there is a shortage of energy from renewable
sources. As a buffer for “green” electricity, these vehicles
not only support the clean energy transition, but also become part of
an intelligent network that is instrumental in stabilizing the
electricity grid.