Screens in the center of the steering wheel will be a reality thanks to the new ZF airbag design

ZF is a company known around the world thanks to its advances in automotive technology. From gearboxes to other segments dedicated to active and passive safety, among other things. So much so that the company has wanted to innovate in another territory hitherto unexplored for them: the one with steering wheels with central screens.

This is something that many automotive companies are committed to making a reality. In fact, in many of its conceptual models, screens located in the center of the steering wheel can be seen as digital instrumentation or mere support for it. However, this has a feasibility problem: the position of the airbag in the center of it.

For this reason, ZF wanted to evolve the design of the steering wheels and their respective airbag. With this, they will now be able to face the long-awaited challenge of inserting a central screen on which information related to speed, mainly, is projected.

ZF presents its new steering wheel airbag design

Historically, the horn has been located in the center of the steering wheel, as well as the aforementioned airbag (in recent decades). With this new design, manufacturers will be able to innovate in the design of the ring by eliminating some of the radii or even joining these with the center of it from a panoramic screen. The possibilities are almost endless.

From ZF they point out the following explanation: “The new installation position of the airbag allows the horizontal radius, including the hub, to have a fluid design, similar to that of a smartphone. Force-sensitive controls for vehicle entertainment and assistance functions are integrated behind a continuous surface. “This design integrates seamlessly with the digitally designed dashboards in modern vehicle interiors.”

The new airbag comes out both from the upper rear area of ​​the steering wheel and from the sides of the rim itself. This way, leaves the entire center free to use it for other purposes. But it is not the only innovation that ZF has presented in this regard.

In parallel, they have also presented a new capacitive sensor integrated under the upholstery of the same. With it it will be possible to “recognize whether the driver is simply touching or, alternatively, safely gripping the steering wheel.” This has been created with a view to integrating the different driving assistants to a greater or lesser extent if necessary.

Finally, a final prototype goes hand in hand with folding technology, which will make the steering wheel itself disappear from the dashboard. This, as one would expect, is fully designed to be adopted in the future, when fully autonomous driving is a reality.

Although for many these designs may become something, at the moment, ‘unnecessary’, the truth is that steering wheels are evolving into a new concept. It is clear that in the coming years, both their image and their usefulness will reach a new level hitherto unexplored.