Virtual Comfort from GMC
GMC is jumping into virtual reality in order to test aspects of new vehicles.
2012′s GMC Terrain was tested recently at GM’s Climatic Wind Tunnel in Warren, Mich. The environmental chamber reaches temps of minus 40 to 140 degrees F.
Inside Terrain sat Monika, a dummy made from sensors and wire girds. ‘She’ was bombarded with intense hot and cold, providing detailed feedback to engineers.
This odd experiment is the brainchild of Jeff Bozeman: The Iceman. He’s “a high-tech top gun whose team created a way to make vehicle passengers feel much warmer or cooler than the cabin temperature in which they are seated.”
“We can better understand things like skin temperature and perspiration and can get a read on a wide range of shapes and sizes of GMC customers,” Iceman added.
Bozeman utilizes these virtual dummies to focus on where air streams can provide maximum comfort for passengers and driver. Virtual testing also helps speed up development, getting cars to dealers faster.
Source: Marketwatch.com
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