BMW unveiled a car that can change its color because its exterior has a coating of E Ink. This technology is the same kind of tech used in Amazon Kindle ebook readers, and can now cover the surface of an entire automobile. The company showed off the car at the tech trade show CES 2022 in Las Vegas.
Frank Weber, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Development: “Digital experiences won’t just be limited to displays in the future. There will be more and more melding of the real and virtual. With the BMW iX Flow, we are bringing the car body to life.”
The fluid colour changes are made possible by a specially developed body wrap that is tailored precisely to the contours of the all-electric Sports Activity Vehicle from BMW. When stimulated by electrical signals, the electrophoretic technology brings different colour pigments to the surface, causing the body skin to take on the desired colouration.
“The BMW iX Flow is an advanced research and design project and a great example of the forward thinking that BMW is known for.”
Adrian van Hooydonk, Head of BMW Group Design
The feature will be available for select vehicles in 2022. The artwork is entitled Quantum Garden, and it features “galaxies of visual spaces filled with dots, light beams, and nebulae.”