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The new BMW iX featuring E Ink Technology
Did you ever play Grand Theft Auto? You might remember a certain feature of accumulating stars in the top corner of the screen when you were in trouble with the law. These indicated just how much in trouble you were, 5 stars would see special forces repel down from helicopters in a bid to catch you, and 6 stars would see the actual army chasing you in tanks.
Why am I talking about GTA? Because there was one very interesting feature; when being chased by the police you could simply visit your local paint shop, change the colour of your vehicle (rather suspiciously in a few seconds) and escape the long arm of the law. In real world terms this is such a crazy idea, how you could confuse the police by simply entering and leaving the same paint shop with a different exterior colour and they wouldn’t be any wiser?
In a way, this can now become reality, kind of, thanks to the BMW iX featuring E Ink. This new technology promises to allow the driver to change the shade of the exterior of the vehicle at a moment’s notice. Why ‘kind of’? Because as of currently the vehicle can only switch between shades of white, black, and grey.
The new BMW iX featuring E Ink Technology
How does it work? The exterior of the vehicle is wrapped in a specially developed body wrap which uses electrophoretic technology. Input an electrical signal and a different pigment colour is brought to the surface allowing the entire exterior of the vehicle to take on an entirely new exterior colour.
BMW say that a person’s mood or even their personality varies over time, and so the new technology is a great way to express a person’s changing mood, every time they get into their car. Other advantages are said to be in the area of efficiency. Since the system does not require as much energy to remain in a particular colour state, it is able to hold the colour to a lighter shade during warmer days, or a darker colour during colder days, in order to reflect or absorb heat into the cabin. This means in an all-electric vehicle the energy required to heat or cool the vehicle is reduced therefore freeing up more energy for the overall driving range.
The new BMW iX featuring E Ink Technology
Could we expect to see this technology on everyday cars? Probably not. Changing the exterior colour of a vehicle comes with some issues, namely, having to register the new vehicle colour. If you’ve ever had your vehicle wrapped, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. Then there’s the issue of the law. While the concept of changing your car’s colour to evade the law may be far-fetched, in reality it could prove to be a nightmare for the boys in blue. Mind you, if this technology does make it on to the road in the near future it won’t be difficult to spot the colour-changing vehicles. The final point to consider is; if you’re after a black car, or a white car, or a grey car, then you’re in luck, but what if you want to occasionally have a blue car? And we haven’t even touched on repair costs.
The new BMW iX featuring E Ink Technology
