visio.m | research project 2014

visio.m was a 2014 research project at the technical university of munich (tum). the lightweight electric vehicle concept investigated whether affordable urban mobility could offer passenger safety comparable to conventional cars. the interdisciplinary project brought together tum researchers, industry partners and the industrial design team for concept development, driving trials and crash-test research.

this project archive presents visual material from the research and the design team’s contribution to the proposal and design advisory work.

visio.m was an interdisciplinary research project at the technical university of munich (tum), developed with industry partners. the project investigated whether a lightweight, affordable electric two-seater could combine everyday usability, efficiency and passenger safety. supported by 7.1 million euros in german federal research funding over approximately two and a half years, the project presented its experimental vehicle publicly at ecartec in october 2014.

the research prototype paired a lightweight carbon-fibre passenger cell with advanced restraint and sensor-based protection systems. tum reported a range of approximately 160 km, a top speed of 120 km/h and an unladen vehicle weight of 450 kg excluding the battery. the vehicle also explored new approaches to ergonomics, visibility, adjustable controls and gesture-based human-machine interaction.

at the time of visio.m, prof. fritz frenkler was professor and chair of industrial design at tum. appointed in 2006, he led the chair until his retirement in 2020. his academic appointment connected design research, teaching and interdisciplinary cooperation at tum. the original project portfolio credits prof. fritz frenkler, simon rauchbart and wotan wilden as the design team and identifies research proposal and design advisory responsibilities.

this entry documents the design team’s involvement in an academic tum research project; it should not be read as a claim that f/p design was the commercial contracting partner or solely responsible for the vehicle’s full engineering programme.

official tum visio.m research project summary

prof. fritz frenkler, tum academic biography

visio.m research presentation by prof. fritz frenkler (pdf, 2015)

this gallery brings together the original project’s vehicle design studies and prototype documentation, including views of the lightweight vehicle concept and its development.