Volvo will use Epic’s Unreal Engine to create ‘photorealistic’ graphics in its electric cars - The Verge
Volvo is teaming up with Epic Games to use the Fortnite creator’s powerful Unreal Engine to design the human-machine interface in the automaker’s upcoming lineup of EVs.
Volvo will be the latest automaker to tap into the graphical prowess of Epic Games’ Unreal Engine. The Swedish automaker said it will partner with the Fortnite creator to bring “photorealistic visualization” into its next generation of electric vehicles.
The crux of the Volvo / Epic partnership will be the “human-machine interface” (HMI), which, in the context of vehicle ownership, is another way to describe the way car owners interact with their vehicle’s software. Volvo says that Epic will help build a platform on which the automaker’s engineers can design software that will improve the HMI while also maintaining levels of safety that Volvo has staked much of its reputation on.
“This technology gives us the capability to create responsive, really high quality visuals that we can play with and layer in information, create realistic representations when needed, all of those kinds of things,” said Thomas Stovicek, the head of user experience at Volvo Cars. “So it’s really about creating the next generation of HMI for our customers.”
Image: Volvo
Safety will be a core aspect of the new partnership, Stovicek said. Over the years, the company built its reputation on safety and quirky designs, and today’s announcement is meant to underline that. Ideally, Volvo wants to use the Unreal Engine to render what the vehicle’s external sensors, like camera, radar, and soon, lidar, are seeing outside the car to drivers without being “overwhelming,” he said, adding, “It can be hard to process.”
Other bits of information, like navigation and battery life as well as the presentation of that information, like light, color, and motion graphics, will be improved thanks to the collaboration with Epic Gamers, Stovicek said.
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