The DTM (Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters) is a touring car series sanctioned by the German motorsports federation. The series is mostly based in Germany but has rounds elsewhere including Belgium and the Netherlands, Manufacturers taking part in the series include Audi and BMW while the vehicles used are based on mass-produced road cars.

The first natural fibre parts using bcomp’s flax fibre technologies have already been validated by BMW Motorsport and Audi Sport during the last DTM tests in Jerez (SPA) and Vallelunga (IT). As a result, the technologies are being introduced into mandatory parts and the technical regulations to enable a direct material changeover from carbon fibre to natural fibres on further applications.

With high exposure to contact, the DTM shoebox is a typical motorsport bodywork wear part which needs to be replaced or repaired after almost every race. With Bcomp’s natural fibre technologies the part can achieve the same weight as with carbon fibre while additionally taking advantage of the anti-splintering and environmental benefits.

Bcomp’s patented powerRibs reinforcement grid, has the same weight as carbon fibre parts, but significantly lower the eco-footprint, improving cost-efficiency, and eliminating the risk of sharp carbon fibre debris.

Further parts to showcase the potential to transfer the sustainable lightweighting solutions from race to road are already in development and will be introduced by the DTM and Bcomp through-out the season.

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The Audi sport racing bike racing has been developed in partnership with CarbonSports and showcases the brands use of lightweight materials. The super lightweight frame weighs in at just 790g while the wheels of the bike are made from T1000 carbon fibre, the same stuff that was used on the Audi R18 e-tron quattro cockpit. The result is a bike that has a total weight of just 5.8kgs (13.0 lb).

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Sharing more similarities with their automobiles, the colour scheme comes from the Audi Concept Design Studio in Munich and like the new Audi R8, your posterior rests on a seat that’s covered in fine nappa leather. The company is only planning on making 50 and are available to buy now for around €17,500 each.

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According to Dr. Stephan Weiler, the doctor responsible for ergonomic workplace design in Audi’s health department:

The chairless chair is a clear demonstration that Audi places priority on attractive and well‑designed workplaces. This construction reduces the stress and strain on our employees’ knees and ankles in an ideal manner.

Employees wear the chairless chair when working like a second pair of legs to provide support whenever needed. For a large number of assembly operations, it allows employees to sit in an ergonomically favourable position instead of standing. At the same time, this high‑tech supporting structure improves posture and reduces strain on the legs. Chairs and stools, which are currently used in some assembly operations as temporary aids, become unnecessary.

Starting in February, Audi employees will pilot 3 different prototypes of the chairless chair on both the A4 and A6 production lines at Audi’s Neckarsulm plant. Audi will also start a test phase also at the Ingolstadt plant in May, after that, the company will deploy the chairless chair into series production.

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The new spring, which Audi developed in collaboration with an unnamed Italian supplier is thicker than the standard steel spring and has a slightly larger overall diameter with a lower number of coils.

What the spring gains in size it dramatically looses in weight. Where a steel spring for an upper mid-size Audi weights nearly 2.7 kilograms, the new composite spring with the same properties weights around 1.6 kilograms. Together the four GFRP springs thus reduce the weight by roughly 4.4 kilograms (9.7 lb), half of which pertains to the unsprung mass.

Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Board of Management for Technical Development at Audi said;

The GFRP springs save weight at a crucial location in the chassis system. We are therefore making driving more precise and enhancing vibrational comfort.

The core of the springs consists of long glass fibres twisted together and impregnated with an epoxy resin system. A machine wraps additional fibres around this core — which is only a few millimetres in diameter — at alternating angles of plus and minus 45 degrees to the longitudinal axis. These tension and compression plies mutually support one another to optimally absorb the stresses acting on the component. In the last production step, the blank is cured in an oven at temperatures of over 100 degrees Celsius.

The GFRP springs can be precisely tuned to their respective task, and the material exhibits outstanding properties. It does not corrode, even after stone chipping, and is impervious to chemicals such as wheel cleaners. Last but not least, production requires far less energy than the production of steel springs.

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CES is attended by over 3,200 exhibitors, from manufacturers, developers and suppliers of consumer technology. Composite materials are being used more and more in consumer products, with carbon fibre being the front-runner for its strength and aesthetic beauty. We take a look at just some of the products coming out of CES 2014 that utilise composite materials.

Audi Sport Quattro Laserlight Concept Car

 
One of the products stealing the show at this years CES is Audi’s new Laserlight concept car. The car features Audi’s e-tron technology with 515 kW of power (700 bhp) and 2.5 l/100 km (94.09 US mpg) fuel economy; laser headlights that leave all previous systems in the dark with its higher performance as well as new display and operating systems with cutting-edge electronic performance.

Perhaps the most important bit, for us at least is the use of carbon fibre reinforced plastics, lightweight design plays a major role in the car’s speed. A combination of ultra high-strength steel sheet and structural elements of cast aluminium is used in the occupant cell. The doors and fenders are made of aluminium, and the roof, engine hood and rear hatch are made of CFRP. This results in an unladen weight of just 1,850 kilograms (4,078.55 lb), including the large battery pack.

Nikon D3300 DSLR Camera

 
From cars to cameras, our next pick from the show is the Nikon D3300 camera. This camera is a compact DSLR and comes with a 24.2 megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor and a EXPEED 4 image processor.

Anyone that has carried DSLR cameras, for long periods will testify, they are very heavy, this Nikon features a compact body shape (4.9” x 3.8” x 2.9”), and is ergonomically designed for a comfortable hold that is easy to take anywhere. Additionally, the camera body is constructed with carbon fibre for lightweight durability.

Lenovo X1 Carbon Notebook

 
At CES 2014 lenovo have released the it’s latest ThinkPad X1 Carbon. As the name would suggest the X1 has been made using carbon fibre and weights in at just 2.8 pounds making it the lightest ultra book on the market today.

The X1 comes with a low-voltage Haswell Core i5 or i7 processor, HD4400 integrated graphics, 4GB of RAM, and a 128GB SSD (upgradable to 512GB). Lenovo have added a full-size HDMI port in addition to two USB 3.0 ports, a mini DisplayPort, and OneLink docking and charging connector.

Using Intel’s latest Haswell processor, the machine has been slimmed down from it’s previous model (0.68 inches from 0.74). The new X1 also sees a major improvement in the battery life, up by over 70% to around 9 hours.

Prices for the X1 Carbon start at $1,299 and is available to purchase now.

EVGA Torq X10 Carbon Fibre Gaming Mouse

 
Professional gaming is like any other sport, each competitor wants the very latest high tech equipment to take advantage over their competition. And when it comes to pwning n00bs on teh online battlefield you need the best tech possible.

This year EVGA have introduced the TORQ X10 gaming mouse. Built with the highest quality materials including a real carbon fibre surface, this mouse was designed from the ground up to satisfy the needs of the hardcore gamer with a high quality laser sensor that provides up to 8200 DPI, an adjustable weight system, nine programmable buttons and a unique sizing system that allows you to adjust the height and the length of the body.

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Before the new 2013 Audi R8 hits the streets at the start of next year, Audi is offering a new exclusive limited edition version.

Audi will only manufacture 50 of these cars split between V8 and V10 coupe styles. The car comes with a new Dayton grey paint job along with 19 inch five spoke wheels, a carbon fibre splitter and diffuser, the tail lights from the R8 GT, Crimson Red accents for the leather seats, leather steering wheel, carbon fibre interior trim and a Bang & Olufsen sound system with navigation.

Prices start at just under $140,000 with a six speed manual transmission or $148,050 with the six-speed flappy paddle transmission.

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In Austria this week, Audi will be showing off this stunning performance electric bike. Named the Wörthersee this bike is packed with all the toys.

Stored the belly of this bike is a lithium-ion battery which is surround by a carbon fibre reinforced polymer frame and runs on 26″ carbon fibre reinforced plastic wheels featuring five different ride modes: pedal only, electric only, electric assist and two stunt riding modes to help with those all important wheelies.

The bike also comes with it’s own onboard touchscreen computer that connects to your smartphone via wireless connection, this will let you track your route via gps, lock the bike and even record video via a helmet cam which can be uploaded via your mobile.

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The designers Clemens Weisshaar and Reed Kram are developing a chair within a public testing environment in collaboration with Audi’s Lightweight Design Centre using methods borrowed from the future of automotive manufacturing.

The R18 Ultra Chair consists of three main components: a carbon composite seat, a carbon-rubber composite back rest and aluminium alloy legs which can be compacted and transported in a lightweight flat-pack box.

Its genesis incorporates crowd-sourced data acquired through thousands of testing sessions using advanced industrial sensors whose data is processed by custom algorithms to adjust the final geometry and construction of the end product accordingly.

The R18 ULTRA CHAIR PUBLIC BETA installation will allow the public to take part in the interactive testing process for the development of this groundbreaking new chair in the courtyard of the 18th Century Palazzo Clerici, Milan from April 17 to 22, 2012 during the 51st Salone Internazionale del Mobile.

Audi Ultra stands for state of the art lightweight construction, technology and design aimed at streamlining and optimising efficiency across the board. This begins with the raw materials sourced for production all the way through various manufacturing stages, the operation of the vehicle, its fuel consumption and its deconstruction and recyclability at the end of its life cycle.

The chair’s namesake is the 24 Hours of Le Mans winning Audi R18 race car, as part of the installation, the Le Mans 2011 winning Audi R18 will be exhibited alongside the public beta testing lab. The carbon fibre monocoque chassis with an Audi TDI 3.7 litre V6 engine and total weight of only 900kg represents the ultimate in lightweight construction.

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This is Swedish freestyle skier Jon Olsson’s new ride, a carbon fibre wide body Audi R8 tuned by PPI

I know I have been waiting for this for a day and night for the past 3 months so I guess that I should stop teasing and give you guys the first glimps of my new little ride!

When I first got the R8 my plan was to put a nice little spoiler on it and do a nice little “quick” pimp. As you can see the guys at PPI totally destroyed that plan. Countless hours has gone into creating this FULL carbon fibre widebody monster and its way beyond my expectations. (which were really really high)

Seeing the naked 600 gram carbon mesh agains the snow is just surreal so now all I have to do is to get my winter tires on so I can really stretch her out!  (Yes I did cruise around with this on summer tires today!  )

Will be back with a big “detail” update to really showcase the attention to detail that the guys at PPI have created.

I am beyond thrilled but now its really time for me to get my eyes on the ball and go to sleep. Tomorrow the best skiers in the world to arrive to Åre so I better get the kicker ready, have the rooms divided and have the helis standby!  Lets the games begin!

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