Cyber capsule  Ilke Liebmann A proposal to deal with inner city congestion, using a 'spider web' of elevated tracks to open up a new transport space, allowing personal mobility, especially for young people.

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The one-person vehicle transforms to be used on vertical tracks on high rise buildings, docking with recharging and information systems. It is envisaged as one part of a 'Capsule' brand, that would also include public transport and family vehicles.

The vehicle has two components, the frame and the rotating capsule which is the drivers space. The capsule is without windows, and uses a large virtual display to present a view of the outside world, or for information display. The back wheel has two parts which divide when stopped at a traffic light or when speed is reduced to 20 km/h. The wheels are powered by two electric motors, with the batteries contained in the outer frame.



In addition to the Design Forum, the exhibition included work from the graduating BA Diploma students, MA students, as well as work from the first year students.

The Pforzheim course is considered one of the leading Transportation Design courses in Europe, offering BA and MA degrees. The first three semesters of the Transportation Design course are taught in conjunction with the Industrial Design course, and in the 4th semester the students begin to specialize in Transportation Design.

During this semester the students develop their design projects from 2D to 3D using digital models rather than clay, using Alias|Wavefront Autostudio for modelling, packaging studies, renderings and animations. Only in the 5th semester do the students develop their projects with the use of clay models. This emphasis on digital design techniques early in the course reflects the changing nature of the automotive design process.

The Pforzheim Transportation design department is housed in a purpose built 'glass cube' building on the outskirts of the town of Pforzheim. The town has a long history of jewellry making and situated on the edge of the famous German Black Forest, between Stuttgart and Karlsruhe with France just 1 hour away, it is in an ideal location.

The new computer department has 15 workstations with 10 devoted to Alias programmes. The school has a great deal of support from the car industry through sponsored projects and regular visits from designers who tutor students in the various aspects of Transportation Design. BMW, Audi and VW regulary offer internships while Porsche and Mercedes are just around the corner.

The school has a new Master of Transportation Design program (MTD) which is a 3 semester course. A diploma or degree in Industrial design is required for acceptance on this course but students gaining entry will have a certain level of freedom in planning the course structure. The school aims to take on a wide variety of students who will eventually be capable of working in all aspects of transportation design.


Pforzheim University websites:
www.fh-pforzheim.de
intl.fh-pforzheim.de

Related stories:
Pforzheim Degree Show 2001
Pforzheim Design Forum and Degree Show 2000


Photography by Ulrich Bauer, Andreas Wlasak