Johnson Controls debuts interior innovations at Detroit Motor Show

Johnson Controls, the global multi-industrial company, has unveiled a number of its interior innovations at the 2015 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) at Detroit's Cobo Center.

"To meet the increasing expectations of today's consumer, Johnson Controls strives to develop distinctive interior solutions that are based on extensive research and the latest global trends," said Han Hendriks, vice-president, advanced product development and sales, Johnson Controls Automotive Interiors. "The resulting innovations provide significant vehicle differentiation for our automaker customers and they enhance the overall experience for consumers."

Some of the many innovations that Johnson Controls is featuring at NAIAS 2015 include:

• Moveable armrest for door panels – the unique, movable door panel armrest provides up to twice as much storage as traditional door panels, while also improving comfort and ergonomics, creating additional personalization opportunities to appeal to a wide range of consumers.
• Vertical sunglass bin – a development resulting from the ‘Stuff in Cars’ study in which consumers indicated they wanted a place to store their sunglasses. The bin door opens with a drop-down vertical motion and features increased usable storage by 20 percent, as well as improved ergonomics and appearance.
• Innovative ambient lighting / illuminated patterns on fabric and perforated leather – new interior lighting technologies enable automakers to create various colors, patterns and shapes. Backlit perforated leather allows light to shine through the perforation and illuminated patterns on fabric surfaces are integrated with woven light guides. Both technologies give designers more freedom to create a distinctive, elegant interior ambience
• Multi-track storage solution – based on consumer desire for floor consoles with larger, organized storage solutions, the multi-track innovation provides a unique and configurable solution adding multiple injection-molded interconnected tracks to traditional tambour door construction, resulting in optimized storage capacity that consumers can customize for greater convenience and easier access; and
• Vertical adjustable armrest – to address consumer demand for increased armrest comfort, a robust, lightweight, vertically adjustable armrest offers greater functionality than standard armrests, making it possible for the consumer to customize the armrest height

Johnson Controls is also interpreting such trends as consumer desire for a more premium look to their interior and developing innovative cut, sew and wrap capabilities with seamless leather and direct back foaming, as well as live stitching of molded formed skins to address the trend in a more affordable manner.