Design extends far beyond what we can see with our eyes. Using texture, lighting, smell and more, manufacturers, developers and architects tap into sensory design, where multiple senses are stimulated at once to create an experience more powerful than that achieved by aesthetics alone.
In their 2018 book The Senses: Design Beyond Vision, Ellen Lupton and Andrea Lipps wrote: “Sensory design activates touch, sound, smell, taste and the wisdom of the body. Sensory design supports everyone’s opportunity to receive information, explore the world, and experience joy, wonder, and social connections, regardless of our sensory abilities.”
As the electrification of the motor car takes away the mechanical engagement of an engine, the psychology of sensory design takes on a new importance. As well as the new and often augmented sounds created by electric motors, the “skateboard” chassis of an electric vehicle (EV) gives designers a blank canvas. The rules of vehicle proportions can be rewritten, fastback coupes can be given the interior space of a large SUV, and an increasing demand for vegan fabrics introduces new ways for manufacturers to experiment with touch.
With the fully electric EV6, Kia introduces a new design that doesn’t borrow from vehicles of the past. Sitting on the equally new E-GMP platform, the car has a long, 2,900mm wheelbase. This means extra legroom for front and rear passengers, and larger doors for improved ingress and egress, while the compact nature of electric motors mean minimal overhangs front and rear.
The beltline of the Kia EV6 is higher than normal for a car of this size, with pronounced shoulders, a shallow glasshouse, and a tapered roofline creating a stance with tension and a sense of forward motion.
A short bonnet and pronounced wheel arches add muscle to the design, while the re-interpreted Digital Tiger Face gives a sleek and modern appearance. Below this, the front of the car is visually widened thanks to low, angular air intakes.
This can all be described as emotional design; where a car is seen as more than a means of getting from A to B, and is instead a desirable object that sparks a psychological response in the brain, like the multi-coloured iMacs of the late-90s, or today’s dopamine-producing phone apps. This subconscious reaction taps into the “visceral” stage of Don Norman’s three levels of desire, where the distinctive appearance of an object captures the observer’s attention.
“With its proportion and typology, we want to strike a balance between contrasting elements,” says Karim Habib, head of Kia Global Design. “The sportiness of a fastback, the compact stance of a hatch and maybe even the raw strength of a rally car. They combine to create something that escapes the boundaries of today’s segmentation.”
A sloping C-pillar contributes towards the EV6’s fastback design, but also improves aerodynamics – in turn helping the car cover up to 328 miles per charge. An 800-volt architecture means ultra-fast charging of up to 350kW – a figure unheard of in this segment – and the ability to charge from 10 to 80 per cent in as little as 18 minutes. A shorter 4.5-minute stop can add up to 62 miles of range.
The cabin features a curved touchscreen interface housing two 12-inch displays and floating atop the dashboard to create a feeling of openness and promote a sense of calm among the occupants. Ahead of this, an augmented reality heads-up display projects onto the windscreen.
Another key feature of the cabin of the Kia EV6 is the zero-gravity seat design, which optimises body pressure distribution to improve comfort. The fabric is made from recycled PETs, with over 100 half-litre plastic bottles used per car.
“To us, space innovation means more than just roominess. It’s about what you see, what you touch and what you feel when you are interacting with the car, either while driving or just relaxing,” says Jochen Paesen, head of Kia Interior Design. “In other words, it’s all about seamless user experiences.”
Ambient LED lighting can be adjusted to suit the driver’s mood – or even change it: green lighting, for example, has been found by American Psychological Association studies to encourage feelings of success and motivation, while boosting creativity.
Quietness is a key benefit of electric cars, but the removal of an engine and its soundtrack can take crucial audio cues away from the driver and their passengers. To address this, GT Line S and GT variants of the Kia EV6 come with e-Active Sound Design (e-ASD). This system creates, in real time, virtual sound effects that match the speed of the electric motor and how the car is being driven at each moment. Three sound themes are available – stylish, dynamic and cyber – letting the driver pick how they want their car to sound on each journey.
Expanding on this point, sensory design isn’t limited to cars. In architecture it can be used to trigger certain emotions from a building’s visitors. The use of wood and warm colours through soft, ambient lighting can promote a feeling of comfort and relaxation. And we of course know how smart lighting in the home can affect our mood, with bright, blueish-white being better at promoting concentration, but a hindrance when it comes to the production of melatonin and the onset of sleep.
In transportation, varied surfaces are used on pavements and at the edges of railway station platforms to help warn blind people through the soles of their feet about potential dangers ahead.
Further examples of sensory design include the sound a chair makes when it is sat on, the pleasantness of a smell emitted by an electric air purifier and, returning to cars, the satisfying, high-quality whir of the motors inside an adjustable seat.
All of these elements are honed to deliver exactly the right sensations to the user, who, to paraphrase Greek philosopher Protagoras, is themselves “nothing but a bundle of sensations”.
As for Kia, Habib says the shift to electrification has presented opportunities for the design department to “create a mobility experience that is both intuitive and natural, as well as emotional and exhilarating.”
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
