For the last few decades, Sony has been one of the brands at the forefront of personal entertainment systems in the form of PlayStation consoles and TVs, but it seems that the Japanese company is jumping on the EV wave.
Unveiled at CES 2020, Sony has dubbed its concept EV the 'VISION-S', which seems to follow the sleek themes of modern EVs and is apparently jam-packed with autonomous driving tech.
Created to showcase the brand's autonomous technology, the car features a grand total of 33 sensors including CMOS image sensors, Solid State LiDAR, and a radar system that's embedded across the exterior panels.
All of this tech allows the car to detect and recognize people and objects around the vehicle while in motion, and Time of Flight sensors in the cabin can detect people and objects inside. Sony claims that this is good for level two autonomy.
Like other EVs in its class, the Vision-S' cabin is set out in an extremely simplistic way, with a massive screen taking up the majority of the dashboard. This handles the infotainment system and driver controls, while the section behind the steering wheel acts as a digital gauge cluster.
Just like the Honda e and Audi e-Tron, the wing mirrors have been replaced with cameras, and the monitors are mounted in the bottom corners of the windscreen, for ease of access from the driver's seat.
One of the key features that Sony wanted to show off was the '360 Reality Audio' system that reportedly offers superb audio immersion for all occupants. To achieve full immersion, speakers will also be integrated into the seats.
According to Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida, this Vision-S is underpinned by a "newly-designed EV platform". No one really knows where this has been sourced from, but there are rumours of it being made by Magna.
Thanks to the two 200kW electric motors mounted on the concept, 100km/h is achievable in just 4.8-seconds, before the EV tops out a 239km/h.
It remains to be seen as to whether Sony is going to but the Vision-S into production, but it sounds like the company is on to a winner with this chassis.
