This feature presents 6 future technologies being developed by AISIN CORPORATION, with hands-on driving demonstrations at its 750-ha test facility in Hokkaido. The technologies span a wide range of areas, centered on the 9-in-1 electric drive unit, including classic car recreation, AI control and stress-free vehicle entry and exit.
Toyota-affiliated major supplier AISIN CORPORATION has unveiled 6 new technologies covering EV driving performance, integrated vehicle control, braking and body structures. The company is verifying their characteristics through on-road testing at its 750-ha test course in Toyokoro, Hokkaido.
First, the company presented a Sakura-based prototype equipped with a 9-in-1 electric drive unit. The unit integrates 9 functions, including the motor, gearbox, thermal management system, inverter and accumulator, reducing the vehicle's overall weight by more than 30 kg. The company highlighted that control technology which suppresses backlash had shortened the regenerative braking start-time lag when the accelerator was released to 20 ms from the previous level.
The feature then covered integrated vehicle control in an RZ-based Lexus, introducing an effort to digitise and reproduce the driving characteristics of EVs and engine-powered vehicles. The engine characteristics of classic cars are reproduced through motor control, with modes including an RX-7 mode being tested, although issues such as power-to-weight-ratio adjustment have also been identified.
In braking, the feature introduced a model equipped with ADVICS' next-generation full-electric brake system. Combining independently controlled electric cylinders for the front and rear, hydraulically opposed calipers and electric calipers expands the scope of four-wheel control. The report said that the improved response could be felt during testing.
The TEKIZAI body was presented as an approach to overcoming the shortcomings of gigacasting. The concept aims to reduce repair costs by combining extruded aluminium members with bolted connections. Finally, the stress-free entry system was introduced, with the feature explaining how coordination between AI and smart keys and digital keys automates vehicle entry and exit.