STADT:up Project: Opel Advances Automated Driving in Urban Areas

• Pioneering project STADT:up develops concepts and pilot applications for automated driving in complex city traffic
• Stellantis representative Opel participates in joint project as AI development partner
• Demonstration of complex environment recognition in the city by Opel vehicle prototype by end of 2025

Project STADT:up (Solutions and Technologies for Automated Driving in Town: an urban-mobility project) aims to take a big step closer to the goal of enabling automated driving in urban areas by the end of 2025. As the German brand in Stellantis, Opel is involved in the project funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. The experts at the Rüsselsheim Engineering Center play an important role in the further development of vehicle environment recognition based on artificial intelligence (AI) and the translation into the situation-specific reaction in automated driving. Now the kick-off event of the consortium project with 22 project and development partners took place on the campus of Robert Bosch GmbH in Renningen, Germany. In addition, Opel aims to demonstrate an innovative prototype featuring complex environment recognition in urban areas by the end of 2025.

“By participating in the STADT:up project, Opel, as our German brand, is further advancing automated driving in urban traffic, on behalf of Stellantis. The engineers at the Rüsselsheim Engineering Center draw on many years of experience in this field. At the same time, we are strengthening our good cooperation with research institutions outside the company and continuing our commitment to supporting young scientists,” said Frank Jordan, Stellantis, Head of Innovation Germany.

Project goal: Demonstration of autonomous urban mobility with test vehicles

STADT:up is aimed at end-to-end, scalable solutions for future urban mobility. The vehicles must also be able to handle complex inner-city traffic scenarios safely and respond adequately to all situations within milliseconds. The various tasks for autonomous driving range from the comprehensive perception of the environment and the localisation of road users through the prediction, interaction and cooperation with other vehicles, to the behaviour and manoeuvre planning of the user’s own vehicle. The question of how mixed traffic consisting of pedestrians, cyclists, differently used vehicles and local public transport will develop is also of central importance. Correspondingly, suitable future concepts and the requirements derived from the needs of the users will also be developed in the project.

Key factors are the preparation and programming of the vehicle systems such as camera, LiDAR and radar to all possible scenarios until they are implemented in the computer system. This is where the AI experts at the Rüsselsheim site come into play. In addition to improving AI algorithms for perception and fusion, the team led by Dr. Nikolas Wagner and project manager Frank Bonarens places a special focus on the analysis and management of particularly challenging traffic situations. In addition to improving robustness, the aim of the research activities is to improve the traceability of the decisions of deep neural networks and to use them to check the plausibility of an automated driving system. This is intended to provide important building blocks for environment recognition in highly automated driving and to contribute to the efficient testing and validation of safety-relevant AI functions.

With the participation of the Rüsselsheim AI experts from the Stellantis research network, a long-standing Opel tradition of pre-competitive cooperation is continued. As with other research projects, the central pillars are the cooperation with renowned scientific partners from leading universities and research institutions as well as the doctoral program at the Rüsselsheim site.

In addition to automotive companies, leading suppliers as well as technology partners, universities and research institutions are represented in the consortium project led by Bosch. The highlight will be the final event planned for the end of 2025 with the joint presentation of the demonstrators developed in STADT:up. Opel's goal is to demonstrate the performance of the environment recognition system with its own test vehicle.

Opel Celebrates 20 Years of seats with AGR Seal of Approval

• Pioneer: Opel democratises back-friendly seating in variety of market segments
• AGR premiere: 2003 Signum was first Opel with ergonomically certified seats
• More than just seats: Total vehicle concept of Opel Meriva awarded AGR seal
• Wide choice: AGR-certified seats for today’s Opel Astra, Crossland and Grandland
• For that sporty feeling: Exclusive AGR performance seats for Opel GSe models

Opel Signum

Opel this year marks 20th anniversary of the introduction of healthy seats certified by AGR (Aktion Gesunder Rücken e.V. – an independent German association promoting research related to back-pain prevention).

Latest generation of AGR seats is available in new Opel Grandland GSe, the Astra GSe and the Astra Sports Tourer GSe. But the start was made exactly two decades ago by the Opel Signum, which was the first car to offer AGR seats in the mid-size segment.

Seats form the link between people and the vehicle. They are crucial for a comfortable, relaxed journey. That is why Opel places great importance on ensuring that they offer optimum comfort and support for the spine, especially on longer journeys. “Drivers and passengers come into contact with no other component in the car as intensively as with the seat. Our goal as a carmaker is that our customers do not have to think about the seat even on longer trips, because it offers comfort and also prevents the risk of back pain in the long term,” said Stefan Koob, who is responsible for the development of seat structures.

In-car ergonomics is more than just a feel-good factor. Ergonomics also includes safety. A relaxed, back-friendly seat prevents fatigue during the journey; and in the event of a accident, the seat occupant has a chance of a positive outcome above all if the seat manages to hold him or her in position. Only then can seat belts and airbags fully provide their protection.

Opel Signum 2003: First Opel with AGR ergonomic seats

“At Opel, we have always taken the democratisation of seating comfort to heart. That means everyone is entitled to a good seat in the car,” Koob explained. Back in 2003 the ergonomic seats of Opel Signum set a new standard in the automotive industry. Thereafter the healthy seats were rolled out across much of the Opel model range. Long-distance and company car drivers were especially grateful; thanks to numerous adjustment functions, the ergonomic seats with AGR certification could be optimally adjusted for every driver, so that he or she got out rested and without discomfort even after hours of driving.

Opel Signum: AGR ergonomic seat

A few years later, another premiere followed. In 2010, the flexible Opel Meriva van was the first vehicle to receive an AGR seal of approval. Meriva’s integral ergonomics system comprised the ergonomic seats, the FlexDoors doors that opened in opposite directions, variable FlexSpace rear seating concept and the FlexFix bicycle rack.

For all shapes and sizes: Wide choice of various AGR-certified seats

Opel today offers a variety of AGR seats with a choice of comfort or more sports-oriented contours in the Astra, Crossland and Grandland. To enable the driver and the front passenger to adopt a comfortable and back-friendly seating position for any journey, AGR seats offer 10 adjustments for the driver and six for the co-driver. Regardless of the seat contour, the multitude of adjustable parameters – many electrically operated on the driver’s seat – include sliding range, height, tilt, backrest tilt, thigh support, lumbar support and seat cushion tilt, as well as heating for the cold season.

Top of the line: Performance seats in Opel Grandland GSe and Opel Astra GSe

New GSe performance seats represent the youngest developments in healthy seating technology from Opel. Trimmed in black Alcantara, stylish front seats in Opel Grandland GSe, Astra GSe and Astra Sports Tourer GSe feature especially high upper wings. Unique construction of the seats in Astra GSe models features fully integrated head restraints. Another eye-catching detail is the distinctive grey stripe electro-welded onto the backrest. Also unique to GSe is the stitched pattern at base of the backrest and on the seat cushion, while the unmistakable yellow-on-black GSe logo adorns the seatback.

Opel Grandland GSe: Performance seats

Opel Astra GSe: Performance seats

Comfort of AGR driver’s seats can be further enhanced – depending on the model variant – with ventilation. In addition, the memory function particularly comes in handy when sharing driving duties over long distances.

All-New Opel Astra and Co.: Multimedia Pleasure for Everyone

• Modern and connected: Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatible multimedia systems in all Opel passenger cars
• Internet for cars: Opel a pioneer in the small car segment in 2012 with IntelliLink
• When the radio went on tour: 1938 Admiral the first Opel with a car radio
• In honour of “wireless”: World Radio Day on February 13

All-New Opel Astra: Pure Panel cockpit

Blues, rock, pop, hip-hop – music styles that could hardly be more different and yet have one thing in common: they inspire people and trigger emotions. And where do most people – by far – listen to music? In the car! Today, state-of-the-art multimedia systems, such as in the Opel Astra, winner of the “Golden Steering Wheel 2022” 1, ensure optimal sound and entertainment. They are already standard in many Opel models and ensure top connectivity, coming with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well as numerous personalisation options and state-of-the-art navigation. But when did the radio make its debut in Opel vehicles? And what pioneering developments has the German automobile manufacturer helped advance? In honour of “World Radio Day” on February 13 we take a look back.

Enjoying music en route: Opel introduces radio in Opel Admiral and Kapitän

World Radio Day has been celebrated since 2012 – in reminiscence of the founding of United Nations Radio on February 13, 1946. However, “wireless” entertainment was born at the beginning of the 20th century; in Germany, the first radio station went into operation in 1923. At the time, Fritz von Opel, a grandson of company founder Adam Opel, was also a radio pioneer involved in setting up the “Südwestdeutscher Rundfunkdienst”.

Almost at the same time, first car radio was introduced in the USA. Opel offered a car radio for the first time in 1938, as an accessory for Opel Admiral, initially mounted under dashboard near the floor. Just one year later, for introduction of Opel Kapitän, Opel offered an optional Blaupunkt radio integrated in the dashboard. 

1938: Opel Admiral with car radio

Sound no longer came from footwell, but from the middle of the car, so that the passengers could enjoy hits such as “Over the Rainbow” by Judy Garland.

Innovations for everyone: VHF, window antenna and radios made by Opel

After the end of the Second World War and during the subsequent years of the “German economic miracle”, the further development of car radios and reception picked up speed. VHF was introduced in Europe in 1949. Radios in Opel models featured this pioneering reception as early as the first half of the 1950s. Opel's credo has always been to make innovations accessible to everyone. So, at the end of the 1960s, Opel vehicles offered stereo reception. In the mid-1970s, carmaker even launched its own range of Opel-branded radios in standard, comfort and luxury versions –  latter with a cassette deck.

1971: Opel Diplomat with radio and window antenna

Beginning in 1971, Opel offered a new window antenna as an option, initially in top models Opel Admiral and Diplomat. According to the company at time, the reception was “equal to, in many cases even superior to, that of conventional rod antennas”. Windscreen acted as an antenna mount, the antenna itself running in a barely perceptible ring shape around the perimeter. This meant that owners no longer needed to worry about damage to the more exposed rod antenna.

In 1977 all Opel radios then acquired traffic information – a technological innovation that made driving a lot more relaxed and time-saving, since the driver's attention was drawn directly to the announcements on the radio (even if listening to cassettes).

Radio reception improved still further in the following decade. In 1981 Opel launched its first car radio with automatic volume control; and in 1988, RDS (Radio Data System) was introduced, enabling car radios to display additional information on the current programme or traffic reports.

CARIN: Leap from radio to navigation system with route guidance

Whereas drivers had previously been dependent on printed road maps and traffic reports on the radio to plan their journeys, in 1995 Opel was first car manufacturer to present a mid-range model with a fully integrated navigation system in Opel Vectra. “Car Information and Navigation System (CARIN)”, developed by Philips, provided passengers with visual and acoustic route information. Map material was stored on CD, while the position of the vehicle was determined by an interaction of technologies such as GPS, satellite signal reception and ABS wheel sensors. 

1995: Opel Vectra with Car Information and Navigation System (CARIN)

With the second generation “Carin 440” in the Opel Astra, navigation made its way into the compact class in 1998.

At the same time, the developers worked on continuously improving the sound quality. Thanks to Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB), noise and similar interferences have become a thing of the past. Digital radio reception enables crystal-clear listening to a larger number of programmes and is now standard in all Opel passenger cars as well as in the majority of commercial vehicles.

From IntelliLink to Multimedia: Internet arrives in Opel cars

In 2012, the age of the Internet began in Opel vehicles. Brand introduced the new IntelliLink infotainment system in its Opel ADAM and thus became a pioneer in the small car segment. IntelliLink integrated Apple iOS and Android smartphone functions. AUTO BILD and COMPUTER BILD gave the “Connected Car Award” to the pioneering Opel system. In 2014, Apple and Google presented Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for the first time; and in the following year, Opel presented the second generation of IntelliLink – now compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

2014: Opel ADAM with IntelliLink – Compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay

Today, Opel models feature state-of-the-art multimedia systems equipped with digital DAB+ reception. Hands-free phone calls, operation via touchscreen or voice command as well as wireless smartphone integration are just some of the countless possibilities that the current models from Opel Mokka to Opel Grandland and Opel Astra make available. Such technologies can be operated intuitively with the latest generation digital user interface, Opel Pure Panel cockpit. 

Opel Mokka: Pure Panel cockpit

Foundation for all this was once laid by the radio, which is why Opel is celebrating “World Radio Day” on February 13.

[1] AUTO BILD edition 45/2022 and BILD am SONNTAG edition 46/2022, category for “Best car up to €50,000”