Ford Shares Virtual Design Tool Globally

Ford Motor Co. has begun using a virtual reality tool that allows designers across the globe to collaborate in real time.

Developed by London-based Gravity Sketch, the “Co-Creation” system uses a VR headset and motion tracking controllers that replicate sketching with a pen and paper. Users in different locations can create, collaborate and evaluate designs simultaneously.

The technology promises to cut design times from several weeks to a few hours, skipping the 2D stage and working with a more realistic 3D model from the beginning of the process. Designers can draw, rotate, expand and compress a 3D sketch, and allow another designer to view a sketch from different perspectives.

Ford, the first carmaker to use the Gravity Sketch tool, is testing the technology at design centers in Australia, California, Germany, Michigan and the U.K. The company aims to implement the system in a production-intent vehicle in the near future.