Self-Seating at Your Service

Adient plc, the renamed seating business spun off by Johnson Controls Inc. last year, has developed a seating concept for fully autonomous cars that incorporates some upcoming production technology.

The AI17 concept is designed to increase interior flexibility while providing greater safety, comfort and convenience in vehicles without steering wheels or foot pedals, according to the supplier. Adient showcased the technology this week at the Detroit auto show.

Built on a rotating base, the front seats can swivel as much as 70° outward when the car door is open and as much as 15° inward to allow occupants to face each other. An anthropometric system allows the seats to recline well beyond the traditional range. Control panels rise out of the armrests when needed.

The seat structure consists of a flexible plastic shell, which is covered in softer materials and conforms to the curve of an occupant's spine and lumbar region. The head restraint, armrests and leg rests are synchronized to move with occupants to provide better support. The company aims to commercialize the “comfort shell” configuration by 2020.

The cantilevered rear-seat structure can recline as much as 45° and includes integrated leg rests that stow underneath the seats. The seats also feature a four-way adjustable power head restraint that supports an occupant’s head in fully reclined and rotated seat positions.