Bojan Vrbnjak
World premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, which is just unfolding. In a port city in the south of France BMW and boat manufacturer Tyde represent an electric vessel with the name The icon. The batteries for this futuristic creation come from a car BMW i3.
This new creation is long 13,15 meters. According to Wikipedia, watercraft up to seven meters lengths are usually called boats, od ten meters onward yachts, but the latter usually have cabins, which is not the case here. So let's stick with the title "ship". Top speed is 30 knots, so the water icon is quite fast. BMW is described as the source of the idea, the brand from Munich developed the concept. A subsidiary of BMW was responsible for the design Designworks. The development and implementation of the concept was in the hands of the company Tyde.
They take care of the drive two 100 kW motors. Six car batteries BMW i3 with together 240 kWh provides a reach of more than 50 nautical miles, which is about 100 kilometers. A cruising speed is possible with this 24 knots, and it is even the largest 30 knots. This vessel impresses not only with its own unusual design, but should also offer passengers luxurious environment. Until now, marine electric mobility has been limited to smaller and slower vessels with a relatively short range, BMW said. Z The icon but now they represent a larger and faster vessel with a greater range.
She made it possible innovation from sailing. Underwater wings, so called Hydropholis, reduce the need for energy by up to 80 percent. The vessel is supported on the wings below the water surface, so that the body floats above it with sufficient speed. This should enable greater comfort and greater speed. Simple glide silently, without vibrations, shocks or waves. The system takes care of the sound on board Dolby Atmos. For a sound concept that, in addition to the sound of the engine, also includes various functional sounds, it is BMW attracted a film music composer to participate Hans Zimmer.
It offers a very flat hull 4,5 meters wide in the feed area. This creates a particularly spacious entrance to the luxury lounge. Instead of the usual ship's side, here they are large glass surfaces for an unobstructed view of the sea. LED light strips on the front and back, as well as on the charging ports, they are in the right color eye candy. The salon has richly designed furniture, which stands on a luxurious carpet. 360-degree swivel seats they allow you to alternately face the other passengers and the sea. Steering station it is centrally located and slightly raised so that the captain can see out through the seating area in front of it. Control yoke and 32-inch screen to the touch, they are a little reminiscent of the cockpit of a BMW car. It is used as software BMW 8 operating system, known from land vehicles, but there is also voice control.
According to the allegations BMW vessel first shown in Cannes, is not a design study, but rather fully mature serial product. The interior can be customized according to the customer's wishes. In this case, the ship is supposed to be used as a means of maritime transport in private luxury sector as well as in commercial sector. BMW does not reveal any details about the possible marketing, on the company's website Tyde but we can follow"Coming 2024".
