With U-Shift, DLR is developing a modular, autonomous vehicle concept for sustainable mobility. Technology transfer is at the centre of the project: together with companies, start-ups and the scientific community, solutions are being developed to drive change in the mobility and vehicle industry.
The separation of drive module and capsule enables the flexible transport of people, goods and services. U-Shift is thus setting new standards for demand-orientated, efficient and environmentally friendly mobility.
In the project, the concept is being further developed technically, the level of technological maturity is being increased and the application in industry is being prepared. To this end, external expertise will be involved at an early stage in order to integrate requirements from industry, SMEs and the start-up ecosystem into the development process.
Industrial partners benefit from the open interface concept and diverse cooperation opportunities. At the same time, U-Shift will be brought to life in real environments via demonstration platforms such as the Federal Horticultural Show 2023. In this way, the project strengthens the regional economy in Baden-Württemberg and beyond and promotes cooperation between science and industry.
U-Shift strengthens technology transfer in the automotive sector and creates a platform for innovations in the mobility of tomorrow. The demonstrator serves as a test vehicle for topics such as automation, digitalisation and multimodal transport. This creates a development platform for further applications in the BW automotive industry strategy dialogue and beyond. The project also shows how sustainable mobility, industrial innovation and technological leadership can be combined.
The aim of the project is to further develop the U-Shift concept and to utilise transfer potential for different stakeholders. To this end, the technologies of the overall system are described and categorised in order to create a reliable basis for cooperation and subsequent developments.
Another focus is on dialogue with industry. Fields of application, requirements and integration possibilities are discussed in workshops with start-ups and SMEs. In this way, transfer potentials are not only described theoretically, but also further honed together with practitioners.
At the same time, new prototypes and functional carriers are created for real-life trials and demonstrations. In this way, the concept is further developed towards market application under real conditions.
Exchange with industry
The project relies on close dialogue with industry. This includes workshops with SMEs, discussions with suppliers and expert interviews with potential users and operators.
During the interviews, requirements for capsule types, use cases and operator models were determined. The results provide a practical basis for further development.
Impressions of the Automotive Supplier Day Baden-Württemberg 2025
The Baden-Württemberg Automotive Suppliers Day also played an important role in this. The U-Shift was represented there with the U-Shift IV prototype and the passenger and goods capsule in order to seek dialogue with the supplier industry in Baden-Württemberg. To this end, technology profiles were created for key sub-components of the U-Shift in order to enter into dialogue with suppliers in a targeted manner.
The workshops with SMEs at the BUGA show where companies can tie in directly with U-Shift. At the same time, knowledge is brought into the industry and discussed with a view to further developments.
Demonstration and real laboratory
An important milestone was the presentation at the Federal Garden Show 2023 in Mannheim. There, U-Shift was shown in a real environment and discussed with different target groups. The demonstration served as a test and dialogue space. Feedback from businesses, local authorities and the public is being incorporated into further development.
Sponsor
The project is funded by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism as part of the Baden-Württemberg Automotive Industry Strategy Dialogue.
Ministerium BW und SDA
Credit:
Baden-Württemberg Ministerium für Wirtschaft, Handwerk und Tourismus / Strategiedialog Automobilwirtschaft Baden-Württemberg
