Automotive smart materials and convergence trends move forward

Last update on Aug 1, 2025

This article was originally published in 2008 and revised in 2025.

The shape memory polymers and alloys are smart materials under application development by major global automakers. This unique class of materials can 'remember' their original shape and return to it in response to external environmental conditions. For example, heat or electric charge. Thus, it opens new opportunities for multifaceted features in vehicles. 

Currently automotive researchers are focusing on developing actuators and sensors made from such materials. They can replace the small electric motors or hydraulics in current cars.

In this article, we will see the shift as smart materials and electronics redefine vehicles. In addition, you will find out more about their intelligent designs, enhanced comfort, and seamless integration.

Smart materials shaping automotive plastics

The use of shape-changing materials instead of motors can reduce the vehicle mass, size, and complexity of components. They also increase reliability, thereby improving vehicle performance and fuel economy. The materials, which also improve design flexibility, may allow the addition of movable elements. This would be an impractical application for motors, enabling new functionality, convenience, and comfort features.

 

The smart material systems have the potential to change the look and feel of an automobile or transportation vehicle. This offers automotive subsystems with the following features:

 

  • capability to self-heal, when damaged (i.e., exterior or interior body panels), or
  • industrially designed to aesthetically change colors, depending on daylight conditions, for improved safety visibility purposes

 

In a more straightforward automotive plastics vein, smart material-enhanced polypropylene (PP) air vents can be tailored to govern incoming airflow to the vehicle interior. This makes the opening wider to let in more air as the engine heats up. Thus, maximizing energy efficiency in passenger heating year-round.

 

 

Smart material heat-sensitive enhanced PP air duct: Closed (top), open (bottom)
(Source: HRH Laboratories, University of Michigan, General Motors Corporation)

 

To date, shape-memory polymer systems that respond to an external stimulus such as heat, light, or a magnetic field have been dual-shape materials. Presently, an American-German research team from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston and the Institute of Polymer Research at the GKSS Research Center in Teltow, Germany, has developed the ability of smart materials to transition into a third shape.


These are so-called novel 'triple shape polymers'. These are now capable of making two consecutive shape changes in response to changes in temperature. The current traditional two shape changes take place and then progress to a new third shape. Temperature increases activate the last two shapes. These new shape-memory materials are composed of two different types of crosslinkable polymers that soften at distinct set temperatures.

 

 

Automotive electronic consumer products convergence emerging

Automotive manufacturers are regularly replacing mechanical systems with electronic equivalents. Taking advantage of novel microcontroller/sensor technology, OEMs are creating complex systems that provide new levels of vehicle control and safety. Thus, automotive electronics is growing at a faster rate than the overall automotive industry. The automotive electronics market will grow from 28 billion USD at year's end 2007 to 45 billion USD in 2015, or 5.5% annually.


The electrical and electronics market is a significant crossover segment for plastics applications. Driving this market trend is the ever-tightening space constraints and ongoing efforts to reduce vehicle weight. This, in turn, directly expands plastics usage. For example, as cars become more complex, there is a need to make the center console controls for several systems. These include the making of air conditioning, lighting, seating, etc., comprehensive and convenient for the driver and passengers.


The car's under-the-hood area represents an extremely hostile environment for electrical/electronic devices. This space is exposed to chemicals, high temperatures, wide temperature variations, high voltage, and current surges. Increasingly stringent safety/emission regulations, space constraints, and consumer pressure to increase fuel efficiency add to the challenges.


One area with critical electronic quality and reliability requirements is safety/security. A broad range of products has been introduced to increase vehicle occupant safety. For example, airbag systems, anti-lock brakes, traction control, electric power steering, and suspension systems.


Driver information/entertainment encompasses the converging fields of car entertainment, information, navigation, and communication. Like automotive powertrain and safety electronics, automotive body electronics, including driver information, communication, navigation, and entertainment, represent growing opportunities for plastic applications.


Automotive body electronics have the following functions:
 

  • monitor the vehicle's body conditions,
  • provide burglar prevention measures, and
  • manage the comforts/convenience features for the driver and passengers

 

Communication functions like wireless transmission, voice recognition, and entertainment systems like satellite radio/TV, DVD, and data storage are being incorporated into vehicle electronics. More importantly, these systems are working together to provide integrated services such as road-traffic information and guidance systems, electronic toll collection, and automatic emergency calls in the case of an accident.


Today's premium automobiles have approximately 4 km of wiring versus 45 m in cars manufactured in the 1970s. The DVD player in the family car makes use of more kilobytes of memory than the onboard memory employed by Apollo 11 in traveling to and from the moon.