Audi 2011 Annual Report Download - page 150

147
Management Report
134 Audi Group
143 Business and underlying
situation
143 Economic environment
145 Research and development
151 Procurement
151 Production
153 Deliveries and distribution
159 Financial performance
indicators
162 Social and ecological aspects
175 Risks, opportunities
and outlook
187 Disclaimer
Furthermore, the 3.0 TFSI engine secured a top ranking in the Ward’s 10 Best Engines competition
for the third year in a row in December 2011 (http://wardsauto.com/vehicles-amp-technology/
gdi-dominates-ward-s-10-best-engines-list). This competition, which has been staged every year
since 1994 by the magazine Ward’s Auto World, rates production engines available on the U.S.
market according to criteria such as sportiness, efficiency and sound. The 3.0 TFSI engine is
particularly notable for its high power flow across the entire speed range, and for its spontaneity.
Audi connect
The world is becoming increasingly interconnected – and so is the Audi brand. Under the umbrella
brand Audi connect, the Company brackets together all applications and developments that link
vehicles of the Audi brand to the Internet, the driver and the infrastructure. Pioneering navigation
and infotainment functions thus combine with connected driver assistance systems to increase
driving pleasure and comfort, and at the same time can boost driving safety.
Most car lines of the Audi brand already offer the full range of Audi connect services that are
currently available. For instance, thanks to an integral UMTS module in the vehicle, with the
optional “Bluetooth car phone online” passengers can connect up to eight mobile terminal
devices to the Internet simultaneously via WLAN hotspot.
The integration of Google Earth and Google Street View into the map mode of the Audi Multi
Media Interface (MMI) navigation system plus also makes it possible to navigate using realistic
images and display high-resolution aerial and satellite images. With the latest weather and
travel information and news at their fingertips, drivers are always well-informed.
The range of Audi connect features was broadened in the 2011 fiscal year. The “Audi traffic infor-
mation online” service now supplies more precise forecasts of the traffic situation along the
chosen route thanks to the use of comprehensive real-time data, and also operates faster than
the established traffic information services. And drivers can now also navigate by voice control
to special destinations, such as tourist attractions and restaurants, using the Google point of
interest (POI) search. Furthermore, in December 2011 the Company joined forces with Deutsche
Telekom to successfully test the new wireless communication standard Long Term Evolution
(LTE), which has a data rate up to six times faster than current mobile phone networks.
Innovations for safety and comfort
Driver assistance systems
The Audi brand has a broad range of innovative driver assistance systems that make vehicles even
more convenient and safer to handle.
The automatic distance control system Audi adaptive cruise control with stop&go function helps
to maintain the desired distance from the vehicle in front by automatically accelerating and
braking. Audi active lane assist, a driver assistance system that first appeared in 2010 in the
Audi A7 Sportback, actively helps the driver to stay in lane by providing gentle steering impulses.
The lane change assistant Audi side assist is available for a large number of Audi brand models;
it uses a complex system of radar sensors to monitor the traffic behind a vehicle and warns the
driver if they try to change lane in a potentially hazardous situation. Then there is Audi pre sense,
a safety package that can identify critical driving situations and prepare the vehicle and its occu-
pants as well as possible before a potential collision. For instance, the system automatically
starts to close windows and the sunroof, and tighten the seat belts. It also activates the hazard
warning flashers to alert following vehicles to the hazard.