FEV Consulting Announces New Eco-Coaching Study on the Use of Game Mechanics for CO2 Reduction

Study from FEV Consulting is available for free download

The new FEV Consulting study on new concept ideas for Eco-Coaching systems is now available for download (Source: FEV GmbH).

The new FEV Consulting study covers future market potential, an evaluation of the functional range, and new concept ideas for Eco-Coaching systems. Growth rates of up to 60% annually are considered realistic for innovative assistance systems. Simultaneously, such systems have the potential to reduce real-world fuel and CO₂ consumption by six to twelve percent.
The market analysis and forecast model reveals large differences in different geographic regions as well as among the various vehicle manufacturers. “Our study shows that all current systems are missing more sophisticated functions, individual motivation concepts and connectivity,” explains Alexander Nase, Managing Director at FEV Consulting. “For this reason, there is considerable untapped potential for fuel and CO₂ emissions reductions.”
The results of the study can be downloaded for free at www.fev.com/consulting-studies.

In addition to purely technical optimization levers, environmentally friendly driving behavior is one of the biggest factors in reducing real-world fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions. “Eco-Coaches” visualize the impact of driving behavior on the fuel consumption and show how they can be further improved. Compared to any other efficiency improvement measure, it comes at almost zero additional component cost. FEV Consulting estimates that a real fuel savings of six to twelve percent is a realistic range. However, these are not considered in today's consumption-test cycles.

Promising market outlook for Eco-Coach systems
For the global Eco-Coach market, experts estimate an annual growth of between nine percent for acceleration and brake assist and 60 percent in the form of mobile Apps. Demand is being primarily driven by electrification of powertrains, connectivity, increasing customer acceptance and evolving customer buying patterns. There are, however, large differences between the EU, North America and China. This is due to, among other things, differences in the rate of adoption for powertrain electrification.

Predictive functions depend on the future market penetration of navigation system. Third-party or native mobile applications bypass these limitations but lack essential vehicle data to show basic functions like sailing or gas pedal position.

Further development of concepts and functionalities
FEV Consulting has analyzed and evaluated today’s production systems. The resulting “Eco-Coach and Gamification Index” shows large gaps in the functional scope and maturity of the assistance systems: “All of the systems that were evaluated have large improvement potential to influence the driver’s behavior in a positive and sustainable way,” Nase states. The experts expect most of the improvements in the area of predictive functions, customized engagement concepts – such as online competitions – flexible and situation-based functions, connectivity and seamless interaction with mobile devices.

Gamification as key to success
The gaming industry already has several decades of experience with regard to forecasting user behavior, motivation patterns and manipulation techniques. Today, the top computer games are using nearly five times as many game mechanics for sustainable motivation compared with the current Eco-Coaches that are implemented in motor vehicles. The study concludes that the incorporation of proven game mechanics could be the key to sustainable success motivation.

About FEV
The FEV Group with headquarters in Aachen, Germany, is an internationally recognized development service provider for drive and vehicle technologies. The company offers its global transport industry customers a complete range of engineering services, providing support in the design, analysis and prototyping for powertrain and transmission development, as well as vehicle integration, calibration and homologation for advanced internal combustion gasoline-, diesel-, and alternative-fueled powertrains. FEV's competencies also include design, development and prototyping of innovative vehicle concepts, powertrain electronic control systems and hybrid-electric engine concepts that address future emission and fuel economy standards. The Test Systems division is a global supplier of advanced test cell, instrumentation and test equipment. The FEV Group employs a staff of over 4,000 highly skilled specialists at advanced technical centers on three continents.

About FEV Consulting
FEV Consulting combines top management consulting expertise with the technical capabilities and knowhow of the FEV Group. Deep industry knowledge in automotive and aerospace industry enables for pragmatic solutions to the most pressing and complex issues facing today’s enterprises.