CASE PROJECT TETRA
iVTInternational.com June 2019
20
overview of the
working area.”
A carefully
conceived design
language aims to
meld the cab,
loader arms, wings,
engine cover and
counterweight into a unified whole.
“Tractors and construction
equipment tend to have a separate
cab stuck on a lower body, but we
wanted the cab to be visually
integrated,” he continues. “It’s
physically integrated, too, by the
grab handles; we used the LED
lighting as a design element, as it
would be in automotive design.”
Are you sitting comfortably?
Inside the cab, a sense of automotive
luxury is combined with minimalist
design and state-of-the-art HMI for
intuitive, clutter-free control.
“If you have a workplace where
you feel happy and comfortable, it’s
a better day, so we kept the interior
simple, clean and fresh,” says Wilkie.
The traditional steering column
makes way for ergonomic joysticks
and an armrest-mounted
touchscreen which structures key
functionalities. Wing mirrors are
replaced by screens displaying cabmounted
camera feeds,
synchronised with the machine’s
direction of travel. Voice control
enables operators to regulate the
cab’s temperature or dictate
messages via verbal command,
while biometrics are a pervasive
presence. Remote machine priming,
activated by retina-scanning on
a connected smartphone, allows
“THIS, TO ME, COULD
BE THE SIGNPOST
THAT LETS US BREAK
AWAY AND MOVE ON”
David Wilkie, design director, CNH Industrial
drivers to initiate cab warming or
defrosting prior to reaching the
vehicle. Facial recognition identifies
the operator before door-opening is
activated, ensuring only authorized
personnel gain access, and the
armrest touchscreen executes a
second, confirmatory face-scan
before start-up is initiated. The
concept also incorporates
autonomous elements such as
advanced obstacle detection, which
brings the machine to a halt should
a pedestrian cross its path.
On a roll
Another visually arresting
dimension of the Tetra wheel loader
are its honeycomb-spoked airless
tires, the fruit of Case’s collaboration
with Michelin. Fashioned from
rubber and patented composite
material, these harbor a host of eyecatching
technologies such as inbuilt
suspension, integrated sidewall
illumination and connected tirewear
sensors capable of generating
a real-time data stream.
“They’ve been designed together
with Michelin,” says Wilkie. “It can
move on them, although these are
concept tires, so we didn’t go up the
mountain with them.” The wheel
loader is also compatible with
pneumatic tires, but the airless tires
displayed on the Case stand at
Bauma serve to spotlight the role
of tire technology in machine
productivity, perhaps anticipating
a fusion of tire and wheel.
“When we do new products, we
aim to make them as modern and
good-looking as possible,” says
Wilkie. “But in construction,
everything has to be solid,
functional and well-built. This, to
me, could be the signpost that
lets us break away and move on.”
Trail blazer
A congenial Scot, Wilkie cut a
refreshingly bohemian figure at
Bauma Munich, flamboyantly
jacketed amid a sea of business suits.
In his relatively new role at Case, his
TOP: David Wilkie at the
unveiling of Project Tetra at
Bauma Munich 2019
ABOVE: Wilkie working on
some of the initial sketches
for the vehicle
iVT
CONCEPT
50%
reduction in
drive-by noise
delivered by
Tetra
/iVTInternational.com