Audi takes a seat and turns it into the R18 ultra chair

The visually stunning R18 Ultra Chair was revealed earlier this month at the prestigious Design Miami show to a global audience. What seemed to be a humble household chair underwent a Vorsprung durch Technik makeover inspired by the Audi sports prototype that competed in the Le Mans 24-hour race this year.

Masterminded by designers Clemens Weisshaar and Reed Kram, and developed using the most efficient and sustainable processes, the R18 Ultra Chair is made from a mix of carbon fibre, carbon and high strength sheet aluminium. This combination guarantees maximum stability and comfort with minimum consumption of materials, and also ensures that the chair is almost feather light to lift.

The striking chair appeared first in prototype form at the Milan Furniture Fair in April this year, where it was fitted with an array of sensors capable of collecting data on the forces at play whenever the chair was used. Some 1,500 testers took the opportunity to try it out, and in the process informed the evolution of its design.

In conjunction with engineers at the Audi Lightweight Construction Centre, the designers used the data to optimise their prototype, resulting in a finished product which embodies the principles of Audi ultra lightweight construction - through the intelligent deployment of advanced materials, high strength and exceptionally low weight have been achieved - in this case a total weight of just 2.2kg.

Dr. Karl Durst, an engineer in fibre reinforced composites at the Audi Lightweight Construction Centre, explained the finished product, "We combine the strengths of the materials in such a way that their weaknesses are no longer important. This efficiency is the focus of our ultra lightweight construction principle."