Jaguar and Land Rover to use virtual reality system from Sony

Jaguar and Land Rover are to invest £2m in a virtual reality facility. It will use high-definition digital projection technology to create 3D images of exterior and interior vehicle designs to speed up production.

The virtual reality facility, being set up at Jaguar and Land Rover's Gaydon engineering centre by Sony in partnership with HoloVis International, is due for completion by mid-2008.

The facility will use eight Sony SRX-S105 high-resolution projectors capable of producing 8.8 megapixel photo-realistic images to create what is claimed to be the world's most advanced virtual 3D environment.

Jaguar and Land Rover director of engineering, Al Kammerer, said the facility would be a key advancement in the companies' development toolbox.

"The awesome power of this project is unparalleled in our industry worldwide and will allow us to produce new vehicles on a much quicker timeline, to update and develop more responsively to customer trends, and be more efficient," he said.

The virtual environment will enable engineers and designers to see life-size models of vehicles and components in 3D. This will reduce the need for physical prototypes and speed up product development cycles, saving time and money.