Thesis Work - Gloss Impact on the Perception of Automotive Surface Materials

Thesis Worker at Volvo Cars 
Welcome to explore the world of Volvo Cars by writing your thesis with us! As a thesis worker in our organization you are supported by a supervisor who follows you during your project. All thesis projects are arranged in business critical areas and therefore you will be able to contribute to our company purpose – providing freedom to move in a safe, sustainable and personal way – from day one!

About this opportunity - Background

Looking for a masterpiece for your master thesis project? Innovation starts with being curious. At Volvo Cars, we believe that being curious and truly committed to understanding people is the key to future success. We are people who care about other people, working together to create new technologies and innovations for safe, sustainable and convenient mobility. Want to join us as a Master Thesis student? 

We are looking for driven and motivated students interested in pursuing their master thesis within Vehicle Tophat development during the spring term 2025. 

Vehicle Tophat is one of six development units within Engineering (R&D) at Volvo Cars where the teams develop stateof-the-art Interior and Exterior. Vehicle Tophat aims to develop the most sustainable and safe Tophat solutions to provide freedom to move in a changing society. The customer value is optimized through attractive designs utilizing new technology trends. Speed to market is important in every aspect of what we do. And we attract and develop talents in a global competitive world, creating an open and transparent environment with a collaborative mindset. Within our team of over 800 engineers at Vehicle Tophat, we are offering a broad range of master thesis projects.  
 
Perceived Quality (PQ) is an attribute area within the department Vehicle Tophat. The department is responsible for developing solutions for interior and exterior hardware and software. PQ is a shared service within Vehicle Tophat and consists of five sub attributes - Geometry, Material, Illumination, Paint and Surface Finish. Perceived Quality is a major enabler for Volvo Cars since everything the customer experiences influences the overall perception of our brand and who we are. 
 
To secure a successful product in line with the Volvo Cars brand values, it is of vital importance in the development process to understand the customer as their needs sets the scope for requirements and requirement levels. Furthermore, as Perceived Quality at Volvo Cars mainly concerns the visual aspect of our senses, it is also essential to have a deeper understanding of customer behavior and customer interactions with our products. 
 
Objective 
The increased focus on sustainability in the automotive industry has impact on several areas. Novel recyclable and lightweight surface materials are being introduced along with increased recycled content in existing materials. Such solutions will have an impact on the visual appearance of the materials. This thesis work aims specifically at investigating the gloss impact on the total appearance of car interior surface materials. 

Scope of the thesis work
This project aims at applying user study research to get a increased understanding of customers perception and acceptance of gloss for interior car components. To be able to rightly adapt theories in this project, there is also a need to deep-dive into the academic fields of perceived gloss and gloss measurements. 
 
The thesis project includes the following main steps: 
 

• Literature study on perceived gloss theory and gloss measurement techniques.  
• User study design for experiments focusing on surface appearance.  
• Customer user studies to identify acceptance levels for gloss and gloss variation. A limited number of appearances will be investigated.  
• Define customer gloss acceptance levels for the above appearances.  
• Recommendations for gloss measurement.  

 
What you´ll bring
We are looking for students with the following profiles: 

• Highly analytic and a drive to succeed in what you set out to accomplish.  
• Interest in surface materials, color and vision science, user experience and research design. 
• Competence in designing user studies and statistical knowledge is very beneficial. 
• Master’s degree students in: Industrial Design & Product Development, Material Science or equivalent. 

 
This thesis project requires that you are on site at office in Volvo Cars Gothenburg. 
Duration
 
Does this sound like your next challenge? Below are some practicalities you need to be aware of:   

• Tentative proposed thesis work period: 20th January 2025 to 27th of June 2025 (dates can be flexible with +/- 7 days) 
• Academic credits: equivalent to 30 ECTS  
• Number of students: 1-2 students per project (2 preferred) 

 
Welcome with your application by submitting your resume, cover letter (including which project(s) you would like to work and why) and grades/transcripts via the link below no later than 31st October 2024.  We will be continuously reviewing the applications and selecting the candidates, so apply as early as you can! 
 
Note that we do not accept any applications via e-mail. If you have any questions regarding the position you are welcome to contact. For questions about the recruitment process, please contact   
Manager, Martin Månsson, martin.mansson@volvocars.com
Supervisor, Hanna Ljungholm, hanna.ljungholm@volvocars.com

Volvo Cars - Driving change together

Volvo Cars’ success is the result of a collaborative, diverse, and inclusive working environment. Today, we are one of the most well-known and respected car brands, with around 43,000 employees across the globe. At Volvo Cars, your career is designed around your skills and aspirations, allowing you to reach your fullest potential.