Car dashboard provides three-dimensional instrumentation

Paul Boughton
Research scientists have developed a novel car dashboard that functions as a 3D display and shows velocities, engine speeds or warnings in three dimensions. The display's design can be chosen individually by the driver.

When the driver sits in the car and turns the ignition key, the dashboard, which was black just a moment ago, reveals itself as a 3D display with a simple but modern design. However, if the driver's son were at the wheel, the controls for the MP3 player would appear in the foreground instead, saying "Please select an artist." After choosing some music, the son would set off, with the display showing a 3D model of the town, and the integrated navigation system directing him to his destination. On the other hand, the car owner prefers other types of information, such as traffic reports. He also likes to have the rev counter in view at all times. After he has driven for a while, the display changes and an alert message literally jumps out at him: "Please refuel."

The new 3D cockpit developed by researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Heinrich-Hertz-Institut (HHI) in Berlin, Germany, not only looks good but also offers a variety of useful functions. While conventional dashboards have a round disk with a scale and moving mechanical hands to indicate the vehicle speed, and another for the engine speed, the new display is digital and shows three-dimensional images. HHI project manager Dr René de la Barré says: "The information most important to the driver at any given time is displayed in the foreground – be it the air pressure, the route or the title of the song currently playing."

So how does the system know which information the driver wants to see, and when and in what size? Dr de la Barré explains: "Before setting off, the driver can choose how he wants the information to be displayed, and can save these preferences." The depth images are made possible by sophisticated equipment: Two cameras inside the car measure the position of the driver's eyes and the distance between them – in real time. The two superimposed images that generate the 3D effect on the display are individually adapted to the driver's vision to ensure the full effect from every viewing direction and every sitting position.

Furthermore, the 3D cockpit can be personalised so that each driver can individually set their preferred design and functional navigation menu. The researchers will be presenting the first prototype of the cockpit display at the Cebit event in Hanover on 3-8 March 2009 (Hall 9, Stand B36).

For more information, visit www.fraunhofer.de

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