Heads-Up Technology Coming

Heads-up technology, where vital information is projected onto the windscreen, has been
used by fighter pilots for years. Soon, drivers will get a similar view with speed,
navigation information and other important messages shown on their windshield. The goal of
the heads-up display is to put important information in a driver’s line of sight. P.J.
Crowley of the Insurance Information Institute said, “A heads-up display can potentially
help a driver manage distractions while keeping his/her eyes firmly fixed on the road.”
“One of our missions,” said Harry Asher of Siemens VDO, “is to add safety to the driver’s
driving experience. Navigation is a good example of that. It provides drivers
reinforcement, so they don’t have to think so much about the actual driving task.” A little
further down the technology road comes augmented reality. Asher explained that augmented
reality “puts a yellow line, kind of a graphic, that appears to be painted directly onto
the road surface the driver sees ahead, and it provides a very easy way to be guided to the
destination.” Siemens VDO is developing such a system for drivers. Today’s vehicles may
have as many as 30 mini-computers working together to run everything from the anti-lock
brakes to the heads-up display.