Head-Up Display - What is a HUD Projector?

Read this article to learn how the HUD head-up display works. You will learn more about its features, advantages and disadvantages. In the text, we have described a brief history of these displays, produced for the military for over fifty years.

Head-Up Display - A Brief History of the Automotive Industry

The first car to be equipped with a head-up display was the Chevrolet Corvette in 2000, and already in 2004 it was taken over by BMW, making the 5 Series cars of that year the first in Europe to have a HUD screen installed as standard. It is difficult to say why this technology was introduced to cars so late, because this solution was used in military aircraft as early as 1958. Twenty years later, the HUD found its way into civilian aircraft.

What is a HUD display

The projection display allows you to display the main parameters on the windshield of the car. Thanks to this, the driver can also control the speed without taking his eyes off the road. The HUD was borrowed from fighter jets, in which it has been successfully supporting pilots for years. The latest models of cars have very advanced systems that display parameters just below the driver's line of sight at the bottom of the window. If your car does not have this system installed at the factory, you can buy a head-up display that is compatible with almost any car model.

What information does the head-up display show to the driver?

The head-up display can display a lot of information, but most often the speedometer is in a prominent place and it is a mandatory element, as is the case with standard meters. The current speed is displayed digitally in the largest font. Due to the small amount of space that can be allocated to display car parameters, manufacturers try not to put too much of them in the HUD.

The speedometer is one of the main information displayed on the projection display. It usually comes with a tachometer, but its presence is not the rule. Much depends on the class of the car, in luxury models the HUD will display readings from the traffic sign reading system, cruise control, an alarm that warns of objects in the car's blind spot, and even car navigation.

The first head-up display had a very simple design, which has undergone significant changes over the years. Systems in top models of popular brands display information in very bright colorful colors with virtually no delay. Often they also allow for individual personalization, such as adjusting where parameters are displayed or how the display can be rotated.

How does the HUD display work?

The operation of the projection display is not difficult. It uses the properties of glass, which stops light of a certain wavelength because it is transparent. The HUD display emits a specific color that can be displayed as information on the windshield. Vehicle parameters are displayed at a certain height of the window, which can usually be adjusted individually or on a specially fixed on the dashboard.

If you are purchasing the entire system separately, remember that the projector must be properly matched. It is important that the image is crisp and clear, but it should not hurt the driver's eyes. The latest multimedia head-up displays are adjustable in brightness, display height and swivel so you can customize everything to your needs.

Head-up display HUD - a gadget or a useful system that increases safety?

The head-up display is not only a fashionable gadget, but above all safety. HUD has found application in the army, civil aviation and has become a permanent attribute of cars, because thanks to it the driver or pilot does not have to take his eyes off what is happening behind the windshield, and has a positive effect on concentration. driver. This activity is especially dangerous when driving at night, when the standard display, which is brighter than the environment, takes the eyes longer to adjust.

Most traffic accidents occur due to lack of concentration or temporary loss of driver attention. Reading the speed from the factory sensors placed on the cab takes about one second, but this is enough for an accident or collision with a pedestrian. In one second, the car covers a distance of several meters at a speed of about 50 km / h, at 100 km / h this distance is already approaching 30 m, and on the highway as much as 40 m. head down movement to read vehicle parameters.

The HUD screen is the technology of the future

The head-up display is an increasingly popular solution for improving travel safety. Its main task is to display the most important information on the driver's window. This is a very evolving technology that is constantly being researched. Currently, experiments are being carried out to output data using a specially designed laser directly to the retina. Another idea was to use a 3D projector to display a red line over the roadway to indicate the road.

In the beginning, like many other new technologies, head-up displays were found only in top-end luxury cars. Thanks to the development of science and manufacturing technology, they are now appearing in cheaper cars. If you are concerned about safety while driving and your car does not have a factory HUD system, you will find many offers of projectors on the market adapted to different car models.