Continental Now Supplying Head-Up Displays to Two Premium Automotive Manufacturers
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Lighter, more compact and with improved functionality: The new head-up display from Continental has made the leap from luxury to mid-range vehicles and is now being fitted in the new BMW 3 Series
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BABENHAUSEN, Germany--March 22, 2012: Continental, the international automotive supplier, is providing the second generation head-up display for the new BMW 3 Series. The head-up display shows relevant information such as speed, navigation and infotainment data, as well as warnings in the driver's direct field of vision. The head-up display's virtual screen appears around two meters in front of the driver above the engine hood, so he is informed of all important issues without looking away from the road.
"The head-up display reduces driver distraction and increases driving safety. It is important to us that these benefits are passed on to as many drivers as possible. We are extremely proud of the fact that with the BMW 3 Series the head-up display is now also available in mid-range vehicles," said Eelco Spoelder, head of Continental's Instrumentation and Driver HMI business unit. Continental began producing head-up displays in 2003. The many years of experience are now helping the company to both work together with its customers and make the head-up display even more attractive to drivers. In 2010, Continental began series production of the second-generation head-up display at Audi. Both systems are produced in Babenhausen, in the German state of Hesse.
Image quality and ease of use – the tangible strengths
of the head-up display
A vibrant, full-color display makes Continental's new head-up display
appeal to drivers. Compared with the previous, restricted color spectrum,
new white LEDs project the entire color spectrum from the image generated
on a TFT display. The increased brightness of the white LED technology in
the new image generation unit means that the new head-up display offers
significantly greater contrast and can also render features such as night
view displays. The new image generation unit has just 15 LEDs, contributing
significantly to reduce the power consumed (rated input) by the new head-up
display to around one third of the previous version, which required 128
LEDs to generate images. This efficiency makes the head-up display
increasingly interesting for electric vehicles. Allowing the driver to
configure the head-up display conveniently via the controls in the cockpit
is a particular advantage in vehicles which are driven by several people.
This is made possible by the use of a stepper motor that tilts the optical
mirror inside the head-up display, in turn changing the position of the
floating image displayed to the driver above the engine hood.
Fit for mid-range vehicles -- compact design and low
manufacturing costs
To enable the head-up display for use in mid-range vehicles,
Continental's engineers in Babenhausen, Hesse focused on developing two
core requirements: Reducing size and weight and cutting manufacturing
costs. The new layout of the optical components, which reflect the image
from the display to the windscreen, has significantly lowered the number of
overall components required. Combined with the intelligent use of modern
materials, the developers were able to almost halve the volume and weight
compared with the previous version. With a volume of just 3.8 liters and
weighing 1.5 kilograms, the new head-up display can be integrated in the
overall concept of a vehicle more easily by automotive manufacturers. The
lower number of components is also advantageous for the manufacturing
costs. However, the decisive factor for optimizing costs and manufacturing
processes is the modular layout of the head-up display, which is designed
in such a way that very few components are specific to individual vehicle
variants. Consequently, fewer different components have to be prefabricated
and the individual vehicle variants of a model can be served from just one
production line. To switch production between, for example, the BMW 3
Series sedan and convertible, all that is needed is a different optical
mirror that has been adapted to the vehicle-specific windscreen curvature.
Its many years of experience with head-up displays have endowed Continental
with both core competences in instrumentation and vehicle electronics and
significant know-how in terms of optics and tool making. This wide-ranging
knowledge enables Continental to produce most components itself and pass on
the resulting benefits to its customers directly.
The future is altering reality -- "augmented reality" in
the head-up display
Continental also uses its wealth of experience to drive the further
development of head-up displays. In this respect, research revolves around
"augmented reality"- where virtual screen content from navigation and
driver assistance systems merge with the driver's actual field of vision.
In the future, information considered important will be highlighted
directly in the area in which it occurs.
"Augmented reality is an exciting area of research for us," explains Eelco Spoelder. "In case of a distance warning, the vehicle in front could be highlighted in the signal color red, for example, in the driver's visual field. The driver would also be able to see directional arrows in the navigation system or a lane-change warning directly on the road."
With sales of EUR30.5 billion in 2011, Continental is among the leading automotive suppliers worldwide. As a supplier of brake systems, systems and components for powertrains and chassis, instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires and technical elastomers, Continental contributes to enhanced driving safety and global climate protection. Continental is also an expert partner in networked automobile communication. Continental currently has approximately 164,000 employees in 46 countries. Continental Automotive