Heads-Up-Display (HUD): More proof

[phantom701]

I actually much prefer BMW HUD over Prius. There's color and info do not go missing like what's shown in the Prius' videos.

I do like the Laser HUD idea because with my polarized glasses, the HUD display is washed out.

 

[malcolm]

Maybe a laser HUD?

Ah okay. Now I get it.

 

[McRat]

I just drove around with the HUD on for awhile to figure out exactly why they suck.

The problem with HUDs in the real world is that they cannot detect what background color exists. They would have to have an eye level video camera sync'd to your exact POV. What some HUDs do to minimize this defect is to crank up the intensity, which is not a good solution since it makes objects invisible where the HUD image exists.

Instrument panels can control background contrast, HUDs cannot.

While the problem is worse at night, it still occurs during daylight hours. When a HUD works OK, it works. But you do not get to pick when it doesn't work. Driving into the sun aggravates it even more.

And what many people do not understand is how the human eye works. They believe your eye sees everything in front of you at once. No, your eye is constructed with a high resolution field only in the very center of your line of sight.

Here's an experiment for you that you can do at your desk:

Stare at some text you can read that is 2 feet away. Now move your focus down just 1", that's all. Do not move your eye, just read the text again. Notice that you can't? Your eye does magic trick to overcome this. It is constantly moving to fill in the low resolution areas in front of you. This happens in millisecs. It takes no longer to glance at the instrument cluster than the HUD text.

Yeah, HUD does sound like it's an improvement over instruments, but reality screws up the theory.

 

[evp]

If Tesla does incorporate a HUD, please let it be visible while wearing polarized sunglasses.

Physics says that's not going to happen. The reflection off the glass polarizes the light in the exact direction polarized sunglasses are designed to suppress.

 

[Topher]

Physics says that's not going to happen. The reflection off the glass polarizes the light in the exact direction polarized sunglasses are designed to suppress.

Could you explain this please. What determines the polarization of the light from the HUD?

Thank you kindly.

 

[voip-ninja]

The HUD on my last 3 series was awesome (for a number of reasons I didn't get it on my current car but at times I do miss it). It had multiple colors and showed a lot of helpful information in addition to speed. You could see radio/XM stations, media player tracks, navigation turns, it could even use the information from the cameras in the rear-view mirror to display the last detected speed limit sign.

Yes, I was miffed for about a week when I first got the car and found out that my Maui Jims wouldn't work due to them being polarized.

Then I realized that whining that a $200 pair of sunglasses didn't work with the HUD of a $50,000 car when the displays in $200M aircraft have similar problems was just stupid, and I bought a new pair of sunglasses... problem solved.

Polarization filters work in one of two directions, either vertical or horizontal. If the display you are looking at is built vertically vs horizontally the polarized glasses might still work... kind of.

It's really not worth worrying about. If the Tesla has a HUD then get over it and buy some new sunglasses.

Because physics.

 

[musicious]

Maybe a laser HUD?

Looks cool! Is it flickering just cause of the video camera?

 

[S3XY]

Physics says that's not going to happen. The reflection off the glass polarizes the light in the exact direction polarized sunglasses are designed to suppress.

Is a polarized windshield feasible?

 

[McRat]

I just thought of brilliant idea for car instruments.

Make them a cellphone app.

Everyone is staring at their phone while driving anyhow...

 

[Topher]

Make them a cellphone app.

Torque is way ahead of you. Even comes with a HUD option.

Thank you kindly.

 

[Xminus6]

Looks cool! Is it flickering just cause of the video camera?

I would assume the camera's frame rate and the HUD's refresh rate are out of synch. Pretty common in video for even things like overhead lights. You can even see this in the Model S's rear-facing cameras with certain cars' driving lights. I had a Mercedes behind me yesterday at a stoplight and the driving lights (eyebrows) were phasing all over the place in the rear view.

 

[phantom701]

Is a polarized windshield feasible?

Probably not feasible for the following reasons:
* Cost of making polarized windshield might be too expensive
* Potential safety issues where polarized windshield might block certain visual

 

[ModelNforNerd]

Choosing between an HUD or fully autonomous AP as the two best explanations for lack of dashboard displays, I think it's much more likely to be an HUD. I doubt that Tesla is going to equip all Model 3s with AP as a standard feature (they've only said the safety features will be standard), so not every Model 3 will have AP. So if HUD isn't the reason, what will cars without AP do?

Why can't it be both?

 

[zenmaster]

Physics says that's not going to happen. The reflection off the glass polarizes the light in the exact direction polarized sunglasses are designed to suppress.

I hope you don't teach physics. Short answer to the assertion is no. You typically have either horizontal or vertical polarization of light - be it reflected or filtered. It's when there is a match that you get the cancellation.

 

[GBleck]

Think of light as a bunch of particles wiggling like the surface of a wavy body of water. The difference being that each particle is waving in a different direction. Some up and down, side to side or in between. When they strike the surface of a transparent surface like water or glass only the ones going one direction get bounced off the surface and the others penetrate. Polarized glasses filter out he light that is polarized from reflections off horizontal surfaces like the surface of the water around your boat. The problem with hud reflections is the wind shield reflects the image to you the same way light reflects off the ocean. Polarized sunglasses filter out that image like a reflection. If you bounce the image off a surface that is tilted 90 degrees from the normal direction of a wind shield that might work but at that point you really are building a jet fighter HUD. Also most display systems use polarized filters to control light passing through them. Two polarizing filters at 90 deg will stop light but at the same angle let it through. If you can't see the display just tilt your head and it should pop back up dim but viewable. Optical physics is trippy stuff, no?

 

[GBleck]

Thinking about it some more you might be able to get an in polarized light on the inner surface of the windshield if you coated it with an oriented organic molecule film that emits light in either the correct polarization or not polarized. A laser HUD perhaps? An cathode ray tube would be epic but I'm not sure if it would work, or make the driver glow in the dark like something in fallout 4. Atomic age punk as hell though.

 

[ikjadoon]

Tesla is good about accommodating customers, but not always. Sometimes they have a vision and they expect consumers to adapt.

Like, the cupholder situation (thankfully remedied) and the door pockets. And the non-adjustable seatbelts (fixed on the Model X). And the massive touchscreen instead of knobs and buttons. Most people have to adjust to these things.

I think most automakers have moved towards HUDs especially in the luxury market, even with their loss of function with polarized glasses.

Someone mentioned that you can partially rotate the HUD, so that it is neither exactly vertical nor exactly horizontal. Apparently, it's less bright, but at least it is visible. Any physics experts want to chime in?

 

[WichitaHack]

It could be that the HUD simply isn't ready yet and that's why they're hiring people with experience in that field. They have a little while to get it all sorted.

That said, I'm not sure that I believe it will have a HUD. I think it will have other types of feedback to help assist the driver instead.

I do not think it with have a HUD either.....at least I am hoping it does not. I would still love a traditional digital instrument cluster. What ever they decide to do, I am sure I will love it though. I trust Elon.

 

[zenmaster]

Someone mentioned that you can partially rotate the HUD, so that it is neither exactly vertical nor exactly horizontal. Apparently, it's less bright, but at least it is visible. Any physics experts want to chime in?

You can either rotate the display or rotate your head. On my system, HUD brightness ranges from 5% to 80% through polarized lenses, depending on head tilt angle.

 

[Garlan Garner]

How does a HUD look on a frozen/fogged-up window?