What is a HUD?

A HUD (Head-Up Display) is a transparent display that presents important vehicle & system information in, or close to, the line of sight of the driver. The HUD enables the drivers to keep their head up, and more importantly, eyes out while still being able to acquire essential information. Furthermore, the HUD display is focused ahead of the vehicle windshield so that the driver can get dynamic real-time data without having to refocuse the eye between the information display and the outside view. 

A HUD is used to present all essential vehicle, system and navigation data, as well as intuitive display of vehicle safety system information. A HUD is that way natural complement to and enabler of many emerging ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems).

A Brief History of HUDs

HUDs were first widely deployed in tactical military aircraft. They were primarily installed to provide the pilot with a display of essential flight & tactical information while keeping a look out for other aircraft and threats. Over recent years, HUDs have also been widely adopted in military and civil transport aircraft due to their recognised advantage as a display for improved safety and awareness of the environment. Most recently, HUDs have found limited application in private vehicles.

Key Advantages

HUDs provide an intuitive information display presented in close to the driver's outside world view. This provides several key advantages over reliance on the head-down instrument cluster:

• Significant increase in the time the driver spends "eyes out"
• Simplifies the combined tasks of driving safely, monitoring the vehicle speed and performance and navigating to the destination
• Reduced driver fatigue in managing vehicle information while paying attention to the outside world
• Unique HUD capabilities enable the display of information coherent (conformal) with the outside world
• A HUD close to the driver's line of sight enables the intuitive display of enhanced features and dynamic real-time data

Adaptable Solutions

We offer customised HUD solutions for commercial transportation vehicles, trains, off-highway vehicles and construction machines.

Our HUD design provides a high-resolution display with wide field of view, high light intensity and a high contrast ratio offering usability in all typical ambient light conditions. At HUD Solutions we are also investigating advanced, comformal optical solutions to support the next generation of advanced HUDs.

The HUD can be adapted for installation in most vehicle cabs, using overhead or panel mounting. We can work your 3D data models to provide an energineered solution for your unique requirements.