Jaguar Land Rover reveals 360 Virtual Urban Windscreen

Jaguar Land Rover has revealed a 360 Virtual Urban Windscreen allowing drivers to ‘see’ through pillars and a ‘Ghost’ car in front to follow to your destination.

As technology advances, augmented reality looks set to find its way in to cars to help drivers be safer and more in control, something Jaguar Land Rover has already demonstrated with its ‘Transparent Bonnet’ technology.

Now, JLR are taking that a step further with transparent roof pillars that let you see what’s hidden by the car’s pillars as you drive, thanks to cameras that project an image of what’s hidden by the pillars on to screens embedded in the pillars.

That would mean the end of blind spots from pillars, and a clear view of pedestrians, cyclists and other vehicles that surrround the car at any time, and combining the cameras in the pillars with a sophisticated heads-up display would let the driver see all round with an on-screen halo moving across the screen.

Connecting the 360 Virtual Urban Windscreen to the Cloud would also allow you to ‘see’ infrastructure and businesses around you, with that information also presented in the heads-up display, enhancing navigation by offering instructions like ‘turn left at the White Horse pub in 200 yards’.

Not only that, but JLR say the system can also create a ‘Ghost’ car on the screen that the driver can follow, mimicking turns and indications just as you would if you were following a real car.

Dr Wolfgang Epple, JLR’s Research Director, said:

Our ultimate aim is to reduce road accidents and enhance the urban driving experience.

The Jaguar Land Rover research team is developing this technology to improve visibility and to give the driver with the right information at the right time. If we can keep the driver’s eyes on the road ahead and present information in a non-distracting way, we can help drivers make better decisions in the most demanding and congested driving environments.

Jaguar Land Rover’s 360 Virtual Urban Windscreen and Follow-MeGhost Car Navigation may still be a way away, but it does demonstrate how technology really could make driving a lot safer.