Finding ourselves driving under a heavy rainfall, or in a thick fog, is certainly not what you would call a pleasant experience, and often, using fog headlights would not make the situation much better. In such cases, fortunately, modern technology can lend us a hand, at least according to the latest researches being carried out at General Motors.
The Detroit giant, in fact, is developing a special prototype of windshield which, installed on its cars, would allow for a safer driving experience and an easier orientation in conditions of poor visibility, by using the Augmented Reality (AR) principle.
In practice, the windshield of your car would become a big display, on which you could see data and images, gathered thanks to an array of sensors and cameras, which help reconstruct the image that the driver would see in that moment if the visibility conditions were normal. Along with this, the system can, just like a normal GPS navigator, detect accidents or roadblocks along the way.
The sensors placed on the windshield can also detect the driver’s movements and reactions, helping him to maintain a correct driving style, for example by displaying the sideline of the road, in order to avoid losing control of the car even when fog is so thick that the line can not be seen.
The augmented reality uses infrared night vision equipment, GPS navigation systems and several sensors, along with a phosphorus screen. An interface can be added, which informs the driver about speed limits and road exits, and make safety absolute. At this stage, a commercial launch is not scheduled, but it may not take too long before our cars become much different from the ones we know now.