Get to the Head: Why We Currently Miss the Full Potential of Head-Mounted Displays in Vehicles

Get to the Head: Why We Currently Miss the Full Potential of Head-Mounted Displays in Vehicles

Current concepts of automated vehicles include an increasing usage of internal infotainment displays. Although being visually appealing, such display concepts introduce drawbacks in terms of ergonomics – neck stress and unnatural interaction with a display in the side door – and increase the price. Additionally, occupants of a vehicle often occlude screens for others or their seating orientation might complicate viewing a specific display. Other design concepts introduce the usage of hand-held devices to transmit information about the car. We propose to use augmented and virtual reality head-mounted displays instead of fixed screens to overcome these issues. While concepts that based on displays and handheld devices consequently design for the use of these devices, there are no concepts that showcase interior designs for HMD usage. Current advances to use HMDs inside the car just showcase the possibility to wear a headset while being in the car. Important questions for the interior concept, such as the storage of HMDs, the integration with the existing HMD and the consequent use of the interior to support interaction in VR, have not yet been addressed. We present two exemplary scenarios that showcase the possible impact a consequent design for HMDs could have on the vehicles interior. With our proposal we want to foster the discussion on the possibilities of HMDs and the needs on the interior design to make use of the full potential of VR experiences in the car.