JVC Kenwood's Car Navigation System Comes With Head-up Display

The head-up display (HUD) is attached to a rearview mirror. It can be used in a car with the steering wheel on the left side by inverting the optical unit/combiner. (image courtesy of JVC Kenwood)

The "MDV-737HUD" includes the "MDV-737DT" car navigation system in the "Saisoku Navigation" series and an HUD. (image courtesy of JVC Kenwood)





JVC Kenwood Corp will release a car navigation system that uses a head-up display (HUD) for showing information in mid-May 2013.
The HUD uses the "D-ILA (direct-drive image light amplifier)," an LCOS (liquid crystal on silicon) technology that JVC Kenwood developed for its projectors. In the past, the company released an HUD based on a different method as an optional product. But this is the first time that it has employed an HUD for a commercially available car navigation system.
The main unit of the car navigation system, "MDV-737HUD," and the HUD are manufactured in Indonesia and Japan, respectively, and will be sold as a set. Though there is no manufacturer's suggested retail price, the retail price of the set is expected to be ¥250,000 (approx US$2,530).
The HUD is attached to a rearview mirror. The size and pixel count of the D-ILA device are 0.37 inches and about 920,000, respectively. Its screen size is seven inches (when it is 2m away from the driver). With a white LED light source, it has a color temperature of 4,000K and a brightness of 15,000cd/m². Its operating temperature range is 0 to +45°C.
The system displays information in a way that the driver can understand it intuitively. For example, when the vehicle is approaching an intersection at which it needs to make a turn, a large arrow is displayed. Also, at complicated intersections in urban areas, 3D images are used. Detailed information such as map information is shown on a normal LCD monitor.
The main unit contains a terrestrial digital broadcast tuner and can display TV programs. It can play CDs and DVDs. It supports the USB1.1/2.0 and Bluetooth interfaces. And it has an SD memory card slot.
The unit is equipped with a three-dimensional gyro sensor and can measure the location of the vehicle with a high accuracy. The LCD monitor uses a 7V-type wide (width: 156.6mm, height: 81.6mm, diagonal: 176.6mm) TN (twisted nematic)-mode transmissive LCD panel using LED backlight.

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