A Third of Passenger Vehicles to Include Head-Up Displays by 2024, Says ABI

Nearly a third of passenger vehicles shipping in 2024 will be equipped with some form of head-up display (HUD), and most will be combiner units, said a report from ABI Research. “The lower manufacturing cost and smaller size of combiner HUDs will make this kind of display viable” in smaller and price-sensitive vehicles, said analyst James Hodgson. The growth will be fueled by an industry consensus toward keeping drivers’ eyes on the road, he said. Traditional head units are being joined by virtual instrument clusters and HUDs in providing drivers with information about navigation, on-board audio and inputs from advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), he said. Strong growth is predicted for the category to keep pace with the proliferation of connected vehicles requiring adaptable and reconfigurable visual interfaces, Hodgson said. Primary suppliers of HUDs include Bosch, Continental, Denso, Nippon-Seiki and Panasonic. Displays also are likely to become more specialized in their content, said Hodgson. He said the 2014 Audi TT discarded the traditional head unit screen in favor of a virtual instrument cluster but said there's still the opportunity for multiple displays to be included in a single vehicle to meet specific roles. He envisioned a future vehicle including an HUD that “augments the driver’s appreciation of what is unfolding outside of the vehicle,” a digital instrument cluster for critical vehicle information and a separate head unit geared to “entertaining the front passenger rather than assisting the driver,” said Hodgson.