Hyundai Mobis has unveiled the Kia EV9 equipped with a "holographic windscreen"

BMW used CES 2025 to unveil its new Panoramic iDrive system, which includes a full-width display at the bottom of the windscreen. Hyundai Mobis responded with its projection display, which projects information onto the transparent part of the windscreen. And in Hyundai's concept, this can be any part of the glass, not just the lower part.

Here's What We Know

Hyundai Mobis created the next-generation projection display in co-operation with the world-renowned German optical company ZEISS. The Kia EV9 electric crossover vehicle was chosen to demonstrate the system at CES 2025.

Hyundai and ZEISS' idea is partly similar to the system shown by BMW, but at the same time has a number of differences. For example, in BMW's Panoramic Vision, the image is displayed on a black printed surface at the bottom of the windscreen, and an optional 3D Head-Up Display can be provided for the driver. With Hyundai, however, the images are projected onto a transparent film that is applied to any part of the windscreen and is only 100 micrometres thick.

The film uses an optical component called HOE (holographic optical element). The latter implements the principle of light diffraction (the deviation of light from its original path to reach its destination) to "efficiently deliver images and videos" projected from a projector to the eye position of people in the driver and passenger seats. There's also a possible privacy mode so the driver isn't distracted by what the passenger is viewing.

Although in the show car the film was applied to the base of the windscreen, Hyundai Mobis noted that other configurations are possible. For example, on the sides of the windscreen, so that the holographic projection display would "work like a curved smartphone screen".

The high-tech projection display (HUD) consists of several sections and can display the instrument cluster, side camera views, navigation information and entertainment content. This eliminates the need for a traditional instrument cluster as well as a front passenger display. Hyundai Mobis added that the display works in a bright outdoor environment and looks like a traditional window from the outside.

Preliminary development has been completed in the first half of 2024, with the product launch scheduled for 2027 at the earliest. Hyundai Mobis has previously stated that the global holographic HUD market could reach seven million units by 2030.

Source: Hyundai Mobis