Source: 12365auto
Electric cars need to be charged, so how do you pass the charging time? Tesla and BMW have developed solutions to play games in the car. Ford, on the other hand, is going even further, with plans to turn the vehicle’s hardware into gaming devices for occupants to play “immersive” and “shared” games while the car is charging.
A few days ago, Ford filed a new patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, using the headlights of the vehicle as a projector, the game screen projected onto the front plane of the vehicle, and the vehicle’s existing hardware (or auxiliary devices such as smartphones, PlayStation controllers) can be used to operate the game.
Instead of letting the occupants stare at the display, Ford plans to use high-definition matrix LED headlights as the headlights of the vehicle to project the clear game picture onto the flat surface. Low light can be used to project the image onto the road surface or an empty parking lot, and if there is a flat wall near the parking area, you can also use high beam to get a clearer image. The new patent also mentions that in foggy or rainy days, the vehicle has a function to compensate for low-light conditions.
Image source: auto12345
Ford believes that although the existing display screens in the car will provide clear images, they will not be visible to all occupants. Most displays are designed primarily for the driver and can involve at most the co-pilot’s passenger. If a large image of the game is projected onto the front of the vehicle, all occupants can enjoy the game.
Previously, Mercedes-Benz’s digital headlight system has been able to project very clear warning messages on the road surface, and vehicle lighting technology is still improving, so Ford’s vision is completely feasible.
Ford’s patent states that the vehicle’s occupants can interact with the game using existing controls such as a steering wheel, touch-screen display, or buttons. If the steering wheel is combined with a drive-by-wire system, it is possible to control racing games, but it is more likely to play simple games, for example, using a single control device such as a button or joystick in adaptive cruise control to operate a game like Tetris.
In terms of ensuring driving safety, the patent states that once the vehicle starts moving for any reason, the game will automatically shut down immediately, and the game will only restart after it is confirmed that the environment is safe and the vehicle has stopped. Of course, these checks are done every time when the game starts.
