MLX75031
Optical Gesture & Proximity Sensing IC
Advanced Automotive Human-Machine Interfaces
Using Optical Technology
By Kristof Lieben, Melexis
There are a plethora of navigation, comfort, entertainment and safety systems
now being incorporated into modern vehicles, whether they are in the luxury,
mid-range, or lower end bracket. The need for vehicle occupants to be able to
quickly and easily control these systems or access information rapidly is leading
to increased focus by automobile manufacturers and their system integrators on
implementation of smarter and more intuitive human machine interfaces
(HMIs). The following article discusses how optoelectronics will have a role to
play in this.
The increasing density of control functions found in vehicles has meant that dashboard panels
consisting solely of mechanical switches are no longer feasible, as having so many switches to
deal with will cause driver/passenger confusion. From a manufacturer perspective this is also
problematic since, in addition to taking up too much dashboard space and ruining the overall
aesthetic, a switch approach does not offer an easy upgrade path - making it difficult to add new
features to an existing design.
Car buyers when looking at the latest models on offer will want to be wowed by the breadth of
exciting new features and functionality they can utilise through the central console unit. They are
now expecting user experiences from these units that are on a par with what they are accustomed
in other parts of their everyday life.
As with many other industry sectors, deployment of touchscreen technology is becoming ever
more popular in the automotive arena. By 2019, it is predicted that annual global sales of
automotive touchscreens will have reached 35.7 million units. However, though this technology
is capable of offering highly intuitive HMIs, there are question marks about how appropriate it is
for certain tasks within car cabin settings and whether there is a need to supplement it with an
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