Functionality simulation of prototype products through virtual reality: automotive head-up display case study

Product design engineering entails a number of development and evaluation stages which typically test the usability and durability of a potential product. This process involves a significant cost for prototype implementation and evaluation which burdens the development of the final product. Evidently a large number of prototypes and evaluation processes could instead be conducted in a more cost-efficient virtual reality environment. This paper presents an automotive Head-Up Display (HUD) case study which utilises a virtual reality (VR) environment for testing the functionalities of a prototype interface. In particular the system enables the user to experiment safely with regard to the calibration distances. Additionally the user can customise the configuration and calibration of his/her HUD interface in real time. Such functionality would be essential for the final product, particularly in the case that the same vehicle would be used regularly by more than one driver. Further on we discuss the first stage of development and the methodology used for the implementation of the VR calibration system, analyse the problems that stemmed from this attempt and provide our solutions and suggestions for future use and implementation of VR in engineering calibration situations.