Project NiteVision - NiteMax + HUD + carputer

**Custommx3** · 04-27-2006, 01:19 PM

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1949721,00.asp

**shotgunefx** · 04-27-2006, 01:36 PM

Originally Posted by Custommx3

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1949721,00.asp

There's another one earlier in the thread similar.

VFD is much easier (as far as visibility anyway). Though they don't deal with double reflections or how to minimize it's appearence to the outside world.

If you look at the other tests, clear plastic does display two images, the one you want and the one you don't (directly above the display). Maybe some shapes of windshield don't have this problem, but mine certainly does.

Easy enough to minimize with a filter.. but anyway, I'd be more interested in seeing real pics of it (different situations, video, etc). If you look at the previous similar DIY in this thread, you can see it's not without it's flaws.

Regardless... I like this pic

**NiteMax Mark** · 04-27-2006, 02:29 PM

Originally Posted by alpha_maverick

Little or no ghosting
excellent reflection
excellent transmission
no distortion

current judgement:

PERFECT!!!!

now you need to figure out how to use the lenses to adjust the focal distance out past 20 feet (the point at which our eyes no longer actively focus)

I won't say how or where or when, but...

I've used a real Heads Up Display (HUD) on a Military Fighter and the optics give it a real interesting feature. Information is focused out on the horizon so your eyes don't need to change focus -- that's simple enough. But, the image was correlated with the horizon too. Meaning you could have a cross-hair on the display showing you a spot in the distance and no matter where you moved your head, it would point to the same spot in the distance. It was a passive system that gave it this characteristic with only the optics. It's hard to explain but easy to understand if you've ever seen one.

Imagine holding a finger up at arms length and pointing your finger at a distant object. If you then tip your head to the right or left of your finger, it wouldn't point to the same place any more. See what I mean? Well, the optics in a real HUD actually do something to make the image appear to be far away and it also stays in the same relative position as the far-away objects too. Tipping your head to the left or the right would cause the image to appear stationary relative to the distant object. Even though the hud was close, the image was far away.

Did that make sense?

**shotgunefx** · 04-27-2006, 02:56 PM

I think I'm groking it. (mostly

)

BTW, here's an informative link on the DIY side.
http://www.mikesflightdeck.com/head_up_displays.htm

I might have to hit my library for the following....

Head Up Displays: Designing the Way Ahead by Richard L Newman. (1995, Ashgate Publishing ISBN 0291398111)

**Genesisfactor** · 04-27-2006, 11:38 PM

okay, i have good news. I found a utility that inverts our display to what we want it to be presented

.

Bad news: we need a software guy to reverse engineer iit to be more controllable. Also, i'm going to test it out in dual display and hopefully it will affect only one graphics card at a time.

So, if anyone knows a few software guys willing to give up soem tiem to help develope such a utility out of the goodness of their hearts, that would be great

. I'm going to have someone play with it on my end and hopefulyly get something rolling.

Ofcours, if anyone thinks they can find a controllable utility to do this, please, i'm dying to know where. Shotgun, do you mind hosting the file?

@mark. holo display. Used also in the EoTec Holosight (when i was getting a rifle, i was getting that with it...but never got the rifle). i was asking about that in the beginning of the thread to quantum. If we can get that working nicely, that would be great after we figure out the double image problem. It would be perfect then.

**alti** · 04-28-2006, 12:11 AM

I think powerstrip will handle everything you are looking for in software, I am not sure on the inverting and flipping of the image only on the second monitor, but if any software had the ability to do it would probibly be powerstrip.

personally i think that i am just giong to use the lcd that came with the nitemax for the hud, so it will not even go through the computer. I will run the output of the rca to the computer so it can display the cameras image as well as on the HUD, but I am giong to leave the HUD strickly for nightvision.

**Genesisfactor** · 04-28-2006, 01:16 AM

I'm aware, but unless mark gets the lcd to output vga correctly, i'll be using a psone screen, possibly). If that has the ability to do it hardware, great. If i have to wait for nitemax and get a $5 magnifier, i'd rather that. Just for now, i want to play with it and get soething working incase it doesn't.

yes, i have faith in you mark

**shotgunefx** · 04-28-2006, 05:26 AM

Genesisfactor, if it's legally ok for my to host a copy, not a problem.

Some more pics and a vid. It's hard to get pics of it as it's so small and my focus goes screwy. The HUD glass fairs pretty well to light. Much better than the others I've tried. As the pictures show, contrast will be important in designing the display. Another tact is to place it so that it's overlaying the front of the car and not the road, then you don't have to worry about ambient light.

Without the 3M privacy filter over the lcd, a secondary image above on the windshield is highly noticable. If the LCD is all the way up, it's noticable even with the privacy filter, but not so bad.

Baclight turned all the way up, as you can see, at full blast, black becomes pretty noticable on the display.

Here's a 4mb quicktime video.
HUD test 2006/04/28

Now we just have to figure out how to magnify the image and project it at infinity

**alti** · 04-28-2006, 08:23 AM

Originally Posted by shotgunefx

Now we just have to figure out how to magnify the image and project it at infinity

amen, and good work.

I work at in the IT department of a college, and i have had my eyes pealed for broken projectors, even overhead ones. I dont think that is going to happen though, I have been looking at old projectors (slide, filmstrip, ect) on ebay with optics included, this may be the route i go, I have to research it more still.

**Genesisfactor** · 04-28-2006, 11:31 AM

awesome. How much does this HUD glass cost and how noticable is it? i'm guessing you put it directly on your window? One more major step and then alti's happy: getting an image of the NiteMax on there! I still got a few steps to go for myself:P.

BTW, triple monitor display off a laptop is a frightening, yet exhilrating experience...well...no...but its is in the scheme of coolness factor cause i've never seen it before...i'll shut up now...

My next quesiton is software. Does anyone know any good overlay/transperancy software available? See, what i want to do is have select GPS, or GPS and night vision, or NV alone.