Thread: Project NiteVision - NiteMax + HUD + carputer

hmmm, okay...but have you considered just putting your film on the glass and reflecting it from the top. Since you don't really ahve to bother with seeing past it (esp if you make yoru HUD show information) and the fact that if the lights are on, the speedo behind it should glow through...I mena, hav eyou tried it and if so, cna i see a pic of two of the outcome before i chop up my goodies?

Originally Posted by Genesisfactor

hmmm, okay...but have you considered just putting your film on the glass and reflecting it from the top. Since you don't really ahve to bother with seeing past it (esp if you make yoru HUD show information) and the fact that if the lights are on, the speedo behind it should glow through...I mena, hav eyou tried it and if so, cna i see a pic of two of the outcome before i chop up my goodies?

Not sure I follow you. Not sure we're on the same page.

Reflecting it from the top?? You mean the roof or something?

"the speedo behind it should glow through"

The speedo won't be behind anything.

Damn it....i just draw you a picture and i hit the back key on my IBM keyboard. I mena, have the LCD ont he cowel of the guage cluster, and it refklcts off the glass. The gagues themselves shoudl shine through

Originally Posted by Genesisfactor

Damn it....i just draw you a picture and i hit the back key on my IBM keyboard. I mena, have the LCD ont he cowel of the guage cluster, and it refklcts off the glass. The gagues themselves shoudl shine through

The HUD & digital dash are two seperate things.

When the touchscreen goes in the gauge cluster, It's just going to be a regular lcd with backlight. The idea is to have the normal gauges on top for a few reasons.

1. Inspectional purposes. Plus if the computer is out, I'll still have regular gauges. Also hides it from thieves.
2. The coolness factor.
3. My existing cluster is not well thought out. All the gauges are behind the wheel from the driver's perspective. You can't really see them without craning around the steering wheel. The redesign will put it higher, but not above the hoodline.

Here's roughly what it will look like.


As far as the HUD, I just want that to project on the windshield like everyone else.

wait a sec, then i'm def not following your project...or the ergonomics of the project.

First let me go through the realistic and hten i';ll hit the fanciful...

You're puttiung your touchscreen in the gauge cluster? But why the TOUCH screen, why not a regular LCD screen? Do you really want to reach over your steering wheel to hit something?

Alos, i'm wondering if we lost the inital focus of the project. THe video feed was supposed to be the image from the NiteMax, which had a practical factor (i would drive by that image....and have...and its safer than without at times). My only addition ws the overlay fo the IGuidance screen for mapping. and speedo. I've alwyas said that having a full out video would be problemmatic and dangerous because you can't see through most colors except dark ones (for the windshield) and that the gauge cluster would be the safest place for such a system, but a touch screen gauge cluster???. Where are you going with the project? I gotta know

On the fanciful side, why not do this (it might work, might not, never tried it). The resistive glass overlay (if it fits) goes on the gauge glass (my Hitatchi one from my trannsnote is clear) and reflect form the cowl of the dash (its the lip that keeps the sun out of the dash so you can see everything) and angle it so it shines on the overly. That way, no matter what, you get your LCD, your touchscreen, and your guage cluster. Just a thought.

Originally Posted by Genesisfactor

wait a sec, then i'm def not following your project...or the ergonomics of the project.

First let me go through the realistic and hten i';ll hit the fanciful...

You're puttiung your touchscreen in the gauge cluster? But why the TOUCH screen, why not a regular LCD screen? Do you really want to reach over your steering wheel to hit something?

Alos, i'm wondering if we lost the inital focus of the project. THe video feed was supposed to be the image from the NiteMax, which had a practical factor (i would drive by that image....and have...and its safer than without at times). My only addition ws the overlay fo the IGuidance screen for mapping. and speedo. I've alwyas said that having a full out video would be problemmatic and dangerous because you can't see through most colors except dark ones (for the windshield) and that the gauge cluster would be the safest place for such a system, but a touch screen gauge cluster???. Where are you going with the project? I gotta know

On the fanciful side, why not do this (it might work, might not, never tried it). The resistive glass overlay (if it fits) goes on the gauge glass (my Hitatchi one from my trannsnote is clear) and reflect form the cowl of the dash (its the lip that keeps the sun out of the dash so you can see everything) and angle it so it shines on the overly. That way, no matter what, you get your LCD, your touchscreen, and your guage cluster. Just a thought.

Your are correct, I wouldn't and really couldn't be using it as a touch screen on the gauge cluster. In my original design, no touch screen at all, anywhere, just the trackball built into the shifter, (though I had already purchased the lilli with TS for cheap)

I knew it would take awhile, so I put it in the double din until everything was done, then I figured, what the hell, I'll just have dual heads, the touchscreen in the center console and the other screen in the gauge cluster.

I keep refering to it as such because that's what I have at the moment also pegs down which lcd we're refering to here. (lilli, nitemax,camcorder )

Originally as far as nitemax, I was just thinking of feeding the video to the eventual gauge replacment. Other people discussed projecting it as a HUD and the idea of a HUD on the windshield seemed cool, for cool sake so got me thinking about that. As an aside, the few tests of done with projecting in front of the windsheild, all colors are fairly transparent.

If you want to have it reflect on the gauge cluster and you have the room, probably would be best to just use a PSONE screen and just have it reflect off the cluster glass. You'd still need to hide it from view though. You could probably use a piece of that privacy film like I did. That hid the lcd pretty well, but it was somwhat far away from me due to the layout of my dash. If the lcd is really close to you, you'd probably need to angle the lcd and/or privacy film to get it to disappear to your eyes.

Originally Posted by trasko

I don't want to speak for someone else here, but I believe you have just confused two separate things into one. Ignore anything to do with the gauges, touch screens and instrument panels and you'll be good... Aside from a few asides here and there, this whole thread is about the Nitemax and how to make a proper "infinity-focused" HUD from its output.

Probably not helping that I've got a dozen things going on and might have meandered here and there where they overlap.