Car Tech A to Z: U is for urban windscreen

The technology contained within the modern motor car can be both fascinating and slightly baffling. Most such technology exists to make our cars safer, more efficient and just better than ever to drive but some of it can be quite confusing for the average motorist. In this A to Z series we will attempt to unravel the mystery of technology that is the modern motor car. This week, we’re visiting the letter U…

U is for…urban windscreen. Sounds like a trendy and rather long-winded way of describing what we otherwise know as the humble windscreen – in much the same way that a transparent wall engineer is also known as a window cleaner. However…

JLR has actually developed a new piece of technology that effectively removes the blind spots in a car caused by the various pillars that support the roof. And they call this the ‘urban windscreen’.

It works by using video feeds from various cameras mounted on the outside of the car, and it projects these images back on to screens mounted inside each pillar, inside the car, providing a live 360 degree view of the world from behind the wheel – a view that is totally uninterrupted by the A, B or C pillars. Making pedestrians, cyclists and other traffic visible all around the car.

The Urban Windscreen isn’t available on any production car just yet, but the system is well down the line in terms of development. And in an urban environment especially, the benefits will be palpable.

Next, the letter V…