You might think that to control the multitude of infotainment and connected functions inside a modern BMW that actual buttons, the iDrive Controller, voice control, and Gesture Control would be enough, but apparently, you'd be wrong. BMW believes the interior of the future should be more, well, futuristic; so at next month's 2017 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, it will reveal what a real futuristic control system looks like.
BMW calls it HoloActive Touch. It is based, as you might guess, on a holographic virtual touchpad that you can control with your fingers. Even better, HoloActive Touch somehow provides tactile feedback to make it feel like you have touched the virtual pad.
We've seen this before, but not in real life. Many motion pictures—such as Minority Report—used holographic touchscreens, but they all took place in the future. For BMWs, the future may be getting closer.
BMW HoloActive Touch is part of the BMW i Inside Future study. Visitors to CES 2017 from January 5 though 8, will see BMW's concept demonstration for controlling the seamlessly connected and self-driving vehicles it envisions.
HoloActive Touch combines the advantages of the BMW Head Up Display with BMW Gesture Control, all arranged to simulate a direct touchscreen. The driver can access BMW Connected functions using an image of a full-color display that is generated using reflections but appears to be free floating in the car's interior. It is visible to the driver next to the steering wheel at about the same height as the center console. As long as the driver's hand stays within a specific area, a camera will pick up the motion and the computer will register the position of the fingertips relative to the virtual screen. When a fingertip "contacts" the virtual control surface, a pulse is emitted and the appropriate function is activated. BMW says the system provides tactile feedback but we'll have to see someone actually try it before we comment on that.
BMW has been using CES for the last few years to premiere advanced-technology interior concepts, and many of them have become reality in production cars, such as BMW Gesture Control from a couple of years ago. We thought Gesture Control was neat, but limited by the number of available commands. BMW HoloActive Touch sounds much more advanced and much more interesting.—Scott Blazey
[Photo courtesy of BMW AG.]
