SAMSUNG’S VISION OF AR-POWERED SELF-DRIVING CARS IS STRAIGHT FROM THE FUTURE

Samsung has become one of the car industry’s main component suppliers. Even though the company doesn’t build its own electric / self-driving vehicles, Samsung supplies major carmakers like Tesla, Rivian, and others with various technologies, ranging from batteries to cameras and lighting systems. The company is strengthening its position in the car market, and this week at CES 2022, Samsung unveiled its vision for the future of in-vehicle experiences in a simulated demonstration.

The concept is the result of a combination of Samsung’s latest tech innovations and HARMAN’s expertise in the automotive sector. It showcases a system wherein cameras and sensors analyze a vehicle’s surroundings to then display relevant AR (augmented reality) info within the driver’s field of view.

You could say that Samsung’s vision of the future of in-vehicle experiences is a souped-up heads-up display based on augmented reality technologies, connected to an array of advanced sensors for environmental mapping, object recognition, and so on.

Vehicle-to-everything communication, AR maps, See-Through technology, and more

Samsung’s tech demo looks somewhat familiar to anyone that has used a modern HUD in a car equipped with self-driving technologies. Drivers get a 3D navigation arrow and other bits of information about their vehicle right in their field of view.

Similar, though not as impressive HUD graphics exist, but as useful as modern HUDs are, Samsung’s AR system goes much further and explores what could be achieved using augmented reality. Things like vehicle-to-everything communications, See-Through technology, and more.

At one point in the video below, Samsung demonstrates how “See-Through” technology could allow a driver who may be driving behind a truck to see what’s in front. And in poor visibility conditions, the system can scan for and render the outline of wild animals that might be crossing the road in front of the car.

Unlike standard HUD systems, Samsung’s AR technology is almost limitless, within the confines of augmented reality, of course. It’s all a tech demo at this point, but even so, it offers a glimpse of where the self-driving vehicle industry could be going next.