There are large screens for information and entertainment. And there is the “Hyperscreen” from Mercedes-Benz.
The German automaker has just unveiled a giant 56-inch pillar-to-pillar touchscreen that will debut in the next EQS luxury electric sedan. Hyperscreen is the centerpiece of the automaker’s second generation MBUX entertainment and information system, which avoids physical buttons in favor of a fully digital (and voice-controlled) user experience in the car.
To be sure, the Hyperscreen is not a screen, but several monitors embedded in a solid piece of curved glass that covers the entire panel. Based on the first images, there appear to be at least three screens incorporated into the viewfinder: an instrument panel behind the steering column, a central infotainment screen and an additional screen facing the front passenger.
Hyperscreen will appear for the first time on the EQS, a luxury electric sedan that Mercedes said will go into production in late 2021. It will be powered by MBUX, which is short for “Mercedes-Benz user experience”. First introduced in 2018, MBUX is one of the voice-controlled infotainment systems created by a carmaker with the most capacity on the market.
Mercedes says that Hyperscreen will include something called “zero layers”, in which the user no longer has to scroll through a variety of submenus or give voice commands “since the most important applications are always available situationally and contextually at the top of the driver’s field of vision. ”The automaker provided some examples, including:
If you always call a certain person on the way home on Tuesday nights, you will be asked to make the corresponding call on that day of the week and at a specific time of the day. A business card appears with your contact information and – if it is stored – your photo will appear. All MBUX suggestions are linked to the user’s profile. If someone else conducts the EQS on a Tuesday night, that recommendation would not be made – or another recommendation will be made, depending on the preferences of the other user.
The Hyperscreen will include a total of 12 actuators below the touch-sensitive surface for tactile feedback. Two cover plate coatings are said to reduce reflections and make cleaning easier. The curved glass itself consists of aluminum silicate especially resistant to scratches. And analog air vents are embedded in the surface at each end, offering an interesting mix of digital and physical.
Hyperscreen will not appear in a production car until the launch of the EQS in late 2021, but the new MBUX version will see its debut in the new S-Class, which was first unveiled last year. The updated infotainment system will allow drivers to save various preferences, such as seat settings, color of interior lighting, favorite radio station and more. These personal profiles can be activated or deactivated through the new safety features, or even loaded into other Mercedes-Benz vehicles. A fingerprint sensor on the main touchscreen and voice recognition will come as standard, and there is also a PIN configuration. Buyers can opt for a version of the car with cameras that also allow facial recognition.
The vehicles’ touch screens have grown larger over the years, with some automakers assuming that bigger equals better. Among production vehicles, the 2021 Cadillac Escalade’s 14.2-inch screen is particularly notable, as is the 2019 Ram 1500’s 12-inch screen. And the next Cadillac Lyriq electric SUV is promising a mind-blowing 33-inch screen. The Tesla Model 3’s 15-inch screen, which floats above the dashboard instead of wrapping around the curves of the interior, raised the bar for electric cars – one that Mercedes seems eager to jump off.
Obviously, it remains to be seen how all these screens distract the driver. Without a robust driver monitoring system to ensure that drivers stay focused on the road, these ultra-large screens can represent an enormous responsibility and security risk. A recent AAA study found that many digital infotainment systems appearing in newer cars can be distracting enough to increase the risk of accidents, especially for older drivers.
Mercedes says its zero-tier feature will reduce driver distraction – although that needs to be proven. “The goal was a concept without driver distraction or creating a complicated operation,” Sajjad Khan, member of the board of directors of Mercedes-Benz AG and CTO of the new generation MBUX, said in a press release. “We didn’t want to build the biggest car screen. Instead, we have developed special screens with a perfect ratio of size and functionality for maximum ease of use. “