Peter Knoll

Plenary Lecture. Some pictures of the history of liquid crystals

Abstract A short review on the first 80 years of liquid crystal research has been given, beginning with the molecular theories of the 19th century, referring to the early work of Virchow and Mettenheimer, remembering the important pioneer Lehmann and his colleague Reinitzer. The struggle for truth against badly informed people like Tammann is also mentioned, as well as the final breakthrough and complete rehabilitation of Lehmann and Reinitzer. We apologize for having mentioned Vorlander only briefly but in the following review, Horst Sackmann will refer to him in great detail.

72.1: Automotive Night Vision System with Picture Presentation

First generation Night vision enhancement systems with image presentation in the dashboard have been introduced on the market. Far Infrared and Near Infrared systems are currently competing technologies. The camera picture is presented either with a Head-up display on the windscreen or in the dashboard region. An arbitrarily configurable LC display located in the instrument cluster was found to meet best the requirements of a quick and distraction-free reading. A precondition for a quick recognition and identification of relevant obstacles is a highcontrast and brilliant picture quality. To achieve this, picture quality improvement means have been applied. Such a setup has been selected for the new Mercedes S-Class.

Design of In-Plane-Compensation Foils for Viewing Angle Enhancement

TN-LCDs in normally white mode are the most frequently used displays but they suffer from a quite narrow viewing angle. Compared to the inclined discotic compensation foils, in biaxial compensation foils two optical axes are oriented in the plane of the foil. They are, therefore, cheaper to produce. However, some distinct retardations are difficult to realize in mass production, e.g. foils with a very small retardation or particular values of nz. Therefore, our aim was to find a good and cheap alternative. In the paper we will show, how such in-plane compensation foils are properly designed for a significant enhancement of the viewing angle.

Ultrasonic sensor for reverse driving applications

Abstract An ultrasonic sensor has been developed for the particular use of distance measurements to obstacles in reverse driving applications. By combining a local damping mechanism with a small conical reflector the sensor detection characteristics can be varied over a wide angular range of approximately 30–160° in the horizontal detection plane, while simultaneously the vertical opening angle can be limited to about 20–80°. Hence, a wide flexibility range exists in system design for different application fields from small passenger cars to heavy trucks. One such particular solution, making use of four sensor elements in a usual car bumper, is discussed in detail.

Short Range Radar System for Automotive Applications

The number of cars in Europe is increasing, leading to a higher traffic density. The average age of drivers is increasing consistent with demographics of the total European population. Every second accident involving vehicles is related to traffic situations in which faster reaction of the driver could have mitigate crash consequences. So, there is an increased need and appreciation for obstacle detection that operate at day and night.

Elektrische und elektronische Systeme im Kfz

Der Anteil der Elektronik im Fahrzeug stieg in den letzten Jahren stark an und wird auch in Zukunft noch weiter zunehmen. Die technische Entwicklung in der Halbleitertechnik ermoglicht mit der zunehmenden Integrationsdichte immer komplexere Funktionen. Die Funktionalitat der in Kraftfahrzeugen eingebauten elektronischen Systeme ubertrifft mittlerweile die Leistungsfahigkeit der Raumkapsel Apollo 11, die 1969 den Mond umkreiste.

Overview of electrical and electronic systems in the vehicle

The amount of electronics in the vehicle has risen dramatically in recent years and is set to increase yet further in the future. Technical developments in semiconductor technology support ever more complex functions with the increasing integration density. The functionality of electronic systems in motor vehicles has now surpassed even the capabilities of the Apollo 11 space module that orbited the Moon in 1969.

Nachtsichtverbesserung in Kraftfahrzeugen

Systeme zur Verbesserung der Nachtsicht konnen einen wesentlichen Beitrag zur Reduktion von Unfallen leisten, da sich fast 50 % aller todlichen Unfalle bei Nacht ereignen, obwohl nur rund ein Funftel aller Fahrten bei Nacht stattfinden [1]. Derzeit sind das Ferninfrarot(FIR)-basierte System und das Nahinfrarot( NIR)-basierte System in der offentlichen Diskussion. Beide besitzen spezifische Starken und Schwachen, die in diesem Beitrag der Robert Bosch GmbH naher beleuchtet werden.

Night vision enhancement for vehicles

Almost 50 % of all fatal accidents occur at night although only one fifth of all trips take place at night. For this reason, systems improving night-vision capabilities can contribute significantly to reducing accidents. At present the far-infrared-based system (FIR) and the near-infraredbased system (NIR) are being discussed in public. Both have strengths and weaknesses, both being discussed in this article by Robert Bosch GmbH, Leonberg, Germany.