Windowless Vehicles of the Future

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Militaries all over the world have been developing and researching new methods and technologies to further benefit their country’s cause. From self driving tanks to automated missile defense systems, military technology has always been expanding and evolving. As technology advances, researchers have been looking at ways to eliminate any flaws in the existing tools the military uses. One all too common vulnerability that militaries everywhere have to deal with is windows, that is why researchers at DARPA are looking at possible ways to get rid of windows in military vehicles.

Today, windows are incredibly necessary in most military vehicles. You need them in order to see where you’re going, but they are also vulnerable to attack. Even if you were to equip vehicles with theoretically invulnerable bulletproof glass windows, you would still have the issue of dirt and dust building up on the glass, making it hard for the people inside the vehicle to see through the glass.

Wired.com reports that Honeywell has unveiled a system that taps augmented reality to give vehicle operators a panoramic sense of their surroundings, with no windows necessary.

The system features internal displays that provide a panoramic view of the outside world, without anything obstructing the view. Cameras mounted on the roof of the vehicle collect the imagery and computers stitch the images together to create a cohesive view of the outside world.

Honeywell’s designers didn’t just stop there, they integrated mixed reality to the screens inside the vehicles so that soldiers inside can view relevant intelligence, further increasing their situational awareness.

All the added benefits of windowless vehicles sounds great, but such a system isn’t worth much if the driver and passengers are all suffering from motion sickness due to a “rugged” video feed. To combat this concern, Honeywell has been working to make smooth display a top priority.

The system has been tested on an off road track. Professional drivers have tested the technology with promising results, feeling confident enough with the system to reach speeds of up to 40 miles per hour.

Future plans for Honeywell include implementing infrared and thermal scanning capabilities to the display.