Jaguar Land Rover Reveals Its ‘Transparent Pillar’ And ‘Ghost Car’ Tech To Aid Visibility

It’s not as creepy as it sounds, but Jaguar Land Rover is working on new technology that makes thick pillars disappear and has you follow a “ghost car” with navigation directions.

The company announced Monday these two new devices being developed are intended to aid visibility, but with the help of cameras and digital imaging.

The transparent pillars are part of the so-called 360 Virtual Urban Windscreen. This appears to be a solution to the ever-widening pillars on new cars. JLR says screens embedded into the two pillars around the car work with cameras around the vehicle to project the image that would normally be obscured. Sort of like Honda’s LaneWatch camera, a flick of an indicator would make the pillar relevant to the lane change transparent and project what’s in the blindspot from the camera.

Another part of the new driver aids is the eerily named “Follow-MeGhost Car Navigation.” Usefully, however, this is a system that creates a fake car to project onto the windscreen so you can follow it when taking driving directions. Turn arrows and other information is projected on the glass as well. But it gives you a clear marker and way to follow that might be less distracting or annoying than the voice guidance.

Earlier this year, JLR showed off its Virtual Windscreen Concept that gives an idea of where the company is going with this kind of technology. Their stated goal is to project useful information to the driver while reducing the need to glance down at other screens in the car.

“The Jaguar Land Rover research team is developing this technology to improve visibility and to give the driver with the right information at the right time,” said Dr. Wolfgang Epple, JLR’s Director of Research and Technology. “If we can keep the driver’s eyes on the road ahead and present information in a non-distracting way, we can help drivers make better decisions in the most demanding and congested driving environments.”

They’re definitely creative solutions that would make some of the more stressful aspects of driving that much more manageable.