Automotive Head-Up Display Market

Market Overview

The global automotive head-up display market size was valued at USD 1.10 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach USD 5.09 billion by 2031, with a CAGR of 30.9% during the forecast period, 2023–2031.

Automotive Head-up Display (HUD) is a partially transparent display that provides limited and live information, allowing a driver to comprehend it while driving a vehicle. HUD technology was first introduced in the aviation industry, and now it is one of the most attractive technologies installed across most luxurious cars. Moreover, HUDs are extensively used in machine maintenance and in sports to provide improved situational comprehension with real-time data.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) survey, close to 1.25 million people die every year as a result of fatal road accidents across the world. HUD display, with its driver-assist display that reports timely events, has the potential to prevent accidents. In the early stages, HUD was extensively used in military aircraft. Still, the technology has matured and is finding broader applications in various fields, such as automobiles, augmented reality in video games, and others. The paramountcy of HUD display crops up during low visibility weather conditions such as winter, rainy, and snowfall. HUD screen displays information such as blind turns on the road ahead, direction, distance covered and left, speed of the car, etc.

Market Dynamics

What are the Driving Factors for The Global Automotive Head-Up Display Market?

Passenger and vehicle safety has been the primary concern of vehicle buyers. The objective of regulatory authorities worldwide is to enhance automobile safety. According to the 2018 Global Status Report on Road Safety, more than 1.35 million road traffic deaths occur annually worldwide. By 2030, road traffic injuries are projected to become the sixth biggest cause of mortality worldwide. Distraction is one of the leading causes of these collisions. According to the National Center for Statistics and Analysis (NCSA), roughly nine people are killed, and over one thousand are injured every day in the United States in crashes involving a distracted driver. Through head-up displays, accidents resulting from driver distraction caused by observing in-vehicle displays can be reduced.

Frequently, drivers remove their eyes from the road to read the instrument cluster. For this action, his vision must compensate for a reduced distance. Vision must re-adjust to the greater visual distance after reading the instrument cluster. A standard instrument cluster takes 0.5 seconds to read a display and refocus on the road. It is also tiring on the eyes if performed frequently. A head-up display, placed directly in the driver's line of sight, gives vital driving aid information such as speed, navigation, and other data. The output created by the HUD decreases distractions, allowing the driver to focus more on driving. Due to these advantages, vehicle manufacturers are implementing HUD technology. Consequently, safety consciousness is anticipated to boost demand for car head-up displays.

Automobile manufacturers and HUD industry participants are attempting to enhance the current head-up display system. Current HUDs are equipped with GPS and can display error and warning messages on the windshield. Manufacturers can produce HUD at a lower cost without sacrificing display quality due to technological advancements. Incorporating micro mirror-based devices based on electromechanical systems with automation and augmented reality-based approaches led to the creation of an ultra-thin augmented reality HUD system that displays brilliant and colorful visuals on the windshield.

The development of holographic projection techniques and HUD products for autonomous and electric vehicles will aid in the creation of brighter, more colorful displays. These reasons are anticipated to fuel the market for head-up displays. Previously, HUDs were mostly available in luxury vehicles; however, OEMs are now focusing on introducing HUDs in economical vehicles. Recently, Toyota introduced the Toyota Camry with the largest windshield HUD available on the market. The vehicle has a 10-inch HUD, which is regarded as the best windshield HUD in the world.

What are the Challenges for The Global Automotive Head-Up Display Market?

The windshield-projected HUD necessitates a substantial amount of cockpit room. Advanced HUDs, such as augmented reality head-up displays (AR HUD), make driving more comfortable and safe by superimposing virtual information (augmentations) over the driver's perspective of the traffic conditions in front of the car. The information reflected appears to be inherent to the driving circumstance. However, augmented reality HUDs consume a considerable dashboard area.

The gear involved with a full windshield augmented reality HUD occupies more vehicle cockpit area, necessitating a significant re-design effort by OEMs. The Continental AG (Germany) AR HUD prototype demands 13 liters of the cockpit area, which is challenging for OEMs to accommodate. Reducing the size of the augmented reality head-up display could diminish the image's sharpness, making it less legible to the driver. To accurately position the projection within the driver's field of view, iris detection and gesture recognition devices must be included in the HUD. The significant amount of room necessary for incorporating an augmented reality head-up display into a vehicle's cockpit is a major limitation for OEMs and the automotive HUD market.

What are the Future Opportunities for The Global Automotive Head-Up Display Market?

Innovations in technology are propelling the automotive sector to the next level. Once confined to luxury automobiles, driver assistance systems and surround-view cameras are now included as standard equipment in certain inexpensive cars. The same is gradually occurring with head-up displays (HUD). For instance, the 2018 Toyota Camry's 10-inch HUD is one of the largest and most effective HUDs utilized in any automobile.

Mazda is another big manufacturer whose vehicles include HUDs. Instead of embedding costly components in the dashboard and utilizing a dedicated windscreen, the HUDs in the Mazda3 and Mazda6 employs a thin, foldable plastic lens. In comparison to conventional HUDs that use the windshield as a display, MINI's low-cost solution is limited in terms of image size and placement.

Regional Analysis

The global automotive head-up display market has been segmented based on geography into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and LAMEA.

North America is focusing on building its automotive sector, with an emphasis on safety and security levels. However, several automotive manufacturers from the U.S. are incorporating recent advancements in heads-up display technology to ensure safety measures in futuristic vehicles. The U.S has one of the most advanced automotive sectors with a penchant for advanced and powerful automobiles. Several OEMs are providing heads-up displays in their various premium models, including Ford, Tesla, and Land Rover.

Europe has a sizeable automotive sector marked by several key manufacturers. Several Europe-based companies are leading the automotive sector, such as Continental AG, Robert Bosch GmbH, and Delphi Automotive PLC, with a thriving export business of their technologically advanced vehicles with semi-autonomous and autonomous features. According to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA), automobile manufacturers operate close to 309 vehicle assembly and production plants across 27 countries in Europe. In February 2019, Nippon Seiki announced an investment of JPY 1 billion for expanding the production capacity of HUD manufacturing and establishing a new production facility that can manufacture onboard gauges and displays in Lodz and Poland. However, this new facility is expected to kick-start full-scale operations by October 2020.

Asia-Pacific is expected to grow at an accelerated pace in the automotive head-up display market on account of producing the highest number of vehicles in countries like China, Japan, India, and South Korea, respectively. According to data from the International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (OICA), China manufactured around 27.8 million vehicles in 2018, followed by the U.S., Japan, and India. Hence, the burgeoning automotive sector is foreseen to upturn the acceptance of automotive head-up displays in developing countries of Asia-Pacific.

Segmental Analysis

The global automotive head-up display market is categorized on the basis of Product type, vehicle type, and end users.

On the Basis of Product Type

The market is categorized on the basis of product type as windshield and combiner. During the projected period, windshield projectors are anticipated to continue to dominate the worldwide automotive head-up display market due to their increased use in luxury automobiles. Both types of projectors (windshield and combiner) are anticipated to see double-digit growth rates over the next five years; however, the combiner projector-based head-up display is anticipated to expand at a considerably faster rate due to its lower price and smaller size.

On the Basis of Vehicle Type

The market is further categorized by vehicle type as follows: luxury vehicles, sports cars, mid-segment cars, and economy cars. During the period from 2023 to 2031, the market for automotive head-up displays is anticipated to be dominated by luxury cars. BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi are adding the head-up display into select versions of their luxury automobiles. These premium automakers are also collaborating with the manufacturers of head-up displays to integrate these systems into their mid-segment vehicles. This will fuel the demand for head-up displays in midsize cars in the next five years.

Over the next five years, Original Equipment Manufacturers are anticipated to be the leading end-user type in the worldwide automotive head-up display market, driven by rising adoption from luxury to mid-segment automakers. During the same era, aftermarket growth is also anticipated to be robust.

Recent Developments

• In July 2022, Tom Tom announced that Opel's new Astra would have a new version of TomTom's full-stack navigation solution, including over-the-air updates for new and accurate maps, highly convenient linked services, and new map-based advanced driving assistance system (ADAS) safety features. 
• In July 2022, Foryou Corporation announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Huizhou Foryou Multimedia Electronics Co., Ltd. (Foryou Multimedia), had signed a letter of intent with Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. 
• In June 2022, Japan Display announced that it would expand its vehicle display business. The corporation will support the enlargement of automobile displays and the improvement of image quality and will prioritize the creation of high-value-added goods with safe driving assistance capabilities. 
• In May 2022, Panasonic Automotive Systems Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Automotive Systems) announced that their 11.5-inch windshield head-up display (WS HUD) had been accepted by Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. (EV). 
• In December 2021, Karma Automotive and WayRay announced the inclusion of an innovative new form of augmented reality (AR) head-up display (HUD) technology into a fleet of future Karma vehicles. 
• In October 2018, Continental AG developed an augmented reality HUD that features new waveguide technology, enabling large-area augmentation in the driver’s field of view.