Alliance Principle 1.4: Visual Downangle Criteria for Navigation and Telematics Displays in Vehicles

The Alliance of Automotive Manufacturers (Alliance) has produced a document in which Principle 1.4 gives criteria and methods for calculating downvision angles to navigation and telematics displays in vehicles. This paper describes the details of the criteria and methods for determining compliance. Visual displays placed high in the vehicle instrument panel help drivers to use their peripheral vision to monitor the roadway for major developments, even during brief glances to the display. The Alliance has developed two criteria to define the maximum allowable downward viewing angle for displayed information in North American vehicles. One criterion is for use in two-dimensional Computer Aided Design (CAD) analyses, and one is for use in three-dimensional CAD analyses. Alliance Principle 1.4 is consistent with known driver performance research data, and known facts about the peripheral sensitivity of the human visual system.