The awesome Mercedes-Benz F 700 Research Car

The novel user recognition is based on skin effect transmission: as soon as the front passenger, for example, touches the central rotary/pushbutton controller, a contact is closed between the control and a sensor mat in the seat upholstery and switches the control of the air conditioning for the front passenger side. The individual settings for the rear passengers are made by means of controls in the rear doors.

The innovative Human-Machine Interface of the F 700 has minimized the number of controls in the cockpit despite numerous new functions – to the delight of the interior designers. This purism is, of course, not an end in itself for Mercedes-Benz: for a number of functions the conventional method of operation is still the best choice – for the electrically operated windows, for example, or for the setting of the exterior mirror or the interior lights. And the prominently placed pushbutton for the hazard warning flasher system naturally concerns an elementary safety aspect.

3D cinema on four wheels

The unique interior and seating concept of the F 700 includes an equally unique entertainment system: essential components are a media player, a high-quality surround sound system, screens in the headrests – and above all a new 20-inch monitor with three-dimensional imagery.

This screen provides an impressively realistic three-dimensional visual impression – entirely without the use of aids like the special glasses that had to be worn to use older technologies for 3D imagery. Objects seem so close you can almost touch them, persons seem to be visible from all sides, and you get the feeling you are a part of the scenes being shown.

How is this three-dimensional impression created?

The two eyes of a human being are six or seven centimeters apart and therefore see the world from two different angles. The brain composes these partial images and evaluates the different perspectives for their informational content using depth – we see three-dimensionally. When we view a two-dimensional image, on the other hand, for instance on a conventional TV screen, both eyes see the same image and the brain receives no depth information.

In front of its LCD display the 3D screen has a layer of three-dimensional ribs which emit two partial images at different angles. This causes the eyes of the viewer each to see a different image; the brain then can compose the accustomed three-dimensional impression. Nine different viewing positions are possible so that the viewer can even move around in front of the display.

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