The effect of background scene complexity on the legibility of head-up-displays for automotive applications

This study examined the effect of background scene complexity on the legibility of head-up display (HUD) presented information for automotive applications. Subjects viewed video footage following a car on an open road with low, moderate and high scene complexity. Subjects were required to track the lead vehicle and identify HUD presented targets of a specified orientation and specified changes in a HUD presented speedometer. The results indicate that: 1) HUD legibility deteriorated with increased visual complexity of the background scene; and 2) positioning the HUD on the roadway ameliorated the effect