Mercedes-Benz Reveals Unique Hyperscreen for Upcoming EQS EV
The new MBUX Hyperscreen comprises three individual OLED displays underneath a single piece of Gorilla Glass. Images: Mercedes-Benz AG
Mercedes-Benz is premiering its new MBUX (Mercedes-Benz User Experience) multimedia interface, which will debut in the upcoming EQS battery electric sedan. Dubbed MBUX Hyperscreen, the digital experience promises to transform how we interact with the vehicle, and provide a “wow” effect according to Mercedes-Benz.
The marketing video (below), was almost like one which you might expect from Apple or Samsung, with the carmaker spruiking the technical specs of the computing power behind the new in car system. With 8 CPU cores, 24-gigabytes (GB) of RAM and 46.4 GB per second RAM memory bandwidth, Mercedes-Benz is promising a next-generation infotainment system that delivers an intuitive experience, and actually learns driver behavior.
According to Gorden Wagener, Chief Design Officer Daimler Group, “We merge technology with design in a fascinating way that offers the customer unprecedented ease of use. We love simplicity, we have reached a new level of MBUX.”
Sajjad Khan, Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz AG and CTO states that the MBUX Hyperscreen continually gets to know the customer better through machine learning, and delivers a personalised infotainment and operating offering before the driver has to even access or scroll through menus.
With context sensitive awareness, the MBUX system proactively displays the right functions at the right time for the user, supported by artificial intelligence. The system is optimised by changes in the surroundings and user behaviour. The so-called zero-layer provides the user at the top level of the MBUX information architecture with dynamic, aggregated content from the entire MBUX system and related services; deep menu layers — a criticism of complex current generation infotainment systems — are a thing of the past.
Mercedes-Benz provides these four examples as use cases:
The user can accept or reject the respective suggestion with just one click:
If you always call a certain friend on the way home on Tuesday evenings, you will be asked to make a corresponding call on that day of the week and at this time of day. A business card with its contact information appears, and - if stored - its image appears. All MBUX suggestions are linked to the user's profile. If someone else drives the EQS on a Tuesday night, this recommendation is not made – or there is another, depending on the preferences of the other user.
If the EQS driver regularly uses the massage function according to the hot stone principle in winter, the system learns and automatically suggests the comfort function in wintry temperatures.
If the user regularly switches on the heating of the steering wheel and other surfaces for seat heating, for example, this is suggested to him as soon as he presses the seat heating.
The chassis of the EQS can be lifted to provide more ground clearance. A useful function for steep garage entrances or sleep policemen. MBUX remembers the GPS position at which the user made use of the "Vehicle Lift-Up" function. If the vehicle approaches the GPS position again, MBUX independently proposes to lift the EQS.
In terms of design, Mercedes-Benz has integrated ambient lighting behind the glass, making the display unit appear to float on the seamless instrument panel. There is also a separate passenger display, a-la Porsche Taycan. If no passenger is seated, the display becomes an animated decorative pattern of stars, so as not to distract the driver with additional infotainment content.
Central and passenger displays utilise OLED technology, where non-active pixels remain switched off, meaning that they appear as deep black rather than a greyish black that is visible on many computer monitors. With a multifunction camera and light sensor to adjust the brightness of the display and pre-empt driver actions, it’s expected that the EQS’ active and passive safety systems will work seamlessly with the MBUX Hyperscreen.
It appears the MBUX Hyperscreen takes the best of the 2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class infotainment system, and builds upon it, seamlessly integrating multiple displays into a single panel. It’s a distinctly different approach from other EV manufacturers such as Telsa, who prefer to combine all features into a single, centrally-mounted touchscreen. Mercedes-Benz spends billions on R&D and probably millions determining customer preferences, so it’s likely their customers still prefer something akin to a traditional instrument cluster.
While the Mercedes-Benz system provides haptic touch feedback, There’s much criticism about the trend to remove all buttons from a vehicle’s interior. While we think it’s great to seamlessly integrate all system functions into one unit, presumably minimising cost and improving reliability, if that comes at a cost — the ease of quickly operating essential controls — then its not worth it. We hope Mercedes’ “zero-layer technology” and voice control systems can make basic actions like adjusting the climate control temperature or re-routing a navigation destination quick and painless, but we’ll have to wait until the vehicle’s reveal for more information. Mercedes-Benz will reveal the EQA SUV on January 20, and we think the EQS should break cover sometime in the first quarter of 2021.
