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EV & Sustainability

Electric vehicles and eyewear: How driving has accommodated glasses

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Electric vehicles (EVs) are increasingly popular by the day in the UK. Statistics from UK’s transport revolution show how EVs have more than doubled in the north of England, rising to 74,677 in 2021. Today, there are over a quarter million EVs actively used— coinciding with the UK’s commitment to switching to zero-emission vehicles.

In addition to developing EVs, more car companies are working towards enhancing the driving experience, with many turning to using eyewear to boost vision quality and even immersion. This article will explore how driving electric vehicles accommodated glasses as part of the driving experience:

Driving glasses

In recent years, dedicated driving glasses have become a popular option for clearer vision. This eyewear aims to resolve the challenge of vision that could compromise road safety by improving contrast and reducing unwanted hindrances. While optimised for indoor use, blue light glasses can be safe to wear all day, including for driving. Not only do the lenses have strong, anti-reflection properties that reduce glare, but premium model lenses like the KODAK UVBlue Lens specifically can provide a more excellent contrast for improved colour recognition and depth perception— which is helpful while driving.

Augmented reality glasses

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The biggest change in electric car companies is the creation of custom augmented reality glasses for car screens. Augmented reality (AR) works by overlaying digital images over the real world. In the case of drivers, many businesses are working towards having seamless integration between their dashboards without distracting them. Listed below are some examples of companies working hand-in-hand with AR glasses and business:

Nio ET5

In 2021, the Chinese electric car company Nio revealed their collaboration with AR start-up Nreal, where they released AR glasses that pair well with the ET5, the latest sedan. These custom glasses are expected to project a screen size of around one meter at six meters.

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Audi Grandsphere

Another similar release is the eyewear under the Audi Grandsphere, which turns the fully electric car concept into a spacious experience for drivers and passengers. Without the need for screens or physical controls, the Activesphere is expected to offer 3D graphics and car control features like a music menu.

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Facebook

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Interestingly, brands like Facebook (now renamed Meta) are also facilitating the creation of AR-enables and AI-assisted smart glasses. Alongside car company BMW, the business is expected to overcome the limitations of Ray-Ban Stories glasses as well as Google’s Google Glass— which are otherwise not recommended for driving.

Challenges of electric vehicles and advanced eyewear

While tech has advanced significantly to integrate eyewear and transport, there are still several challenges to overcome before they become mainstream. Electric vehicles tend to have higher upfront costs compared to regular petrol or diesel-driven cars. Advanced eyewear is also expected to bear high costs, which makes it an unpractical option for most people.

Furthermore, there is still a lack of EV infrastructure like chargers, discouraging potential buyers as they are limited to charging their cars at home. As noted by Paul Hollick, chair of the Association of Fleet Professionals, “Without visibly viable public infrastructure in place, used EV buyers are being asked to take a chance on simply being able to charge their vehicles out on the road, which is simply unreasonable.”

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As EVs become more common, car companies are upgrading their vehicles to accommodate new technology for eyewear. Towards the near future, experts hope that more layman users can gain access to these unique features that revolutionise the driving experience.

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