Dashboard
Encyclopedia
A dashboard is a control panel placed in front of the driver of an automobile
, housing instrumentation and controls for operation of the vehicle.
The word originally applied to a barrier of wood or leather fixed at the front of a horse-drawn carriage or sleigh
to protect the driver from mud or other debris thrown up by the wheels and horses' hooves.
and the instrument cluster. The instrument cluster pictured to the right contains gauges such as a speedometer
, tachometer
, odometer
and fuel gauge
, and indicators such as gearshift position, seat belt warning light, parking-brake-engagement warning light and an engine-malfunction light. There may also be indicators for low fuel, low oil pressure, low tire pressure and faults in the airbag (SRS) system. Heating and ventilation controls and vents, lighting controls, audio equipment and automotive navigation system
s are also mounted on the dashboard.
The top of a dashboard may contain vents for the heating and air conditioning system and speakers for an audio system. A glove compartment
is commonally located on the passenger's side. There may also be an ashtray and a cigarette lighter which can provide a power outlet for other low-voltage appliances.
pioneer Claire L. Straith
.
One of the safety enhancements of the 1970s was the widespread adoption of padded dashboards. The padding is commonly polyurethane
foam
, while the surface is commonly either polyvinyl chloride
(PVC) or leather in the case of luxury models.
In the early and mid 1990s, airbag
s became a common feature of steering wheels and dashboards.
With the coming of the LED
in consumer electronics, some manufacturers used instruments with digital readouts to make their cars appear more up to date, but this has faded from practice. Some cars use a head-up display
to project the speed of the car onto the windscreen in imitation of fighter aircraft, but in a far less complex display.
Manufacturers such as BMW
and Mercedes-Benz
have included fuel-economy gauges in some instrument clusters, showing fuel mileage in real time. The ammeter
was the gauge of choice for monitoring the state of the charging system until the 1970s. Later it was replaced by the voltmeter
. Many vehicles have warning lights instead of voltmeters or oil pressure gauges in their dashboard instrument clusters.
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
, housing instrumentation and controls for operation of the vehicle.
The word originally applied to a barrier of wood or leather fixed at the front of a horse-drawn carriage or sleigh
Sled
A sled, sledge, or sleigh is a land vehicle with a smooth underside or possessing a separate body supported by two or more smooth, relatively narrow, longitudinal runners that travels by sliding across a surface. Most sleds are used on surfaces with low friction, such as snow or ice. In some cases,...
to protect the driver from mud or other debris thrown up by the wheels and horses' hooves.
Dashboard items
Items located on the dashboard at first included the steering wheelSteering wheel
A steering wheel is a type of steering control in vehicles and vessels ....
and the instrument cluster. The instrument cluster pictured to the right contains gauges such as a speedometer
Speedometer
A speedometer is a gauge that measures and displays the instantaneous speed of a land vehicle. Now universally fitted to motor vehicles, they started to be available as options in the 1900s, and as standard equipment from about 1910 onwards. Speedometers for other vehicles have specific names...
, tachometer
Tachometer
A tachometer is an instrument measuring the rotation speed of a shaft or disk, as in a motor or other machine. The device usually displays the revolutions per minute on a calibrated analogue dial, but digital displays are increasingly common...
, odometer
Odometer
An odometer or odograph is an instrument that indicates distance traveled by a vehicle, such as a bicycle or automobile. The device may be electronic, mechanical, or a combination of the two. The word derives from the Greek words hodós and métron...
and fuel gauge
Fuel gauge
A fuel gauge is an instrument used to indicate the level of fuel contained in a tank. Commonly used in cars, these may also be used for any tank including underground storage tanks.As used in cars, the gauge consists of two parts:...
, and indicators such as gearshift position, seat belt warning light, parking-brake-engagement warning light and an engine-malfunction light. There may also be indicators for low fuel, low oil pressure, low tire pressure and faults in the airbag (SRS) system. Heating and ventilation controls and vents, lighting controls, audio equipment and automotive navigation system
Automotive navigation system
An automotive navigation system is a satellite navigation system designed for use in automobiles. It typically uses a GPS navigation device to acquire position data to locate the user on a road in the unit's map database. Using the road database, the unit can give directions to other locations...
s are also mounted on the dashboard.
The top of a dashboard may contain vents for the heating and air conditioning system and speakers for an audio system. A glove compartment
Glove compartment
A glove compartment or glovebox, also known as a little cupboard, is a compartment built into the dashboard, located over the front-seat passenger's footwell in an automobile, often used for miscellaneous storage. The name derives from the original purpose of the compartment, to store gloves...
is commonally located on the passenger's side. There may also be an ashtray and a cigarette lighter which can provide a power outlet for other low-voltage appliances.
Padding and safety
Padded dashboards were advocated in the 1940s by car safetyAutomobile safety
Automobile safety is the study and practice of vehicle design, construction, and equipment to minimize the occurrence and consequences of automobile accidents. Automobile safety is the study and practice of vehicle design, construction, and equipment to minimize the occurrence and consequences of...
pioneer Claire L. Straith
Claire L. Straith
Claire L. Straith was an American plastic surgeon.Dr. Straith was a pioneer of Automobile safety. He described the cranial and facial injuries created by the dashboards and windshields in case of a car crash and advocated the use of seat belts and padded dashboards According to Joel W. Eastman,...
.
One of the safety enhancements of the 1970s was the widespread adoption of padded dashboards. The padding is commonly polyurethane
Polyurethane
A polyurethane is any polymer composed of a chain of organic units joined by carbamate links. Polyurethane polymers are formed through step-growth polymerization, by reacting a monomer with another monomer in the presence of a catalyst.Polyurethanes are...
foam
Foam
-Definition:A foam is a substance that is formed by trapping gas in a liquid or solid in a divided form, i.e. by forming gas regions inside liquid regions, leading to different kinds of dispersed media...
, while the surface is commonly either polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride, commonly abbreviated PVC, is a thermoplastic polymer. It is a vinyl polymer constructed of repeating vinyl groups having one hydrogen replaced by chloride. Polyvinyl chloride is the third most widely produced plastic, after polyethylene and polypropylene. PVC is widely used in...
(PVC) or leather in the case of luxury models.
In the early and mid 1990s, airbag
Airbag
An Airbag is a vehicle safety device. It is an occupant restraint consisting of a flexible envelope designed to inflate rapidly during an automobile collision, to prevent occupants from striking interior objects such as the steering wheel or a window...
s became a common feature of steering wheels and dashboards.
Fashion in instrumentation
In the 1940s through the 1960s, American car manufacturers and their imitators designed unusually-shaped instruments on a dashboard laden with chrome and transparent plastic, which could be less readable, but was often thought to be more stylish. Sunlight could cause a bright glare on the chrome, particularly for a convertible.With the coming of the LED
Light-emitting diode
A light-emitting diode is a semiconductor light source. LEDs are used as indicator lamps in many devices and are increasingly used for other lighting...
in consumer electronics, some manufacturers used instruments with digital readouts to make their cars appear more up to date, but this has faded from practice. Some cars use a head-up display
Head-Up Display
A head-up display or heads-up display is any transparent display that presents data without requiring users to look away from their usual viewpoints...
to project the speed of the car onto the windscreen in imitation of fighter aircraft, but in a far less complex display.
Manufacturers such as BMW
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...
and Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
have included fuel-economy gauges in some instrument clusters, showing fuel mileage in real time. The ammeter
Ammeter
An ammeter is a measuring instrument used to measure the electric current in a circuit. Electric currents are measured in amperes , hence the name. Instruments used to measure smaller currents, in the milliampere or microampere range, are designated as milliammeters or microammeters...
was the gauge of choice for monitoring the state of the charging system until the 1970s. Later it was replaced by the voltmeter
Voltmeter
A voltmeter is an instrument used for measuring electrical potential difference between two points in an electric circuit. Analog voltmeters move a pointer across a scale in proportion to the voltage of the circuit; digital voltmeters give a numerical display of voltage by use of an analog to...
. Many vehicles have warning lights instead of voltmeters or oil pressure gauges in their dashboard instrument clusters.
See also
- Air core gaugeAir core gaugeAn air core gauge is a specific type of rotary actuator in an analog display gauge that allows an indicator to rotate a full 360 degrees. It is used in gauges and displays, most commonly automotive instrument clusters....
- Electronic instrument clusterElectronic instrument clusterIn an automobile, an electronic instrument cluster, digital instrument panel or digital dash for short, is a set of instrumentation, including the speedometer, that is displayed with a digital readout rather than with the traditional analog gauges...
- GM Instrument Cluster SettlementGM Instrument Cluster SettlementThe GM Instrument Cluster Settlement was a 2008 class action settlement awarded to owners of certain General Motors vehicles with allegedly defective speedometers...
- In car entertainmentIn car entertainmentIn-Car Entertainment, , is a collection of hardware devices installed into automobiles, or other forms of transportation, to provide audio and/or audio/visual entertainment, as well as automotive navigation systems...
- TelematicsTelematicsTelematics typically is any integrated use of telecommunications and informatics, also known as ICT...
- Vehicular communication systemsVehicular communication systemsVehicular Communication Systems are an emerging type of networks in which vehicles and roadside units are the communicating nodes; providing each other with information, such as safety warnings and traffic information...