In the automotive sector, digital instrument panels have long been part of the design and and appeal of cars thanks to their wide range of display options.  In the motorbike industry, the requirements are more complex and demanding due to the small dimensions of the screen and its potential quality in light and contrast. The vibrations of the motorbike as well as the rapid change from light to dark while riding pose a great challenge to the design and thus also to the typeface. 

Extensive studies were carried out in cooperation with KTM and the KISKA agency, which was responsible for the design and menu interface. The collected findings related to the the safety requirements and their practicability were used to develop a new matrix based on the Blender font, which ensures sufficient sharpness in the font reproduction on the small displays, the vertical rhythm and precise line guidance. In addition, the overlighting of the characters was a central issue.

Client: KTM
Aplication Design: KISKA  

Type Developpement: Binnenland
in collaboration with KISKA and KTM
Typeface: KTM-Cockpit
and KTM-Speed, based on Blender

Dimensions and grid relations  

In extensive studies, the relationship between vector-based type and pixel rendering on the displays was investigated. The purpose was to find an optimal ratio for the font proportions so that the later display of the font in the intended sizes can show an ideal representation.

For the visual acuity the required font size on the cockpit display is calculated from an assumed pilot size and distance to the instrument panel with the binocular requirement of the driver, after the EU commission directive 2009 of at least 0,5 when using both eyes together. 
This required minimal visual acuity (VA) and the resolvable distance (RA) at a defined distance (D), a driver must be able to discern two separate points that are in this calculation 0,42 mm apart. So the observer-related factors to the minimum of reolvable distance in normal condition with a minimum proposed correction gives us the minimum of allowed dimension for  a capital glyph of 2,5 mm.

The font has been optimised to ensure a pixel-perfect representation. We do not retain any uneven stem or crossbar representations in all illustrations, even in the repetition of the same characters. Thus, we achieve and maintain optimal readability even in small font sizes. In the investigations, the proportions and stem thicknesses of the Blender typeface were brought into the best possible connection with the specified grid of the displays. 
The prescribed minimum size, which may not be less than 2.5 mm, determines the screen dot unit. This examination defined the character widths as well as the horizontal and vertical expansions of the characters, and the leading and trailing widths as well as kerning are also subject to these units. 

The contrast in the horizontal and vertical extension of the characters has been set the same. Round and straight characters are identical in their extension. We were less concerned with typographic regularities in the characters than with a typeface optimally adapted to the technical conditions. Constant or repeating metric units ensure a more precise and sharper reproduction of the typeface on the small displays.

Tests of the representation in the various sizes were carried out on the original KTM of the Bosch TFT instrumentation display, with a effectively square pixel dimension. The waterfall visualisations shown here are therefore to be understood as simulations of these tests. For the first tests a font were generated to display the basic characters “onHO”, done in comparison with the original version of the Blender font and in the two styles Regualr and Bold.

Visualisations 

Speedometer Numbers

A special font version was drawn for the speedometer display. The catalogue of shapes remained the same, but the digits were made wider in order to visually emphasise the speed. The character width as well as the round and oblique shapes were coordinated in such a way that the transition from one digit to the next is harmonious when accelerating.

KTM Speed 

KTM Cockpit
Reguler  

Bold
Speed

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