Design
Eras
Automotive Instruments come in different styles due to the technological capabilities and cultural trends over time. Early analogue mechanical gauges reflect the minimalism of the 1960’s and 1970’s and are ‘front-lit’. The introduction of ‘rear-lit’ instrument panels in the late 1970s to early 1980s had the playful element of post-modernism. Think bright and bold.
When it comes to gauge style, Peterson Instrument Co. either work with vintage style instruments that are front-lit, front-lit vintage instruments with additional screen components, or super cool retro rear-lit gauges. Even for new niche vehicles, new concepts largely take inspiration from one or each of these categories.
01
Elevated Vintage
Timeless, classic, front-lit gauges with a minimal style for vintage cars typically from the 1950s to 1970s.
02
Digital Hybrid
Vintage instruments with additional screen technology, sympathetically integrated for modern day driving with style.
03
Redefined Retro
Screen Printed Gauges with Rear-lit and Hidden-Until-Lit Illumination for cars typically from 1980.
3D Rendering
Whichever era your vehicle is from, we will take you on a journey, using artwork and visual aids to help you make the right choices for your vehicle. From concept to print, your render will become a reality; making your instruments your vehicle’s centre-piece.
3D visualisation reduces the need for physical prototypes by allowing you to explore different design elements involving key areas such as materials, graphics and lighting.
Graphics & Printing
For front lit dials, we print onto new or existing metal facias using UV, Pad or screen-printing methods. For ‘rear lit’ dial faces, we use screen printing and in some cases UV printing for trial runs.
Printing can be used to make your gauges ‘like new’, or to repurpose a gauge to display a different parameter. New engines usually mean new speeds and EV classic cars’ tachometers are often re-printed to display power values and regenerative braking. Some companies like to print their logo or their customer’s logo and although we all love the timeless elegance of analogue instruments, sometimes improvements can be made in the layout, with the addition or relocation of elements such as warning lights and indicators.
Premium Components
Gauge Lighting
Instruments are either ‘front-lit’, ‘Back-lit’ or a combination of the both. ‘Front lit’ means the dial faces are illuminated by bulbs that shine onto its face via a lightguide or reflective surface. ‘Back-lit’, or night-time illumination, is a more modern approach, being illuminated by light inside the instrument face. We use specialised translucent, coloured inks to allow the light to shine through.
At Peterson Instrument Co. we use LED light technology, optimally placed in a range of locations within the gauge to improve the overall lighting distribution and reduce glare and bright spots.
Colour temperature, also called “correlated colour temperature” (CCT), describes the appearance or tint of a particular light and is measured in degrees Kelvin on a scale from 1,000 to 10,000. Gauges of old would have used one or two incandescent bulbs, with a ‘warm’ white appearance, which is typically 2700k.
Offering advanced lighting design, we offer 3000, 4000 and 6000k white light options and lighting can be controlled via CAN bus, including dimming functionality or via a traditional wired input
Screen Technology
Using the latest manufacturing techniques and technologies, we integrate modern components to display digital representations of the analogue gauges. Depending on the application, this can be a mix of analogue and digital or a dedicated digital display. Using the latest automotive high resolution, high temperature screens we display all the information a modern driver needs.
Custom Billet Parts
Peterson Instrument Co. design and manufacture large to small billet machined parts in a range of finishes and textures.
Specialist Anti-Reflective Glass
To maximise visibility, while minimising reflection, Peterson Instrument Co. can offer an advanced coated glass with reflection control properties that reduce the reflection of exterior light onto the surface of the glass. This enhances your view of the gauges in all light conditions and is especially useful for convertible cars.
