Monthly Roundup: Automotive and Road Vehicles Standards – September 2025

Looking back at the standardization activity for the Automotive and Road Vehicles sector in September 2025, professionals in the industry observed a targeted, but significant, addition to the regulatory landscape. This period saw the release of one essential technical specification, ISO/TS 8231:2025, which provides a comprehensive framework for evaluating and implementing automotive interior display systems. For industry professionals—engineers, quality and compliance officers, procurement specialists—this retrospective review captures the evolving priorities in road vehicle engineering and highlights the ongoing drive for greater comfort, safety, and durability in vehicle interiors.

For those who may have missed it, this monthly overview distills key takeaways from the September 2025 publications, offers deep analysis of the new requirements, and positions these developments within broader industry trends.

Monthly Overview: September 2025

September 2025 was marked by a focused standardization effort that reflects the automotive industry's shift toward digitalization, connectivity, and occupant safety. Rather than numerous incremental updates, the month brought a single, substantial technical specification that addresses a contemporary challenge—ensuring the visibility and performance of in-vehicle display systems.

While not a period of high-volume publication, this targeted release underscores the increasing complexity and criticality of automotive interior systems. It also signals the sector’s preference for detailed, scenario-driven guidelines suited for the rapidly evolving in-cabin user experience. As instrument clusters and infotainment panels become more central to both user comfort and vehicle operation, the standardization community’s focus on harmonizing performance expectations across vehicles and vendors becomes ever more salient.

In comparison to previous months, which often saw a mix of minor amendments and broader updates, September 2025 placed clarity and rigor on a niche but high-stakes domain. This strategic move intends to support global harmonization, facilitate cross-market product development, and fundamentally, secure user safety and satisfaction.

Standards Published This Month

ISO/TS 8231:2025 – Road vehicles – Visibility – Requirements and recommendations for automotive interior display systems

Road vehicles — Visibility — Requirements and recommendations for automotive interior display systems

Published: 2025-09-11 by ISO

This technical specification presents a comprehensive set of requirements and recommendations for the performance of interior display systems in road vehicles. Its scope encompasses systems designed to convey vital information to drivers and passengers in both passenger and commercial vehicles—including sport utility vehicles, light trucks, heavy trucks, and buses. Rather than defining technology-specific parameters, ISO/TS 8231:2025 focuses on system-level criteria that ensure display readability, durability, and safety under a wide range of environmental and operational conditions.

Scope and Applicability

The specification is applicable to all in-vehicle display systems—such as instrument clusters, driver and co-driver displays, and entertainment screens—that serve as the main interface for delivering vehicle information, navigation data, and infotainment content. It extends its recommendations and requirements to relevant display components, including cover lenses, surface coatings, and optical attributes, but explicitly excludes technology choice (e.g., LCD vs. OLED), integration, EMC compliance, and head-up or e-mirror displays.

Suppliers and manufacturers of vehicles, as well as component vendors and system integrators, are the primary audiences for this specification. Compliance is particularly critical for organizations delivering safety-related interfaces and those operating in regulated jurisdictions with strict vehicle approval regimes.

Key Requirements and Highlights

ISO/TS 8231:2025 outlines stringent requirements for the following aspects:

• Readability and Visibility: Display content (letters, symbols, graphics) must remain legible across lighting conditions—from absolute darkness to bright sunlight—ensuring vital information is accessible even when users wear polarized sunglasses.
• Performance of Display Components: Covers luminance, contrast (dynamic, static, ambient), viewing angles, glare, ghosting, and other optical properties. It emphasizes the role of the cover lens, promoting anti-glare, anti-reflection, and easy-to-clean coatings for enhanced safety and comfort.
• Environmental and Mechanical Durability: Requires systems to withstand vibrations, shocks, abrasion, temperature extremes, humidity, and chemical exposure (e.g., cleaning solutions, spilled beverages)—addressing real-world misuse and longevity concerns.
• Safety in Case of Accidents: Specifies compliance with regulatory head impact testing to minimize injury risk from display breakage, especially for large-area glass installations.
• Testing and Verification: References normative testing standards (such as ISO 15008 and IEC 62977 series) for methods of assessing luminance, contrast, surface durability, and environmental resilience.

Fit with Broader Regulatory Landscape

By drawing from existing ergonomic and optical standards, as well as integrating automotive-specific risk factors, ISO/TS 8231:2025 functions as a bridge between generic display guidelines and the unique demands of vehicle occupants. It offers harmonized terminology, test procedures, and system acceptance criteria that supplement rather than replace sectoral or national regulatory requirements. Manufacturers adopting this standard can demonstrate due diligence and alignment with globally recognized benchmarks, aiding both regulatory approval and market acceptance.

Notable Features & Industry Impact

• Supports transition to all-digital, multi-display vehicle interiors.
• Elevates minimum expectations for comfort and safety in display-driven interfaces.
• Addresses future-proofing: accommodates evolving technologies (2D, 3D, curved displays) without tying requirements to specific hardware implementations.
• Suggests a shared language for OEM–supplier agreements, streamlining cross-vendor interoperability.

Key highlights:

• Comprehensive requirements for readability (night, sunlight, sunglasses) and visual comfort
• Detailed provisions for cover lens durability, coatings, and optical performance
• Robust evaluation procedures for environmental, mechanical, and chemical resilience

Access the full standard:View ISO/TS 8231:2025 on iTeh Standards

Common Themes and Industry Trends

Analysis of the September 2025 publications, represented by ISO/TS 8231:2025, reveals several converging themes within the Automotive and Road Vehicles sector:

• Human–Machine Interface (HMI) Centrality: The move toward digital dashboards highlights HMIs as the primary mediator for driver attention, awareness, and comfort. This standard underscores the industry’s commitment to mitigating distraction and maximizing the accessibility of critical information.
• Durability in the Face of Real-World Hazards: Beyond laboratory performance, the focus on environmental, chemical, and mechanical resilience reflects the realities of how in-cabin systems are used, misused, and cleaned—ensuring both prolonged product life and sustained safety.
• Global Harmonization: By referencing international test standards and emphasizing harmonized terminology, the standard paves the way for easier cross-market vehicle approvals, supporting both multi-national OEMs and supply chains.
• Shift from Hardware-Defined to Performance-Based Criteria: The approach is technology-agnostic, allowing OEMs and innovators to adopt new materials or display types so long as they meet quantifiable performance needs—thus facilitating innovation while holding the line on basic occupant safety and usability.
• Responsive to User Diversity: Requirements for visibility with sunglasses, resistance to finger marks, and viewing angle robustness demonstrate a user-centric stance, considering not just drivers but all vehicle occupants and a broad range of real-world user behaviors.

Compliance and Implementation Considerations

Organizations involved in designing and producing automotive display systems should consider the following when planning for compliance with ISO/TS 8231:2025:

1. Conduct a Gap Assessment: Evaluate current product designs, materials, coatings, and assembly procedures against the detailed requirements for readability, durability, and safety.
2. Integrate Performance Testing: Align laboratory and field qualification tests with referenced methods (ISO 15008, relevant IEC display and durability standards) to validate compliance early in the development cycle.
3. Update Supplier Agreements: Use the specification’s terminology and requirements to update procurement documents and technical agreements, ensuring all supply chain partners deliver components meeting harmonized expectations.
4. Schedule for Transition: For organizations whose vehicles are in development or production, plan rollout timelines to phase in updated display modules and test protocols, allowing for engineering, sourcing, and certification adjustments.
5. Documentation and Evidence: Maintain robust documentation—test reports, material certificates, and risk assessments—that will facilitate both internal QA and smooth regulatory submissions.
6. Ongoing Training: Ensure engineering teams, designers, and compliance officers are familiar with new requirements and best practices for in-cabin display durability and safety.

Priority recommendations:

• Prioritize updates for safety-relevant display systems (instrument clusters, gear shift indicators).
• Engage early with supply chain partners to source compliant cover glass, coatings, and display modules.
• Consider the impact on retrofit programs or vehicles already in the field.

Resources for implementation:

• Access the iTeh Standards library for full text, annexes, and normative references.
• Participate in industry working groups for shared compliance strategies.
• Leverage normative references for detailed testing methodologies.

Conclusion: Key Takeaways from September 2025

September 2025 delivered targeted, high-value progress for professionals in the Automotive and Road Vehicles sector through ISO/TS 8231:2025. This specification is more than a set of technical requirements—it represents a maturation of global thinking around digital HMI safety, user comfort, and operational durability for today’s vehicles. Its emphasis on harmonized testing, user-recognizable comfort features, and practical real-world performance will help futureproof vehicle interiors as design paradigms continue to shift.

For professionals—engineers, quality managers, procurement specialists—staying current with these standards is not only critical for regulatory compliance and successful product launches, but also for positioning organizations at the leading edge of market and safety expectations. The growing complexity of in-cabin electronics demands proactive engagement with standards as they evolve.

Take this opportunity to review the requirement details, assess organizational readiness, and leverage iTeh Standards’ resources for full access and support. The continued evolution of automotive display systems will be shaped by compliance with benchmarks like ISO/TS 8231:2025, with industry leaders embracing such guidance to drive both safety and competitive advantage.

For further reading and to access the full, authoritative text of this standard, visit the iTeh Standards platform below:

View ISO/TS 8231:2025 on iTeh Standards