Drivers often need to switch lights. When driving on the highway, high-beam lights are needed; when driving at low speed in the city, wide side lights are needed in the dark places or sidewalks on both sides; switching to fog lights in dense fog; proper lights are needed in rural areas where street lights are lacking; When the distance between the coming cars changes, the light also changes. If these switchovers can happen automatically without dazzling the oncoming cars, it will increase the clear vision of the driver itself, which will inevitably increase road safety, especially reducing accidents at night.
A project sponsored by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) aims to address these issues. This project is led by LED manufacturer OSRAM Licht AG, the German automaker Daimler AG, Germany's most famous scientific research institution Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, and Germany's Haila Hook Automotive Electronics (HELLA GmbH & Co. KGaA) and German chip maker Infineon Technologies AG each provide unique contributions.
Many features of the new LED headlights took three and a half years to develop. This project passed the road test and production checkpoint. Successfully created smart, high-resolution adaptive automotive headlights.
According to the data, each of the two headlights has three LED light sources, and each LED light source has 1,024 controllable light points (Pixels). Smart headlights can accurately match various traffic conditions and weather conditions, and they will not stimulate eyes of drivers coming in the opposite direction, because vehicle sensors can continue to help analyze the traffic conditions around the car.
Comparison of new LED car headlights with the previous generation
At present, adaptive headlights on the market are composed of several LED elements side by side and stacked. Current designs require additional electronics to switch lights on and off. Because of the limited space in the headlight area, this design makes it impossible to increase the number of LED components, while also considering the issue of heat dissipation efficiency.
In contrast, the new design uses a new and efficient chip to start the LED. In this way, although in the limited headlight space, higher resolution can be achieved, that is, more accurate and smarter automotive lighting. In addition, the LED module developed by Osram's special lighting department can directly connect the vehicle's electronic system with its electrical interface and thermal interface, and it is more efficient than the traditional method, which can be said to be a breakthrough.
Secondly, in the smooth transition of different lighting conditions, such as switching between high beam and low beam, mechanical actuators are not required at all, only electronic systems are required to operate. "We want to continue to develop this new high-resolution LED light source and prepare for serial production. This LED product has great potential for automotive headlight applications," said Stefan Kampmann, Osram's technical director.
LEDinside pointed out that the new control chip is also made by Infineon, a German manufacturer. Their team works with the Fraunhofer Association, Osram, and German car manufacturers with well-known brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Mercedes-AMG, and smart. Muller, together to create a new LED vehicle headlight system that can meet the needs and regulations of the European market in the future, the industry's inspiration and follow-up effects will be quite positive