BMW's i8 Concept, with laser headlights. Image: BMW AG
Automotive lighting has evolved rapidly over the past few decades, making quantum leaps in progress from sealed beam to halogen to high-intensity discharge to LED headlights. Each generation brings improvements in vision, reductions in glare and increased driver safety, but that doesn’t mean automakers are content to leave things status quo or rely solely on third party manufacturers for the next big advancement.
BMW has always tried to innovate vehicle lighting, and they’ve developed features such as their “Anti-Dazzle High Beam Assistant,” which automatically dims high beams for oncoming traffic, their “Adaptive Lighting,” which steers the lights through a corner based on steering angle, and their “Dynamic Light Spot,” which helps illuminate pedestrians to avoid vehicle-pedestrian impacts. BMW has also pioneered the use of full LED headlights, which require far less energy (and therefore less fuel) to operate than conventional headlights.
As efficient as LED’s are, they’re not nearly as bright or efficient as laser diodes. Lasers produce monochromatic (same wavelength) light, and are a “coherent” light source, meaning that all laser light waves have a constant phase difference. Because of their efficiency, laser diodes are significantly smaller than LEDs, and use less than half the energy.
Lasers can pose a vision risk if aimed directly at the eye, but BMW has engineered a solution to this potential problem. Lasers won’t shine directly onto the road, but instead will be projected onto a phosphor-rich material that converts the blue lasers to a white light source, harmless to humans and animals.
Don’t expect laser headlights in the showroom just yet. The technology is still undergoing development, but is showing great promise in both illumination and energy savings. Your next car may not have laser headlights, but there’s a good chance that the technology will be mainstream in the next decade.
Source: BMW
Kurt Ernst has been passionate about automobiles and driving nearly his entire life. His early years were shaped working in the family service station, though his real passion was auto racing. After graduating from the University of Colorado, Kurt spent a year club racing with the Sports Car Club of America, before focusing on a business career in marketing and project management. Later, his passion for writing and the automotive hobby found him freelancing for a variety of automotive news sites, including Automotive Addicts and Motor Authority, where his work was syndicated and appeared in several national publications. Recognized as an expert in the automotive field, Kurt joined Hemmings Motor News as an Associate Editor in 2013, and in the years since has progressed to Editor, Hemmings Daily; Managing Editor for Hemmings Motor News, Hemmings Classic Car, Hemmings Muscle Machines, and the Hemmings Daily; and now, Managing Editor, Hemmings Auctions. Kurt was instrumental in organizing the Hemmings Motor News Concours d’Elegance from 2013-2019, and has served as a judge at this event and The Vintage Racing Stable Concours d’Elegance. A Skip Barber Racing School graduate and prolific writer, Ernst is also skilled in copyediting, project management, brand development, and public relations.
