Most people don’t turn on their car’s headlights and think, I wish they were brighter. Shuji Nakamura is not most people.
The Nobel Prize-winning illumination scientist has spent the past five years developing a laser-based lighting system. His company, SLD Laser, says the new design is 10 times brighter than today’s LED lights, capable of illuminating objects a kilometer away while using less power than any current technology. And unlike a regular, dumb headlight, the laser can potentially be integrated into current and forthcoming driver-assistance systems.
Do headlights need to be brighter?
(Score: 4, Funny) by requerdanos on Wednesday January 16 2019, @01:05AM (5 children)
Gee, I never thought I'd find people who seriously advocate the position of "640 lumens ought to be enough for anyone."
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday January 16 2019, @01:55AM (4 children)
Funny - but yes, there is some limit. I've actually been driving along on a nicely sunlit day, and met a pair of headlights that were painfully bright. That is well and truly excessive.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by coolgopher on Wednesday January 16 2019, @03:04AM (1 child)
It's always lovely when you're on the freeway and the car behind you has bright enough headlights that your own car is casting a shadow in front of you where you're driving, and all you can really see are the sides of the road...
(Score: 2) by RS3 on Wednesday January 16 2019, @11:09PM
For me it's that the inside of my vehicle is so brightly lit by the car behind me that it's 100% distracting. It's illegal to drive with interior lights on, so it should be illegal for someone to illuminate my interior similarly.
(Score: 2) by requerdanos on Wednesday January 16 2019, @08:00PM (1 child)
You're doing it wrong.
The purpose of the light is to see and be seen.
See things so that you don't hit them; be seen by other things so they don't hit you and/or stay out of your path.
To be seen, you don't need a whole lot of light, which is why so-called "daytime running lights" can be so much dimmer than full headlights and still be effective.
To see, you need to emit different amounts of light depending upon whether or not you are trying to see something that, itself, emits light.
If the something emits light, you need a low light output just to get the context of the lighted thing (you can see the lighted thing because of its own light).
If you are not hurtling towards something that emits light, then there is a linear relationship more light=safer as regards visibility.
A sane, intelligent control system for this would be to observe and detect light received from within a certain number of degrees of straight ahead, and reduce or increase light output based upon whether light's coming in.
Is is bright ahead? Don't emit much light. Be respectful.
Is it dark ahead? Try to re-create the luminous conditions of a small sun. Aim for visibility.
Frankly, if your light control device of choice is a shotgun, all this is probably sailing over your head with the speed of photons, but perhaps having the information here will at least help someone else.
"Not getting any better" is a stupid solution.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday January 17 2019, @01:51AM
For me, you miss the "funny" mark. But, you do hit on something. Maybe all those high intensity light sources should be mandated to be self dimming. Even professional truck drivers neglect to dim their headlights these days, or are slow to react when they meet a vehicle. Headlights that dimmed themselves immediately when meeting another vehicle at night would be great. Or, measure the lumens coming in, and dim when the light level reaches that of a rather dim, but legal headlight 3/4 mile away. I chose 3/4 mile distance, because that is how far away the HID is blinding. With old, incandescent headlights, the law said lights should be dimmed at a distance of 500 feet, but we can't use that as a safe distance with today's lights. (actually 500 ft was inadequate even with those headlights of days gone by)