US finally allows use of modern matrix headlights

[Im Not Spam]

U.S. regulators are finally allowing advanced headlight technology in new cars, accelerating a process begun with the passage of a new infrastructure law late last year. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) formally approved use of adaptive headlights Tuesday following a petition from Toyota, Reuters reported. That petition...

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[elwood blues]

afl;kjasfjU.S. regulators are finally allowing advanced headlight technology in new cars, accelerating a process begun with the passage of a new infrastructure law late last year.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) formally approved use of adaptive headlights Tuesday following a petition from Toyota, Reuters reported. That petition was filed in 2013, showing how long the regulatory battle over adaptive headlights has dragged on.

Adaptive headlights, also known as matrix headlights, consist of numerous small LED elements and mirrors that can control a light beam in complex ways. This allows the lights to be more precisely aimed, illuminating what the driver needs to see without blinding other motorists, pedestrians, or cyclists. (Editor's note: We typically refer to adaptive headlights as lights that point into corners to illuminate the proper path rather than the view off the road. This definition is for lights that can turn on and off LEDs to provide the best light ahead without blinding oncoming cars.)

This move goes a step beyond current automatic high beams, which simply shut off the high beam when an oncoming car approaches. Adaptive headlights can shut off the lighting elements facing other road users, while keeping the rest of the area in front of the car fully lit.

Such lights ran afoul of a U.S. rule dating back to 1967 that requires headlights to have separate high-beam and low-beam elements. Because adaptive headlights use the same lighting elements for both high beams and low beams, they violated this rule. The NHTSA first proposed a change to this rule in 2018, and new regulations allowing adaptive/matrix headlights were ultimately included in the infrastructure bill signed into law by President Biden in November 2021.

Adaptive headlights have been available in other markets for years, including on some cars also sold in the U.S., such as the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Audi A8, and Audi E-Tron. The NHTSA's ruling means the technology can finally be enabled on these vehicles and others in the U.S.

It's about freaking time! This is why you can still buy a brand new 2022 car sold in the US that has Wagner Long Life Halogen high and low beam bulbs. As the auto industry straight up refused to develop parallel paths for LED headlights. Basically the rest of the world, Europe and Japan mainly, have had adaptive headlight technology for years now, but the NHTSA was stuck on a law from the 60's, and for those of us not ready to accept that, the 1960's were SIXTY YEARS AGO!

Anyway, hopefully this will make LED headlights a standard that's not just available on the highest trim levels of the most expensive cars. Hopefully it makes aftermarket LEDs more available, and in some places legal... but I'm not going to hold my breath.

 

[CJ]

Once you go LED it is fantastic. Our Acura lights up the road. Yep, 60 year old technology is finally being replaced in the states...

 

[Patrick]

I think they are referring to smart headlamps that can actively redirect the beam. They might not involve moving parts and will definitely not be cheap. I am not impressed by this additional failure point, but I definitely like LED lights.

 

[CJ]

They are talking about active beams. The reflector actively directs the light so there is no real high or low bam. The light changes as needed.

 

[Patrick]

So it’s high and low beam. I thought these lights could also turn sideways in par with your steering.

 

[CJ]

Not really a high and a low beam but one that only shines where needed an where is usable. It does move around as you turn and can light up the road while avoiding shining in eyes of oncoming drivers.

 

[Patrick]

You changed your answer.

Why did the US not allow those headlamps, to begin with…

 

[CJ]

You changed your answer.

Why did the US not allow those headlamps, to begin with…

Huh, what did I change? It's all about a stupid old US law that should have been fixed years ago prohibiting new advanced technology in head lights for autos. Europe adopted hybrid lamps some time ago and we are just now catching up.

 

[elwood blues]

It's not a simple yes or no answer. You can't think of new headlight technology in the same way you think of old school headlights.

This video is a good example of what Hella is developing for Audi.

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Here's a view of what a headlight from a 2019 Porsche, not in the US, looks like;

https://us-west-2-02830060-view.men...4LXBvcnNjaGUtY2F5ZW5uZV8xMDA2MjQ0OTFfaC5qcGc~

The old law "dating back to 1967 that requires headlights to have separate high-beam and low-beam elements."

In a nutshell, the US was stuck on the wording of a law from 1967 that said Hi-beam and Lo-Beam had to be separate "elements", two filaments inside one bulb, separate high beam and low beam bulbs, etc. But the technology has very, very quickly eclipsed that old terminology, and the US has been almost a decade behind in where auto manufacturers and LED technology is.