Laser light in the car industry: Questions and answers on innovative laser technology
Great opportunities for smart car lighting
An Interview with Dr. Roland Fiederling, Application Engineer for Automotive at OSRAM Herbrechtingen.
How does laser light function exactly?
The range of the full beam of up to 600 meters in the BMW i8 - double the range normally experienced with LED full beam - is largely thanks to the laser module developed by OSRAM that is integrated into the full LED headlight.
They are activated as soon as driving speed exceeds 70km/h and the on-board camera can reliably see that there is no oncoming traffic. "We use the physical benefits of laser", explains Hans-Joachim Schwabe, CEO of OSRAM Specialty Lighting (SP).
Laser diodes can generate a lot of light in a very small space. A laser diode generates an almost punctiform flux on a few microns, thus, the lenses used may turn out to be very small.
The extremely high light intensity also enables its long range.
The laser diodes emit monochromatic light with a wavelength of 450 nanometres, which is perceived as blue by the human eye.This light would be unsuitable for use in vehicles. White light is needed here, preferably with a color temperature of around 5500 Kelvin.
Therefore, specialists from OSRAM Specialty Lighting (SP) have developed a module in which the laser light from several diodes initially strikes a converter. With the help of a fluorescent substance, this converts blue light into white - exactly as in modern light-emitting diodes.