In the past few years, automobile headlamps have gone through a great deal of transformations in the marketplace, from the advent of high-intensity discharge (HID) headlamps to the passing of legislation, such as the “wipers on, lights on” laws that are now common in many states. Despite these innovations, it is unclear whether the public sees this evolution in automobile headlamps as positive.
The latest report from the Transportation Lighting Alliance (TLA) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Lighting Research Center (LRC) evaluates newspaper stories about automobile headlamps in order to gauge public opinions and understanding about these systems. The information will be used to outline the main areas of concern in terms of headlamp safety and pinpoint areas for future study.
According to Senior Research Scientist John Bullough, Ph.D., LRC researchers examined newspaper articles published from 2004-2009, to locate and analyze topics related to automobile headlamp visibility and glare.
The main area of concern to headlamp glare are:
– Color 25%
– Intensity 17%
– Height 14%
– Aim 10%
– Age of headlamps7%
The main areas of concern in regards to visibility are:
– Inclement weather 30%
– Daytime running lights 19%
– Low-beam headlamps 16%
– HID headlamps 13%
– Dirt buildup 9%