| Pr Khanh opening the congress |
Another ISAL has successfully gone. We spoke to Prof. Khanh to get his impression of the 2011 event and his thoughts for the future:
DVN: What are the main key figures of ISAL 2011 about participants, lectures, booths and posters?
Pr Khanh: We had exactly 601 participants. In 2007 we had 540 and in 2009 approx. 450 participants due the finance and automobile crisis. We had 74 oral lectures, 28 posters and 24 written contributions, totalling 126 contributions. All exhibitions booths were booked, which showed the latest innovation of the headlamp, rear lamp technologies and the OLED-technology.
DVN: Are you satisfied by the worldwide attendance?
Pr Khanh: Yes, we had 41% of all participants from outside of Germany and can demonstrate the international character of the conference. Many participants came from Japan and South Korea. We have new coöperation with a University in Japan, which researches in a similar direction to our laboratory. This is a very good opportunity to exchange the methodoloy and results to our colleagues from this University. The party responsible for automobile lighting regulation in China came to me and we have agreed that i shall visit him in China. Regulations, ECE and SAE-values and understanding for lighting technology have to be pushed in China as the new “car nation”. Most participants who met me think positively and innovatively and this is essential.
DVN: What is your feeling, just after the congress has closed ? Some proudness, some regret?
Pr Khanh: I am very proud of the conference, not only due the size of this. This is more the content of the lectures and the innovations which were shown in the lecture halls and in the exhibitions. The conference has continued and improved the role as the worldwide central meeting point for the whole automobile lighting industry. I am proud of my team members, who are 14 doctoral students and staff members and have organized the conference without big problems.
We are very happy that we have seen some new show cars on the conference as exhibition demonstartion (CLS from Mercedes, two cars from Osram, Audi from Delvis and Trabant from IAV). This is really good.
DVN: What are the lectures you loved?
Pr Khanh: It is my personal opinion. I am not only a professor. I am more an engineer and I do have some particular favourites:
• The lecture of M.Thom (Daimler AG) on ” headlight range calibration during driving operation”
• The lecture of W. Pohlmann of Hella on ” Robustness of LED Components and LED systems. The Laboratory of lighting technology of TU Darmstadt is making the same analysis on the LEDs for the street and indoor lighting and it is important not only to speak on the advantages of LED. We have to know the problems and the circumstances of operations with LEDs in order to develop stable LED-products.