Last month, I was pleased to announce our decision to have another workshop in Detroit this coming January. The interest has been so strong that we’ve had a steady stream of registrations coming in from car makers including Audi, Chrysler, Ford, GM, Honda, Hyundai, Mercedes, Nissan, Opel, Toyota, VW; lighting suppliers Automotive Lighting, Federal Mogul, Grote, Hella, J.W. Speaker, Koito, Magna, Mobis, Myotek, SeaLink International, Valeo, Valeo Sylvania, and Varroc, plus more than 20 Tier 2 suppliers. In total 45 companies are already registered.
There is a great need in the worldwide lighting community to have more information about cutting edge technologies in a time where there are so many new technologies coming. In the US, traditionally a region with relatively slack interest in car lights, now lighting has become a strong lever not only for styling differentiation but also for safety performance better than the basic legal requirements, and for energy savings. The arrival of cameras brings intelligence to front lights so that the drivers feel safer. DRLs and signal lights create new day and night brand identification. The possibilities of simulation give engineers new ways to develop more projects, helping to solve the increasing engineering workload.
The rubric for the workshop is “How New Technology Will Enhance Driver Vision”. This workshop will present the latest achievements in all these technologies and we’ve added regulatory topics to the docket. We are now in a global industry where road infrastructure and vehicle mix variance among the world’s countries aren’t nearly so great as they used to be . Scientifically, it is time to try to harmonise the lighting requirements in North America and those used elsewhere in the world because it is difficult to find any traffic safety data to support national approaches.
This workshop will also give new possibilities to Tier 2 suppliers to show their contribution to cutting edge technologies, and offer it to the Tier 1 suppliers. Once again this year, we’ll have a meet-and-greet soirée dinner the night before the symposium itself. The event will allow a large exchange of experience, desires, and ideas among American, Japanese, Korean, and European participants on innovative technologies for automotive lighting.
Do not forget to book your room by email if you want to stay at the event hotel, the Royal Park in Rochester, Michigan. See you there!
DVN Editor in Chief