Comment on Headlamp tech that doesn’t blind oncoming drivers—where is it?
laverabe@lemmy.world 6 days ago
It seems to me like we didn’t have this problem twenty years ago. If blinding LEDs are the problem, why not just not allow them anymore for headlights? It takes 5 seconds to pop in a new incandescent headlight on cars that have them, and well made ones can last 20+ years depending on the construction. Visibility is good and equivalent to some LEDs with higher end lamps, and it doesn’t create a superbly unnatural light that impairs the other drivers, pedestrians, or nature. It would also reduce light pollution.
On very rare occasion, the progressive step forward, actually looks a lot like the road backwards. It would take a long time to implement, but anything worth doing is worth taking the time to do it right.
Auto sensing technology is going to be more of a glaring headache in 20 years, when you have half of the cars with failing sensors and everyone getting blinded even worse. Adaptive Driving Beams (ADB) are not a solution, it does not properly address the issues of glare, and it will likely only make the problem worse by further removing human interaction from headlight controls.
fuckwit_mcbumcrumble@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 days ago
No. Not even close. LEDs are blinding because they have such high output. That high output is what makes things visible.
laverabe@lemmy.world 6 days ago
That’s what high beams are for…
boonhet@lemm.ee 5 days ago
Which LEDs have you seen that are equivalent to some incandescent lamps?
Last car with LEDs I had, made the road completely visible with the low beams, something which no car with halogens has done for me. It also had an extremely clear cutoff so as not to blind oncoming traffic, whereas many incandescent headlamps have no real cutoff line, so they can actually be more annoying for oncoming traffic.
When I turned on the high beams, they’d automatically black out the parts where there were other cars (both oncoming and ones driving in front of me), while still keeping the sides of the road illuminated, so if a deer decided to commit sudoku, I’d at least get a heads up. But I was nearly never flashed to drop down to low beams. And I live in a country where everyone knows to flash when they’re being blinded - and to drop to low beams when being flashed.
I can tell you that good visibility has saved me from getting expensive venison more than once. I can also tell you that in any car I’ve had with good low beams, I’ve switched off my high beams exceptionally early when there’s oncoming traffic, so really, there’s LESS glare for other drivers.