Installations of intelligent headlights and interior lighting systems grew steadily
The publisher predicts that the ambient light as a standard configuration will be installed in 13 million vehicles in 2025, with a penetration rate of nearly 60%.
The installations of touch reading light soared from 2019 to 2023, with penetration up to 16.8% in 2023, and the most models equipped with this function were from BYD, Audi, and Li Auto.
Intelligent headlights are led by DLP headlights, digital headlights, programmable headlights, and adaptive driving beam (ADB) headlights. They can enable such functions as autonomous driving assistance, exterior interaction, and entertainment projection.
In 2023, the mainstream light source of intelligent headlights was LED combination, sweeping about 84% of the installations; halogen headlights made up 15%; laser headlights still took a less than 0.5% share. In 2023, among intelligent headlights, matrix headlights were installed most, and mounted on 2,229,000 vehicles; geometric multi-beam headlights followed, with installation in 231,000 vehicles.
In recent five years, the installations of ADB headlights were on the rise: in 2021, the installations of the standard ADB headlights exceeded the optional for the first time; in 2023, ADB headlights were installed in 1,584,000 vehicles. In 2023, headlights became more diversified. As technology evolves, they begin to carry functions other than lighting, including: intelligent driving assistance, interaction, and entertainment.
The diversification of automotive lighting functions has not only expedited the application of lighting technologies like DLP, MicroLED, and pixel headlights, but also fueled the integration of automotive lighting with other auto parts, for example, 'lighting-screen integration' (using displays for exterior lighting and display), 'lighting-surface integration' (integrating smart surface technology into the lighting system, mainly exterior grille lights and interior ambient/door lights), and 'perception lighting' (integrating sensors into lights to enhance intelligence).
In the case of interaction function of intelligent lighting, the images projected by headlights and the pixel graphics showed by the LED display convey the user's intents for interaction with pedestrians and vehicles. This technology is mainly enabled by the projection of pixel headlights and the light information interaction mode of programmable headlights.
Xpeng was the first to introduce the light information interaction function, and used it in P7 in 2020, a model with sales of about 5,000 units. This function was available to P5 and G9 in 2022, and smart#1, Avatr 11, SAIC Rising/IM series, and Hongqi H9 began to follow suit in the year. In 2023, the models equipped with lighting information interaction function began to boom, with 330,000 vehicles installed with it, the penetration rate up to 1.6%.
ZEEKR 007 packs Valeo ZEEKR STARGATE, an integrated intelligent light curtain in the front face. The front light curtain supports the light information interaction design, adopts the 'light-screen integration' approach, and allows customization of intelligent expressions and courtesy signs. ZEEKR STARGATE is independently controlled by 75 automotive-grade driver ICs provided by TI.
In December 2023, AITO M9 was officially released with Huawei's XPixel automotive lighting technology. DLP projection enables intelligent driving assistance functions such as lane change and turning alert, lane guidance, and light blanket projection. In terms of interaction function, AITO M9's ISD lights with more than 1,000 pixels have built in over 10 animation effects such as welcome, charging animation and light information interaction, as well as over 40 customized patterns. The 4M high-speed serial communication realizes smoother animation effects, and the customized animations can be refreshed via OTA updates to meet the customization requirements of different target groups.
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