Multibeam Headlights in the Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class

Maximum illumination for the driver with minimal dazzling of oncoming traffi c are important criteria in the automotive illumination engineering and was even an important topic as early as the 1950s, when traffi c and congestion started to rise for the fi rst time. Computer pioneer Konrad Zuse then had the idea [1] of using multiple headlamps, each of which illuminated one area of the road and switched off via photo cells as soon as other vehicles were detected. This function is known as partial high beam. Due to the size of the bulbs used at the time, this technology was not able to be realised as the headlamp assembly would have been extremely large. When the blue LED was developed, however, it suddenly became possible to miniaturise the light sources to the extent that many white light LEDs with luminous surfaces in the millimetre range could be mounted behind a lens. It is exactly this technology that is employed in the Multibeam LED headlamps of the new Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class, FIGURE 1.