Automotive lighting

As vehicle lighting refers to the lighting equipment of vehicles that are required to be seen at dusk, darkness or in bad weather conditions and even to see enough. There are in all vehicles a standard lighting, which is required for each vehicle type. Additional lighting devices are possible. With the use of control electronics and sensors, light automatics result.

Below, only the lights of land vehicles is presented.

Automotive exterior lighting

In principle, that forwards only white and yellow light may radiate to the back only red, white and yellow to the side.

Passenger cars

The standard applies to passenger cars to the front two lights with:

• The main beam to illuminate the road when there is no oncoming traffic is blinded,
• Low beam to avoid dazzling oncoming motorists and other road users,
• Parking light, (also called " marker light "), which must be lit together with low beam or high beam, so that even if one of the other lamps at least the outline of your own vehicle can be seen for the oncoming traffic,
• If necessary, parking light, for example, to park in well-lit areas not in town,
• Direction indicator ( sl " flashing light " ) in orange,
• To bring about possibly fog lights ( Austrian " wide beam "), which have a specially designed lens in vision due to fog, snow or rain no self- blinding,
• Possibly Headlights, when the indicator or cornering under 40 km / h, auxiliary lights lit asynchronously to the side of the road from the edge of the roadway. Most often installed in combination with fog,
• Possibly wide radiator, which represent an additional high beam,
• If necessary, daytime running lights, which automatically turn on when the ignition is switched off when switching on the main lights. This has, in comparison to the low beam light output and lower power consumption, thus the consumption increases only slightly. The deviation from the other rule that front lighting may only be activated along with the tail lights, led initially due to the lack of awareness of irritation with traffic controls.

• Some vehicles of the fire brigade, police and other agencies (eg, the THW ) have front beacons on the grille (usually two ).

To the rear taillights:

• Two tail lights in red,
• Two brake lights in red, the light much stronger than the rear. According to European Union law must in the EU since 1998 all new cars in addition a third brake light be attached, in the middle of the rear and higher off the ground than the other two brake lights. The installation is in sedans, coupes and station wagons mostly behind the rear window or as a light strip in the rear spoiler, in convertibles in or on the trunk lid,
• Two direction indicators like the front ( orange),
• Two retro-reflectors (red) with retro-reflection,
• Number plate light that illuminates the license plate in white color. Alternatively, a self-luminous license plate to be mounted on the vehicle,
• One or two rear fog lights in red,
• One or two reversing lights in white color, but may radiate only when reverse gear light.

To:

• If necessary, side marker lights with a yellow or red color, usually linked to the low beam, for a better representation of the contour line in the dark,
• Possibly side direction indicator, these are also yellow and are usually located near the front.

In addition, vehicles of firefighters, police and other agencies (eg, the THW ) Special signals on the roof.

Some states also turning on daytime running lights is mandatory.

Front and rear fog lights

Front and rear fog lamp may be used only in a weather-related visual disability. In Germany rear fog lights may only be used if through mist (not rain or snow), the visibility less than 50 m ( § 17 III 5 Highway Code ). Then the maximum allowable speed is 50 km / h Contrary to popular belief, can be switched on in Germany not only the fog lights in fog but also vision due to snow or rain. Whether the visibility is less than 50 m, is irrelevant for the fog lights. A synonym for the front fog lamps is therefore "bad weather headlight ", the better substantiated the use provision in Germany.

Front fog lamp except when passing through tunnels and local areas to always be turned on. Driving with fog lights only in combination with the side lights are in good visibility, as well as obstruction of view, be it rain, fog or darkness allowed. However, in the dark or dusk, always with round lighting. Rear fog lights may - despite its name - be used in any visual obstruction. A maximum sight distance there are not there. However, it is prohibited the rear fog lamp to be used in local areas.

Voltage and Electrical

Usually, the on-board voltage is twelve volts at cars for lighting. Until the 1970s there were some models, in which the on-board voltage was six volts. It is important that the left and right side of the vehicle are overcurrent protected separately, so that a fault in any case one side of the vehicle lights.

Trucks and buses

In principle, these vehicles have the same lighting equipment such as passenger cars. The on-board voltage is usually 24 volts here. Trucks and buses must possess at greater length laterally yellow side marker lights. From a width of 1.80 m vehicles may have forward acting white and acting backwards red clearance lights, from a width of 2.10 m, these must be present at the extreme points. The distance to the boundary or lamp shall be at least 20 cm. The glow from a side of the vehicle may be combined. At the rear end of the two longitudinal sides of the trailer are each a forward acting white lane light allowed.

Regulatory Information Europe

ECE -Approved for headlights and tail lights (all ECE approval mark are approved in the EU as a whole ):

Headlight design:

/ - Can not turn together

Taillights version:

Other lamps:

Right arrow or left arrow, the arrow indicates the direction of installation and always shows outside of the vehicle. If no arrow is present, the light can be installed behind the right or left.

Vehicle interior lighting

The vehicle interior lighting includes all lights used in the interior of a vehicle, both lights, the general lighting - such as in a living room - serve as well - particularly in motor vehicles - the instrument lighting; Control and signal lights do not count.

The general enlightenment in cars with closed bodywork serve mostly vehicle-mounted roof lights. Usually, they can be operated with the door contact switches and other switches. Similarly, glove compartment and luggage compartment lights are designed. Reading lights should be glare for the driver. When lamps are mainly used to festoon lamps and LEDs.

In larger vehicles such as trains and ships, larger lamps are used in household types depending on the available on-board grid voltage.

Indirect, usually dimmable lamps with glass base lamps or LEDs are used to achieve glare and reflection freedom in motor vehicles for instrument lighting.

Trailer

Car and truck trailers have directed forward white reflector or marker lights, if they are wider than the towing vehicle. The rear lighting equivalent to that of passenger cars, with reversing light can be eliminated. For recognition as a pendant two red equilateral triangles with side length 15 cm are required as a reflector. Side must be present as yellow side marker reflectors or lights. The voltage source of the trailer acts the towing vehicle. This has a trailer socket, which must be separately connected to the actual trailer hitch.

Bike Lights

In Germany bicycles on public roads must be fitted in accordance with § 67 traffic regulations with the following lighting equipment:

• A bicycle generator with a rated output of at least three watts, the rated voltage is six volts ( battery may be used in addition),
• A forward -looking headlights for white light,
• At least one forward -looking white reflectors,
• A tail light to red light, the lowest point on the illuminating surface not less than 250 mm above the road surface,
• At least one red reflector, whose highest point of the illuminating surface is not higher than 600 mm above the ground;
• One with the letter Z marked red large area reflector ( the tail light and one of the reflectors must be combined in one unit),
• Forward and backward -looking yellow reflectors to the bicycle pedals,
• At least two offset by 180 ° attached to and acting on the side of yellow spoke reflector to the spokes of the front wheel and the rear wheel or annularly continuous retroreflective white stripes on the tires or to the spokes of the front wheel and the rear wheel.

In addition, be accepted:

• An additional, acting in stand tail light to red light,
• Additional action by the side yellow retroreflective means.

These provisions of the Road Traffic are already outdated in some respects. There are now approved according to traffic regulations taillights, combine the taillight and auxiliary light function in a single lamp, and Fahrraddscheinwerfer that have a parking light forward.

Exemptions are allowed for racing bikes:

• Racing wheels up to eleven kilograms are allowed to use batteries for the operation of headlights and rear lights in place of the alternator;
• The headlights and the prescribed tail light need not be firmly attached to the bicycle; but they are carried and when required to use;
• Headlights and rear lights do not need to be switched on together;
• It may also be a headlight lower nominal voltage are carried as six volts;
• Racing bicycles are exempt for the duration of participation in races from the rules for lighting.

The lighting rules also apply to mountain bikes, to the extent they are driven on public roads.

In Austria the limit for road bikes is twelve kilograms. In addition, the lighting may be taken during the day and be powered by a battery or battery pack. To the rear and red LEDs may be used.

Special shapes

• Vehicles to which must be taken in the transport especially, often have one or more yellow (orange) warning beacons. This could be, for example, vehicles for road maintenance or garbage collection, but also special transports hazardous materials transportation.
• Emergency vehicles have blue flashing beacons and partly blue front flashers
• Military vehicles also have a so-called Tarnkreis. These include gap-like camouflage headlight at the front of the vehicle, and a Leitkreuz Tarnbremsleuchten Tarnschlussleuchten and at the bottom rear of the vehicle.

There are also passive lighting equipment such as reflectors, which significantly improve the visibility of an otherwise difficult to be recognized vehicle in the form of a contour tag; For example, a truck jackknifed to the lane. The prerequisite for this is an illumination of the selected vehicle. This must be done is approximately the same angle as the illuminated object to the viewer, as is the case with a car headlight to the driver.

Rail vehicle lighting

Historical

From 1936 to 1993 in France had all headlights, fog lights and driving lights shine in yellow light, so that the nationality of a vehicle in the dark was instantly recognizable. It occurred in both French and imported vehicles that this could take yellow headlight lenses have also colorless glasses with yellow bright light bulb. The standard definition of the yellowish hue were in ECE Regulation No. 19 for the fog lights, there referred to as " selective yellow ".

Even after the end of the war they remained in France at the yellow car headlights, because the disadvantage of slightly less light output compared to were some of the advantages of the long wave of yellow light: These are, inter alia, the lower glare of oncoming traffic, reducing the risk of accidents involving deer, as not solidify animals in the headlight beam, but flee also better perception of contours and potholes in the road and better visibility in rain and fog. In the course of harmonization within the EU, however, was changed from 1 January 1993 in France on white front lighting. The yellow headlights on the road had the consequence that locomotives with only two in France in rail transport - instead of with international practice - three front lights have been used; there was driven by rail with a white front light, a confusion was not possible.

Literature

• Ing Jürgen Kasedorf, Richard Koch: Service Primer for the automotive electrical systems. Vogel Business Media, 15th edition 2007, ISBN 978-3-834330987
• Robert Bosch GmbH (ed. ); Konrad Reif (Author ), Karl- Heinz Dietsche (Author) and 160 more authors: Automotive Handbook. 27th edition, Vieweg Teubner, Wiesbaden 2011, ISBN 978-3-8348-1440-1
• Rudolf Hüppen, Dipl Ing Dieter Korp: Auto electrics all types. Engine book publishing house, Stuttgart, ISBN 3-87943-059-4