The United Nations regulations have made a series of necessary detailed regulations on the various technical parameters of the light source of the vehicle lamp to ensure the safe operation of the lighting and signal lamp device after replacing the light source. In addition to laws and regulations describing the general technical requirements for the use of light sources for signal and headlight devices, there are also other specific regulations governing the provision of replaceable LED light sources for front fog lamps, adaptive headlamp systems and various headlamps. Related corrections. Therefore, there are many advantages to using a replaceable, standardized light source. Compared with other light sources, standardized LED light sources have very detailed specifications including thermal, photometric, colorimetric and other parameters, which will greatly simplify the design of headlamps. Therefore, this article introduces the status quo of the simplification of regulations on light sources. The content is divided into four parts:
UN regulations on light sources
There are three main regulations for light sources. They address three different light source technologies:
Regulation No. 37: Incandescent lamps that emit light by heat radiation
Law No. 99: Gas Discharge Light Source
Regulation 128: LED light source
When the gas discharge light source was used in the field of automotive lighting, there was a specific regulation No. 99, taking into account the special properties of gas discharge light sources other than incandescent lamps. At the same time, in order to ensure color rendering, a requirement for a minimum red component of the radiation is proposed. The light emitting area of the gas discharge light source is not as obvious as the heat radiation light source, so a special description of the arc bending and diffusion degree is also very necessary.
The introduction of LED light source technology needs to increase the corresponding regulations again. Unlike other light sources, the photometric and colorimetric performance of an LED depends mainly on the temperature of the die, and the variation of the light output with the applied voltage is completely different from that of a heat-radiating light source. Different LED arrays have different luminescence characteristics, and the luminescent region characteristics and light intensity distribution need to be categorized.
All three regulations ensure the safe operation of the lighting and signalling devices after replacing the corresponding light source.
Regulatory simplification of light source regulations
In order to reduce the administrative burden caused by the amendment of laws and regulations, the law-making department hopes to reduce the number of lighting regulations.
The ideal goal is to be able to include all types of lighting fixtures through a single regulation, to be as technically neutral as possible, to ensure technological innovation from a performance-oriented perspective, and not to modify existing regulations when technological innovations.
For light sources, it is impractical to simplify all regulations to one regulation due to the type and performance complexity mentioned above. However, experts have found a way to reduce changes in regulations for light sources when promoting technological innovation. In the past, a large part of amendments to laws and regulations were limited to the introduction of new light sources, because product specifications for different types of light sources only contained a certain category of specific parameters and did not focus on how to adapt to other types of regulations.
The new method shrinks three light source regulations into regulatory requirements, technical requirements, and tests. The definition of the type and category of the light source becomes a part of the content, making the process of presenting and introducing a new class in the prior art more simplified.
Regulation No. 128 on the Regulation of Headlamp System LED Light Sources
The current regulation 128 for LED light sources does not include provisions for headlamp applications. The regulations on front fog lamps and headlamps do not give any rules on the use of LED light sources.
In general, when the light source is used for headlight function, it needs to satisfy the stricter thermodynamic conditions, greater luminous flux, and stricter geometric constraints of the signal lamp. Therefore, the experts are further increasing the definition and requirements of the LED light source in the 128 regulations so as to ensure the safe replacement of light sources. Even the most requested low beam light beam can balance the maximum visibility and minimum glare as much as possible.
The introduction of thermodynamic grading and thermal stability testing at the maximum allowable temperature can support optimal performance of headlights under practical conditions. The choice of different thermodynamic grade light sources can be used for different applications, such as motorcycle headlamps with lower thermal boundary conditions and front fog lights for vehicles, and multifunctional vehicle headlights with a higher thermal boundary load near the internal combustion engine.
Specific specifications for the contrast and uniformity of the light emitting area of the light source can help the headlight design to have a smaller glare level and a more pronounced cut-off line. The regulations therefore specify the minimum contrast (usually greater than halogen lamps) of LED light sources for low beam lamps.
The requirement for uniformity reduces the difference in brightness between the wafers in the light emitting region and avoids the influence of black dots between the wafers. In short, the beam quality after replacing the light source does not decrease.
Finally, observing the strict limits of chromatic aberration of light sources at different angles can avoid interference with road users.
The advantages of alternative light sources
Applying standardized LED light sources in automotive lighting can reduce the complexity of customizing headlights and taillights. Based on the experience of heat radiation source and gas discharge light source, standardized light sources can provide suppliers with more choice, promote market development and performance improvement, and bring more stable, reliable and competitive technologies that are not completely dependent on technology development. Supply chain. Unlike non-standardized, non-replaceable light sources or light source modules, the use of replaceable light sources simplifies the design of automotive lighting manufacturers and enables cost-effective replacement of damaged components.
The detailed regulations of all safety-related technical parameters in the regulations will also ultimately simplify the quality inspection and approval process for vehicle tail lights and headlamps. The non-replaceable light sources or light source modules need to be supplemented for each new model. Technical tests.
In other words, the use of replaceable light sources and standardized light sources can make more streamlined performance-oriented lighting regulations more practical.