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32 - The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday October 8, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com New adaptive high-beam assistant automatically adjusts headlamps for optimum lighting in every traffic situation Nighttime journeys by car are about to become safer in the future. Mercedes-Benz has developed an innovative system that automatically adapts headlamp range to the distance of vehicles ahead or to oncoming vehicles. This means drivers will benefit from optimum headlamp range at all times to recognize other road users, pedestrians or danger spots more easily and more quickly. The adaptive high-beam assistant will be available from spring 2009. Unlike conventional systems that simply switch between dipped and main beam, the new MercedesBenz technology is adaptive, adjusting light yield in accordance with prevailing traffic situations. Dipped beam range can therefore be increased from around 65 metres to as much as 300 meters without dazzling other motorists. If the system detects oncoming traffic or vehicles ahead it continuously adjusts headlamp range so that the headlamp cone falls in front of other road users. The high-beam assistant also takes steering angle into account, so that headlamps are dipped appropriately on tight corners. On empty and open roads, the system gently switches to high beam. Practical tests have shown that the adaptive high-beam assistant significantly enhances the safety of motorists when driving in the dark. Despite oncoming traffic, pedestrian dummies positioned at the edge of the road were recognized at a distance of around 260 meters, approximately 150 metres earlier than with conventional dipped beam lighting. The new Mercedes-Benz assistant therefore offers a more than two-fold safety bonus. In addition, the system helps relieve the burden on car drivers because it is no longer necessary to operate the lever on the steering column. Once activated, the adaptive high-beam assistant will automatically provide the optimum headlamp range so full concentration can be given to driving. According to the latest studies, the main beam is switched on for approximately just eight per cent of journeys at night on average. The brand new Mercedes-Benz technology is based on a camera positioned inside the front windshield that monitors the traffic situation in front of the car. Thanks to an intelligent image-processing algorithm, the camera can recognize other vehicles and determine their distance. The range of the bixenon headlamps can then be varied and continuously adapted to the distance of the car ahead or to oncoming vehicles. The system has lightning quick reaction times, transmitting new data to the headlamps every 40 milliseconds. The adaptive high-beam assistant functions at speeds above 55 km/h and is fully automatic from the time the driver switches the rotary light switch to Auto and the multifunction control lever on the steering column to high beam. As a result, Mercedes-Benz models from spring 2009 will benefit from the world's most efficient headlamp technology.