Osram launches Oslon Boost HX LED for automotive forward lighting and information projection

Just like a normal projector can display pictures on a screen, a digital mirror device (DMD) system (with millions of micro-mirrors) in a car headlight can project light onto a road in the form of symbols. Osram Opto Semiconductors GmbH of Regensburg, Germany says that, due to components such as its new Oslon Boost HX LED, each headlight achieves a resolution of more than 1 million pixels, offering drivers not only classic illumination but also optional support from information projected onto the road. For example, future headlights may project two guide lines the width of a car apart, enabling the driver to negotiate roadworks more safely. Projections may also be used to tell drivers that they are too close to the vehicle in front, or warn them that they are approaching roadworks, icy patches or other hazards.

In developing Oslon Boost HX, Osram Opto made use of its expertise in projection technology, in which high-current LEDs have been used for a long time and have been continually optimized. They have now been transferred to the automotive sector and adapted to meet the strict quality requirements. “This first product in the Oslon Boost family addresses the trend for special user experiences with added safety and emotional appeal,” says Stefan Seidel, senior manager marketing Automotive Exterior at Osram Opto. “This LED is a good example that shows the enormous potential our products will have in automotive lighting.”

Oslon Boost HX delivers exceptional luminance of more than 200cd/mm2, taking light-based driver assistance systems and communication with the driver into new territory, it is claimed. Special chip technology with particularly high ampacity can be operated at 3A/mm2, ensuring high luminous flux – and most importantly for this target application – high luminance. Its 2mm2 chip emits at least 1400lm at a current of 6A.

The package has been optimized to make use of the high current capability of the chips. An electrically insulated thermal pad and special internal design structures ensure that heat is reliably removed from the component. The 4mm x 4mm ceramic package is very robust so it is easy to handle.

Passive DMD solutions herald the start of a broad range of applications, says Osram Opto. More efficient active solutions for glare-free high beam and projection as well as other Oslon Boost derivatives will follow.

Tags: Osram Oslon LED headlights

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