Headlamp

The headlamp consists of a light source, a reflector (reflector), corrugated glass (light diffuser) and a housing with a holder (mount). A light source ( incandescent , LED , metal halide , xenon , halogen ) usually has adjustable / switchable power. In incandescent lamps, this is usually the presence of two filaments : the main beam gives a thread of high power (or both), located at the focus of the reflector, the low beam gives a thread of low power, usually offset from the focus of the reflector forward (for example, a two-filament lamp H4).

Almost any vehicle is equipped with headlights (in the case of two headlights, they should be located symmetrically to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle). Many cars have fog lights . Special vehicles have search lights that can turn in different directions ( spotlight ). On tractors and other working vehicles, headlights are also installed at the rear, to be able to observe trailed machines and implements.

The headlights using super-bright LEDs as a light source are gaining great popularity on ordinary production cars from car manufacturers. A big plus of LEDs is the ultra-low power consumption and a very long life, ranging from 30,000 to 100,000 hours. For example, a conventional automotive halogen lamp has a resource of 2000 hours.

Serial cars on which the auto manufacturer installs LED headlights:

• Lexus LS600h
• Lexus RX 450h
• Toyota Prius from 2010 onwards
• Cadillac escalade platinum
• Audi R8

Lighting technology in cars - a set of lighting devices on vehicles used to illuminate the area near the vehicle and designate the vehicle for other road users. Lighting equipment includes headlights, sidelights , searchlights , side lights, stop lights, daytime running lights , direction indicators, reversing lamps, fog lights and lanterns, as well as license plate lamps.

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  Headlights and sidelights on a VAZ-2106 vehicle operating in the low beam mode

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  The repeater of the turn indicator on the car VAZ-2106

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  The rear block lamp on the VAZ-2106 operating in the marker light mode

In general, a headlamp consists of a radiator, a diffuser, a reflector and a housing.

Emitter

The emitter is a light source in the headlight. There are several types of emitters.

1. Incandescent lamp. Traditional emitter. A vacuum is created inside the glass bulb, inside which the tungsten filament is heated by electric current to 2000 ° C. Work 500 - 1000 hours.
2. Halogen lamp. The glass flask is filled with a buffer halogen gas - iodine or bromine. Thanks to halogens, it works up to 4000 hours.
3. Gas Discharge Lamp (HID). In a flask of molten quartz or alumina, heated gas (xenon) emits light. It works up to 25,000 hours.
4. Light-emitting diodes (LED). They work on the basis of filling electrons with empty "holes" in a semiconductor with the release of a photon. Multiple emission of photons leads to luminescence. Energy efficient. Work up to 50,000 hours.

Diffuser

There are two types: with a pattern and a transparent coating.

1. Diffuser "with a picture." Optical elements - recesses and serifs on the lens, scatter light partially polarized by the reflector to get the desired angle of illumination of the road. Made of glass and plastic. The design is outdated and is now rarely used.
2. Clear diffuser. It has no optical elements. It is used for 3 types of headlights: with xenon lamps, with an additional diffusing lens, for free-form headlights. The main function is to protect the lamp from dirt and water. Made of glass or plastic. Plastic has a number of advantages: more durable, lighter, it is easier to make a headlight of any design out of plastic.

Reflector

A light source emits unpolarized light, the rays of which do not have the same direction, but are emitted in all directions. The reflector collects the rays and directs it towards the road. The inner surface is made of brass, plastic or glass and coated with a reflective layer of silver, chrome or aluminum.

Body

It contains all the components of the headlight - source, reflector, wires, etc. It is installed in the car body. Protects the lamp from overheating, humidity and mechanical damage. Usually made of thermoplastic.

Headlights are installed on cars using the following types of light sources:

• Incandescent lamps: “C” - low beam, “R” - high beam, “CR” - two-mode light (low and high). ^[one]
• The letter H on the headlamp is the lamp category designation, for example: H1, H3, H4, H4-1, H4-3 H1, H2, H4, H7, H9, H11, H15, HB3, HB4, HB5.
• In the USA, headlights are marked with the abbreviation “DOT” (Department Of Transport / Department of Transportation), and “European” - with the letter “E” in a circle with a number - the country code where the headlight is approved for use (“E1” - Germany, “E2” - France, etc.). Marking on the headlights "HB" - "1, 2, 3, 4 ..." indicate their compliance with American standards. Headlights with such markings are installed, as a rule, on American and some Japanese cars. A feature of these lamps is the unusual design of the cap.

“HB1” and “HB2” are double-stranded lamps for American cars, “HB3” and “HB4” are single-stranded. Single-walled HB3 lamps provide only high beams, HB4 - low beams. The marking "HB3" and "HB4" designates the type of light far and near, respectively.

Pay attention to the marking of the lamps themselves. Lamps with indices “D1R” and “D1S” are the first generation of discharge lamps, they are combined with the ignition module.

"R" - for reflex (reflective) optical system, "S" - for projection (lens) optics. “D2R” and “D2S” are second-generation discharge lamps (“R” for a reflex optical system, “S” for a floodlight).

The marking of the lamp “HR” and “HS” means: “H” - halogen lamp (Halogen), the letters “R” and “S” for reflex and floodlight optical circuits, respectively. Based on this, the marking of the Navika headlights is deciphered as: American standard headlights, low beam “HB4” with a first-generation gas discharge lamp “D1R” for a reflex optical circuit, high beam “HB3” with a halogen lamp “HR” for a reflective optical circuit.

• Letter D2S, D2R, D1R (Xenon)
• But the inscription or, more precisely, the Halogen marking means a halogen lamp
• Halogen incandescent lamps: “C” - low beam, “R” - high beam, “CR” - dual-mode light. ^[one]
• Gas discharge lamps: “DC” - low beam, “DR” - high beam, “DCR” - dual-mode light. ^[2]

Halogen bulbs are marked starting with "H" and should only be used with headlamps marked "HC", "HR" and "HCR". By analogy, discharge lamps are marked with a category starting with “D” and should only be used with headlamps of the “DC”, “DR” and “DCR” type. ^[3]

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  Double filament halogen lamp H4.

Approval Mark

Headlights mounted on American cars are marked with the abbreviation DOT (Department Of Transport, Department of Transportation).

For European headlamps, if the headlamp lens can be separated from the headlamp housing, the lens and the headlamp housing shall bear the designation in the form of the letter "E" in a circle with the number of the country which has granted approval and approval numbers with additional letters editing the original rules.

Marking with the approval marks "E" or "e" (for wheeled vehicles) is equivalent to marking with a single sign of product circulation on the market of the Member States of the Customs Union. ^[four]

The remaining countries are assigned subsequent serial numbers, distributed in chronological order for their ratification of the Agreement on the adoption of uniform technical requirements. All parties to the agreement are given new numbers by the UN Secretary General.

On tractors and special equipment, both road (transport) automobile-type headlights and technological headlights are used. Technological headlights illuminate the space around the tractor and its working bodies. The number of technological lights and their power can be very large. So, on a heavy Soviet tractor T-330 there were 16 headlights with a power of 65 W each.

Lighting equipment of aircraft (aircraft), aircraft and helicopters can be divided into internal and external.

Interior lighting is divided into internal and local cabin rooms, passenger compartment lighting and aircraft compartment lighting. In most cases, the in-cab working lighting is organized by shadowless (red-white, blue) lamps with continuously adjustable light intensity. To carry out work in the cab on the ground, emergency lighting is additionally used. In passenger cabins, lighting is divided into general and local, as well as on-duty. In the cockpit, the number of lighting bulbs (not counting the warning lights and display) can reach thousands or more.

External lighting equipment is designed to provide the crew with night visibility during take-off, landing, taxiing; illumination of structural elements and L.A designations in space to illuminate the parking lot; in other cases, in accordance with the design features and purpose of the aircraft.

PRF-4M - landing-taxiing headlight, which is widely used on Soviet-made aircraft, as a light source to illuminate the space in front of the aircraft - taxiways and runways , at night and with limited visibility. Also, according to generally accepted international practice, landing-taxiing headlights are turned on when taking off and landing under any visibility conditions, including during the day, in order to designate the aircraft on take-off, and on the glide path of descent and mileage.

A bulb holder for the headlight bulb SMF-3 and an exhaust mechanism with a gearbox and a direct current electric motor ED-12 are mounted in the headlight housing. After takeoff, the headlight is retracted into the contour of the fuselage, to reduce aerodynamic drag, and is released on landing. The angle of the headlight output is adjusted in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions for the particular aircraft and is periodically checked and adjusted during routine maintenance or when replacing a blown headlamp. Some machines have a system for automatically cleaning landing gears after takeoff. The lamp-headlight transfer time at the maximum possible angle of 88 degrees is no more than 12 seconds.
The headlight has two operating modes: taxiing (low light) and landing (high light). In the landing mode, a 28-volt DC power supply is supplied to the main filament with a power of 600 W (modification PRF-4MP has a power of 1000 W), and in the taxi mode, an additional filament with a power of 180 W, while long-term operation in the landing mode without blowing free flow (when standing on the ground) is not allowed due to overheating of the bulb. As a rule, at least two headlights of the PRF-4M type are installed on airplanes.

Lighting equipment for refueling in the air consists of FPSh-5 type headlights for lighting a refueling aircraft, a hose with a cone and a refueling rod. These headlights are structurally similar to PRF-4, are installed in the front of the fuselage and can be produced at any angle up to 90 degrees with the help of push switches in the cockpit. The drive of the bulb holder for the headlamp through the gearbox is made by an electric motor of direct current ED-12. The lamp power is 65 watts with a supply voltage of 28 volts.

Light devices of locomotives are determined by the instruction for signaling the Russian Railways, since they also have a signal value. The upper light fixture-spotlight, turns on at night and with poor visibility, only white. At the bottom of the buffer lights, there may be white, yellow, red, they can be switched on only on one side during maneuvers to determine the direction of movement of the locomotive.

On marine vessels, there is usually no headlight, as such, since there is no point in lighting the surface of the water in front of a maritime vessel. Numerous rotating searchlights are used to illuminate the area around the vessel when maneuvering or searching for people and objects. But on river ships, headlights are used, since there are many small navigational dangers on rivers (fireboats, floating logs, boats without lights, all kinds of garbage) and to detect them at night, the water surface in front of the vessel should be lit. To avoid blinding of the vessels on watch oncoming vessels, the headlights of river vessels have a clear cut-off line (similar to the dipped headlights of cars) and are directed slightly downward. The lights of the river vessels are quite powerful. So, on passenger three and four-deck motor ships in the headlights, lamps with a power of 350 W each are used, which allows you to illuminate the water surface at a distance of 600-800 meters from the vessel. In addition to the headlights, river vessels are equipped with rotating searchlights where even more powerful lamps (up to 2.5 kW) are used.

The word headlight comes from the name of the island of Faros near the Egyptian city of Alexandria , on which the Alexandria lighthouse was located - one of the 7 wonders of the world .

• Automotive Lighting
• Floodlight
• Lamp
• Daytime Running Lights
• Types of Car Lamps

• Headlights in TSB
• Hella Cadillac LED Headlamps
• Headlight adjustment