News: LEDs
20 July 2023
ams OSRAM launches intelligent multi-pixel EVIYOS 2.0 LED for precision adaptive headlights
After 10 years of continuous engineering development, ams OSRAM GmbH of Premstätten, Austria and Munich, Germany has launched EVIYOS 2.0 in volume production, a new type of intelligent multi-pixel LED that enables fully adaptive, dynamic headlight operation and image projection in automotive forward lighting.
EVIYOS 2.0 can selectively illuminate the road ahead to maximize the driver’s view in high-beam mode without creating the glare typically experienced by other road users. With a pixel pitch of 40µm, the chip’s 25,600 individually controllable LEDs can also project high-resolution images on to the road surface, for example to display warning symbols to the driver or other road users, or to guide the driver past obstacles.
Use of EVIYOS 2.0 is said to improve road safety by increasing the time for drivers to react to hazards that would be invisible or partially hidden with conventional headlights. The superior view of the road also promises to transform the driver’s experience of the road at night, making night driving easier and safer.
Until now, many automotive safety features have been designed to keep the driver and passengers inside the vehicle safe. With EVIYOS 2.0, through the ability to project images on the road at night, the car communicates in new ways both to the driver but also to others in the car’s surroundings. For example, headlights based on EVIYOS 2.0 can project a snowflake symbol on to the road surface to warn of icy or slippery conditions, helping to heighten awareness of danger and hence reducing the risk of accidents.
“High-resolution adaptive forward lighting is set to become the next big differentiator for vehicles from the world’s premium brands,” says Wolfgang Lex, senior VP automotive. “EVIYOS 2.0 is the enabler of the most precisely controllable forward lighting systems, and is a major new value creator for the automotive industry.”
Monolithic architecture produces homogeneous light output
The design of EVIYOS 2.0 draws on multiple innovations in chip design and fabrication. The 25,600 pixels are fabricated in a monolithic µ-LED chip array, which enables ams OSRAM to achieve what is claimed to be exceptionally high uniformity of color and brightness.
EVIYOS 2.0 consists of the multi-pixel emitter and a driver that individually controls the operation of each of the 25,600 LEDs. In Adaptive Driving Beam systems, the multi-pixel headlamp is mounted in a lensed headlamp assembly, and combined with an intelligent camera for scanning the scene in front of the vehicle. This enables the headlamp in high-beam mode to dynamically switch off enough LEDs to avoid glare for other road users while maximizing the driver’s view of the road. Dynamic control of individual LEDs also enables the headlight to project accurately along curves, extending the driver’s view of the road ahead.
Picture: Schematic illustration for the EVIYOS 2.0. Image: ams OSRAM.
EVIYOS 2.0 is a high-output, high-efficiency automotive light source that enables energy saving in vehicles: only those LEDs are energized that are required to maximize the driver’s view safely, so light is not wasted.
The LED chip has a compact 40mm2 footprint to ease integration in sleek headlamp assemblies and is available with a 1:4 (25,600 pixels) or 1:3 (19,200 pixels) aspect ratio.
First design implementation with Marelli: micro-LED module using EVIYOS 2.0
Several global car makers and tier-one suppliers are designing EVIYOS 2.0 into new product concepts. For example, Marelli has announced its first multi-pixel LED headlight module to be based on EVIYOS 2.0: the h-Digi microLED.
“The h-Digi microLED platform module based on the ams OSRAM EVIYOS 2.0 enables us to develop solutions for global carmakers providing more safety and comfort for drivers at night,” notes Didier Thalgott, senior VP at Marelli’s Automotive Lighting & Sensing Division. “In addition, thanks to its compactness, improved power consumption and affordable pricing, the system opens doors to applying the technology also in mid-level car segments.”
Osram developing 25,600-pixel second-generation Eviyos hybrid LED for smart headlights
Osram unveils Eviyos LED prototype for smart headlights; market launch planned for 2020
