[CES 2023] Kyocera SLD Laser unveils laser-based auto headlight modules

KYOCERA SLD Laser has introduced the world’s first LaserLightTM Headlight Modules that deliver high-bright white and infrared (IR) dual illumination for night vision and sensing for increased safety and visibility in automotive and mobility applications. The company will demonstrate these new laser-based headlight modules at CES 2023.

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Following Kyocera SLD’s product launch of its white emitting LaserLight device into automotive high beam boost applications in 2019, the company is now introducing LaserLight Headlight Modules that deliver a full feature, high brightness, high efficiency regulated low beam and high beam functionality with White and IR dual emission.

The high brightness, long-range white illumination provides a sharp cutoff, high contrast, and precise beam patterns with a minimum glare to maximize driver visibility and optimize IIHS scores. The IR illumination increases the night vision camera visibility of pedestrians and foggy or smokey roadways while enabling new forward lighting functions, including ranging and 3D flash LiDAR sensing.

The LaserLight Headlight Modules are arranged in a set of 4 per headlight: 2 modules for low and two for high beams, with either SAE or ECE/CCC, regulated emission patterns. The LaserLight Headlight Modules are ultra-compact with a slim profile of less than 12.7mm lens height and can be configured in a horizontal, 2×2, vertical, or offset layout, offering game-changing design and styling freedom to Tier 1 headlight makers and OEM vehicle manufacturers.

The LaserLight Headlight Modules incorporate Kyocera SLD’s innovative LaserLight SMD White/IR dual emission devices, Winner of the prestigious 2021 Prism Award for Photonics Innovation, Transportation Category. These LaserLight SMD device products will be on display at CES, delivering high brightness, high visibility, and eye-safe illumination for mobility applications, including avionics, drones, railway, and marine.

In the automotive aftermarket, Kyocera SLD’s LaserLight SMDs have illuminated podium finisher vehicles since 2018 at the BFGoodrich SCORE Baja 1000, the world’s most prestigious off-road motorsport race. In the consumer and professional product space, dual emission sources find applications in portable lighting products, night vision illuminators, and rangefinders for outdoor recreation, search & rescue, and security applications.

Until now, dual-emission white/IR sources have not been possible because LEDs and legacy lamp-based light sources cannot deliver high-brightness white and IR emission from the same point source, and they are incapable of modulating at the high speeds required for accurate sensing and fast data rates.

To support the future of wireless connectivity, Kyocera SLD will display DataLightTM, the world’s first laser LiFi commercial development kit featuring a high-speed 1 Gbps, secure, RF-free, eye-safe bidirectional link. Laser LiFi is being adopted in mobility applications, including the car-to-x exterior, vehicle interiors, airplane cabins, undersea and space, defense and security, and future smart cities, healthcare, and smart factories. Kyocera SLD is pioneering LiFi innovations for future products and recently demonstrated a world-record performance of 100 Gbps.

Beyond lighting, sensing, and communication, Kyocera SLD will demonstrate its innovative optical power transmission over fiber using its high-efficiency GaN laser diode and photodiode semiconductor chip technology at CES 2023.

This significant advancement in the field of power transfer can potentially replace heavy and sensitive metal wire harnesses in mobility applications with a lightweight, noise-free optical solution, increasing the efficiency and extending the range of electric vehicles, airplanes, or satellites, while making them more secure and safe.

This power-over-light solution can be configured to include optical data communications to deliver data and power to sensors in a distributed system in a vehicle or space, where radiation-hardened GaN-based semiconductors are ideally suited.

Kyocera SLD’s fiber light source products will also be on display, delivering white emissive fiber illumination with more than 10,000 cd/m2 for ultra-bright lighting for vehicle exterior grills, logos, daytime running lights (DRLs), and interiors. These sources deliver ten times the brightness of LED solutions, producing brilliant and efficient illumination from thin, low-cost fiber optics and a remote light source.

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