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Opel Working on Eye-Tracking Technology for Headlamps

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Opel eye-tracking technology

© General Motors

Here’s a question you may not have ever asked: what if your vehicle’s headlights were capable of responding to the movement of your eyes, moving to more clearly illuminate the areas in your line of vision? Surely, it would make night-time driving a lot safer, wouldn’t it? Well, turns out that GM’s engineers at Opel are working to make this a reality by developing eye-tracking technology for headlights.

“We’ve been pursuing this concept of controlling the direction and intensity of light based on where the driver is looking for around two years. The more we understand the benefits of this technology, the more intensively we push ahead with our joint project,” says Ingolf Schneider, Director Lighting Technology at Opel, describing the collaboration between Opel’s International Technical Development Center and the Technical University of Darmstadt.

Opel eye-tracking technology

The system consists of a single camera—equipped with infra-red sensors and central photo-diodes—that is capable of scanning a driver’s eyes 50 times every second in any condition. This data is relayed to headlamp actuators, which focus the beams accordingly.

Opel is currently developing this technology in the hopes that it will feature in the follow up to the third-gen AFL+ bi-xenon system of automotive adaptive lighting. This follow-up will include LED matrix light, which will make glare an almost non-existent factor. Opel says the system will be revealed some time in the next year and a half.

Opel eye-tracking technology