Gasgoo Automotive Research Institute: Intelligent car lights are developing into multi-modal human-vehicle interaction forms

At present, with the development of automobile intelligence , automobile lights have also developed from traditional lighting functions to intelligent functions of human-vehicle interaction and vehicle-vehicle interaction. Among them, the functionality and value of headlights and taillights are the most important components of the vehicle lighting system. The highest. Based on this background, Gasgoo Automotive Research Institute's key research direction is headlights and taillights, conducting research and analysis from three dimensions: industry overview, market and industry analysis, and development trends. Parts of this report are as follows:

Car lights are roughly divided into three categories according to their functions: lighting, signal lights and decorative lights. According to the position of the lights, they are divided into interior lights and exterior lights. Headlights are the most valuable lighting product in the bicycle lighting system. The value of a bicycle is 400 -2,000 yuan, accounting for 66%; followed by taillights, the value of a bicycle is 400-1,000 yuan, accounting for 17%; according to the light source, there are mainly five types of car lights: halogen lamps, xenon lamps, LED lamps, laser lamps and OLED lamps, among which LED lights have the advantages of high brightness, long life, low power consumption, and rich colors. They are used in many fields such as instrument panel backlights, headlights, taillights, brake lights, etc. Halogen and xenon lights are gradually being replaced by LED lights. OLED Due to insufficient luminous efficiency, the development of lamps is focused on tail lamps.

In terms of headlamps, from the perspective of development path, the upgrade route of headlamp products is halogen lamps-xenon lamps-LED lamps-ADB lamps- DLP  lamps. At present, the upgrade of traditional lighting products has been completed and is moving towards higher-resolution smart lamps. The direction of lamp development, while technological upgrades have significantly increased the value of car lamps.

From the perspective of smart functions, smart headlights are mainly divided into AFS, ADB and DLP according to their functions. AFS is the Adaptive Front Lighting System. Its main function is to illuminate light patterns according to different working modes, such as adjusting the lighting mode according to weather, environment, and road conditions; ADB is the Adaptive Driving Beam. , the main function is to automatically switch high and low beams and adjust the distribution of high beams (matrix ADB); DLP is Digital Light Processing (Digital Light Processing), the main functions are various light pattern distribution and support for road projection, pedestrian warning, etc.; among them ADB is a derivative of AFS, with relatively high technical barriers. It is divided into matrix type and pixel type. Currently, matrix type ADB has lower cost and is more widely used.

From the perspective of technical routes, smart headlights can be roughly divided into three technical routes based on the pixel level, namely LED array (matrix LED/ADB), micro-pixel LED, and DLP; among them, matrix LED can realize the ADB function and improve the ADAS system. Night image recognition capabilities have been mass-produced in mid- to low-priced models such as BYD Seal.

In terms of taillights, from the perspective of light source, there are mainly four light sources: halogen, LED, OLED, and laser. Among them, LED taillights are the mainstream. OLED taillights do not require electronic components such as optical devices and radiators, and are ultra-light and ultra-thin, making them suitable for It is important to create personalized shapes in the taillights, but the current OLED technology has a short lifespan and high cost, so it is currently only used in mid-to-high-end models such as BBA.

From the perspective of form, automobile taillights include separate taillights and through-type taillights. Through-type taillights are divided into three options: light guide type, LED+scattering material mask, and LED+small reflective bowl. Among them, LED+scattering material mask is the product of most domestic lamp factories. Through-type taillight solution.

At present, ambient lighting has been installed in a large number of A-class cars, and its functions have begun to extend from decorative functions to interactive functions. At present, interior lighting integrated with the cockpit has achieved intelligent interaction. Due to changes in vehicle power, the function of the air intake grille has been cancelled, and luminous grille lights, New exterior atmosphere lights such as interactive lights are gradually coming on the market

In terms of light source type, the current market has a relatively high overall penetration rate of LED car lights. The substantial growth in shipments of new energy passenger vehicles in 2022 will drive the penetration rate of LED lights to 78%.

From the perspective of headlights, the overall market size of domestic smart headlights in 2022 will be 18.14 billion yuan, of which ADB accounts for the highest proportion, with a penetration rate of 9% in 2022. The models equipped with it have been in the range of 100,000-200,000 yuan, such as Trumpchi GS8, etc.; the penetration rate of ADB headlights for self-owned brand models in 2021-2022 is the highest. Most other factions only have mid-to-high-end models equipped with ADB headlights. Currently, Korean models do not have ADB headlight configurations; models equipped with AFS functions are relatively concentrated in For mid-to-high-end models, the penetration rate is 5.09%; the penetration rate of DLP lamps is less than 1%, concentrated in high-end models above 400,000 yuan;

Looking at the taillights, through-type taillights are concentrated in new power brand models with more than 250,000 yuan, and the penetration rate of standard OLED is less than 1%.

From the perspective of the competition landscape, the world's five largest car lighting leaders will monopolize more than 90% of the market share in 2022, with Koito occupying the first place. In addition, the global automotive lighting competition pattern has obvious regional characteristics. Valeo, Magneti Marelli, and Hella are mainly located in Europe, while Koito and Stanley are located in Asia. The Chinese market is mainly dominated by local companies such as Huayu Vision. Local suppliers in different regions have the first launch advantage

From the perspective of industrial progress, mainstream manufacturers at home and abroad have achieved breakthroughs in DLP technology . However, currently only Huayu Vision has achieved mass production in China. Xingyu Co., Ltd. DLP is expected to be mass-produced by the end of 2023, and HD smart headlights with Micro LED technology are expected to be launched in 2024. Mass production; Micro LED technology of key foreign manufacturers has reached mass production level, and the overall industrial process is leading domestically.

At present, in addition to third-party suppliers, OEMs are also promoting the development of intelligent automotive lights through self-research and cooperation. Among them, joint venture OEMs mainly improve the level of intelligent vehicle lights through self-research, but relatively speaking, In terms of the level of intelligent car lights, it lags behind new high-end brands that use cooperation to create intelligent car lights.

From the perspective of the development trend of automobile lights: car light technology mainly focuses on iterative upgrades around the two main lines of light source and function. Based on the light source, the headlight source will still be LED in the short and medium term. The laser light source is due to the high cost and usage scenarios. It is difficult to popularize due to strict restrictions and other restrictions; based on functions, the future of automobile lights will tend to develop in the form of off-car interaction, such as projection prompts, driving assistance, emotional information transmission, gesture touch and other multi-modal interaction forms; among them In terms of headlights, Micro LED has a lower cost, has similar high performance and projection interactive functions to DLP, and is expected to be popularized in mid- to low-end models in the next few years; in terms of taillights, there will be a tendency to combine flexible OLED technology with through-type taillights. Create more design and functional possibilities.

Market forecast trend: With the popularity of LED and the increase in the value of car lights, the scale of China's automotive lighting market will increase as a whole in the future, and is expected to exceed 140 billion yuan in 2025.