The influence of ambient light on the driver

Karsten D. Klinger; Uli Lemmer

doi:10.1117/12.780017

26 April 2008 The influence of ambient light on the driver

Karsten D. Klinger, Uli Lemmer

Proceedings Volume 7003, Optical Sensors 2008; 700329 (2008) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.780017
Event: SPIE Photonics Europe, 2008, Strasbourg, France

Abstract

Increasingly, cars are fitted with interior ambient lighting which is switched on while driving. This special kind of interior light emphasizes the interior design of the car, it makes a car look special and gives the buyers a new option to personalize their automobiles. But how does ambient interior light influence the driver? We conducted a series of over 50 tests to study the influence of interior ambient light on contrast perception under different illumination levels, colors and positions of the illuminated areas. Our tests show that in many cases the ambient lighting can improve the visual contrast for seeing objects in the headlamp beam. But the test persons mentioned that the tested brightness looked too bright and that they felt glared. The measured values instead proved that no disability glare exists. Therefore, provided that the drivers can adjust the intensity of the ambient light to avoid glare, the ambient light has no negative effect on the drivers' contrast perception.

Citation Download Citation

Karsten D. Klinger and Uli Lemmer "The influence of ambient light on the driver", Proc. SPIE 7003, Optical Sensors 2008, 700329 (26 April 2008); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.780017

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available