The Laserlight system doesn’t project lasers onto the road. Instead, laser-created light is fired through a series of mirrors located within the headlamp assembly, which reflects and focuses the light into a lens.
The lens is filled with yellow phosphorus, a substance that reacts to intense light. Once the laser light is reflected into the lens, it interacts with the yellow phosphorous, which in turn creates a bright, highly intense white light.
Finally, this light is diffused to reduce its intensity and then reflected out of the front of the headlamp. The real benefit: The light is 10 times brighter than LED-created light.
Here’s another kicker: The system is highly efficient. BMW says that compared to traditional systems Laserlight is about 30 percent more efficient, and since the lights can create bright light in smaller housing, Laserlight enables designers to reduce the size of the housing and optimize design for aerodynamics.
Key Benefits of BMW Laserlight Headlamps
Laserlight headlamps, BMW says, are much brighter than traditional systems. That alone might be enough to convince you of this feature’s greatness, but there are plenty of other benefits. They include:
- Greatly Improved Sight: In tests, BMW said the laser-powered headlamps cast a light nearly a half-mile down the road. Traditional systems are only capable of half that. Simply put, BMW Laserlight is a must-have for rural drivers.
- GPS Enabled: Laserlight is built with GPS functionality, which enables the system to predict upcoming turns in the road. Laserlight can then help drivers to better see curves in the road.
- Hands-Free Functionality: With Laserlight, there’s no need to turn off the lights when oncoming traffic is approaching. Instead, Laserlight uses a camera Selective Beam system that detects oncoming vehicles or those that are overtaking the BMW, and then, the beam is automatically dimmed to prevent blinding these vehicles.
