Flexible headlight design with Oslon Compact LEDs

Osram Opto Semiconductors announces the prototype of the Oslon Compact, currently the most compact high-power LED for the automotive market. Thanks to the flexible arrangement of these small LEDs it will be much easier and more cost-effective to create individual headlight designs. A prototype of the Oslon Compact LED was unveiled by the automotive semiconductor specialist from Regensburg in October at the SIA Vision conference in Versailles (France, October 9/10).

Despite their high efficiency, luminous intensity and durability, LEDs have faced a major challenge as light sources in vehicle headlights in that different LEDs have had to be used for different areas in order to achieve a uniform arrangement of the light-emitting surfaces. Sophisticated design concepts therefore involved a large amount of effort and high costs.

One for all

The extremely small size of the new Oslon Compact – combined with its high light output – enables a single LED type to be used as the default light source for all automotive forward lighting applications. The light points in the headlight can be placed in any arrangement, for example, and customized designs can be developed to give different vehicles a unique appearance. The small size of the Oslon Compact LEDs means they can be grouped very close to one another so they can even be used for light guide solutions and adaptive frontlighting systems (AFS).

Reduced to the bare essentials

The compact design has been achieved by reducing the LED to its bare essentials. The entire LED package is not much larger than the actual light-emitting surface of the chip. The platform is the successful UX:3 chip technology from Osram Opto Semiconductors which provides high luminous efficacy even at high currents. The prototype showcased at SIA-Vision measures only 1.5x1.9 mm² and produces 200 lumen from 700 mA. The clear white light from the chips is achieved by converting blue light with the aid of a ceramic converter.

The solution that the market needs

“The development of the Oslon Compact is a direct response to changing market requirements in the automotive sector. There is a need now for high-power LEDs that are more compact and more cost-effective than before”, said Peter Knittl, Director Marketing Automotive. “We have been able to adapt the reliable chip and package technologies that have proved so successful in the Oslon Black Flat and Ostar Headlamp Pro LEDs to fit this smaller design and can therefore supply the market with the solution it needs.” The introduction of this space-saving solution makes a huge contribution to the spread of LED technology in the forward lighting sector and makes efficient and durable lighting solutions available as standard for more vehicle models.

One for all – the new Oslon Compact from Osram Opto Semiconductors will be able to perform all forward lighting functions.