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The primary purpose of vehicle forward lighting is not to see the world but to see the road! In their simplest form, headlights help drivers negotiate a safe path on the road. They do this by lighting the roadway according to (a multitude of) specific standards. For decades, discussions concerning the niceties of illuminating potential obstacles in the roadway were little more than an academic pursuit as there simply were not sufficient lumens available from filament light sources to achieve all of the desired tasks no matter how worthy they might be. Not unexpectedly, the technology has evolved with the introduction of high output metal-halide sources, multi-task standards combined with multilevel lighting devices and discrete LED sources offering high luminous efficiencies and the means to deliver the light where it can be most useful. The question now becomes one of determining where the available light should be directed.

The primary purpose of vehicle forward lighting is not to see the world but to see the road! In their simplest form, headlights help drivers negotiate a safe path on the road. They do this by lighting the roadway according to (a multitude of) specific standards. For decades, discussions concerning the niceties of illuminating potential obstacles in the roadway were little more than an academic pursuit as there simply were not sufficient lumens available from filament light sources to achieve all of the desired tasks no matter how worthy they might be. Not unexpectedly, the technology has evolved with the introduction of high output metal-halide sources, multi-task standards combined with multilevel lighting devices and discrete LED sources offering high luminous efficiencies and the means to deliver the light where it can be most useful. The question now becomes one of determining where the available light should be directed.

The Mounting Height Task Force was tasked to determine the extent of the problem(s) associated with vehicle headlamps mounted at or above the level of the mirror(s) in passenger vehicles; the level of glare exposure caused by high-mounted headlamps; the appropriate height differential needed to maintain a glare level consistent with past and/or current passenger vehicle headlamp mounting; and the necessary headlamp mounting height necessary to control mirror glare at an accepted/acceptable level. The report herein addresses these passenger vehicle mounting height issues.

The Mounting Height Task Force was tasked to determine the extent of the problem(s) associated with vehicle headlamps mounted at or above the level of the mirror(s) in passenger vehicles; the level of glare exposure caused by high-mounted headlamps; the appropriate height differential needed to maintain a glare level consistent with past and/or current passenger vehicle headlamp mounting; and the necessary headlamp mounting height necessary to control mirror glare at an accepted/acceptable level. The report herein addresses these passenger vehicle mounting height issues.

Headlamps should illuminate the traffic scene ahead of the vehicle in such a way that the driver can operate the vehicle safely and in a relaxed manner. At the same time, negative effects on drivers of other vehicles, pedestrians and other people should be minimized. Various technical parameters such as beam pattern, mounting height, headlamp aiming, and source spectrum can be tuned to find the necessary compromise. The physiology of the vision system under specific night time conditions strongly influences these factors and how headlamps can be best optimized for visibility and comfort. The SAE Improved Roadway Illumination task force collected and reviewed relevant research on these topics. This document is a comprehensive summary of this information. The goal is to enable lighting experts, advocacy groups, and non-experts (journalists, consumer organizations, car drivers) to better understand the benefits and tradeoffs of improved roadway lighting with modern headlamp technology.

Headlamps should illuminate the traffic scene ahead of the vehicle in such a way that the driver can operate the vehicle safely and in a relaxed manner. At the same time, negative effects on drivers of other vehicles, pedestrians and other people should be minimized. Various technical parameters such as beam pattern, mounting height, headlamp aiming, and source spectrum can be tuned to find the necessary compromise. The physiology of the vision system under specific night time conditions strongly influences these factors and how headlamps can be best optimized for visibility and comfort. The SAE Improved Roadway Illumination task force collected and reviewed relevant research on these topics. This document is a comprehensive summary of this information. The goal is to enable lighting experts, advocacy groups, and non-experts (journalists, consumer organizations, car drivers) to better understand the benefits and tradeoffs of improved roadway lighting with modern headlamp technology.