BMW M Motorsport is counting on Osram’s expertise when it takes to the starting line of the legendary 24-hour sports car race held June 16-17, 2018. As an official BMW M Motorsport partner, Osram has been providing human-centric lighting technology for racing drivers and their teams since last year’s season. This special lighting is now planned to make the decisive difference on the Circuit de la Sarthe of the Le Mans race. The cars also will be racing into the night with innovative Osram technology in the headlights.
WILMINGTON, Mass. & MUNICH—The 24 hours of Le Mans in France pushes man and machine to the most extreme limits of endurance. Even the tiniest detail can be of vital importance – like using the right light. LED light glasses are used to help the drivers prepare for the races. The blue LED light prepares them for the battle ahead by stimulating the central nervous system. In addition to this, special luminaires are installed in the common rooms and the pit wall control center for the benefit of the drivers and the engineers. The luminaires emit light with a high blue component, helping to heighten and maintain concentration levels even during the night session.
Osram celebrated the premiere of its biologically effective light in cooperation with BMW Motorsport in 2017 during the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring. Its stimulating effect brought the drivers and team safely through the night at this year’s race, held May 12-13.
Osram also will illuminate the night on the Le Mans racetrack through the racing cars piloted by the BMW team MTEK: Each of the headlamps on the BMW M8 GTE, built by custom-design specialist GERG Lighthouse, use six Oslon Black Flat S LEDs from Osram in the three-chip version. The compact LEDs are particularly powerful. “This is the brightest light I’ve ever seen in a racecar,” said Martin Tomczyk, a BMW racing driver.
Osram’s Ostar Headlamp Pro, which was specifically developed for applications requiring intense brightness, was selected for use in the BMW M8 GTE’s auxiliary headlights. The LED’s seamless, white color effect is also extremely compelling.
The Oslon Black Flat S LED is multi-purpose and can be used for a wide variety of applications, from high beam to fog lights and directional headlamps. The strong contrast between each LED chip, together with its individual controllability, allows the light cast during driving to be adapted as required. In this case, the headlamp beam is divided into individual segments so that different areas can be switched on or off independently of each other. For example, a glare-free high beam can be created by selectively excluding oncoming traffic from the high beam while the rest of the environment remains illuminated with full intensity.
To get an impression of powerful LED light in racing use, watch this video:
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