Method for controlling light pattern and automotive lighting device

Abstract

The present invention provides a method for controlling an original light pattern (1) provided by an automobile lighting device (10). The method comprises the following steps: in response to a light command, modifying the luminous intensity of some of the light pixels of the original light pattern, thereby obtaining a modified light pattern; and then compensating the luminous intensity of some of the light pixels of the modified light pattern, thereby obtaining a compensated light pattern, such that the luminous flux of the compensated light pattern is closer to the luminous flux of the original light pattern than the luminous flux of the modified light pattern.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of automotive lighting devices and, more particularly, to a way of managing light patterns when using a dynamic cornering light (DBL) function.

[0002] Dynamic cornering lights are increasingly appearing in current car lighting installations as an upgrade to standard headlights and are designed to make nighttime driving simpler and safer.

[0003] In order to achieve such a lighting function, there have been many solutions that aim to provide a light pattern in the direction of movement of the vehicle when the vehicle enters a curve.

[0004] Mechanical solutions use an angular motion converter to rotate the light source in the same way as a steering wheel. The angular motion converter directly uses the steering wheel's rotation to cause the light source to rotate. The light will rotate in any direction the steering wheel is turned, and this range of motion allows the light to illuminate the road even when making sharp or fast turns.

[0005] Some solutions involve modification of the light pattern provided by a matrix arrangement of light sources, which may affect the photometric values ​​and may result in non-compliance with automotive lighting regulations.

[0006] Seek alternative solutions to the problem.

[0007] The present invention provides an alternative solution to this problem by a method for controlling an original light pattern provided by an automotive lighting device of a motor vehicle, wherein the original light pattern comprises a matrix arrangement of light pixels and has a total luminous flux, and wherein each light pixel is characterized by a luminous intensity value, the method comprising the following steps:

[0008] - receiving a light command from said motor vehicle;

[0009] - in response to the light command, modifying the luminous intensity of some of the light pixels of the original light pattern, thereby obtaining a modified light pattern; and

[0010] - compensating the luminous intensity of some of the light pixels of the modified light pattern to obtain a compensated light pattern, so that the luminous flux of the compensated light pattern is closer to the luminous flux of the original light pattern than the luminous flux of the modified light pattern.

[0011] This method allows for compensation of the luminous flux to reduce flux variations when a modification function is applied to the original light pattern. In fact, in some cases, the flux will remain unchanged relative to the original light pattern. Therefore, in these cases, despite the application of the modification function, the energy supplied to the lighting device remains unchanged.

[0012] In some specific embodiments, the step of modifying the luminous intensity of some of the light pixels includes the following sub-steps:

[0013] - splitting the light pattern into at least a first portion and a second portion, wherein each portion comprises at least a boundary column that is in contact with a boundary column of an adjacent portion; and

[0014] - modifying the width of the first portion and the width of the second portion by shifting the positions of the border columns and interpolating the luminous intensity values ​​of the pixels belonging to the first portion and the second portion, wherein the border columns that were adjacent before the shifting remain adjacent after the shifting.

[0015] These embodiments are particularly advantageous in some specific cases of modifying functions.

[0016] In some specific embodiments, the light command is a turning light command and includes the number of positions to be shifted and a shift direction, and then the step of shifting the position of the boundary column is performed along the shift direction using the number of positions to be shifted.

[0017] The DBL function is a very powerful function for this method because the luminous intensity of most of the light pixels will experience changes. Therefore, the compensation of the luminous flux is very helpful in avoiding sudden changes in the electrical power or electricity that needs to be supplied to the lighting device.

[0018] In some specific embodiments, compensating the luminous intensity comprises dividing the luminous intensity of at least some of the light pixels of the modified light pattern by a compensation factor.

[0019] This compensation factor may be the same for all of the pixels to which this step is applied, or may involve using different compensation factors for some groups of pixels or even for each individual photopixel.

[0020] In some specific embodiments, the compensation factor is a global compensation factor applied to all pixels of the modified light pattern, and the global compensation factor is calculated from the total luminous flux of the original light pattern and the total luminous flux of the modified light pattern according to the following formula:

[0021] -g=1+(f1-f0) / f0

[0022] - wherein g is the global compensation factor, f1 is the total luminous flux of the modified light pattern, and f0 is the total luminous flux of the original light pattern.

[0023] This is an easy way to compensate the light flux since only a compensation factor needs to be calculated.

[0024] In some specific embodiments, the modified light pattern is split into at least a first region and a second region, and the step of dividing the luminous intensity by the compensation factor is applied only to light pixels in the second region.

[0025] Thus, particularly relevant areas can be kept unaffected by luminous intensity variations.Even in these embodiments, the compensation factor may be the same for all the pixels of the second area, or may involve using different compensation factors for some groups of pixels or even for each individual light pixel.

[0026] In some specific embodiments, the original light pattern is a low-beam pattern, the low-beam pattern includes a bending zone, and the first zone includes the bending zone. In other specific embodiments, the original light pattern is a high-beam pattern, the high-beam pattern includes a maximum luminous intensity pixel, and the first zone includes the maximum luminous intensity pixel.

[0027] These are some examples of particularly relevant areas. In this embodiment, these areas should be retained to avoid regulatory issues.

[0028] In some specific embodiments, compensating the luminous intensity includes dividing the second region of the modified light pattern into a plurality of rows or columns and dividing the luminous intensity of the light pixels in each row or column by a compensation factor.

[0029] By means of these embodiments, a more gradual and smoother compensated light pattern is obtained, since the gradient between columns can be adjusted by applying a different compensation factor to each column of the modified light pattern.

[0030] In some specific embodiments, the compensation factor of each column is selected according to a polynomial or Gaussian profile including values ​​between a reference compensation factor and 1, and wherein the reference compensation factor is calculated from the total luminous flux of the original light pattern, the total luminous flux of the modified light pattern, and the luminous flux of the second zone according to the following formula:

[0031] -r=1+(f12-fp) / fp,

[0032] - wherein r is the global compensation factor, f12 is the total luminous flux of the second zone of the modified light pattern, and fp is the difference between the total luminous flux of the original light pattern and the luminous flux of the first zone of the modified light pattern.

[0033] This method is followed for the sake of continuity of the light profile. The Gaussian profile ensures a smooth adaptation of the compensation factors of each column, but the final luminous flux of the compensated light pattern is not exactly the same as the luminous flux of the original light pattern.

[0034] In some specific embodiments, the compensation factor for each column is selected according to a polynomial or Gaussian profile including values ​​between a specific compensation factor and 1, and wherein the specific compensation factor is less than the reference compensation factor according to the following formula:

[0035] -r=1+(f12-fp) / fp

[0036] - wherein r is the reference compensation factor, f12 is the total luminous flux of the second zone of the modified light pattern, and fp is the difference between the total luminous flux of the original light pattern and the luminous flux of the first zone of the modified light pattern.

[0037] - making the average value of the compensation factors of all the columns equal to the reference compensation factor.

[0038] In these cases, a lower compensation value is chosen to try to get the flux closer to the original light pattern.

[0039] In another aspect of the invention, the present invention provides an automotive lighting device, comprising:

[0040] - a matrix arrangement of solid-state light sources for providing a light pattern;

[0041] - A control unit configured to perform the steps of the method according to the first inventive aspect.

[0042] The automotive lighting device is configured to provide some special functions, such as for example a dynamic cornering light function, which can be powered with constant power because the luminous flux is constant although the luminous intensity in the light pixels changes.

[0043] The term "solid-state" refers to light emitted by solid-state electroluminescence, which uses semiconductors to convert electricity into light. Compared to incandescent lighting, solid-state lighting produces visible light with reduced heat generation and less energy dissipation. Compared to fragile glass tubes / bulbs and thin filament wires, the generally low-mass solid-state electronic lighting devices provide greater impact and vibration resistance. They also eliminate filament vaporization, which can potentially increase the service life of the lighting device. Some examples of these types of lighting include semiconductor light-emitting diodes (LEDs), organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), or polymer light-emitting diodes (PLEDs) as light sources, rather than electric filaments, plasma, or gas.

[0044] In some specific embodiments, the matrix arrangement includes at least 2000 solid-state light sources.

[0045] The present invention can be used with many types of lighting matrix / array based technologies, from simple technologies with only a few thousand light sources to more advanced technologies with hundreds of thousands of light sources.

[0046] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used in this article will be interpreted as having customary meanings in the art. It will also be understood that commonly used terms should also be interpreted as having customary meanings in the relevant art, rather than idealized or overly formal (literal) meanings, unless explicitly defined in this article.

[0047] In this document, the terms "include or include" and their derivatives (such as "include or include", etc.) should not be understood in an exclusive sense, that is, these terms should not be interpreted to exclude the possibilities described and defined, and may include other elements, steps, etc.

[0048] To complete the description and to facilitate a better understanding of the present invention, a set of drawings is provided. The drawings constitute an integral part of the description and illustrate embodiments of the present invention, which should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention but merely as examples of how the present invention may be implemented. The drawings include the following:

[0049] Figure 1 A general perspective view of a motor vehicle comprising an automotive lighting device according to the invention is shown.

[0050] Figure 2 An example of a light pattern projected by the lighting device is shown. This pattern corresponds to a low beam function.

[0051] Figure 3 Non-representative examples of luminous intensity values ​​for such patterns are shown.

[0052] Figure 4a and Figure 4b The effect of two columns on a left-turn light command according to a particular embodiment of the method according to the invention is shown.

[0053] Figure 5 The compensated light pattern is shown after undergoing some steps of a particular embodiment of the method according to the invention.

[0054] Figure 6 Some steps of an alternative embodiment of the method according to the invention are shown.

[0055] Figure 7 The compensated light pattern is shown after going through the steps shown in the previous figure.

[0056] Throughout the drawings and detailed description, elements of the exemplary embodiments are consistently referred to by like reference numerals, where appropriate.

[0057] 1 Light Pattern

[0058] 2 LED

[0059] 3 The first part of the boundary column

[0060] 4 The boundary columns of the second part

[0061] 5 The end column of the first part

[0062] 6 The end column of the second part

[0063] 7 The first boundary column of the central part

[0064] 8 The second boundary column of the central part

[0065] 9 Control Unit

[0066] 10. Automotive lighting devices

[0067] 11 Part 1

[0068] 12 Part 2

[0069] 13 Center

[0070] 14 protected areas

[0071] 15 District 2

[0072] 16 Steering system

[0073] 100 motor vehicles

[0074] The exemplary embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to implement and realize the systems and processes or methods described herein.It is important to understand that the embodiments can be provided in many alternative forms and should not be construed as limited to the examples set forth herein.

[0075] Therefore, although the embodiments may be modified in various ways and adopt various alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown in the drawings and described in detail below as examples. It is not intended to be limiting to the specific forms disclosed. On the contrary, all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the appended claims are intended to be included. Throughout the drawings and detailed description, elements of the exemplary embodiments are consistently referred to by the same reference numerals, where appropriate.

[0076] Figure 1 A general perspective view of a motor vehicle 100 is shown which comprises an automotive lighting device 10 according to the invention.

[0077] The motor vehicle 100 comprises a steering system 16 and a lighting device 10. The lighting device 10 comprises a matrix arrangement of LEDs 2 and a control centre 9 configured to control the operation of these groups of LEDs.

[0078] The control centre 9 is configured to modify the configuration of the LEDs 2 when the steering wheel of the vehicle is activated.

[0079] The matrix configuration is a high-resolution module with a resolution greater than 2000 pixels.However, there is no restriction on the technology used to produce the projection module.

[0080] A first example of this matrix configuration includes a monolithic source. The monolithic source includes a matrix of monolithic electroluminescent elements arranged into a number of columns by a number of rows. In the monolithic matrix, the electroluminescent elements can be grown from a common substrate and electrically connected so as to be selectively activated independently or by a subset of the electroluminescent elements. The substrate can be made primarily of semiconductor material. The substrate can include one or more other materials, such as non-semiconductors (metals and insulators). Thus, each electroluminescent element / group can form a light pixel and can therefore emit light when its / their material is powered. Compared to conventional light-emitting diodes for soldering to printed circuit boards, the configuration of such a monolithic matrix allows the arrangement of selectively activated pixels very close to each other. The monolithic matrix can include electroluminescent elements whose main height dimension measured perpendicular to the common substrate is approximately equal to 1 micron.

[0081] The overall matrix is ​​coupled to the control centre to control the generation and / or projection of pixelated light beams by the matrix arrangement 6. Thus, the control centre is able to individually control the light emission of each pixel of the matrix arrangement.

[0082] As an alternative to the scenario presented above, the matrix arrangement 6 can comprise a primary light source coupled to a mirror matrix. Thus, the pixelated light source is formed by a combination of at least one primary light source, formed by at least one light-emitting diode, and an array of optoelectronic elements, such as a micromirror array (also known as a "Digital Micro-mirror Device," acronym DMD), which directs the light from the primary light source to the projection optics by reflection. Where appropriate, auxiliary optical elements can collect the light of the at least one light source in order to focus and direct it onto the surface of the micromirror array.

[0083] Each micro-reflector can be pivoted between two fixed positions, namely a first position and a second position, in which the light is reflected towards the projection optical element and in which the light is reflected from the projection optical element in a different direction. The two fixed positions are oriented in the same way for all the micro-reflectors and form a characteristic angle of the micro-reflector matrix defined in the specification of the micro-reflector matrix relative to a reference plane supporting the micro-reflector matrix. Such an angle is typically less than 20° and can typically be about 12°. Thus, each micro-reflector that reflects a portion of the light beam that is incident on the micro-reflector matrix forms an elementary emitter of the pixelated light source. The actuation and control of the position change of the mirrors for selectively activating the elementary emitter to emit or not emit an elementary light beam are controlled by the control center.

[0084] In various embodiments, the matrix arrangement may comprise a scanning laser system, wherein a laser source emits a laser beam towards a scanning element configured to probe a surface of the wavelength converter with the laser beam. An image of the surface is captured by the projection optics.

[0085] The detection of the scanning element may be performed at a speed sufficiently high that the human eye does not perceive any displacement in the projected image.

[0086] Synchronously controlling the ignition of the laser source and the scanning movement of the beam makes it possible to generate a matrix of elementary emitters that can be selectively activated at the surface of the wavelength converter element. The scanning device can be a movable micromirror for scanning the surface of the wavelength converter element by reflecting the laser beam. The micromirrors mentioned as scanning devices are, for example, of the MEMS type (Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems). However, the invention is not limited to such scanning devices, and other types of scanning devices can be used, such as a series of mirrors arranged on a rotating element, the rotation of which causes the transmissive surface to be scanned by the laser beam.

[0087] In another variation, the light source may be complex and include both at least one segment or portion of a light element, such as a light emitting diode, and a surface portion of an integral light source.

[0088] Figure 2 An example of a light pattern 1 projected by the lighting device is shown. This pattern corresponds to a low-beam function.

[0089] Figure 3A non-representative example of luminous intensity values ​​for such a pattern is shown. Since the original pattern has several thousand pixels, it is not useful to show all of them, but only a small representation has been chosen for clarity.

[0090] Additionally, although standard use would be luminous intensity values ​​from 0 to 225 (according to a standard grey scale), in this example only numbers from 0 to 9 will be used to keep the example as simple as possible.

[0091] The light pattern is divided into three parts: a first part 11, a second part 12, and a central part 13. The first part has a boundary column 3 and an end column 5, wherein the boundary column 3 is adjacent to the first boundary column 7 of the central part 13 and the end column 5 is opposite to the boundary column 3. The second part 12 correspondingly has a boundary column 4 and an end column 6, wherein the boundary column 4 is adjacent to the second boundary column 8 of the central part 13 and the end column 6 is opposite to the boundary column 4. The central part 13 has the first boundary column 7 and the second boundary column 8.

[0092] Figure 4a and Figure 4b The effect of two columns on a left-turn light command according to a particular embodiment of the method according to the invention is shown.

[0093] Figure 4a The first sub-step is shown: shifting the border columns to the left. The center portion remains the same but is shifted, while in the first and second portions only the border columns and the end columns retain their values.

[0094] Figure 4b Interpolation of the remaining values ​​of the first and second parts is shown. This is done by "expanding" or "compressing" the intensity pattern after bilinear interpolation, adjusting the values ​​to the original values.

[0095] This bilinear method considers a first value set to be converted, having a first width and a final width. The first width is defined by a first number of pixels (N1), and the final width is defined by a final number of pixels (N2), which can be higher or lower than the first number of pixels. Based on the first number of pixels, the virtual abscissa segment [0, 1] is split into N1-1 intervals. The ordinate values ​​corresponding to the abscissa values ​​are values ​​from the first value set. Since they are discrete values, linear interpolation between vertices is provided. The same virtual interval is then split into N2-1 intervals, thus providing different abscissa values, but all of them are also contained between 0 and 1. Since the first value set defines a continuous function (due to the linear interpolation between vertices), the final abscissa values ​​will find corresponding values ​​in the continuous function. These values ​​will be the values ​​of the final data set. For example, if the first value set is (1 3 4 8 10), then the first width is 5, since there are 5 values. The final width is 9. The virtual segment [0,1] is split into N1-1=4 intervals with values ​​0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and 1. The function is defined by the vertices defined by the following abscissa-ordinate pairs: (0,1), (0.25,3), (0.5,4), (0.75,8), and (1,10). Linear interpolation is performed between the vertices. Now, for the final value set, the interval is split into N2-1=8 intervals with values ​​0, 0.125, 0.25, 0.375, 0.5, 0.625, 0.75, 0.875, and 1. The function values ​​at these abscissa values ​​are located, which will be (1 1.5 3 3.5 4 6 8 9 10), so these abscissa values ​​will be the values ​​of the final data set.

[0096] An alternative is the nearest neighbor method, which considers the first width and the final width and finds the ratio between the first width and the final width. Then, a normalized value set is obtained by dividing the calculated ratio by the number of the final width. Finally, for each normalized value in the normalized value set, the smallest integer greater than or equal to the value is calculated (e.g., ceil function), thereby obtaining an index value set. These are the index values ​​in the first vector that result in interpolation. For example: if the first vector is [10 29] and should be interpolated into a vector of width 6. The ratio is 6 / 3=2. The normalized value set will be (1 / 2, 2 / 2, 3 / 2, 4 / 2, 5 / 2, 6 / 2=0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3). Executing the ceil function, we obtain the index value set ceil[(0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3)]=1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3. Then, the interpolation vector is expressed as [first vector (1) first vector (1) first vector (2) first vector (2) first vector (3) first vector (3)], that is, [10 10 2 2 9 9].

[0097] Taking for example the center row, in the original pattern this row has the values ​​0-0-1-2-4-6-7-7-7-7-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-6-4-2-1-0-0-0-0-0. According to the split, this row has a first part 0-0-1-2-4-6-7-7-7-7-8-8, a second part 8-6-4-2-1-0-0-0-0-0-0, and a center part 8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8.

[0098] Since the turn command includes two columns on the left, the first part will have the following pattern: 0-xxxxxxxx-8, the second part will be 8-xxxxxxxxxx-0, and the center part will be 8-8-8-8-8-8-8, but offset two positions to the left, as shown in FIG. Figure 4a As shown in .

[0099] The value x of the first part will be calculated relative to the data provided by the original first part: the value is 0 at 8%, the value is 1 at 17%, the value is 2 at 25%, the value is 4 at 33%, the value is 6 at 42%, the value is 7 at 50%, the value is 7 at 58%, the value is 7 at 67%, the value is 7 at 75%, the value is 8 at 83%, and the value is 8 at 100%.

[0100] This provides a curve, and the values ​​at 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90% and 100% will be calculated for the new width of the first portion, since the compressed first portion only contains 10 pixels, while the original first portion contained 12. Therefore, the new values ​​for this interval will be 0-0.4-1.5-3.3-5.6-6.9-7-7-7.6-8.

[0101] The same operation will be performed on the second part: in the original second part, the value at 10% is 8, at 20% is 6, at 30% is 4, at 40% is 2, at 50% is 1, and from 60% to 100% is 0. For the new second part, the values ​​will be calculated at 8%, 17%, 25%, 33%, 42%, 50%, 58%, 67%, 75%, 83%, and 100%. Therefore, the new values ​​for this interval will be 8-6.5-4.8-3.2-1.8-0.9-0.1-0-0-0-0-0.

[0102] When the modified light pattern has been obtained, the total flux of the original light pattern and the total flux of the modified light pattern are calculated.

[0103] According to this example, the total flux of the original light pattern will be equal to 571 lm, while the total flux of the original pattern will be equal to 552.4 lm.

[0104] A first option would be to calculate a global compensation factor, which can be calculated by the following formula:

[0105] -g=1+(f1-f0) / f0

[0106] - wherein g is the global compensation factor, f1 is the total luminous flux of the modified light pattern, and f0 is the total luminous flux of the original light pattern.

[0107] According to this example, the global compensation factor would be 0.9674.

[0108] Then, the entire luminous intensity value of the modified light pattern should be divided by the global compensation factor to obtain a compensated light pattern, which will have a total luminous flux equal to the total luminous flux of the original light pattern.

[0109] Figure 5 The compensated light pattern after undergoing this process is shown.

[0110] The fact is that the maximum value of the light pattern has been altered because the maximum luminous intensity value in the original light pattern was 8 and the maximum luminous intensity value in the modified light pattern has become 8.3.

[0111] While this may appear to be a small difference, in real life this may result in non-compliance with legal regulations and therefore this approach will not always be the best option. Clearly, in real life the global compensation factor will not be that low and this approach can be applied to profiles where the impact of performing the modification is not that high.

[0112] Alternative approaches within the present invention include the selective application of different compensation factors.

[0113] Figure 6 A first example of this method is shown.

[0114] Now, a protected portion 14 is defined which contains the pixels with the maximum luminous intensity. This protection means that said protected portion will not undergo any compensation step in order to avoid any increase in the maximum luminous intensity value of the compensated pattern.

[0115] In real situations, this protected portion may affect the maximum luminous intensity pixels of the high-beam pattern or the bent portion of the low-beam pattern, which contains a cut-off line and is also very sensitive to legal regulations.

[0116] In this case, since the protected portion does not experience an increased luminous intensity value, the compensation affects only the remaining portion of the light pattern 15, which will therefore experience a higher luminous intensity value than the protected portion. Figure 5 situation.

[0117] The total flux of the remaining part is equal to 259 lm. The total flux of the protected part is equal to 293.4 lm. In order to obtain a total flux of 571 lm of the original light pattern without modifying the 293.4 lm of the protected part, the total flux of the remaining part should be equal to 277.6 lm.

[0118] A first option to compensate the flux of the modified pattern is to define a reference compensation factor (different from Figure 5 The global compensation factor is used so that the total luminous flux of the compensated light pattern is consistent with the luminous flux of the original light pattern.

[0119] This is a valid option, but may in some cases cause some problems in the boundary light pixels between the protected and compensated parts.

[0120] In this case, the reference compensation factor would (according to the formula applied to the rest) be 0.933.

[0121] Figure 7 The result of this compensation is shown.

[0122] An alternative to this method would be to implement a different way of achieving the compensation, namely to split the remainder into multiple columns. Each column would have a different compensation factor defined according to a polynomial or Gaussian profile that includes values ​​between the specific compensation factor and 1.

[0123] One option for this specific compensation factor is to select Figure 7 The reference compensation factor calculated in the step of is . An example of a pseudo-Gaussian profile is shown in FIG8 . This profile is used to calculate the compensation factor for each column. The conversion will then be smooth and easy to calculate, but the total flux will not be exactly the same as the original value.

[0124] An alternative option is to choose a specific compensation factor that is slightly lower than the reference compensation factor to try to compensate for the fact that most columns will apply a compensation factor higher than the specific compensation factor, thereby trying to achieve an average of all the corresponding compensation factors for each column that is equal to the reference compensation factor, and thus achieve an overall flux that is as similar as possible to the original value.

[0125] In this example, this alternative involves defining a number of compensation factors f1, f2, f3, ... for each of the columns. The average of all these compensation factors f1 ... fn should be equal to the reference compensation factor, and a polynomial or pseudo-Gaussian profile is applied to calculate the specific value of each compensation factor. Using this example, more accurate results are obtained compared to those in the previous figure.

[0126] Since the variations with respect to other embodiments are on the order of a few percent, the differences cannot be represented in the examples of the figures, but a person skilled in the art will have sufficient information in this disclosure to clarify this particular embodiment of the method.

[0127] A further alternative is that the respective compensation factor for each column depends individually on the flux loss of the respective column.

Claims

1. A method for controlling an original light pattern (1) provided by a vehicle lighting device (10) of a motor vehicle (100), wherein: The original light pattern (1) comprises a matrix arrangement of light pixels and has a total light flux, and wherein each light pixel is characterized by a luminous intensity value, and the method comprises the following steps: - receiving a light command from said motor vehicle (100); - in response to the light command, modifying the luminous intensity of some of the light pixels of the original light pattern, thereby obtaining a modified light pattern; and - compensating the luminous intensity of some of the light pixels of the modified light pattern, thereby obtaining a compensated light pattern, so that the luminous flux of the compensated light pattern is closer to the luminous flux of the original light pattern than the luminous flux of the modified light pattern, The step of modifying the luminous intensity of some of the light pixels includes the following sub-steps: - splitting the light pattern (1) into at least a first part (11) and a second part (12), wherein each part (11, 12, 13) comprises at least a boundary column (3, 4) that contacts a boundary column of an adjacent part; - modifying the width of the first portion (11) and the width of the second portion (12) by shifting the positions of the boundary columns (3, 4) and interpolating the luminous intensity values ​​of the pixels belonging to the first portion (11) and the second portion (12), wherein the boundary columns (3, 4) that were adjacent before the shift remain adjacent after the shift, The step of compensating the luminous intensity comprises dividing the luminous intensity of at least some of the light pixels of the modified light pattern by a compensation factor.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The light command is a turning light command and includes the number of positions to be shifted and a shift direction, and then the step of shifting the positions of the boundary column is performed along the shift direction using the number of positions to be shifted.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein The compensation factor is a global compensation factor applied to all pixels of the modified light pattern, and is calculated from the total luminous flux of the original light pattern and the total luminous flux of the modified light pattern according to the following formula: -g = 1 + (f1-f0) / f0 - wherein g is the global compensation factor, f1 is the total luminous flux of the modified light pattern, and f0 is the total luminous flux of the original light pattern.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein The modified light pattern is split into at least a first region (14) and a second region (15), and the step of dividing the luminous intensity by the compensation factor is applied only to the light pixels of the second region (15).

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein The original light pattern is a low beam pattern, the low beam pattern includes a bending area, and the first area (13) includes the bending area.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein: The original light pattern is a high-beam pattern, the high-beam pattern includes maximum luminous intensity pixels, and the first area (13) contains the maximum luminous intensity pixels.

7. The method according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein The step of compensating the luminous intensity includes dividing the second area of ​​the modified light pattern into a plurality of rows or columns, and dividing the luminous intensity of the light pixels in each row or column by a corresponding compensation factor.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein: The compensation factor of each column is selected according to a polynomial or Gaussian profile including values ​​between a reference compensation factor and 1, and wherein the reference compensation factor is calculated from the total luminous flux of the original light pattern, the total luminous flux of the modified light pattern, and the luminous flux of the second zone according to the following formula: -r = 1 + (f12-fp) / fp - wherein r is a reference compensation factor, f12 is the total luminous flux of the second zone of the modified light pattern, and fp is the difference between the total luminous flux of the original light pattern and the luminous flux of the first zone of the modified light pattern.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein: The compensation factor for each column is selected according to a polynomial or Gaussian profile that includes values ​​between the specific compensation factor and 1, and wherein the specific compensation factor is less than a reference compensation factor according to the following formula: -r = 1 + (f12-fp) / fp, - wherein r is the reference compensation factor, f12 is the total luminous flux of the second zone of the modified light pattern, and fp is the difference between the total luminous flux of the original light pattern and the luminous flux of the first zone of the modified light pattern, - making the average value of the compensation factors of all the columns equal to the reference compensation factor.

10. An automobile lighting device (10), comprising: A matrix arrangement of solid-state light sources (2) for providing a light pattern (1); A control unit (9) configured to perform the steps of the method according to any of the preceding claims.

11. The automotive lighting device according to claim 10, wherein: The matrix arrangement comprises at least 2000 solid-state light sources (2).

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