HELLA is working with other project partners on the development of new lighting solutions that will allow for visual communication between autonomous vehicles and non autonomous vehicles and pedestrians.

The need for such as system can be illustrated by the fact that currently before a pedestrian crosses the road in front of an oncoming vehicle, they usually seek eye contact with the driver. This, however, is likely to change when fully automated vehicles are introduced because ‘drivers’ no longer have to concentrate on the road ahead and are likel to be looking elsewhere.

To overcome this issue HELLA is playing a key role in a three-year, EU-funded, international interACT research project. This is is researching how communication between automated and non-automated road users, such as pedestrians, cyclists and other vehicle drivers, might look for passenger cars in the urban environment of the future. Lighting plays a particularly important role in such communication, but today's lighting systems inside and outside the vehicle are not currently sufficient to replace eye contact, gestures or language.

The researchers will initially define which situations require communication and then endeavour to find the best possible way to achieve these goals, whether through projections, symbols or colours. HELLA will then create a prototype and integrate the lighting modules inside a vehicle. To make this possible, the project partners will use their combined skills and experience to contribute to the overall solution.