Hella equips A7 Sportback with intelligent lighting functions

Together with the vehicle manufacturer Audi, Hella has developed a striking lighting technology for the new Audi A7 Sportback, the headlamps for which are available as LED, Matrix LED and HD Matrix LED with laser high beam variants. The system uses a new control unit, which takes care of all of the lighting functions and in addition, Audi and Hella have also developed a new interior lighting concept.

Hella’s lighting technology, which is already successfully serving the Audi A8 will also provide the new Audi A7 with optimal road vision and its glare-free high beam function will, for example, allow other road users to be ‘eclipsed’ from the light beam, thus avoiding glare. Reliable communication between the front camera, sensors and headlamps is naturally a prerequisite for the HD Matrix LED with laser high beam, so the Hella control unit required for this task controls the headlamps and takes care of all lighting functions, from low to high beams to wiping direction indicators and animations for welcoming and seeing off the driver, meaning only this single control unit is necessary.

Future-oriented control unit enables individual configurations

In the Audi A7, eight control unit channels are used for the LED headlamp variants, which means that all 32 light emitting diodes of the HD Matrix LED module can be controlled individually. In addition, it emphasises the vehicle’s daylight signature that consists of twelve light segments separated by narrow gaps. As soon as the driver unlocks the doors, the headlamps display a light choreography. The animation runs in reverse order after the trip and when locking the vehicle door.

The control unit meets the latest standards in functional safety, automatically taking into account headlamp levelling for optimally adjusting the headlamp, for example, thus avoiding glaring other road users. It is also equipped with a ‘fail safe’ mode, which ensures that sufficient light remains on the road for the driver in the event of an error.

Customisable interior lighting concept creates pleasant atmosphere

Not only did Hella jointly develop the headlamp variants and their intelligent control with Audi, but also the interior lighting concept. With the optional ambient lighting package, light guides in the dashboard, side panelling in the doors and the door light ensure the occupants enjoy a pleasant atmosphere. The multi-coloured, shaped ambient lighting package extends the lighting concept even further, so that the quattro badge incorporated into a chrome trim inside the dashboard on the front passenger side is illuminated at night, providing an especially elegant effect. Additional light guides in the doors and in the centre console provide a further highlight, both of which are framed by chrome trims. This creates a particularly high-end appearance of the interior and was made possible by using a special injection moulding process.

The second generation RGB LED modules developed together with Audi form the heart of the shaped interior ambient lighting and enable the driver to adjust the colours to suit their own taste.

With an overhead control unit in the front vehicle area, the company links its lighting and electronics expertise. The control unit comprises an SOS button and, depending on the vehicle equipment version, also the moonroof control, sensors for passenger compartment monitoring and a microphone. The integrated reading light in the front is touch-free and in the rear, a reading light is installed in the ceiling centre, the brightness of which can also be individually adjusted.