Apr 6 2015
Automotive Lighting, the Magneti Marelli division devoted to the development and production of automotive lighting systems, has received dual recognition from one of the most prestigious international awards for design and industry - the "Red Dot Award 2015."
Magneti Marelli Automotive Lighting Rear light OLED prototype awarded with the Red Dot Award
The first award, the "Red Dot Best of the Best" award, recognized the Full LED smart headlamp, developed for the 2015 MY Audi TT3. The award was presented for the high quality of design and project innovation. The second award recognized Automotive Lighting for an Organic LED (OLED)technology rear light prototype. The OLED received the "Red Dot" award for design quality. Together these awards illustrate the company's technological excellence in providing the most advanced solutions for automotive lighting. A jury composed of experts from 25 countries determined the award recipients.
Established in 1955, the "Red Dot Award: Product Design" is one of the most coveted product design awards at an international level. In 2015, designers and companies from 56 countries presented approximately 4928 products at the competition. The official award ceremony will take place this coming 29th June at Aalto Theater in Essen, Germany.
The smart Full LED headlamp, developed for the Audi TT3, features a high-beam light composed of 12 LEDs individually controlled by a camera positioned behind the windscreen. Connected to an electronic control unit, the LEDs are able to switch on and off automatically. The headlamp also features a daytime light consisting of three-dimensional elements that provide a unique design due to three dedicated lenses.
The smart lighting system is able to direct the light beam with millimetric precision depending on requirements, providing an exponential increase of visibility on the road, and improving safety both for the driver and for other vehicles.
The prototype for the OLED taillight was created with elements provided by Philips, consisting of nine Red OLEDs and five amber OLEDs which give a homogeneous appearance regardless of perspective. For the reverse function, a number of classic LED-chips were included. Even when the taillight is off, the OLED elements are extremely elegant and appear to be a silvery mirror.
In addition to these prestigious awards, Magneti Marelli Automotive Lighting recently marked the achievement of another fundamental stage in its history of technological advancements: at the Geneva Motor Show in early March, the new Audi R8 was showcased, being the first series production car equipped with a full LED headlamp with a LASER high-beam module, developed jointly by Automotive Lighting and Audi.
The 2015 awards mark the third and fourth time that Automotive Lighting has been recognized by the jury of the "Red Dot Design Award". In 2008 it received the Red Dot Design Award for the world's first full-LED headlight for automobiles, built for the Audi R8; and in 2011 it received the Red Dot Award: product design, for the world's first smart full-LED headlamp with adaptive lighting, developed for the Mercedes-Benz CLS.