The influence of light colour on the vision of objects on the road

The colour of light plays an important if not crucial role in how we perceive the world around us, especially when driving on the road. With the development of lighting technology, we can observe significant changes in the lighting offered by car manufacturers. Increasingly, LED lighting is becoming standard in cars leaving showrooms, displacing both traditional halogen bulbs and xenon lighting. It’s all about the colour temperature of the light. Traditional halogen bulbs emit a warm light colour, whereas LED lighting emits a cold light colour, which affects how we perceive our surroundings while driving.

When driving at night, the correct colour of light is crucial and directly affects safety. Natural sunlight is made up of different colours, which makes it possible to accurately distinguish details of the surroundings. The effect of light colour on vision relies on the human eye’s ability to distinguish colours and contrasts. Therefore, by using the right light source, drivers can increase their ability to see objects on the road which certainly affects driving comfort.

Traditional incandescent bulbs and warm light

Traditional incandescent car bulbs emit a warm light colour of between 3000 - 4000K. Such lighting is still the most commonly used in vehicles, despite the fact that it has its limitations. Warm light is not the ideal solution for lighting in a car mainly because it does not reproduce daylight. In addition, the light they emit is very often less intense and less concentrated compared to other types of lighting used in automobiles. There is another important point. Much of the energy consumed by traditional incandescent bulbs is converted into heat, which makes them less efficient.

LED light sources and cold light

In recent years, LEDs have become an increasingly common solution for automotive lighting. This is for several reasons. The most important is that LEDs emit cold light, usually between 5000K and 6000K, which is close to daylight and increases visual contrast and detail accuracy. Such light does not tire the eyes, which is crucial on a long journey. In addition, LEDs have a much higher energy efficiency, which means less electricity consumption with more light delivered. All this means that more and more manufacturers are using LED lighting in newly manufactured cars, moving away from traditional incandescent bulbs or xenons.