LED lowbeam observations

hey guys, this is for those who ever wondered about individual output pictures. I spent time recently making observations on Prii with LED lowbeams, hope this excites you

First-both headlights on wall:


Second-single headlamp on wall: (i used passenger side)


Third-upper parabolic reflector (flood light, foreground)

**observation, it appears that the reflector has a shielding to reflect residual forward light (often lost) back onto the reflector:


Fourth- Projectors (combined) without top parabolic reflector:


Fifth-Only outer/smaller projector: (diffused beam/mid-distance)


Sixth-Only inner/larger projector: (focused beam/distance)

The dark downward spike on the left side of the output is my girlfriends hair...

**observation, apparently this also sources the "squirrel finders," though both of the projector lenses have a texture on the inside/flat surface instead of the round outside facing surface. Think of fresnel lenses but instead of having circles, they're vertical lines covering the backside of the projector toward the led unit.



On the Prius i studied, the large projector also showed signs of melting and damage on the large projector as seen here:


possibly all LED-equipped Prii will suffer this?
many LED lowbeams that were studied all showed the same signs of melting inside of the larger/inside projector (focused beam). A fellow member on a light enthusiast site also discovered that tilting the projector at the right angle on a not-so sunny day can also start making the insides burn.

The Prius's led lowbeam internals are mostly plastic to save on weight.

Here is another batch from a member, Upashi, who is also studying the headlamp:



top from left, small/outer diffused projector, large/inner focused projector, and reflector part. bottom, combined beam

 

lol my bad, this is just for those who ever wondered how each of the 3 led sources contribute to the overall beam.

as for internal melting, look inside the larger projector and check to see if there's any form of burning/melting, 3/3 prius's i've seen showed mild-to-moderate signs of damage.

 

ty problem is that the lens isn't what is melting, it's the internal "beam shaper"/cutoff shield. The lens is causing the inside of the projector to melt because it's focusing sunlight into the projector. reverse optics >.<

ALSO the lens is fused to the projector, so replacing it with another will require extra cutting and work. hopefully Toyota recognizes this and tells Koito to make improvements because this setup is also on Lexus's Rx, Hs, and Ct model hybrids, as well as the Asian market Toyota Sai.

 

woops, forgot to add in, the culprit (the sun) attacks the headlights during early and late days when the angle of the sun is in line with the projector (or relatively in-line)

 

The bowl's are alright, it's just the additional beam shaper mirrors that deflect residual light into usable light, same ones seen on a lexus ls600h:

I took these pics at around a 5-8 foot distance, if you go back further, to around 15-20 feet, all the beams should align relatively nicely (as seen in tideland's street and wall pictures. The LEDs have a more homogeneous light coverage, providing wider view with good distance (if you adjust the beams a tad upward) than the halogens. With the halogens most of the light is directed in center and distance.

 

yes, there are heatsinks for the LED's. The melting is due to optics from the sun shining into the projector to melt the internal reflector (beam shaper/cut-off shield not bowl).

 

F8L, i just noticed, you're on HIDplanet too