If you happen to walk by an Audi dealership and see a 2021 e-tron or e-tron Sportback parked inside, know that the German EV crossover is available with Digital Matrix LED (DML) headlight technology as an optional extra. We should note that U.S. buyers are yet to have total functionality for the DML headlights, with Audi still negotiating with government officials and other authorities in an effort to fully unleash the technology onto the masses.
Still, this marks the first time that DML
headlights have been mass produced for a production vehicle. DML headlights
feature 1.3 million micromirrors per unit, essentially working like movie
projectors, emitting tiny particles or adaptable light. Initially, buyers will
benefit from five different welcome/leaving animations when the vehicle is
parked, each with its unique motion graphics and text that you can select via
the car’s MMI touchscreen display.
Aside from the available animations, the
full feature set of DML headlights includes a 50 meter “light carpet” designed
to keep light within the driver’s lane, while also avoiding to blind oncoming traffic.
There’s also a low-beam curved lighting function that bends below oncoming
traffic and can illuminate people or objects on the side of the road, as well
as electrostatically controlled micromirrors that can adjust light beam pixels
up to 5,000 times per second. Last but not least, there are the on-ground light
arrows that place the car’s tires within its lane.
The 2021 Audi e-tron range is priced from US$ 65,900.
