Ford has furthered the development of lighting on its vehicles by adding smart technology that can adapt the headlights to the road ahead.
As an industry-first, Ford has fitted the new Focus with the optional adaptive front lighting system that can detect road markings and speed signs ahead, which then adjusts the width and length of the beam depending on the road layout.
Rather than relying on GPS data that may not have the right road layout on it and can be less accurate, the system will use real-world information that is collected by cameras and sensors.
The adaptive front lighting system can light a corner ahead before the driver has even started steering, and by using the front facing camera (the camera is mounted behind the rear view mirror and is already used for lane assistance) the system can see 65 metres down the road so it knows what is coming.
Michael Koherr, lighting research engineer at Ford of Europe, said: “The dream is that night driving need be no more difficult than driving in the day. Our latest lighting technologies are part of our plan to make that a reality.
“Across Europe 15 per cent of road layouts change every year. Amazingly useful as GPS is, using signs to read the road offers the most up-to-date information you can get.”
The system also prevents the dazzling of other drivers with the help of the glare-free high beam function, which diverts the direction of the car’s beam away from oncoming traffic.
See Available Ford Focus deals