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Proportional Signal Lights

Variable brightness brake lights and "acceleration light"
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Sometimes you can miss brake lights in broad daylight. So, under maximum braking, a new 300 Watt halogen brake light system would go to full power, catching the attention of even the most distracted SUV driver. Also, some new lights could be added for acceleration, maybe a bright green light.
bmw, May 03 2001

Smart Brake Light http://www.scienced...04/080402204950.htm
A Virginia Tech PhD student baking this idea [talldave, Apr 07 2008]

[link]






       why would you need an acceleration light? other than to have a pretty light show for the person behind you
dekoi, May 03 2001
  

       If a car on a motorway is slowing gently and then the driver realises that he's in danger of hitting the car in front, he can stand harder on the brakes to bring the car up in a shorter distance than that originally planned. In this case, the brake lights were already on, you have nothing to warn you of the extra braking so it's a similar effect to having no brake lights. Everyone on the motorway in England drives too close to the car in front; it's a recipe for disaster - and a lot of the non-catastrophic accidents you see on our motorways are rear-end shunts. Proportional brake lights would solve this; I was thinking about posting the idea, but found this when I searched - so definite bun.   

       Not so sure about the acceleration lights though; what dekoi said.
kmlabs, Jan 28 2005
  

       Acceleration lights would let you know when someone behind you is about to do something reckless, like launching out of an on-ramp.
tiromancer, Jan 28 2005
  

       How would acceleration lights on the back of the car behind you let you know when he was going to do something reckless?   

       Unless they're on the front of the car, in which case they're baked - I call them full beams...
kmlabs, Jan 28 2005
  

       Acceleration lights would be nice in traffic jams...that is, assuming that you could gauge how much to accelerate based on the brightness of his light.   

       That way, you would ideally have all cars accerating at once, instead of the stop and go traffic due to delay in perception of how fast the car in front of you is accelerating.
whuil, Jan 28 2005
  

       Confuse people by pressing the brake and accelerator at the same time.
Ling, Jan 28 2005
  

       How about constructing brake lights so that they will show full super-brightness for 50ms after any increase in braking force, or when the brakes are depressed fully, and normal brightness when the brake pedal is held more lightly (after the first 50ms)?
supercat, Jan 28 2005
  

       Great idea I have thought this for years I think that the acceleration light would be handy it would almost allow you to read the mind of the driver I think that this light system augmented with a g sensor could possibly be a bit better it would allow you to tell if the person was just flooring it in fourth gear and getting nowhere or if they were making a speedy acceleration in third also with this g sensor the " hardness of decelerating would look the same whether you were behind a semi or a sports car With this sensor an after market unit that could be a box that replaces the third brakelight or the third brakelight position would be easily retrofitted allowing all vehicles to exhibit the same level of safety
shad, Jan 29 2005
  

       I like the brake idea, but where I come from, having the accelerator idea as well would cause epilepsy in most drivers. The cars would look like disco strobe lights thanks to the idiots that drive here.
jaxmeier, Jan 30 2005
  
      
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