What is Breakthrough Lighting?

The similarities of vehicles are about to change with the addition of breakthrough lighting which gives us something new and unique.

This lighting feature, developed by Magna, offers a new look on a prototype SUV liftgate that Magna called “Litgate.” What makes this tailgate unique is the variety of functions and decorative communication lighting that’s invisible under most driving conditions. This new type of lighting adds to some of the other lighting we already see in the market. These include holographic taillights, matrix lights, edge-lit light blades, and various lighting shapes. Using lighting to change the way a vehicle communicates with other drivers allows various brands to have their own type of lighting.

How Does Breakthrough Lighting Work?

Most lights on vehicles stand out as part of the car and are visible wherever you go. This new type of lighting from Magna is possible from millions of tiny laser holes drilled through opaque paint in the exterior body panels. This gives the lighting elements the ability to show through and for the areas where most lights reside to look like complete body panels when the lights aren’t illuminated. Various messages, logos, and accent colors can be communicated using this type of lighting.

Not Used as Functional Lighting Yet

Conventional LED light sources can shine through the class-A painted surface using the Magna lighting feature. So far, this type of lighting is only used for messages and not as part of the functional lighting elements of a vehicle. When they aren’t illuminated, these lights remain hidden perfectly. This new technology shows up in the logos, accent lights, and communication needed in a variety of LED colors. Magna presents these lighting elements through a polycarbonate lens that obscures the lights on the Litgate to show the functional lighting needed for park, stop, turn, and reverse.

Technology at its Finest

It might be a bit too technical to cover, but the new Magna Breakthrough Lighting is achieved with LED lights attached to a thermoplastic surface and then painted over before microscopic holes are drilled through the paint. The technique of creating this lighting element is called the laser ablation technique. These tiny holes allow the light to come through and show messages needed to communicate with other drives on the road. This can mean red lights for the brakes, white lights for moving in reverse, and amber lights for the turn signals, giving other drivers the information needed.

Can you See or Feel the Holes in the Paint?

Millions of holes are made to allow the light to come through the paint. Because so many holes are made, you can’t see or feel them when the finished product is offered. In fact, after the millions of holes are made in the paint layers, the clearcoat is applied to the surface, which fills in the holes and makes the surface smooth. The light shines through, the holes aren’t seen, and the clear coat seals it all together. This seems like some sort of magic trick, but it’s not.

Is this Technology Ready to Launch?

Magna says the Breakthrough Lighting technology is fully developed and could be ready for some vehicles in 2023. The lighting might add a little to the cost of some vehicles, but it can also save some money. The hexagonal elements are repeated, which saves on tooling, and the illuminated logos and accents mean there isn’t any need for exterior trim items to be added to a vehicle. Right now, none of the car companies in the market are using this technology, but it could be something cool that will show up in some future EV models.