US firm Intermap Technologies has partnered with Germany-based Hella to develop a predictive front lighting system by combining 3D Maps and camera information.

The system will use Intermap’s high-resolution 3D road geometries and information supplied by camera systems in an automobile as well as Hella’s front lighting demonstration system.

The technology will automatically direct the headlamp before the driver manually steers the vehicle into a bend or up and down, thereby providing him with significantly more visibility at night and during inclement weather.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, nearly 4% of front-to-rear, single-driver, and sideswipe same direction crashes in the US, totalling 143,000 per year, occur due to this type of driving.

Adaptive headlight systems could help reduce the number of related fatal crashes from the nearly 2,500 currently in the US every year, according to Intermap.