Auto lights sensitivity options
 

I have just coded my new to me, R55 to just use the front side lights (also known as city lights or parking lights) as my only DRL lights. All rear lights are off. With 3W Cree 120 lumen bulbs they provide the perfect amount of light without being too bright at night.

Works great. Then I tried the auto lights on function by putting my hand over the sensor and sure enough the headlights and rear lights came on. However, they remained on for a few minutes and then stayed on after a couple of engine restarts. I assume this is normal and there is a time delay that the lights stay on for. However I have read that the auto lights on function, is over sensitive so I had a look into the parameters in the coding. I have never used the auto on lights because it just seems to turn the lights on all the time.

Here is what I found in the RLS module:

DEF_FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ - Automatic light control (FLC) DEFAULT sensitivity.
- Wert_01 High - this is the setting
- Wert_02 Normal
-Wert_03 Very high

FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ - Automatic light control (FLC) sensitivity.
- Wert_01 High - this is the setting
- Wert_02 Normal
-Wert_03 Very high

FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ_1 - Automatic light control (FLC) sensitivity.
- Wert_01 this was the setting

FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ_2 - Automatic light control (FLC) sensitivity.
- Wert_02 this was the setting

FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ_3 - Automatic light control (FLC) sensitivity.
- Wert_03 this was the setting

And also:

KONFIG_RLS_REGEN - Switch on headlights when raining
nicht_activ

KONFIG_RLS_GESCHW - Switch on headlights at high speeds
nicht_activ

So basically the standard setting for the lights on is HIGH and the lights are set to not turn on at high speed or when raining. So it would be reasonable to assume that by changing this to normal that th elights on feature will be less sensitive.

It would seem that changing :
DEF_FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ - to Wert_02
&
FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ - to Wert_02
would reduce the sensitivity.

Has anyone changed these settings?

I would like to know if there is a way to set the sensitivity to Low?

I made the changes and the lights are still turned on too early.

If I was turning the lights on myself, I wouldn't even think about turning on the side lights at the level of light that triggers the head lights to come on.

The auto light function is just not for me. I am happier turning the lights on when I want and off when I want.

I got my R56 last month and did the same as you, changing my DRLs from all external lights to just the parking lights and then changing them to 3W LED. It's a good look.

I like my auto light function but find it too sensitive. I have an E90 and was able to add an idrive menu option so tried the same for my R56 but the options weren't there. I didn't look in RLS module. Duh. (In NFRM and CCC in E90 or Kombi w/o idrive, like FRM and CHAMP in R56.)

Are you certain the options are:
Wert_01 High
Wert_02 Normal
Wert_03 Very high

My BMW shows the following for its menu:
Wert_01 = Sensitive
Wert_02 = Normal
Wert_03 = Slower

Anything other than Slower in my other car is too sensitive; I found Slower to be just right.

If you can, try wert_03. I will it soon myself.

I'm not sure at all. Common sense and normal convention would use a high to low 1 to 3 scheme, but when did common sense ever intervene.

I have also read somewhere that there is a wert_04 which is reported as being Very Very High. Perhaps that's like the Double Double Probation in the film National Animal's Animal House.

Anyway, I don't know for sure. If wert_03 is a lower sensitivty that that's a step in the right direction. I might try it but my thinking at the moment is that I just don't want the car to decide when and what lights to turn on.

I have Xenon lights and it's a bad idea to have them on when not absolutely required. There is a lot of expensive technology in those lights to wear out and require a big ticket fix. No problem with halogen lights as it is just the bulbs that wear out.

I understand your POV. I like the feature but I want it to work better so I'm going to experiment. You've given me a pointer so I'm going to keep going with it.

I went back to my E90. It has these values:
C750A_SCHWELLWERT_SEHR_E
C750A_SCHWELLWERT_EMPFIN
C750A_SCHWELLWERT_NORMAL
which I think mean Very Sensitive, Sensitive, and Normal but show to the driver as Sensitive, Normal, and Slower in iDrive.

I used NCSDummy for the R56's RLS module and couldn't find anything about a wert_04 you mentioned. There are just werts_01-03 as options.

I changed DEF_FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ and FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ to be wert_03. There is also a keyword for FLC_SCHWELLWERT that is wert_01 and cannot be changed. It's not in the module parameters and any value other than wert_01 returns an error.

Everything is programmed but as it's 30 minutes after sunset I'll have to see what happens on tomorrow morning's drive to work.

Also...your Double Secret Probation reference was good.

I can't get NCSDummy to work fully with my system and I have tried many Daten files and tried every module listed. I don't have total confidence in NCSDummy to 100% accurately show the list of possible options and then translate them into the correct meanng. I'm interested to hear how you got on.

The way that BMW/Mini should have done it is to sample the light value from the sensor and record it when you turn your lights on during a learning phase. That sampled and averaged level of light could then be used as the switch on light level used to turn the lights on. Then a BC user option to increase or decrease that sensitivity would be a good way to do.

However, the auto lights is one of those dumbed down features that can't appear to be more than an ON and OFF thing.

It is less sensitive with wert_03. I would like it to be yet a little less but the previous hair-trigger response is gone. The order looks to be 01 (most sensitive) to 03 (least sensitive). Shame there isn't a wert_04. That would likely be perfect for me. Or an auto-learning system would be nice but probably too expensive.Thanks for pointing out these values. I'll send a note to get them added to the spreadsheet for others.

Very interesting. I will change to wert_03.

Good find.

I've change the sensitivity to wert_03 and driven the card for 2 days. I would say that the sensitivity has decreased and has certainly not increased which would have happen if wert_03 was high Sensitivity as reported elsewhere.

Is the loweset level of sensitivity low enough? No. Yesterday driving about at the end of the day when the sun was still in the sky and not a single other car i saw, had their side lights on yet, my headlights switched on which was still far too early.

Perhaps my sensor is just more sensitive but the auto light system is just not usable for my purposes. If you want a failsafe system that stops you from driving about without lights then it provides that function.

I've also changed my sensitivity to wert_03. I *think* the auto lights are a little less sensitive, but it could also just be the placebo effect. Either way, I agree that they still come on too early when it is still bright out.

I'm going to to try adjusting the FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ_* values at some point. While there are no selectable settings for these values they appear to be tables which define the light sensor thresholds (one set of values for each sensitivity setting). The values are increasingly higher in the "less sensitive" sets. I'm going to try modifying one of the sets to much higher values to see if it decreases the sensitivity further. I'll post an update if I'm successful.

There is also the TASTVERH entries in the FRM module that are used to set the Max and Min Brightness Pulse Duty Factor for the Auto Lights. I suspect that is more to do with the hysteresis of the switching than the level, but who really knows?

I also don't understand the entries:
FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ_1
FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ_2
FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ_3

I agree that they look like table entries and they would make sense if they could be modified.

Anyway, keep us posted on that one.

I tried 2 days on each setting. Wert_03 is definitely the less sensitive setting but it is still too sensitive. If you do find a way to make things better tuned please let us know.

In the SPEG module is an entry called:
RLS_SCHWELL set to wert_02 with possible values of _01, _02 and _03

SCHWELLE translates to threshold, so this could well be part of the puzzle here.

Strangely, Googling RLS_SCHWELL finds no results.

Anyone know what this does?

hello... i have the same issue with the DRL. But now I've changed the values to _03 and the lights do not switch off again.

I gave up on adjusting the sensitivity. A sparrow flying at 50,000 (European or African) at high noon would cause the sensor to turn on the lights.

After playing with various LED city/parking lights, I just turned on my Xenon as DRLs so the auto-lights don't bother me anymore. And as DRLs they work very well. I just wish I could turn off the city lights and have only the headlights on.

R60
 

I'm trying too to set in this on a R60 countryman.

DEF_FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ

I can change to _03

But:

FLC_SCHWELLWERT_SATZ

Stays on _01 and do not accept _03, 02