Patent ID: 8870424

Claim:
An automotive headlamp apparatus comprising: a headlamp unit placed in a vehicle; and a control unit which controls the illumination of the headlamp unit according to a vehicle existent area where a vehicle-in-front travelling in front of a driver's vehicle exists, wherein the headlamp unit (i) forms a lower beam distribution pattern for illuminating a region immediately in front of the driver's vehicle, (ii) forms an upper beam distribution pattern having a shape different from that of the lower beam distribution pattern and for illuminating a region above the region illuminated by the lower beam distribution pattern, and (iii) is configured so that a partial region of the upper beam distribution pattern is capable of being non-illuminated, and wherein the control unit determines the vehicle existent area, based on information related to the vehicle-in-front positioned at an end in a horizontal direction, of a plurality of vehicles-in-front travelling in front of the driver's vehicle; when the entirety of vehicle existent area is contained within the partial region of the upper beam distribution pattern, the control unit controls the headlamp unit in such a manner that the partial region is non-illuminated; and when at least a part of the vehicle existent area is contained within a region of the upper beam distribution pattern which is other than the partial region, the control unit controls the headlamp unit in such a manner that the upper beam distribution pattern is not formed.