Patent ID: 8547018

Claim:
A vehicle light control system comprising: vehicle headlights mounted on the vehicle; a control element for varying orientation and illumination characteristics of the lights; a navigation device for acquiring geographic location information; an operating device operable by a driver; and a control unit connected to the control element, to the navigation device and to the operating device, the control unit storing a first set of predefined illumination settings for public roads, and storing a second set of predefined illumination settings for non-public roads, the control unit causing the operating device to control the illumination characteristics of the lights according to the first set when the navigation device determines that the vehicle is operating on a public road, and, when the navigation device determines that the vehicle is operating on a non-public road, the control unit causing the operating device to control the illumination characteristics of the lights according to a setting selected from the second set in response to operation of the operating device.