Night driving lenses

poppycamper said:
Certainly seems a logical solution... However not sure it would be much good on a very busy road with constant convoy of vehicles going past.😂
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Second that as we would end up using jerryz post idea up above lol.
Mind that might explain some peoples poor night driving.

Its a fine line these days between the usually easier traffic at night or the increasing number of people who seem to have no concept or concideration of other road users, driving with full beam on without dipping and this is regulary on a stretch near me that is fully lit with street lights to the extent you could still see to drive without your lights.
 
Ditto on headlight glare these days compared with 10 years ago…

I was sceptical at first about these lenses, but a colleague recommended I give them a try - I now use these regularly at night but especially in mist/fog and heavy road spray at any time - in the dark they do cut down headlamp glare a bit - every little bit helps and all that - however, having just had four days of driving down the M5 to Devon, around Exmoor and back again in fog and low cloud, mostly in daylight, they were of great benefit to me.

If you are being affected by glare at night it’s perhaps worth trying them at least… and definitely worth it for daytime glare in spray and mist/fog in particular…
 
Latest update on advice from the AA

"Can you get fined for wearing sunglasses while driving in the UK?
If you're involved in a collision where using unsuitable eyewear is considered to be a contributing factor, you may be liable to prosecution. Your sunglasses need to meet the requirements set out in the Highway Code:

They must not be so dark that they stop you from seeing clearly
They must not be tinted while you're driving at night or in otherwise poor visibility
They must not make it difficult for you to see traffic signals clearly
They must not have any scratches or external damage that makes it difficult for you to see
Last updated: 30 May 2024. Author: The AA"
 
stuartholmes said:
Thanks. Absolutely correct if we're talking about something to blank out a zone but just tinting darkens the oncoming light source without obliterating & it's better than being left with temporary blindness for some seconds after the offender has passed.
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1000017740.webp

:roflmto:
 
The Wino said:
Latest update on advice from the AA

"Can you get fined for wearing sunglasses while driving in the UK?
If you're involved in a collision where using unsuitable eyewear is considered to be a contributing factor, you may be liable to prosecution. Your sunglasses need to meet the requirements set out in the Highway Code:

They must not be so dark that they stop you from seeing clearly
They must not be tinted while you're driving at night or in otherwise poor visibility
They must not make it difficult for you to see traffic signals clearly
They must not have any scratches or external damage that makes it difficult for you to see
Last updated: 30 May 2024. Author: The AA"
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Thats almost all subjective, who decides whether any of that criterior applied (ie "so dark", "contributing factor"...). The only definite thing is "They must not be tinted while you're driving at night or in otherwise poor visibility". The glasses we are talking about are not sunglasses, they have been marketed on Amazon Germany for many years as night driving glasses
You mentioned earlier about Germany not allowing tinted glasses, so these are not considered that...

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swemmy666 said:
Thats almost all subjective, who decides whether any of that criterior applied (ie "so dark", "contributing factor"...). The only definite thing is "They must not be tinted while you're driving at night or in otherwise poor visibility". The glasses we are talking about are not sunglasses, they have been marketed on Amazon Germany for many years as night driving glasses
You mentioned earlier about Germany not allowing tinted glasses, so these are not considered that...
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If they are reducing the light that comes through, doesn't that make them tinted?

And just because they're for sale, it doesn't make them legal to use. Also see eScooters.
 
swemmy666 said:
Thats almost all subjective, who decides whether any of that criterior applied (ie "so dark", "contributing factor"...). The only definite thing is "They must not be tinted while you're driving at night or in otherwise poor visibility". The glasses we are talking about are not sunglasses, they have been marketed on Amazon Germany for many years as night driving glasses
You mentioned earlier about Germany not allowing tinted glasses, so these are not considered that...
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If course they're tinted! Otherwise they would transmitt 100% of light
 
swemmy666 said:
Thats almost all subjective, who decides whether any of that criterior applied (ie "so dark", "contributing factor"...). The only definite thing is "They must not be tinted while you're driving at night or in otherwise poor visibility". The glasses we are talking about are not sunglasses, they have been marketed on Amazon Germany for many years as night driving glasses
You mentioned earlier about Germany not allowing tinted glasses, so these are not considered that...
Click to expand...
It's illegal to retrofit led bulbs in headlights are you saying they aren't available on Amazon?
 
so when driving, we can classify light into two types.
1. Worthwhile, light from:
your dashboard, the road ahead, any parked vehicles, taillights, any vehicles travelling towards/away, pedestrians, vehicles in side roads, reflected light from sources of vehicles travelling towards you or street lights, road signs etc etc
2. worthless light, anything not in 1., the headlights of oncoming vehicles or street lights themselves, the sky (I'm not going to crash into a 747 at 20000 feet), house lights to the side etc etc

when the light from 2 causes the pupils to constrict, then it reduces the light from all sources, especially from those in 1. So when a bright source from 2 constricts the pupils, it reduces the total amount of light entering the eye, including the light from group 1.
add the fact that a sudden bright light directly in the eye can cause momentary loss of night vision.

I'm interested in maximising the light from 1., not the total light from 1 & 2, I find these glasses help in several situations
 
swemmy666 said:
Thats almost all subjective, who decides whether any of that criterior applied (ie "so dark", "contributing factor"...). The only definite thing is "They must not be tinted while you're driving at night or in otherwise poor visibility". The glasses we are talking about are not sunglasses, they have been marketed on Amazon Germany for many years as night driving glasses
You mentioned earlier about Germany not allowing tinted glasses, so these are not considered that...
Click to expand...
On the tinted lenses at night I hope I actually said Germany has a defined limit of what tint is allowed hence the Zeiss chart of which prescription photochromic lenses meet the requirements below that level of transmission they are not legal.
Here's a review by auto express

www.autoexpress.co.uk

What are night driving glasses and do they work? | Auto Express

In the wonderful world of driving accessories, you may have seen night driving glasses for sale - but what are they, and do they work?
www.autoexpress.co.uk www.autoexpress.co.uk

Albiet some of it is nonsense they say the tint turns white blueish light to yellow the whole point is no tint turns light a different colour it filters out some wavelengths more than others so reduces the amount of light you see with.

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swemmy666 said:
so when driving, we can classify light into two types.
1. Worthwhile, light from:
your dashboard, the road ahead, any parked vehicles, taillights, any vehicles travelling towards/away, pedestrians, vehicles in side roads, reflected light from sources of vehicles travelling towards you or street lights, road signs etc etc
2. worthless light, anything not in 1., the headlights of oncoming vehicles or street lights themselves, the sky (I'm not going to crash into a 747 at 20000 feet), house lights to the side etc etc

when the light from 2 causes the pupils to constrict, then it reduces the light from all sources, especially from those in 1. So when a bright source from 2 constricts the pupils, it reduces the total amount of light entering the eye, including the light from group 1.
add the fact that a sudden bright light directly in the eye can cause momentary loss of night vision.

I'm interested in maximising the light from 1., not the total light from 1 & 2, I find these glasses help in several situations
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Could you explain how a lens can differentiate between useful a non useful light....... because it can't!
In some situations tints can really help visibility for instance in my previous hobby of gliding a brownish/ yellowish tint can improve the visibility of cloud against a blue sky as a yellow tint filters out the blue end of the spectrum and enhances the visibility of whisps of cloud when a thermal reaches the height where water vapour starts to condense. There was a very definite yellowish orange tint that did however have the drawback of making water look a similar colour to a grass field!
In the case of driving at night people generally like having led headlights as they do produce a good light to drive with look at all the posts on here about led lamp conversions. But a tint that is good at cutting out that led light from oncoming led headlights will also be the same tint that's good at cutting out the light from your own headlight! As most street lights are now led the same will happen with street light and pedestrians etc.
I can see why looking through a tint might feel better after all it will cut down some glare from oncoming lights but I haven't seen any evidence that it actually improved driving safety and the physics don't stack up on it cutting out glare any more than it cuts out the light you see with. As I said before glare is certainly more of a problem as people age and start to develop cataracts but as cataracts themselves reduce light transmission adding a tint at night seems a pretty bad idea.
 
The Wino said:
Could you explain how a lens can differentiate between useful a non useful light....... because it can't!
In some situations tints can really help visibility for instance in my previous hobby of gliding a brownish/ yellowish tint can improve the visibility of cloud against a blue sky as a yellow tint filters out the blue end of the spectrum and enhances the visibility of whisps of cloud when a thermal reaches the height where water vapour starts to condense. There was a very definite yellowish orange tint that did however have the drawback of making water look a similar colour to a grass field!
In the case of driving at night people generally like having led headlights as they do produce a good light to drive with look at all the posts on here about led lamp conversions. But a tint that is good at cutting out that led light from oncoming led headlights will also be the same tint that's good at cutting out the light from your own headlight! As most street lights are now led the same will happen with street light and pedestrians etc.
I can see why looking through a tint might feel better after all it will cut down some glare from oncoming lights but I haven't seen any evidence that it actually improved driving safety and the physics don't stack up on it cutting out glare any more than it cuts out the light you see with. As I said before glare is certainly more of a problem as people age and start to develop cataracts but as cataracts themselves reduce light transmission adding a tint at night seems a pretty bad idea.
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You are ignoring the point about pupil size, glare and bright sources will reduce the size of the pupil, reducing the amount of light from all sources. If the glasses increase pupil size, then it may well compensate for the filtering, and if the filtering is targeted at the brightest sources then that would seem to be worthwhile.
There doesn't seem to be any scientific study on this, we can agree they reduce total light to the eye, but not whether the worthwhile light is higher or lower when you take into account any change in pupil size.
There just seems to be anecdotal and subjective opinion. However there is a comprehensive subjective survey on those particular glasses, the amazon site has over 10 thousand reviews, 76% give the glasses 4/5 stars, 24% 3stars or less.
I get that for some these are pointless, making their driving vision worse, but I dont accept it when people are trying to tell me about my particular experiences, as if they somehow know better than me what I experienced. Have you tried these glasses in the driving conditions they are designed for? every time I use them, I "test" to see which I prefer, and will swap in/out as the conditions change.
 
swemmy666 said:
You are ignoring the point about pupil size, glare and bright sources will reduce the size of the pupil, reducing the amount of light from all sources. If the glasses increase pupil size, then it may well compensate for the filtering, and if the filtering is targeted at the brightest sources then that would seem to be worthwhile.
There doesn't seem to be any scientific study on this, we can agree they reduce total light to the eye, but not whether the worthwhile light is higher or lower when you take into account any change in pupil size.
There just seems to be anecdotal and subjective opinion. However there is a comprehensive subjective survey on those particular glasses, the amazon site has over 10 thousand reviews, 76% give the glasses 4/5 stars, 24% 3stars or less.
I get that for some these are pointless, making their driving vision worse, but I dont accept it when people are trying to tell me about my particular experiences, as if they somehow know better than me what I experienced. Have you tried these glasses in the driving conditions they are designed for? every time I use them, I "test" to see which I prefer, and will swap in/out as the conditions change.
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The pupil size thing is a red herring! The eye will adapt to the light level reaching the eye if the tint reduces light from glare by 20% it also reduces the light you see with by 20% the pupil size change will be the same!
I suppose I have wasted three years getting a degree in optometry and visual optics 40+ years qualified and a previous examiner in the professional examinations in lighting and occupational optometry including visual standards! We are in an age where after all there's a general mistrust of "experts".
As I said before I can see why people could think a tinted lens has a beneficial effect but can also see that a recommendation to someone else of something that could have consequences needs to be challenged.
I see anecdotal recommendation as the thin end of a dangerous wedge with recommendations of unproven medical treatments/ cosmetic surgery etc being the thick end
As you say we can I think agree to disagree!
 
"The eye will adapt to the light level reaching the eye" is that an instantaneous thing?

As for the recommendation, the original OP was requesting such a thing. You would expect anyone using these to actual try and experience the effects, and make their own decision on whether it was beneficial to them. For the human body in general, it is definitely not one size fits all, for a really crap analogy: for an amputee an artificial leg may be helpful, but would do very little for me!
 
swemmy666 said:
Thats almost all subjective, who decides whether any of that criterior applied (ie "so dark", "contributing factor"...). The only definite thing is "They must not be tinted while you're driving at night or in otherwise poor visibility". The glasses we are talking about are not sunglasses, they have been marketed on Amazon Germany for many years as night driving glasses
You mentioned earlier about Germany not allowing tinted glasses, so these are not considered that...
Click to expand...
I've not felt drawn to yellow lenses but the 'with' and 'without' image on that product is very persuasive - if you have personal experience to confim it's genuine - but what is the effect on seeing non-glaring objects?
 
stuartholmes said:
I've not felt drawn to yellow lenses but the 'with' and 'without' image on that product is very persuasive - if you have personal experience to confim it's genuine - but what is the effect on seeing non-glaring objects?
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You can see from the thread that I find them beneficial in some circumstances, I will be at Swaffam(May) and Newark(June) rallies, you and anyone else are welcome to try them there.
 
swemmy666 said:
You are ignoring the point about pupil size, glare and bright sources will reduce the size of the pupil, reducing the amount of light from all sources. If the glasses increase pupil size, then it may well compensate for the filtering, and if the filtering is targeted at the brightest sources then that would seem to be worthwhile.
There doesn't seem to be any scientific study on this, we can agree they reduce total light to the eye, but not whether the worthwhile light is higher or lower when you take into account any change in pupil size.
There just seems to be anecdotal and subjective opinion. However there is a comprehensive subjective survey on those particular glasses, the amazon site has over 10 thousand reviews, 76% give the glasses 4/5 stars, 24% 3stars or less.
I get that for some these are pointless, making their driving vision worse, but I dont accept it when people are trying to tell me about my particular experiences, as if they somehow know better than me what I experienced. Have you tried these glasses in the driving conditions they are designed for? every time I use them, I "test" to see which I prefer, and will swap in/out as the conditions change.
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I don't like to trust amazon 'reviews' because the writers are prone to confirmation bias - wanting to believe they made the 'right' purchase - but it would be interesting to try a pair of specs with one side in that nice german yellow & the other side plain clear antireflective...

Also, isn't this fun! 😁
 
swemmy666 said:
You can see from the thread that I find them beneficial in some circumstances, I will be at Swaffam(May) and Newark(June) rallies, you and anyone else are welcome to try them there.
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Nice offer, thanks. (If we can just organise some people to provide the glare - any takers?)
 
stuartholmes said:
I don't like to trust amazon 'reviews' because the writers are prone to confirmation bias - wanting to believe they made the 'right' purchase - but it would be interesting to try a pair of specs with one side in that nice german yellow & the other side plain clear antireflective...

Also, isn't this fun! 😁
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Clear plain anti reflective was one of my favourite questions in the professional exams! Candidates would often be brainwashed by manufacturers claims on what things could do anti-reflection coating only cuts out reflection due to the lens it's applied to. A clear lens with anti-reflection coating is a good example of the emperor's clothes I did have the odd person who said that they had actually sold one to some unsuspecting member of the public........ automatic fail!

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The Wino said:
Clear plain anti reflective was one of my favourite questions in the professional exams! Candidates would often be brainwashed by manufacturers claims on what things could do anti-reflection coating only cuts out reflection due to the lens it's applied to. A clear lens with anti-reflection coating is a good example of the emperor's clothes I did have the odd person who said that they had actually sold one to some unsuspecting member of the public........ automatic fail!
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''Clear plain anti reflective'' was meant to describe the non-tinted lenses through which I'm currently looking (although I forgot to mention they're also hydro & oleophobic, basically everything on offer excluding tint or polarising which I count as a tint due to what the world looks like through them), does that make me an unsuspecting member of the public?

I've been 'sold on' anti reflective since first offered them because I worked in human services wanted the benefit of people seeing my eyes rather than the other way round..
 
stuartholmes said:
''Clear plain anti reflective'' was meant to describe the non-tinted lenses through which I'm currently looking (although I forgot to mention they're also hydro & oleophobic, basically everything on offer excluding tint or polarising which I count as a tint due to what the world looks like through them), does that make me an unsuspecting member of the public?

I've been 'sold on' anti reflective since first offered them because I worked in human services wanted the benefit of people seeing my eyes rather than the other way round..
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No when you said" plain" I thought you meant with no prescription. The question to the candidate would be along the lines of if you have someone complaining of glare at night who doesn't require a distance correction will a plano ( no power ) lens with anti-reflection coating help.
I always have a good quality anti reflection coating too the only drawbacks being they are harder to keep clean even if oleophobic than an uncoated lens.
Interestingly in the context of tints an anti-reflection coating actually increases light transmission compared to an uncoated lens as the light that would be reflected at the surfaces is transmitted through the lens sort of sounds impossible the explanation is probably not counted as fun!
 
The Wino said:
No when you said" plain" I thought you meant with no prescription. The question to the candidate would be along the lines of if you have someone complaining of glare at night who doesn't require a distance correction will a plano ( no power ) lens with anti-reflection coating help.
I always have a good quality anti reflection coating too the only drawbacks being they are harder to keep clean even if oleophobic than an uncoated lens.
Interestingly in the context of tints an anti-reflection coating actually increases light transmission compared to an uncoated lens as the light that would be reflected at the surfaces is transmitted through the lens sort of sounds impossible the explanation is probably not counted as fun!
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Ahh, that's perfectly clear now thank you!
😀

But how did anybody who got that question wrong even get to be taking the exam?!?
 
stuartholmes said:
Ahh, that's perfectly clear now thank you!
😀

But how did anybody who got that question wrong even get to be taking the exam?!?
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In optometry there's always been the problem that everyone makes a loss on eye examinations and tries to make it up on selling things. It leads to a big emphasis on marketing and recommending things that aren't strictly required or beneficial. I think it's the same in hearing care and quite a few other businesses. It's particularly bad in the UK due to the NHS sight test fee being so low. The exams were candidates who had passed a degree and then spent a year under supervision before taking the final qualifying exams mostly aurals with two examiners and generally seen as pretty tough. A lot of the candidates actually believed a lot of the marketing produced by their employers that wasn't necessarily honest!
 
I would like to give a little support to swemmy666 without contradicting what The Wino correctly says. I also find the yellow over specs beneficial at night but only while motorway driving. They do reduce contrast so curbs blend into the road as do the temporary concrete barriers. So, when driving on an open motorway at night I find they greatly reduce glare, reduce eye strain and hence reduce fatigue. I take them off as soon as I leave the motorway or encounter roadworks where the extra contrast is necessary.
As an engineer I was engaged in cutting edge scientific research and have often encountered situations where theory says something shouldn’t work but final testing shows that it does. I suspect that these glasses are similar. Theory says they don’t work but for some people the effect is beneficial. With the lenses sitting slightly in front of my spectacles I find that scattered light is greatly reduced and the thicker sides although slightly producing tunnel vision does eliminate light getting in behind the spectacles.

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As a further comment again with respect to The Wino knowledge. I was today driving in very thick freezing daylight fog in Spain it was very tiring and I was beginning to see spots before my eyes. In desperation I reached for the yellow specs. Wow, what a difference. Without saying anything I passed them to Judy who by now had put her sunglasses on. She immediately said wow, I can see so much better! It was amazing I could see so much better, cars that were invisible 50 meters away suddenly appeared and the rest of the drive until it cleared was so much more comfortable.
As you say, it shouldn’t work but for me in some circumstances it certainly does.
 
OldAgeTravellers said:
As a further comment again with respect to The Wino knowledge. I was today driving in very thick freezing daylight fog in Spain it was very tiring and I was beginning to see spots before my eyes. In desperation I reached for the yellow specs. Wow, what a difference. Without saying anything I passed them to Judy who by now had put her sunglasses on. She immediately said wow, I can see so much better! It was amazing I could see so much better, cars that were invisible 50 meters away suddenly appeared and the rest of the drive until it cleared was so much more comfortable.
As you say, it shouldn’t work but for me in some circumstances it certainly does.
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I daylight it's a different story! The yellow tint cuts out the blue end of the spectrum which is the light that's scattered more in fog I'm not surprised they helped. The op was asking about driving at night.
 
The Wino said:
In optometry there's always been the problem that everyone makes a loss on eye examinations and tries to make it up on selling things. It leads to a big emphasis on marketing and recommending things that aren't strictly required or beneficial. I think it's the same in hearing care and quite a few other businesses. It's particularly bad in the UK due to the NHS sight test fee being so low. The exams were candidates who had passed a degree and then spent a year under supervision before taking the final qualifying exams mostly aurals with two examiners and generally seen as pretty tough. A lot of the candidates actually believed a lot of the marketing produced by their employers that wasn't necessarily honest!
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A year should be more than long enough to learn something so basic, good job they were filtered out by the exam.
The Wino said:
I daylight it's a different story! The yellow tint cuts out the blue end of the spectrum which is the light that's scattered more in fog I'm not surprised they helped. The op was asking about driving at night.
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This is very interesting. Perfectly obvious once it's pointed out so I'm not going to dispute! But why then aren't they sold as 'fog specs'? This makes me much more inclined to actually try a pair.
 

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