For most of us we probably think in the context of automobiles and those ?things? on the front that provide the main beam of light that enables us to see where we are going in the dark or other poor lighting conditions. This is the main usage when the word ?head? is joined to the word ?light? (sometimes the synonym ?lamp? might be substituted for ?light?). However, in this automobile context, the word ?head? has one of its alternate meanings ? as in the leading light.
What About The Human Head?
People have wanted to be able to see in the dark throughout human history and we have come a long way from the days when we crouched around the flames of a fire to keep the darkness at bay. From simply carrying a burning branch to learning how to make candles and oil burning lamps we have tried many ways of carrying light around with us.
However, these all had serious drawbacks; not the least of which was that they all involved the use of a naked flame which could easily get out of control and it was difficult to concentrate the light into a strong coherent beam. Additionally, they were best carried in the hand which restricted actions that could be performed under their light.
This question of keeping your hands free would have been quickly solved by mounting the light source on one?s head. But; a naked flame on your head is not exactly a good idea. Very early underground miners did try to work with a candle mounted on top of a hat or helmet but; it was not until the acetylene lamp that realistic hands free lighting became available ? albeit still with a naked flame (although its light could now be reflected into a beam).
Electricity ? The Lighting Breakthrough
Once we had solved how to harness electricity and use it to light up a bulb; the days of the naked flame light were gone ? especially once we learned how to store electricity in batteries. Miner?s headlamps could be replaced with an electric lamp ? even if the battery was somewhat bulky and had to be carried on a belt around the miner?s waist. Speleologists plus nighttime explorers, fishermen and repairmen were amongst those quick to join miners in the use of these hands free headlights. Additionally, they proved their worth in badly lit conditions (such as beneath an automobile).
Miniaturization has been the latest breakthrough; batteries are now small enough to be carried on the head inside the lamp body and small in size, powerful in operation, LED lighting units have further widened the scope of application for head mounted lighting. You can even select from arrange of LED Headlamps by going online to specialists like Panther Vision, LLC.