Digital craftsmanship continues as Mulliner offers first bespoke animated welcome lamp 

• Digital craftsmanship delivers first lighting feature that can be personalised to customer choice
• Technology introduced for the Batur has now evolved further; providing bespoke animations that are personal to the owner
• Animations up to 11 seconds long can be projected from each door and seamlessly loop to welcome occupants to the car
• Animated light curation is projected via 415,800 microscopic mirrors that are each one fifth the width of a human hair 
• Three coloured light sources reflect through ten lenses and an advanced 8 mm² Digital Micromirror Device (DMD™); sculpting the shape of the light to produce the animation
• Digital Craftsmanship bridges the worlds of digital innovation and handcrafted luxury 

(Crewe, 20 November 2025) The first automotive application of digital light processing, originally introduced for Mulliner’s coachbuilt Batur, has enabled the ability to offer customers the chance to curate their own personal animated welcome lamp projection as they enter their Bentley.

Bentley has crafted in wood, leather and metal for over 100 years, and now through the art of digital craftsmanship, light becomes the next medium – bridging the gap between handcrafted luxury and digital animation. In Bentley’s future, light will not only be used for illumination but will become an integral part of the design language. The curated animation consists of two parts. Firstly, an introduction sequence when the door is first opened, and then secondly a looped animation that projects continuously. The animation designer is able to incorporate other features from the cabin or exterior and bring them to life – for example, personalised embroidery could be animated, adding further cohesion to the theme. The animation could be as concise as a handwritten projection or as detailed as a floating feather.

A recent collection by Mulliner celebrating Bucharest's architectural and cultural landmark, the Romanian Athenaeum Concert Hall, featured an intricate animation. Centred around the embroidery from the headrest and the musical aspects from the dashboard, a bespoke animation was curated. The warm light in the centre of the animation was surrounded by dancing notes representing the ambience of the occasion. 

Innovative technology

The projection system that makes this all possible uses three coloured light sources projecting through five different lens and two prisms into a highly advanced 8mm² Digital Micromirror Device (DMDTM). The light signal is then focused through five further lenses, displaying the animation on the ground when the doors open.

The DMD™ device is a small silicone chip that consists of 415,800 tiny mirrors. Through the movement of the mirrors, a moving image can be produced. The mirrors themselves are made of aluminium and are 16 microns in width – a fifth of the width of a human hair. As the size of the mirror and hinge is so small they can react thousands of times per second; with each mirror delivering one pixel in the animation.

The image is created by sculpting the light from the coloured light sources and previous lenses and hitting the mirrors in the ‘on’ position. All mirrors in the ‘off’ position reflect the light into a heat sink within the projector that absorbs the light. The light leaving the DMD™ chip travels through five further lens and focuses on the floor. This approach of being able to curate a bespoke animation is bridging the world of digital innovation and handcrafted luxury, and sets a new standard within the automotive industry.

Craftsmanship of tomorrow

Looking towards the future, Bentley’s designers are working towards greater curated experiences through digital craftsmanship, creating a shift in the luxury sector moving beyond the physical materiality of luxury and exploring further how an experience can make a customer feel, finding moments of emotional resonance, where beauty, technology and human instinct converge. 

- ENDS –