Interior ambient and task light bars

A light bar of a vehicle, comprising:

• a carrier having a surface and integrated with an outer surface of a vehicle fixture located inside the vehicle, the outer surface being directly exposed within an occupant compartment of the vehicle;
• capacitive sensors spaced along the carrier;
• light sources for illuminating the surface, wherein every other light source is enclosed by a capacitive sensor and the remaining light sources are free from being enclosed by capacitive sensors;
• and
• a controller for detecting capacitive changes in the capacitive sensors, wherein when the controller detects a capacitive change in a capacitive sensor, the controller alters an illumination state of at least a light source enclosed by the capacitive sensor;
• wherein when the light source is activated at a lowest brightness setting, the light source illuminates in a first color;
• and
• wherein when the light source is activated at a maximum brightness setting, the light source illuminates in a second color that is perceptively different than the first color, and
• wherein when the light source is in an activated state, each subsequent capacitive change in the associated capacitive sensor results in an incremental increase in brightness of the light source until a maximum brightness is reached;
• and wherein when the maximum brightness is reached, each subsequent capacitive change in the associated capacitive sensor results in an incremental decrease in brightness of the light source until the light source becomes deactivated.

A vehicle light bar comprising:

• capacitive sensors;
• light sources spaced along a carrier integrated with an outer surface of an interior vehicle fixture, the outer surface being directly exposed within an occupant compartment of the vehicle, and every other light source enclosed by one of the capacitive sensors and the remaining lights sources free from being enclosed by capacitive sensors;
• and
• a controller for detecting capacitive changes in a capacitive sensor and altering an illumination state of at least the light source enclosed by the capacitive sensor when a capacitive change is detected, and
• wherein when the light source is activated at a lowest brightness setting, the at least one light source illuminates in a first color, and wherein when the at least one light source is activated at a maximum brightness setting, the at least one light source illuminates in a second color that is perceptively different than the first color.