Wednesday, 31 August 2016
LEDs, Not Solar, Have Transformed Their Industry
For all of the talk about the disruptive nature of wind and solar on the utility sector, there is another clean energy technology that has already quietly rocked its own industry: light-emitting diodes. Goldman Sachs recently released 60 charts that show the transformation that’s occurring in the low-carbon economy. The financial institution calls LEDs one of the fastest technology shifts in human history. While wind and solar are challenging the traditional electric generation sector, they have not upended it yet the way LEDs have overtaken the lighting industry. By 2020, LED will make up 69 percent of sales and close to 100 percent by 2025, up from nearly nothing in 2010.
Get the real facts about LED bulbs
Light-emitting diode (LED) light bulbs have transformed home lighting since coming on the market. Despite proven benefits that far outweigh older lighting options, like incandescent and compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs, many people remain hesitant to make the switch. It’s time to finally dispel some common LED myths and get the real facts about these light bulbs so you can choose the best lighting for your home. Fact: LED light bulbs are now only a few dollars more than ordinary light bulbs; significant research and development from manufacturers like Philips Lighting has made LED light bulbs more affordable.
Tuesday, 30 August 2016
Venture Lighting Europe Illuminates Costco Car Park
Venture Lighting Europe has supplied a custom retrofit gear tray to help a Costco store in Birmingham England reduce its energy consumption. The lighting also helped the store improve the lighting of its underground car park. The company worked with lighting maintenance contractors Solent Lighting to develop a 50W LED retrofit gear tray that can replace 300 150W Metal Halide lamps using the existing fittings. The LED lights consume about 70% less electricity than the lamps that they replace.
Philips Hue announces a $40 motion sensor
Philips Hue is expanding its line up of smart light devices with a motion sensor. This one is pretty straightforward — when you walk in front of the sensor, your Hue lights will turn on. What’s different from other motion sensors? It works on battery, so you can put it anywhere around your home, such as the corner of a hallway, a bathroom or a garage. Philips says the device is supposed to work for two to three years with two AAA batteries. It costs $39.95.
Monday, 29 August 2016
Cree recalls LED T8 Lamps due to burn Hazard
Cree recalls LED T8 Lamps due to the recalled lamps can overheat and melt, posing a burn hazard. The recall involves Cree LED T8 Replacement Lamps, including lamps that were provided as free replacements for a previous recall in June 2015 and new lamps sold since the recall. These lamps are used indoors to replace traditional two-pin T8 fluorescent tubes. The white lamps have a cylindrical shape and measure 48 inches long. “Cree,” “BT848 Series Lamp,” the product number and a four-digit date code are printed on the lamp or on a white label affixed to the lamp.
RGB LEDs: How to Master Gamma and Hue for Perfect Brightness
You would think that there’s nothing to know about RGB LEDs: just buy a (strip of) WS2812s with integrated 24-bit RGB drivers and start shuffling in your data. If you just want to make some shinies, and you don’t care about any sort of accurate color reproduction or consistent brightness, you’re all set.
But if you want to display video, encode data in colors, or just make some pretty art, you might want to think a little bit harder about those RGB values that you’re pushing down the wires. Any LED responds (almost) linearly to pulse-width modulation (PWM), putting out twice as much light when it’s on for twice as long, but the human eye is dramatically nonlinear. You might already know this from the one-LED case, but are you doing it right when you combine red, green, and blue?
But if you want to display video, encode data in colors, or just make some pretty art, you might want to think a little bit harder about those RGB values that you’re pushing down the wires. Any LED responds (almost) linearly to pulse-width modulation (PWM), putting out twice as much light when it’s on for twice as long, but the human eye is dramatically nonlinear. You might already know this from the one-LED case, but are you doing it right when you combine red, green, and blue?
Friday, 26 August 2016
Fear of the light: why we need darkness
Due to pervasive light pollution – glare from excessive, misaimed and unshielded night lighting – 80% of Europe and North America no longer experiences real darkness. For anyone living near a major metropolis, a satellite image of the Milky Way seems abstract: we understand it to be a document of something true, but our understanding is purely theoretical. In 1994, after a predawn earthquake cut power to most of Los Angeles, the Griffith Observatory received phone calls from spooked residents asking about “the strange sky”. What those callers were seeing were stars.
Infrared LED revenue growing faster than overall IR components
Increased adoption of biometrics security in mobile phones, close-circuit television and other consumer applications spurred revenue growth in the global market for infrared LEDs from $201.5m in 2014 to $241.4m in 2015, according to Jamie Fox, principal analyst, LEDs and Lighting, at IHS Markit. While infrared LEDs grew 19.8% year-on-year in 2015, the overall infrared components market fell by 9%. Osram, Everlight and Vishay were the leading suppliers.
Thursday, 25 August 2016
City moves ahead with plan to convert streetlights to LED
Nine months ago, the city abruptly tabled its plan to convert Oahu's street lights to more environmentally-friendly LEDs because of contract issues. Now, it's moving forward with the project to replace some 53,500 sodium lights. Robert Kroning, director of the city Department of Design and Construction, said he thinks residents will notice a significant improvement when LEDs light up the night.
LEDs to replace 10 sodium vapor streetlights at Brentwood Park
Ten new streetlights will shine down on Brentwood Park this year. The park is the latest area of the borough that leaders selected to replace 10 consecutive sodium vapor streetlights with LED lights through a Duquesne Light replacement program. The lights will be upgraded along Park Drive at the entrance to Brentwood Park.
Wednesday, 24 August 2016
Why You Can't Buy a Pixar 'Luxo Jr.' Lamp From Disney
Throughout the majority of its history since Luxo Jr., Pixar has had a good relationship with Luxo — the Norwegian company whose award-winning product inspired the film. For the most part, Luxo was happy to let Pixar use their iconic lamp’s likeness as an integral part of the studio’s aesthetic identity. But that nearly changed in 2009 when Pixar began packaging Up Blu-rays with its own Luxo Jr. lamps. Naturally, Luxo was not pleased, and it filed a lawsuit against Disney.
Measurement basics in LED thermal management
A successful LED design needs a balance of form and function to be a desirable luminaire with the right lumen output. Sounds simple enough, but these two requirements are often in conflict. When form trumps function, LEDs that are usually mounted onto a
metal-clad PCB (MCPCB) as a module are all too often crammed together,
creating a module with high-power density. If the device has not been
designed to remove the heat from the LEDs effectively, there is a real
risk of the LED overheating. As with any semiconductor, when LEDs
overheat efficiency is reduced, light quality deteriorates, lifespan
shortens and ultimately the LED can catastrophically fail.
Tuesday, 23 August 2016
Phoseon Technology Exhibits Portfolio of LED Curing Solutions at Touch Taiwan
Phoseon Technology will display market leading LED curing products designed for electronics manufacturing at the upcoming Touch Taiwan Exhibition. LED curing offers many benefits for bonding and coating applications for manufacturing touch screens, mobile phones, micro speakers, disk drives and other electronics.
LED curing technology for touch panel display manufacturing is an emerging application as it provides consistent stable output, no 'hot' spots, and low heat. Asia-Pacific, in particular, has emerged as the largest and the fastest growing regional market for touch panel manufacturing.
Touch Taiwan, International Smart Display & Touch Panel Exhibition takes place at the Taipei World Trade Center starting on 24 August and ending on 26 August, 2016. Touch Taiwan will cover subjects like Touch Panel, Optical Film, Technology and Electronics.
LED curing technology for touch panel display manufacturing is an emerging application as it provides consistent stable output, no 'hot' spots, and low heat. Asia-Pacific, in particular, has emerged as the largest and the fastest growing regional market for touch panel manufacturing.
Touch Taiwan, International Smart Display & Touch Panel Exhibition takes place at the Taipei World Trade Center starting on 24 August and ending on 26 August, 2016. Touch Taiwan will cover subjects like Touch Panel, Optical Film, Technology and Electronics.
Monday, 22 August 2016
Top LED suppliers as seen by IHS Markit
Market research firm IHS Markit has released its annual 2015 revenue-share ranking of the top LED suppliers in backlighting, automotive, lighting and other applications. According to the 2016 edition of the IHS Markit Packaged LED Report , Nichia led in both lighting and mobile applications for 2015, with 12.9 percent share of the total packaged LED market, followed by Osram and Lumileds with a combined share of 14.7 percent.
Ledvance adds Alexa voice controls for Lightify smart LEDs
Alexa, Amazon's virtual, voice-powered assistant, is a certified hit, and the list of gadgets she can control with spoken commands keeps on growing. Today, it's Ledvance (known until recently as Osram Sylvania) that's joining the mix, with new Alexa controls for Lightify smart LEDs. The controls are the same as you'll get with other Alexa-compatible smart lights, which include bulbs from Lifx and Philips Hue. Sync your Lightify lights up with Amazon in the Alexa app, and you'll be able to dim them or turn them
Friday, 19 August 2016
ANSI Revises American National Standard for Electric Lamp Bases.
The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) announced that ANSI Accredited Standards Committee C81 revised ANSI C81.61-2016 American National Standard for Electric Lamp Bases—Specifications for Bases (Caps) for Electric Lamps. This standard sets forth the specifications for bases (caps) used on electric lamps. This revision includes specifications for the G8 base.
NEMA’s Lighting Systems Division, as secretariat of ANSI’s ASC C81 for Bases, Lampholders and Gauges, is looking for industry experts in the User, General Interest, and Producer categories to participate in standards development activities. Contact NEMA at nemalighting@nema.org if interested.
NEMA’s Lighting Systems Division, as secretariat of ANSI’s ASC C81 for Bases, Lampholders and Gauges, is looking for industry experts in the User, General Interest, and Producer categories to participate in standards development activities. Contact NEMA at nemalighting@nema.org if interested.
Nanocrystals speed up Wi-Fi-emitting LEDs
Communication technologies like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi operate on invisible radio waves, but transmitting data on wavelengths we can see might turn out to be more efficient and secure. Researchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have developed a nanocrystal that helps boost data speeds transmitted through a visible light LED up to 2 Gbps – while pleasantly lighting the room.
Thursday, 18 August 2016
LEDs are Good. Smart Lights are Better
The obvious benefit of smart lighting is that they optimize energy efficiency compared to isolated LEDs by remotely and automatically providing on/off, brightness and other basic functions. The second level of benefit is a bit more subtle. Lighting is ubiquitous and offers the best bird’s eye view of what is happening in a facility. For instance, data gathered from a smart lighting system outfitted with the proper software can determine that a conference room is underutilized and that space can be put to better use. An IoT sensor can track the flow of people through a building to work out more efficient layouts.
LED Light Bulb limits interference with garage door openers
By shielding transmission of energy waves from radio frequency that goes between remote and garage door opener, LED Light Bulb allows user to open garage door without reduced remote range issues. Bulb is shatter- and vibration-resistant and can withstand 5G of shaking force. In addition, bulb can withstand temperatures down to -22°F and is damp location rated. Though it produces 800 lm, which is equivalent to 60 W incandescent bulb, LED Light Bulb uses only 10 W of power.
Wednesday, 17 August 2016
Meet The Lightbulb Lady Of Portland
Chances are you’ve seen her store, even if you’ve never been inside. With its wacky window displays and abundance of light bulbs, Sunlan Lighting has been a fixture on Portland’s N Mississippi Avenue for almost three decades. Tourists come from as far as Tokyo to gaze upon its electric glow, and its owner, Kay “The Lightbulb Lady” Newell is happy to greet them. Well, sort of. Newell — along with her two sons — sells hundreds of specialty light bulbs to the city of Portland and beyond.
LEDs Spearhead Drive Toward Intelligent Headlamps
Traditionally, the most common light source for headlamps has been the halogen filament lamp. Its key advantage is its low cost, and it is considered to represent a technically robust solution. The fact that it is replaceable makes up for the disadvantage of a limited service life. It does, however, have relatively high energy consumption and low efficiency at an average of 26 lumens per watt (L/W); and because of the light being radiated in all directions, halogen filament lamps offer poorer illumination performance overall compared to the alternatives.
Tuesday, 16 August 2016
Sengled Pulse Solo LED Lightbulb and Bluetooth Speaker
It’s a (pun intended) bright idea: cram a small-profile Bluetooth speaker into a lightbulb and make them both controllable from your phone. It’s a little bit of the Internet of Things, with a side of convenience. The Pulse Solo from Sengled executes that simple idea. It’s a little bit bigger, and rather heavier than a normal bulb, but not far off from the compact fluorescents we’re all just getting around to getting rid of. It screws into any standard E26 lamp, and turns on when you turn on the power
Not Your Grandma’s Old Lamp
From afar, the Silhouette lamp might look like your run-of-the-mill floor lamp… but take a closer look and you’ll see it’s anything but average! It earns its name from the visual illusion of a shade created by its frame. A near flat LED is cleverly placed where light would shine through a normal shade to further enhance the illusion. Above the light source, a flat surface makes a perfect place for plants, decor other other objects of display! Near the base, a cleverly designed cable management system helps organize and keep excess cord out of the way.
Monday, 15 August 2016
Aura Light linear LED luminaire provides tunable white lighting
Aura Light’s new Lezzon linear LED luminaire is one of the latest products to join the market offering a stylish twist to the classic favourite linear luminaire.
Lezzon forms a part of Aura Light’s architectural range of luminaires that offer a modern lighting solution for offices, schools, universities and other public spaces. The luminaire offers a more stylish and unusual outline compared to a traditional linear luminaire and is wire suspended for an exciting, contemporary addition to any room.
Lezzon forms a part of Aura Light’s architectural range of luminaires that offer a modern lighting solution for offices, schools, universities and other public spaces. The luminaire offers a more stylish and unusual outline compared to a traditional linear luminaire and is wire suspended for an exciting, contemporary addition to any room.
The linear LED luminaire now also incorporates Aura Light’s Tunable White technology to allow users to adjust the colour temperature to promote natural light levels which is known to improve productivity and concentration levels, a particular benefit to working and educational environments.
Designed and manufactured in Sweden, Lezzon is the work of lighting designer Joachim Engstrand based on the advanced ‘Z-core’ light engine platform which is used in a number of Aura Light’s latest luminaires. Z-core based luminaires offer the highest efficiency rates due to their exceptional thermal management properties.
Designed and manufactured in Sweden, Lezzon is the work of lighting designer Joachim Engstrand based on the advanced ‘Z-core’ light engine platform which is used in a number of Aura Light’s latest luminaires. Z-core based luminaires offer the highest efficiency rates due to their exceptional thermal management properties.
St. Paul reviewing LED streetlights after complaints
The city of St. Paul is reviewing its plans to transition city street lights to LEDs after receiving complaints that they're too bright and harsh. The city started putting in the LED lights in downtown St. Paul about 5 years ago. Now, crews are updating the lights in the Lexington-Hamline and Como-Chatsworth neighborhoods.
Friday, 12 August 2016
Fujian achieves breakthrough in LED technology
Fujian province has seen the technological breakthrough of LED technologies for transparentfluorescent ceramic material that allows dense LED lights to concentrate on a small surface. The technology has been co-developed by Research on the Structure of Matter (FJIRSM) andFujian Zhongke Xinyuan Optoelectronics Technology Co Ltd. “With previous technologies, Chinese LED manufacturers were not able to produce largepower LED,” said Hong Moachun, academician at FJIRSM, “because when the light runs formore than 200 watts, the LED lights will produce too much heat on a small surface that coulddamage the light. Therefore, these LED lights are used only for ordinary lighting. ”
Casio launches three LampFree projectors
Casio today introduced three new models to its EcoLite series of LampFree projectors. The new projectors, XJ-V2, XJ-V100W and XJ-V110W, come with Casio's fifth-generation laser and LED hybrid light source technology that claims to reduce power consumption up to 50% and feature a dust-resistance design. The Laser & LED Hybrid Light Source technology combines a laser, fluorescent element and LEDs to generate high brightness with minimal brightness degradation and continuous operation. It also provides a 30% increase in LED light output, thus offering a greater increase in colour spectrum when compared to a mercury lamp, according to Casio.
Thursday, 11 August 2016
Hackaday Prize Entry: Helping Millions See Clearly
Slit lamps are prohibitively expensive in the third world areas of India where they are most needed. An invention that’s been around for over a hundred years, the slit lamp is a simple-in-concept way to see and diagnose a large array of ocular issues. Since they are relatively old by technological standards, the principles behind them have become more and more understood as time has gone on. While a nice lab version with a corneal microscope is certainly better, innovations in manufacturing have brought the theoretical minimum cost of the device way down, or at least that’s what the designer hopes.
Inland cities glow with LED streetlights
The look of American streets at night is changing. Cities around the country are replacing the fuzzy yellow glow of traditional streetlights with brighter, more energy-efficient LED fixtures. Some Inland cities are part of the trend. Riverside has been testing LED streetlights on several major thoroughfares since late 2014 and plans a citywide changeover in the next several years.
Wednesday, 10 August 2016
Lighting Maintenance: LED Lighting Retrofits
We’ve heard it for years: LEDs may be more expensive initially, but when it comes to calculating all areas of savings (operating costs, energy cost, lamp replacement and labor expenses, etc.), these ultra-efficient lamps are well worth the investment. They virtually eliminate replacement time and costs, decrease heat emittance (which reduces facility cooling loads), and lessen the risk of electrical shock during lighting replacement. But LEDs are only worth the investment if they hold true to their performance promises. A lamp that boasts an energy efficiency increase of up to 90% compared to other lighting options isn’t beneficial if it doesn’t function.
Tuesday, 9 August 2016
The Genie Company Reinvents the Light Bulb with New LED Bulb for Garage Door Openers
The Genie Company announces a unique innovation that brings an important new twist to a common Product with its Genie LED light bulb, designed with features specifically for garage door openers.
LED (light-emitting diode) and CFL (compact fluorescent lamp) bulbs, with their low energy use, have become more commonly used as incandescent light bulbs are phased out to improve energy efficiency.
However, one side effect of LED bulbs is that they can potentially limit the range of garage door opener remote controls used for almost any brand of garage door opener.
The Genie Company announces a unique innovation that brings an important new twist to a common Product with its Genie LED light bulb, designed with features specifically for garage door openers.
LED (light-emitting diode) and CFL (compact fluorescent lamp) bulbs, with their low energy use, have become more commonly used as incandescent light bulbs are phased out to improve energy efficiency.
However, one side effect of LED bulbs is that they can potentially limit the range of garage door opener remote controls used for almost any brand of garage door opener.
Another problem is that a cold or damp garage can weaken the performance and life of common LED light bulbs. However, the Genie LED light bulb comes through strong as testing shows it to perform at up to -30° C (-22° F) while also achieving damp location rating. Therefore, neither condition will lessen the performance of Genie's LED bulb when a homeowner needs it most.
Additionally, the Genie LED bulb is shatter and vibration resistant to offset normal opener shaking, and provides optimal lighting for a low annual cost. While it boasts 800 lumens of brightness, equivalent to a 60 watt incandescent bulb, it uses only 10 watts of power. Depending on local utility rates, studies show the annual cost can be as little as $1.07 per year with a lifespan of about 25,000 hours under normal use.
Getting Started with the Philips Hue Smart Light Bulbs
I’ve long been a skeptic of home automation. It seemed like a gimmick that would cause more problems than it would solve. Bringing the bugs and security exploits of computers to my door locks, lights, and thermostat wasn’t an enticing prospect.However, with Apple’s impending iOS and tvOS releases, both of which greatly enhance home automation, I decided that I couldn’t ignore the field any longer. The obvious choice for my first step was a set of Philips’s highly regarded Hue light bulbs. They’re useful, fun, and in the worst-case scenario, they will still work as regular LED bulbs.
Monday, 8 August 2016
Your Smart Bulbs Can Be Hacked
Hackers can take full control of a popular model of internet-connected light bulb from as far away as 400 yards, and mess with it by turning it off and on or even bricking it. In a best-case scenario, this is a great way to prank your Internet of Things-loving friends; in a worst case scenario, hackers could theoretically create a worm that spreads through nearby light bulbs and blacks out entire buildings or even neighborhoods.
Soraa LEDs Illuminate Award-Winning Couture at Heritage Museums & Gardens
Soraa announced that its LED lamps illuminate some of the most recognized cinematic clothing on display at the Heritage Museums & Gardens in Sandwich, Massachusetts.
Visitors to Heritage Museums & Gardens’ CUT! Costume and the Cinema exhibit have the rare opportunity to see more than 40 original movie costumes, props and memorabilia up close. The exhibit, on display through October 2016, includes five centuries of fashion and style as interpreted by award-winning costume designers and worn by stars including Scarlett Johansson, Kate Winslet, Keira Knightley and Maggie Smith.
The museum staff partnered with lighting designer Nancy Goldstein from Light Positive to install approximately 100 MR16 lamps. Soraa’s GaN on GaNTM LED with Violet-Emission 3-Phosphor (VP₃) LED technology renders the widest range of colors in the objects that we see, without ultraviolet (UV) or infrared (IR) radiation that can fade or harm the artifacts.
Visitors to Heritage Museums & Gardens’ CUT! Costume and the Cinema exhibit have the rare opportunity to see more than 40 original movie costumes, props and memorabilia up close. The exhibit, on display through October 2016, includes five centuries of fashion and style as interpreted by award-winning costume designers and worn by stars including Scarlett Johansson, Kate Winslet, Keira Knightley and Maggie Smith.
The museum staff partnered with lighting designer Nancy Goldstein from Light Positive to install approximately 100 MR16 lamps. Soraa’s GaN on GaNTM LED with Violet-Emission 3-Phosphor (VP₃) LED technology renders the widest range of colors in the objects that we see, without ultraviolet (UV) or infrared (IR) radiation that can fade or harm the artifacts.
Friday, 5 August 2016
New Cree MHB-B LED Lowers System Costs for High Performance Lighting Applications
Cree, Inc. (CREE) introduces the XLamp MHB-B LED, a new high-power LED that enables a more effective way to deliver lower system costs for high lumen, high efficiency applications designed to meet the new DesignLights Consortium (DLC) 4.0 Premium requirements. Leveraging key elements of Cree’s SC5 Technology Platform, the ceramic MHB-B LEDs combine high light output, high efficacy and high reliability to enable high lumen LED designs that are not possible with mid-power LEDs. The MHB-B LED delivers up to 931 lumens at 85°C and 13 percent higher LPW than the MHB-A LED in the same 5mm x 5mm package, allowing lighting manufacturers to quickly increase performance for existing MHB designs without any additional investment.
The MHB-B LED enables designs that use significantly lighter and smaller heat sinks than designs based on mid-power LEDs. For example, a high-bay reference design built with MHB-B LEDs delivers 24,000 lumens and more than 130 LPW system efficacy at 44 percent less weight and 36 percent smaller diameter than comparable high bays based on mid-power LEDs. Built on Cree’s industry-leading high-power ceramic technology, the MHB-B LEDs have LM-80 data available immediately, delivering reported L90 lifetime projections of 60,000 hours at 105°C. The reference design demonstrates a cost-effective way to meet all of the DLC 4.0 Premium requirements for High Bay luminaires.
The MHB-B LED enables designs that use significantly lighter and smaller heat sinks than designs based on mid-power LEDs. For example, a high-bay reference design built with MHB-B LEDs delivers 24,000 lumens and more than 130 LPW system efficacy at 44 percent less weight and 36 percent smaller diameter than comparable high bays based on mid-power LEDs. Built on Cree’s industry-leading high-power ceramic technology, the MHB-B LEDs have LM-80 data available immediately, delivering reported L90 lifetime projections of 60,000 hours at 105°C. The reference design demonstrates a cost-effective way to meet all of the DLC 4.0 Premium requirements for High Bay luminaires.
LEDs will inherit the world
LEDs are already the brightest light source in the universe—upscaling the previous champ, the arc-lamp. By 2076 they will have not only replaced every other light source, but will also have replaced all other short-range communications (such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth) with light-pulse encoded signals coming out of every SSL (solid-state light), from freeway lamps to automobile head- and tail-lights, to commercial and home lighting systems.
Thursday, 4 August 2016
How sole-source LEDs impact growth of Brassica microgreens
A study published in the May 2016 issue of HortScience offers important recommendations for lighting practices in microgreen production systems. The study was designed to investigate the effects of sole-source (SS)
light-emitting diodes (LEDs) of different light qualities and
intensities on growth, morphology, and nutrient content of the Brassica
microgreens. Corresponding author Roberto Lopez explained that LEDs
offer many advantages over conventional light sources, including the
ability to select light qualities and intensities that have beneficial
effects on plants.
Make way for brighter, more efficient green LEDs
A team of researchers has come up with a new method for making brighter and more efficient green light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Using an industry-standard semiconductor growth technique, researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign created gallium nitride (GaN) cubic crystals grown on a silicon substrate that are capable of producing powerful green light for advanced solid-state lighting. "This work is very revolutionary as it paves the way for novel green wavelength emitters that can target advanced solid-state lighting on a scalable CMOS-silicon platform by exploiting the new material, cubic gallium nitride," said researcher Can Bayram.
Wednesday, 3 August 2016
Goa catch down; LEDs blamed by fishermen
A shortfall in marine fish catch in the Indian state of Goa has been reported over the last year, reports the Times of India. The Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute has now been asked to study the impact of LED lights on marine resources, which Goa's traditional fishermen claim have been negatively impacting production. The state has already issued an order banning the use of LEDs for fishing.
Louis Poulsen releases mini version of 1971 Panthella lamp
Danish lighting manufacturer Louis Poulsen is producing a new version of the iconic Panthella lamp by Verner Panton that was originally developed in 1971 (+ slideshow). Panthella Mini has a diameter of 250 millimetres as opposed to the standard 400-millimetre table lamp, and is available with a metal shade as in Panton's original design.
New method for making green LEDs enhances their efficiency and brightness
Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign have developed a new method for making brighter and more efficient green light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Using an industry-standard semiconductor growth technique, they have created gallium nitride (GaN) cubic crystals grown on a silicon substrate that are capable of producing powerful green light for advanced solid-state lighting.
Tuesday, 2 August 2016
Google’s Project Ara founder creates a smart lamp to teach you better habits
A new company has developed a lamp that it believes contains the keys to enabling positive habits within ourselves. Called Peak, this device is now available through a Kickstarter campaign and is the brainchild of Dan Makoski, the founder of Google’s Project Ara initiative, and David Khavari, a former associate at Andreessen Horowitz.
West Mahanoy to upgrade street lighting to LEDs
The West Mahanoy Township supervisors will enter into an agreement with PPL Electric Utilities Inc. for the replacement of existing street lights with energy-efficient LED lighting. The supervisors voted at the July 19 meeting to approve the lighting conversion, following other local municipalities who have the new lights through the PPL program. PPL will replace any bulbs more than 10 years old for free. PPL has converted the street lighting in Ringtown and Girardville, and Mahanoy Township approved its participation in the program in March.
Monday, 1 August 2016
BioStar's interior LED lighting projects at Tutera Group and U.S. Toy earn US Department of Energy awards
Tutera Group and U.S. Toy were recently honored with Interior Lighting Campaign awards presented by the Department of Energy for exemplary energy efficient lighting upgrades completed by BioStar Lighting. The ILC is a Better Buildings Challenge program with a goal of replacing 1 million standard interior troffer lights with energy efficient LED lights, which would save the equivalent of the electricity consumed by 5500 US homes. The awards, which were presented at the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) 2016 International Conference in Washington DC, recognize the companies’ commitment to sustainability.
Osram Licht to Sell Light Bulb and LED-Lamp Business
Germany’s Osram Licht AG has agreed to sell its light-bulb and LED-lamp business to Chinese lighting company MLS Co. and two co-investors for more than €400 million ($439.8 million). The move helps the former unit of engineering giant Siemens AG to focus on the automotive industry and lighting solutions for buildings and cities. Some bankers speculated it could also make Osram a more attractive takeover target.