Beijing Games Become Worldwide LED Showcase
Source/Type: Solid State Lighting Design LED Lighting News - Reported News

Author: SSLDesign News Staff

August 14, 2008... The world is looking on as the Beijing Olympics continue. LED technology is extremely prominent in the buildings of the games. Cree reports that two of the most notable installations include its lighting. The National Stadium known as the “Bird’s Nest” and the “Water Cube” (National Aquatic Center) present visually stunning LED lighting. Cree points out that the buildings are a symbol of the “greening” of the global lighting market. A Chinese company called PG Lighting also supplied LEDs for some of the installations and ceremonies at the games, and another American company, PolyBrite International supplied its Red Borealis Modular Lighting systems for the entrance signs at the Bird's Nest. Osram Opto Semiconductors and Tong Fang Co. Ltd. lit a beautiful water fountain in Olympic Park in Beijing.

The LED lighting installations are a sign of the coming revolution in lighting that will replace many of the old products and ideas about lighting that began with the incandescent bulb over 100 years ago. It will also give lighting less of an environmental impact, because of using less electricity than conventional lighting.

Cree says that about 496,000 of its XLamp LEDs in red, green and blue illuminate the exterior of the Water Cube, where Olympian Michael Phelps set the record for the most Gold medals won. The Water Cube is made of 3,000 “bubbles,” each with the ability to display millions of different colors. The building displays a different computer controlled color pattern each evening. It is programmed to display different colored designs, including ones inspired by themes including “Blooming Flowers,”” Rainy Day” and “Night at the Disco.”

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