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Cree Celebrates 3rd Anniversary of Raleigh Becoming Cree's First LED City |
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Osram Sheds Light on the Novotel Hotel, Heathrow
SSLighting Design News Staff
January 28, 2010...Osram was approached to provide a bespoke solution to enhance the appearance of London's Novotel Hotel exterior. Osram previously supplied Halogen Energy Saver lamps for Novotel’s interior. 300W halogen lamps were previously used to light the exterior of the hotel. However, the Novotel Hotel wanted to find a solution that could increase visibility while achieving energy savings. High Power Flood RGB LED luminaires from Osram were installed on the exterior of the Novotel Hotel, London Heathrow. The luminaires offer complete color control which can create a different lighting atmosphere and mood depending on the occasion. Osram News Release SSL Design PageTwo members login for more. Guests can view membership details.
Helsinki Light Season 2009 Illuminated with Robe CitySource 96s
SSLighting Design News Staff
January 28, 2010...Over 100 of the new Robe CitySource 96 LED wash fixtures illuminated two high profile light works - at Parliament House and the Council of State and University buildings in Senate Square adjacent to the Cathedral during Helsinki's 2009 Light Season. The exterior light art for both sites was designed by Finnish lighting designer Mikki Kunttu and his company Moving Light. The second year of the event followed on from Kunttu's very successful lighting of Senate Square during the previous year.
Kunttu chose the prestigious and visible site in the city for the lighting event. The newly launched Robe CitySource 96 units were specified following site tests. After the tests Kunttu was convinced that Robe CitySource 96 units were the must-use lights. The fixtures were delivered to lighting rental company Moving Light via Robe's Finnish distributor Live Nation Finland two weeks before the installations went live.
With the luminaires at his disposal Kunttu was able to produce a spectacular color changing canvass on Parliament House. The luminaires allowed Kunttu to create a completely different look and feel for Senate square than he had been able to do using different fixtures last year. Robe Lighting News Release
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Proprietary MicroEmitter LED Technology in Providence Line of Fixtures
SSLighting Design News Staff
January 28, 2010...Architectural Area Lighting of La Mirada, California USA has unveiled the Providence® LED as part of its new Designer SSL Series of high performance area luminaires. The luminaires feature the company's exclusive MicroEmitter technology.
Providence is the company's family of transitional style luminaires. The company says that they combine modern lighting performance with aesthetics in a traditional form. The series, which now includes LED options, also includes area luminaires, plus a sconce and bollard.
The fixture's MicroEmitter technology and beam angle offer a uniform light with decreased glare. The technology is focused in the EmitterDeck, which consists of an array of replaceable. MicroEmitter modules that tightly and precisely control each diode. A secondary perimeter reflector within the housing redirects any stray light. According to AAL, the result is powerful, low glare, uniform illumination.
AAL says its exclusive MicroEmitter control and beam angle design limit the fixture's glare, while still allowing wide pole spacing. The result is maximum throw with broad, uniform illumination. The company says that the fixture's unique precision aiming system allows only half of the LEDs to be seen at any given time, resulting in 50 percent less glare when compared to other exposed, uncontrolled LED systems currently on the market.
The Providence LED fixture features: glare guard perimeter reflector; center reflector that distributes light evenly directly below the fixture; heat dissipating aluminum carrier plate; precisely aimed MicroEmitters; one-piece memory retentive silicone gasket; die cast housing for maximum durability; decorative struts that conceal wiring and tool-less access to the fixture's drivers.
Providence LED is available with a choice of four distribution patterns (Type 2, 3, 4 or 5) and two color temperatures to meet any job requirements: 60LED-WW (60 light emitting diode array – 70-73 total input watts – warm white [3500K] 120 through 277 volt) and 60LED-BW (60 light emitting diode array – 70-73 total input watts – bright white [5100K] 120 through 277 volt).
The luminaire's housing made of die cast aluminum disperses the heat away from the optical chamber. The internal reflector module is sealed from the outer housing with a one-piece, memory retentive, molded silicone gasket. The silicone gasket seals the tempered glass lens to the housing, and a stainless steel latch releases a hinged panel for easy access.
The fixture's finish reportedly consists of a five-stage pretreatment regimen with a polymer primer sealer, oven dry off, and top coated with a thermoset super TGIC polyester powder coat finish that comes in 13 standard colors. Company News Release
Lightmaster-Direct and Philips Dynalite Create Efficient LED and Fluorescent Lighting System for Scarlet Hotel
SSLighting Design News Staff
January 26, 2010...The Scarlet Hotel in Cornwall, UK, has upgraded its lighting system with the help of Lightmaster Direct, and Philips Dynalite. The design created by Philips Dynalite Dimension dealer, Lightmaster-Direct is a lighting scheme in harmony with the surroundings using just 3.36 watts per square meter. It reportedly provides guests with an unparalleled ambience and sense of opulence.
Lighting control and automation group, Philips Dynalite, drew on its expertise in the hospitality sector to supply an energy-saving lighting control system for the luxury Scarlet eco-hotel in Cornwall. Energy-saving fluorescent and LED luminaires, along with multipurpose sensors, are integral elements of the lighting design.
Lightmaster-Direct designed, engineered, and commissioned the innovative lighting system to meet stringent environmental, functional and architectural criteria. Many of the hotel’s light fittings were custom-designed and built by Lightmaster-Direct to meet these exacting standards. Philips Dynalite News Release,
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Lemnis Lighting and Zumtobel Group to Jointly Develop Residential and Professional LED-based Retrofit Lamps
SSLighting Design News Staff
January 26, 2010...Lemnis Lighting B.V. (Lemnis Lighting) has reportedly partnered with the Zumtobel Group, a professional lighting solution provider, to jointly develop a full-line portfolio LED-based lamps for residential and professional use.
The goal of the joint development effort of Lemnis Lighting and the Zumtobel Group is to create a portfolio of retrofit LED lighting products designed to replace conventional light bulbs and halogen spots. The companies expect a fast time to market. Additionally the companies hope to drive the dynamic development of the market for high quality and affordable energy-saving LED lamps. Lemnis Lighting, under its renowned Pharox brand name, says it will be able to quickly leverage its existing product portfolio and leading heat management solution that it recently developed with Advanced Thermal Solutions.
Under the terms of the agreement, the Zumtobel Group (through its subsidiary LEDON Lamp) will be able to enter the retrofit LED lighting market in Europe and generate economies of scale for the jointly developed portfolio. Lemnis says that this will allow both companies to provide its customers with technologically advanced and attractively priced products for uses around the house and in their business. The joint portfolio based on technology developed by Lemnis Lighting and Zumtobel Group companies together, consists of high quality LED lamps which emit a pleasant color of light.
Lemnis notes that the agreement further cements and enhances the long-lasting supply relationship between the two groups that has existed since the beginning of 2008 when Lemnis designating Zumtobel Group companies a preferred supplier.
Lemnis Lighting CEO Remko Gaastra commented, “Lemnis Lighting is very pleased to announce the development partnership with the Zumtobel Group as a key driver for its rapidly increasing product portfolio. It is a further step in our strategy to form strong partnerships with key players in the industry to enable fast technology and product development in order to provide our customers with high quality LED lamps as a genuine alternative to incandescents and CFLs. This partnership further enhances Lemnis Lighting’s leading position in LED lamps and we are proud that our long-lasting relationship with the Zumtobel Group is taking a further step forward.”
Lemnis Lighting News Release
Altman’s 4-Channel LED Entertainment Lights Deliver 281 Trillion Colors
SSLighting Design News Staff
January 26, 2010...Altman Lighting and Future Lighting Solutions have together developed a color changing fixture that can produce an unprecedented number of colors, over 281 trillion.
Future Lighting Solutions, a solution partner of Philips Lumileds Lighting, says that entertainment venues around the world will now be able to light their stages with over 281 trillion colors, including improved rendering of warm colors such as skin tones, thanks to two solid state lighting fixtures from Altman Lighting. The color changing fixtures feature light engines deveveloped with the help of Future Lighting that have what Future Lighting says is an unusual combination of Luxeon Rebel red, green, blue and amber LEDs.
Future assisted Altman in doubling the light output per fixture and reducing the number of luminaires required to achieve the desired wall wash or spot illumination. Future also helped design the LED board layouts to achieve the desired light distribution; specify the microcontrollers and power supplies; identify the best color bins for Altman’s purposes using Future’s internally developed software tools; and provide binning services and inventory management to ensure color consistency from fixture to fixture as well as reliable LED supply. Future Lighting Solutions News Release
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BetaLED Breaks 100+ Lumen/Watt Mark with 304 Series (Corrected)
SSLighting Design News Staff
January 26, 2010...BetaLED, a division of Ruud Lighting, Inc., has introduced the 304 Series luminaires, the company's first luminaire to achieve landmark performance of over 100 lumens per watt (LPW). An initial headline on this story incorrectly referenced the brand and manufacturer of the LEDs. Beta has confirmed that they achieved the new benchmark using Cree XP-series LEDs and boasts that the luminaires can save as much as 70 percent in energy use when compared to incumbent technologies.
“We are continuously improving our BetaLED luminaire systems,” said Christopher Ruud, president of Ruud Lighting. “By optimizing all the components in the system we’re able to provide a breakthrough that reaches new heights in energy-savings and light levels while demonstrating measurable proven performance.”
BetaLED says its 304 Series luminaires are scalable up to 12,000 lumens of delivered light output. The new luminaire series achieves what BetaLED says is superior efficiency, longevity, lumen maintenance and light control. Such performance benefits are especially welcomed in applications where lights are on 24/7.
The luminaires utilize a two-level dimming option to save even more energy.
304 Series luminaires are available with 100+ LPW for recessed canopy and soffit applications with petroleum symmetric optics. The luminaires can be installed in single- or double-skin open-air petroleum station canopies and building soffits such as banks and quick serve restaurants. Other optics with the new technology upgrades will be available soon for additional applications such as parking structures.
BetaLED News Release
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Commentary & Perspectives...
The Challenge of the 'Tween' LED Lights
Tom Griffiths - Publisher
February 2, 2010...Kermit the Frog's famous one-liner was, "It isn't easy being green..." inspires us to suggest that, "It isn't easy being tween" here in the solid state lighting world. By 'tween' we mean sitting in the nether-world of purpose-built lighting that is conveniently enabled by LED lighting. A big opportunity for the LED lighting world is to put light, or particular kinds of light, in places and form factors where it didn't work (easily or cost-effectively) before. Examples could include the world of color changing, as well as "flat" lights, glowing panels, multi-directional and semi-omnidirectional bulbs and luminaires.
Color changing, and even fixed color RGB sources, are very understandable in what they do and why they work well. If you can generate a 'native' light color, instead of filtering a wider spectrum source, you'd expect to get a lot more efficient solution. Present a source with a full or nearly full spectrum (think halogen or metal-halide) and then throw a blue colored lens in front of it, and I've been told that you're effectively disposing of 90% of the lumens that you started with. Feed a current to a blue LED, and you get 100% blue photons from start to finish, and at efficiencies that are as good or better than the full spectrum source was for generating all its light. It's a no-brainer to understand why Hollywood, theater and entertainment lighting leaped onto LED-based sources from early on. We all know red-green-blue generates what our eyes perceive as "white" since true white is simply a real healthy mix of the full spectrum. The funny thing is that an RGB solution is still a little "peaky", and while our eyes appreciate the rich color it returns, the instruments do not. That shows up as a penalty when you compare RGB-generated white-lumens to incandescent, or in the case of fluorescents, phosphor-generated lumens. This isn't about the "CRI" thing (an important ongoing discussion on its own), but about the "white energy" in my layman's terms.
A good example of this comes to mind in the projector applications. About a year and half ago, we reported on our subjective experience with a Samsung pocket-projector powered by one of Luminus Devices PhlatLight LEDs. In case you're not familiar with it, the Luminus chips are around half a business card sized monsters that contain big red, green and blue LED die that are about a quarter of an inch square. They scale up and down from there, and also have phosphor converted white solutions as well, but the RGB family made it's mark in the DLP television wave as the source that provided much richer colors, and a 50,000 to 100,000 hour life, instead of the optimistic 5000 that your standard metal-halide through a color wheel solution did. What my eyes saw from this 200-ish lumen RGB LED projector was overall brightness perception that came a good way towards matching our 2000 lumen conference projector. When it came to color quality, there was no contest at all. The movie on the LED projector didn't have that washed out color look, and it just 'felt' better. Mark McClear of Cree, in a talk at last summer's DOE meet in Chicago, posed the question, "Why can't the standards acknowledge what we see with our eyes?" Namely that LED light can provide a higher quality that currently isn't reflected in the numbers.
There are other interesting "tweens" that we're having to come to grips with now. Most recently, we've seen several new Edison-based A-lamp designs hit the market. When we think A-lamp, we picture our very familiar 60, 75 or 100w incandescents, with the visible addition of the heat sink there between the base and 'globe' in the designs of most LED challengers. With the virtual completion of the DOE-generated "Integral LED Lamp" Energy Star specification, there is finally a reference point on what a "replacement" for a number of standard incandescent Edison-based bulbs should do. The spec is pretty comprehensive, and places the emphasis in the right places. For PAR/R replacements, generally recognized as the easiest 'replacement bulb' challenge for LEDs to tackle, the standards are about smoothness in the distribution, the width of the beam angle, and the brightness (center beam candle power) on the target. The MR specs follow the same approach, and since you can measure those characteristics for the 'average' incandescent solution, the bar was set to meet the distribution and output, and do it at X number of lumens per watt or better. PAR/R/MR lamps need to beat 40-45 lm/watt (the lower number for the smaller lamps), decorative/candelabra base need to beat 40 lm/watt, and A-lamps need to beat 50 lm/watt for less 10w of LED power, or 55 lm/watt for those greater than 10w. (You can see PDF slide copies of the presentation that Marc Ledbetter of the DOE's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory gave at the January 2010 LA SSL Summit here).
Then there's the tweens. They have the same efficacy requirements as the A-lamps, but drop the requirement for a particular distribution which allows things like A-lamp shaped directional lamps, as a very specific 'for instance'. Why would you want one of those? For one big reason, to replace standard incandescent A-lamps, and CFLs in the zillions of pendants and cans that they have found themselves in. Would R's work as well? Seems like they would, but for whatever reason, whether for looks or cost, or because the fixture had an attractive way to leak some of the light out in other directions, omnidirectional lamps are in there, and mostly being asked to send light in one direction. What an ideal fit for LEDs, since they really do like to send light out directionally, and those sockets are being served by 10-40lm/watt omnidirectional solutions right now (I'm guessing the light loss is likely on the order of 25-50%, so consider the range to be 5-30lm/watt out of the fixture). Here's the part that's not easy when being tween... describing it.
Humans seem to have gotten really used to the whole "Watt" thing, and the Energy Star specs acknowledge that by setting guidelines for what you can claim as an equivalent to incandescents of different wattages. And they have clearly set them with the intention that a consumer is not disappointed by the amount of brightness that they observe from the equivalent. Challenge number one comes in the form of potentially more perceived brightness coming from the higher quality LED solutions. There's already anecdotal evidence of people needing to "step down" in what they thought would be an equivalent in order to get the same overall impression of light and color. Challenge number two comes when you're a tween, such as the A-lamp form factor that is tailored to downlights. Or similarly, the one that will result from "a bulb really optimized for use in a table lamp" as Marc Ledbetter put it. (That would be one which cast the majority of its light downward towards the floor or book reader, with correct doses of side lighting to illuminate the shade and up lighting to give a nice ambiance to the room... in other words, "smart design"). But how do you describe the equivalence. If you say, "equivalent to a 75w incandescent in downlight applications" you an expect a knock at the door from the Energy Star police (not yet elevated to czar status) because you don't have a PAR/R or A-omnidirectional type of distribution. "Don't make the comparisons if you're 'other'," says the spec. Oh my. Do you not worry about being Energy Star, or not make the comparison? Tough choice. As an industry, let's keep giving it deep thought for ways to both draw the comparisons, as well as educate the coming masses that it's not about the watts anymore. Lumens and efficacy... lumens and efficacy... lumens and efficacy. Once we get that, hopefully we'll be ready to re-flash their programming to cover the whole "perceived brightness" thing. (Sigh).
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