Three:An advantage of high-power LEDs is that they are cool to the touch.
False, high-power LEDs do emit heat. This heat emanating from the solid-state core cannot escape in the form of infrared energy and requires thermal management for removal. The best type of thermal management for a LED system will vary depending on the application. A 1-W LED system may be able to remove heat by employing printed-circuit boards (PCBs) with extra copper while larger high-power systems require heatsinking technology.
The question then becomes, with the higher cost of thermal management, how a high-power LED will remain a viable alternative to some of the often cheaper, non-LED technologies. Thermally managed LEDs, though, offer longevity like no other products in the market.
Also, they are almost impervious to vibration and shock. They operate across extremely wide temperature ranges and offer output and color tuning that is unavailable in other standard lighting options. And, they have an inherent life span that easily exceeds current non-LED technology. All these factors create cost savings that significantly mitigate the investment in thermal management.
Four:Top LED providers now provide customized high-power LED solutions.
True. Not only has high-power LED technology evolved in recent years, the services offered by LED providers have expanded as well. What really sets a quality LED provider apart isn’t just the quality of its product but also the depth of its services.
A good LED provider can provide expert insights on how to implement LED technology into larger lighting systems. A quality supplier also should have the optical, thermal, and electrical system knowledge to identify the best possible LED solution for a specific application.
One way to gauge the quality of technical support is to pay close attention to initial interaction with a supplier. A good supplier should ask a broad range of questions about the system you are creating to make sure it is identifying technologies that closely match your specific needs.
The supplier will likely ask you about design challenges and about environmental and performance prerequisites. It will not only be able to tell you which LED best suits your needs, it will also provide information on how to integrate this technology with other system components like lenses, PCBs, wire harness, and panel-mounting technologies in plug-and-play modules.
Five: High-power LEDs are mainly for general-lighting applications.
False. With general lighting accounting for roughly 20% of electrical costs in the U.S., it is not surprising that much of the attention circling around high-power LEDs focuses on general-lighting applications. Cities stand to save as much as hundreds of thousands of dollars per year in lower energy, maintenance, and replacement costs by switching to high-power LED technology for applications like traffic signals, street lights, and parking structure lighting.
Yet new applications for high-power LED technology are emerging all the time, and many are quickly gaining in popularity. Some of the more popular include automotive (turn signal, headlight, dashboard backlighting, map lights, overhead lighting, running lights, license plate illumination, and accent lighting for decoration), appliances, backlighting, communications equipment, medical devices, security lighting, signage, and military designs.
LOOKING FORWARD
In the years ahead, some of the most exciting high-power LED applications will be applications that combine with sensor applications—for example, lighting that switches on as you enter your driveway or approach a cooler at a grocery store.
Infrared LED technology is also a quickly expanding field. It includes innovative applications such as nighttime urban combat illumination, long-range emitters and detectors operating beyond 2500 ft., and ultra-high-speed agricultural sorting equipment. In the future, expect to see highpowered IR LEDs driving communications between appliances and between your vehicle and home, as well as changing the way we use night vision systems.
BRIAN COATES is the manager of highpower technology at Lumex and holds an EE degree from Northern Illinois University.