Editorial:
Impressions from Senior Technical Editor, Alan Thompson About Intertech/PIRA's LED Conference
... I recently attended the Intertech/PIRA LEDs 2006 Conference, which was held in San Diego, California October 16-18th. Rather than giving a run down of all the speakers and their presentations, I thought I would highlight a few topics that caught my interest and pose some questions raised by them.... Read the editorial...
(if it resists... go here)
The
2010 Summit Series is ready to succeed... are you?
After the successful 2008 launch and 2009 continuation of the
Solid State Lighting Design Summit in
New Jersey, the feedback was consistent: Just what we needed, do it again soon.
The Summit brings together lighting decisin makers with industry thought leaders,
pioneers, and innovators from the across the solid state lighting eco-system.
Read the 2009 conference report...
Following
or changes in 2009, 2010 will continue to be all about quality, quality, quality.Showcase participants and sponsors are vetted to separate
the wheat from the chaff (have your IES LM-79 test reports ready!).
With revised dates for LA, the 2010 Summit has expanded to 3 venues, including
LA/Long Beach lined up for January, Mar/April for Taiwan and October for NY/NJ.
Look into the series information at www.SSLsummit.com
for the details. Sponsorships are available for the full series or just the US
events.
Dominant Semiconductors' LEDs Chosen for Shell Gas Stations Scott McMahan
October 23, 2006...Shell gas stations are among a growing number of gas stations that have chosen
to use LED technology for general lighting of their canopies. Dominant Semiconductors
of Malaysia reports that it has been chosen by Shell Corporation to provide
LED lighting for the company’s logo panels and canopies.
Bottom-line minded businesses are more likely to be among the early adopters
of LED technology for general lighting. Gas stations provide a perfect opportunity
for LED technology to shine. Dominant says that their power LEDs have been integrated
into the company’s logo panel and canopy to enhance the petrol station
lighting system. Although not completely replacing other light sources, Shell
gas stations have made a good start with their LED adoption.
LIGHTimes SecondPage members login for more. Guests can view membership details.
October 23, 2006...Luminus Devices has introduced its new Phlatlight PT120 LED light source for
Texas Instruments’ 1080p DLP technology. Luminus reported that
its microdisplay projection television customers are sampling its PhlatLight
PT 120 chipset. According to the company, the red, blue, and green LEDs in the
PT120 chipset combine to produce more than 1500 lumens of white light under
normal operating conditions. The company says that this is enough brightness
to illuminate rear projection televisions of up to 62 inches with a single RGB
chipset.
The company indicated that although the chipset is suitable for any microdisplay
smaller than 0.7 inches, the chipset was specifically designed to work with
Texas Instruments’ technology. Luminus Devices contends that the size
and shape of the PT120 allow users to maximize the amount of light that can
be collected and projected onto the screen.
LIGHTimes SecondPage members login for more. Guests can view membership details.
Catalyst Semiconductor Introduces 500mA Inductive LED Driver for Movie/Flash Applications LIGHTimes Staff
October 23, 2006...Catalyst Semiconductor has released a new 500mA inductive LED driver for movie/flash
mode applications. The company, a supplier of analog, mixed-signal, and non-volatile
memory semiconductors located in Santa Clara, California USA, is now offering
the CAT4134, which the company says increases the efficiency and simplifies
the design of industrial video lighting, still camera, flashlight, LCD backlighting,
and other high-power LED applications. According to the company, it allows designers
to set the exact flash and movie modes required via a single resistor. In this
way it minimizes the need for external circuitry. The device can drive up to
six white or six color LEDs.
LIGHTimes SecondPage members login for more. Guests can view membership details.
Cree Reports Solid Revenues for Q1 Fiscal 2007, But Profits Down LIGHTimes Staff
October 20, 2006...Cree reported revenues of $103.9 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2007,
ending September 24, 2006. Cree pointed out that the revenues represent a 1 percent
increase compared to the same period a year ago. Revenues came in the middle
of the previously announced expectations of $102 to $106 million. Profit declined about 39 percent to $13.29 million from $21.72 million for the same period a year ago.“Q1
was a solid quarter for Cree, as we delivered earnings at the high end of our
previously announced target range,” stated Chuck Swoboda, Cree chairman
and CEO. “While short-term market conditions remain challenging, we
continue to make outstanding progress towards our goal of enabling LEDs to become
a cost-effective, energy-saving alternative for lighting applications. The recently
introduced EZBright1000 LED power chip and the latest XLamp 7090 power LED have
established a new class of performance by dramatically increasing the light
output and efficiency provided by LEDs. Looking forward, we are on track with
our strategy to broaden our product lines into higher-value components for the
tremendous markets in lighting and power.”
LIGHTimes SecondPage members login for more. Guests can view membership details.
Osram Introduces New Generation of MicroSideLEDs for Thin Display Backlighting LIGHTimes Staff
October 19, 2006...Osram Opto Semiconductors, a San Jose-based wholly owned subsidiary of German
company Osram, has announced a new generation of side-emitting MicroSideLEDs.
The company contends that the packaged LEDs make batteries last longer, and
the LEDs are reportedly ideal for low profile, backlighting applications. The
new MicroSideLED is only 0.6 mm tall. The company says that because of advances
in thin film technology, the LEDs are about 30 percent brighter than the previous
versions of the MicroSideLEDs. Instead of a mere 0.9 cd, the new MicroSideLEDs
each produce 1.6 cd, according to the company.
LIGHTimes SecondPage members login for more. Guests can view membership details.
CPT Unveils Several New TV and Backlight Panel Technologies at FPD International LIGHTimes Staff
October 20, 2006...Chunghwa Picture Tubes (CPT) showcased several new backlight panel technologies
at FPD International in Yokohama, Japan, October 18-20, according to an article
in Digitimes. The company unveiled its 80,000:1-contrast LED technology, a 47-inch
TV panel to be rolled out in the first quarter of 2007, and the company’s
first color filter (CF)-less LED backlighting technology. CPT’s 80,000:1-contrast
technology apparently utilizes area control to bring the contrast to such a
high level, the Digitimes article indicated. However, CPT told Digitimes it
has no plans to mass produce the technology because costs for LED backlighting
are still high compared to CFL backlighting.
LIGHTimes SecondPage members login for more. Guests can view membership details.
National Semiconductor Introduces New Family of LED Drivers for Power LEDs LIGHTimes Staff
October 18, 2006...National Semiconductor introduced a new line of LED drivers for power LEDs
at the Light Emitting Diodes Conference in San Diego, California USA. According
to the company the drivers are designed to power 1- to 5-watt LEDs in automotive,
industrial, and general lighting applications. The company said the LM3402,
LM3404 and LM3405 LED drivers offer a wide input voltage range and provides
a constant current to regulate the LED brightness and low feedback voltage to
minimize power dissipation.
LIGHTimes SecondPage members login for more. Guests can view membership details.
Permlight Gets New President and CEO LIGHTimes Staff
October 17, 2006...One of the early companies to produce LED products for in-home, residential lighting,
Permlight Products Inc., has appointed a new president and CEO. In a statement to investors,
Phil Frey, Permlight’s interim CEO who took over the position from Manuel
Lynch, introduced Fernando Lynch, Manuel’s brother, who will take the reins
from Frey. According to the company, Fernando Lynch joined as VP of sales in October
2005. Frey said, "After working with Fernando Lynch closely and seeing
his responsiveness to both our customers and suppliers, it became apparent that
he should be the one to lead this company into the future." He added,
"I’m confident you well see his enthusiasm for our product line
and more importantly his careful and planned approach to solving problems and
expanding our business. He is customer friendly and supplier sensitive. I’m
sure you’ll enjoy working with him in his new role as your have in the past."
Our news features are reported
by the LIGHTimes staff writers.
For submissions or content suggestions, you can contact us using editor -at - sslighting.net
For more information and to reserve promotion space contact Info8 -at - sslighting.net or call +1 (512) 257-9888
Sponsored
Links
Have
you heard about it yet?
Solid State Lighting Design has just launched!
If you're looking for a higher level view that is dedicated to covering
SSL in architecture and general lighting, SSL Design brings you the latest
on applications, luminaires/fixtures, light-engines and their components. Check it
out today...
If
you aren't a SecondPage Member yet, you need to find out what you're missing.
$99/year includes other key benefits, including a savings of at least $100
off industry events or services Read
more about it...
Commentary & Perspective...
Impressions from Senior Technical Editor, Alan Thompson About Intertech/PIRA's LED Conference Alan Thompson, Senior Technology Editor
October 24, 2006...I recently attended the Intertech/PIRA LEDs 2006 Conference, which was held
in San Diego, California October 16-18th. Rather than giving a run down of all
the speakers and their presentations, I thought I would highlight a few topics
that caught my interest and pose some questions raised by them. For those interested,
the complete program is posted on the Intertech web site, www.intertechusa.com.
A very interesting workshop was presented prior to the main conference by the
International Finance Corporation (IFC), a division of the World Bank that is
tasked with enabling commercial opportunities to improve people’s lives.
They have a project to bring SSL to people who have no access to a grid and
who rely largely on kerosene based devices for their lighting needs. The genesis
of this project was presented 2 years ago by Russell Sturm and has now grown
to the point where industry can step up and participate. Russell and colleague
Fabio Nehme, assisted by consultants Evan Mills (Lawrence Berkeley National
Lab), Arne Jacobson (Humboldt State University), and Katherine Conway (LED Consulting),
gave a comprehensive look at this novel opportunity. I certainly cannot cover
all their points in the space I have here, but let me hit a couple of the high
spots.
There are 1.6 billion people who have no power grid access, and they spend US$38 billion
per year on hardware and fuel (lamps, candles, batteries and kerosene). Kerosene
is the most inefficient fuel for lighting and has well documented negative health
and environmental impacts. However, it has usually been the only available solution.
This unfortunate fact of international life has been underscored by David Irvine-Halliday
when publicizing his admirable Light Up The World Foundation (www.LUTW.org).
While groups such as LUTW solicit charitable contributions and buy and donate
solar powered lights (the most recent large benefactor being Shuji Nakamura,
ref:
Sept. 8th headline news) the IFC group believes a much larger impact can
be made through commercial endeavors. After all, most companies are not in business
to give away their products or they would soon go out of business. However,
all the companies that I have talked to over the last year would welcome an
opportunity to do some good and make some money at the same time. The possibility
of cooperating with local companies for assembly, distribution, sales and servicing
also suggests good job creation. The IFC project targets Kenya and Ghana initially
with in-country market research and testing of potential products. If you make
LED products and are interested in what could be a multi-billion dollar opportunity,
please go to the IFC web site www.ifc.org/led
and/or talk to Russell or Fabio
With the maturing of the cellphone market, the LED community has busied itself
with trying to figure out the next killer application to keep us growing at
our accustomed rapid pace, and this conference was no exception. For my money,
one of the better ideas was presented by Mark McClear of Cree. He gave an interesting
(and sometimes humorous) account of their attempt to build a competitive street
light to replace current HID based products. After realizing that retrofitting
the existing head was not the way to go they came up with a completely different
looking head that gave the same illumination level and pattern as the HID lamp.
His economic analysis showed a 3-year payback even though the LED based head
is about double the price of the HID product. Interestingly (and unlike the
traffic light switchover), the savings come almost entirely from bulb replacement
avoidance, since the energy consumption based on today’s LEDs is similar
(although we know that will improve for LEDs). With 60 million streetlights in the
USA alone and about 200 million worldwide, this represents a very significant opportunity
at aproximately $250 per lamp.
Brightside Technologies’ Richard MacKellar showed their high dynamic range
display alongside a regular FPD using the same LCD panel. The difference was
obvious and the quality of still and moving images was stunning. They use a
large number of white LEDs for backlighting spread across the back of the LCD
display. They drive them with special circuits to increase both the contrast ratio
and the brightness. Currently the extra components cost too much, but with some
volume they believe the cost differential can come down to 50 percent in a couple of
years. Since customers pay 50-100 percent extra for high definition(HD) vs. enhanced definition now, this may well be
a large volume market for LEDs that have high power and high efficacy. Whether
they can buck current suppliers is a big question but all who saw the demo agreed
they have a strong selling point.
Lastly I would like to compliment Kevin Dowling of Color Kinetics, who as usual
gave a talk that was both informative and entertaining. He mentioned the DOE
study on CFL lamps that is well worth a look by anybody wrestling with trying
to break into the lighting market by touting the efficiency of LEDs (see www.netl.doe.gov/ssl/publications.html).
This study goes a long way toward explaining why CFL lamps are in only 2% of
Edison (screw-in) sockets in the USA. He then delved into lighting systems and
their design and gave some interesting examples. I thought the last part of
his talk was the most compelling when he discussed standards and appealed for
more participation by manufacturers at all levels. He is personally involved
in several of the standards organizations such as the NGLI, IES, and NEMA.
I suggest you contact him through Color Kinetics if you would like to participate
and help move this industry forward even more quickly.
A reminder that the opinions here are mine alone and I welcome different outlooks,
corrections or discussion. Feel free to contact me directly, Alan Thompson,
by direct email at "mocvd@comcast.net"
If you have questions about
the solid state lighting and compound semiconductor industries or
have
news or views to share, we want to hear from you! Feel free to contact
us anytime. The main office line is +1
(512) 257-9888
Current SecondPage members may access extended content by logging in here
or Sign up for a LIGHTimes SecondPage membership now
Copyright
2001-2008 by CompoundSemi Online Inc.
Some content under license from Veriphos Communications LLC
All site format, content and technology copyright 2001-2007 by CompoundSemi
Online, Inc. Reproduction, in whole or part, by other than authorized clients, is prohibited. Commercial search engines are authorized for all site links. Links for any other commercial purpose are limited to the home and events pages unless you are a client of Solid State Lighting Net or
CompoundSemi Online, Inc.
Static links to news articles, suitable for search engines and newsfeeds (attribution required
for use in news feeds), can be found at http://www.solidstatelighting.net/lightimes/searcharchive/.
