Following the rise in the automotive electronics market, Excellence Opto. Inc. (EOI) is trying to make a mark for itself in the automotive LED lighting market.

Philips Lighting blogger Monique Cosineau talks to Canadian designer David Sasaki about his Light Fall design, which clinched second place at the 2013 CLU Foundation Contest. Below is the interview posted on Philips Lighting blog:

Rishang LED, the leading manufacturer of LED lighting modules and components in the world and renowned lighting brand, will be launching its wide range of products for the Malaysian market. LED or Light-Emitting Diode lights have been one of the fastest growing technologies in the world especially through its known benefits which offer better cost savings in utility bills like electricity.

PhotonStar customers will have the option of ordering many of the company’s high performance LED lighting products with a prewired Lutron Ecosystem driver, straight from the factory.

This week chubby TV developments have emerged on the radar screen. The TV is expected to become mainstream model in 2014, and to cope with ongoing price wars LED packagers are making swift changes in the packages used. Mid power LED sector is also seeing increased competition from EMC, PCTand Flip chips. The Chinese LED industry is facing tough challenges, whether it from corrupt government officials, or serious copycat issues in the decorative luminaire industry. Nichia and Everlight also enter a new round of patent wars in the U.S. this week. For more details please see below:

With the LED lighting market booming and  LEDs in backlight spec changes, the mid power spec market had taken center stage within the LED industry this year, already surpassing the high power market in initial output value. LED drivers with EMC lead frames can reach 1-2W power output which can supply the mid power and mid/high power LED market. LED package manufacturers are expanding EMC production capacity. After improvements to PCT lead frame materials, LED package manufacturers plan to introduce PCT products into the mid power market. Flip-chip products are also making their way  in the 2014 mid power market.

China’s LED luminaire market faces serious copying issues, Chinese-language China Building Materials quoted a man in charge of a famous luminaire store in China. Some small enterprises dumping of fake LED luminares on the market has interfered with normal luminaire prices, according to the article. Small manufacturers are highly capable of imitating large brands; do not require R&D design fees or costs; and can quickly produce these replicated luminaires. It is difficult to differentiate these products from appearance alone.

Everlight responds to Nichia's amendment complaint concerning the U.S. patent litigation.

Toshiba Corporation flipped the switch on the new "Centennial Holiday Light Show" in New York City's Grand Central Terminal on November 21. The colorful animated display can be seen on the monumental windows above the Terminal's west balcony through December 26, 2013. Click here for the full press release.

Hubbell Lighting announced its latest innovation to quickly and simply upgrade HID lighting—Sterner Lighting's Executive RT21 LED and Retrofit Power Door Upgrade Kit. The LED luminaire is bred from the popular Executive RT family that blends traditional rectangular styling with sophisticated engineering making it the perfect solution for area and site lighting in business parks and campuses.

Dow Corning, a global leader in silicones, silicon-based technology and innovation, introduced new Dow Corning® MS-2002 Moldable White Reflector Silicone at Strategies in Light Europe 2013. This highly reflective white material extends the excellent photo-thermal stability and high-moldability that typifies Dow Corning's award-winning optical-grade Moldable Silicone family to the reflective elements of LED lamp and luminaire applications. 

After a year full of strife in 2013, the LED industry has finally seen signs of market rebound. As China gradually establishes national LED standards, leading enterprises have also increased R&D. The LED industry’s oversupply frozen state is gradually being melted away, and the industry is opening up to a new phase of explosive growth, according to a Chinese Business News report.

The possible blue light hazards in LEDs on  the eyes have become a hot global topic. The expanding application field for LED lighting has raised consumer awareness towards the possible risks of blue LEDs. In order to clarify the consumers misgivings towards LED lighting products, the China National Lighting Fitting Quality Supervision Testing Center (CLTC) has released a report addressing the dangers of blue lights in LEDs. The CLTC advises that single LED package components with 1W power must strengthen structural protection measures and that color temperature for indoor lighting must not surpass 4000K.

For LED outdoor display manufacturers in the lower rung of the industry competitiveness will be supported by three cores: their ability to obtain resources, innovative technology and creative strategy. The extent of control and balance over these three resources will decide whether they will have the ability to construct competitive technological barriers, according to a report by Chinese-language online media CIEN.

On November 22, 2013, Nichia Corporation filed an amended complaint in its on-going patent infringement lawsuit against Taiwanese LED manufacturer Everlight Electronics Co., Ltd. and Everlight’s U.S. subsidiary Everlight Americas, Inc. (collectively “Everlight”), originally filed on September 11, 2013, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) thanks all who participated in the eighth annual Solid-State Lighting Market Introduction Workshop, held November 12–14 in Portland, Oregon. More than 200 attendees gathered to share the latest updates and strategies for successful market introduction of high-quality, energy-efficient SSL solutions.

Guam Senator Thomas Ada, who belongs to the U.S. ruling Democrat party, has proposed a new bill to establish the Guam Streetlight Financing Authority to fund the island’s replacement of some 15,000 incandescent streetlights to LED, according to an article by Pacific News Center. Ada’s stated the obtainment of US$ 16 million funding would be required to replace the island streetlights. Below is the senator office’s press release posted on Pacific News Center website: 

Peter Bauer (53) is the new Chairman of the Supervisory Board of OSRAM Licht AG and OSRAM GmbH. He is taking over both offices from Siegfried Russwurm (50), who stepped down from the committees at the end of the day on November 26, 2013. Roland Busch (49) will take his place as a member of the Supervisory Board of both entities. He was in each case elected additional Deputy Chairman by the Supervisory Board. Osram had stated in its prospectus in June 2013 that Mr. Russwurm planned to step down from his Osram mandates before the end of the calendar year 2013.

Photometric Testing has increased its laboratory and workshop space four-fold over their old facility and installed a second goniophotometer which means that that they now have the added capacity to handle everything from a one-off test right up to the photometry of a complete catalogue of products.

With the keen competition of LED market, products of different qualities have flooded the industry. Every manufacturer states that the lifespan of their products can up to tens of thousands of hours and their efficacy is extremely high. But without specification, the real performance of those products is doubtful. In view of this phenomenon, California Energy Commission (CEC) developed the quality LED lamp specification in 2012. 

Ledzworld announced its latest version of MR16 Platinum has, like its predecessor, obtained Energy Star certification.

NTL Lemnis, the LED Lighting solutions company, launches a wide range of LED lighting products under the “Pharox” brand especially for the Retail sector. NTL Lemnis has created three special categories of products for the Retail industry – Down Lights, Track lights and Spot Lights. 

With continual falls in large sized backlight LED TV prices, penetration rates for direct-view type LED TV (aka Chubby TV) is expected to grow in 2014. EMC lead frame drivers have advantages in 1-3W power range, and is expected to lead the mid to high power market. It is also the most commonly used LED chip in direct-view type LED TV. However, with improvements in PCT lead frame driver power output to 1-1.2W, manufacturers are also launching PCT products for direct-view type LED backlight TV. 

The industry is focusing its attention on LED lighting market growth performance in 2014. The demand for LED lighting will surpass that of LED backlight during the beginning of 2014, according to a recent report by J.P. Morgan. The dispersed LED lighting market is rewriting market game rules. LED manufacturers are hoping to overcome consumer congestion which led to limited bargaining space. With the arrival of a new era in LED lighting, manufacturers hope to enjoy more stable gross profit performance and larger space for price negotiations. 

Currently 80 percent of sapphire applications are used in sapphire substrate while the other 20 percent is for non-substrate materials, according to Chinese-language online media Finance.com.cn estimations. Sapphire that is used in substrate is mainly applied in LED lighting and Si On Sapphire (SOS) related products, with LED lighting accounting  for over 90 percent. Therefore demands from LED lighting directly affect sapphire substrate and is the market’s main focus. 

On November 22, 2013, Nichia Corporation (“Nichia”) filed an amended complaint in its on-going patent infringement lawsuit against Taiwanese LED manufacturer Everlight Electronics Co., Ltd. and Everlight’s U.S. subsidiary Everlight Americas, Inc. (collectively “Everlight”), originally filed on September 11, 2013, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

Goldee today revealed the Goldee Light Controller – a reinvention of the light switch that redefines how people interact with light. Goldee translates information from your surroundings into smart functions that respond to your lighting needs. Today starts the crowd- funding campaign during which customers can pre-order Goldee for an exclusive price of US$ 249 directly at getgoldee.com.

FZLED is pleased to release the latest collection in T8 series LED Tube: T8-05L LED Tube Lights. It uses SMD LED and offers 10, 18 and 20 watt in two feet (58 and 60cm) and four feet long (120cm). It is direct replacement for traditional T8 tubes and fits standard G13 sockets with an AC voltage range of 100-240V. 

Shenzhen, China - AOTO (China A- Share: 002587) is proud to announce that its self-developed indoor high-definition LED display system was unveiled at the Macau International Airport before the Middle Autumn Festival.  

Following LED automotive lighting already having become a new standard in automotive accessories, high luminosity LEDs have expanded their application in the automotive lighting market. With the constant increase in capabilities of LED lighting, LED headlight demands are also continuing to rise. New facets are opening up propelling the market forward.