The Tianma Group from China announced that it will exhibit a 7.56-inch Micro LED display, a Mini LED backlit HDR LCD, and a Flexible AMOLED display at Display Week 2019. Tianma will showcase a Micro LED display with over 60 percent transparency and a resolution of 720*480 (114ppi), along with a thin border of less than 0.8mm. With the transparent Micro LED display, Tianma targets automotive applications such as HUD or car window display. (Image: Tianma) The company is also presenting a LTPS Mini LED backlight-based HDR display f...

Advancement of IoT technology enables integration of lighting and other application to improve efficiency of energy usage and save electricity cost. Commercial real estate owners are therefore actively seeking the benefits of data-driven, real-time applications that will modernize a business or learning space. Osram continues to deepen its involvement in smart application development with several strategic partners. The company has recently completed a pilot program with a Canadian university for space optimization. Osram Digital Systems and its growing ecosystem of partners are...

The Society of Information Display (SID) announced the winners of its Display Industry Awards. Winners of Display of the year include Samsung’s “The Wall,” Sony’s Crystal LED Display and Apple’s OLED display for Apple Watch Series 4. Two out of the three winners went to Micro LED displays. Samsung revealed “The Wall,” a 146-inch display at CES 2018 for the first time. In 2019, the Korean company released a 75-inch Micro LED display with the “real” Micro LED chips which is only 1/15 of t...

Jiaxing Super Lighting Electric Appliance(“Super Lighting”), together with its affiliate Obert, the North American division of Super Lighting, filed a patent infringement lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Central District of California against MaxLite. Super Lighting and Obert accused MaxLite of infringing Super Lighting’s patents, including U.S. Patent Nos. 9,689,536; 9,841,174; 9,723,662; 10,208,897; 9,807,826; and 9,897,265, with its LED tube products.  Super Lighting and Obert share a parent company calle...

Australian semiconductor technology developer, BluGlass, announced that its Remote Plasma Chemical Vapour Deposition (RPCVD) p-GaN technology has been adopted by X-Celeprint, a micro-transfer printing company, to develop Micro LED display prototypes. By implementing BluGlass’s RPCVD p-GaN technology, X-Celeprint’s active matrix Micro LED displays demonstrated good luminance with color uniformity, quantum efficiency and forward voltage that equal current high-performance commercial applications of 2000 nits. (Image: X-Celeprint/BluG...

Taiwan International Lighting Show kicked off on May 8th in Taipei with the theme “Smart Design, Enlightening Life.” The event welcomes its 10th anniversary with more than hundred exhibitors showcasing their innovative LED lighting applications. As LEDs are commonly applied in general lighting, lighting companies have turned their focus to professional lighting, smart lighting and human centric lighting. By combining adjustable features of LEDs with smart control, LED lighting can be further optimized for advanced applications. MEAN WELL, the...

After releasing few warnings in February and March, Osram finally unveiled the financial results of the second quarter of its fiscal 2019 ending March 31. The results went in line with what the company has expected with revenues decreased by 13.5% YoY to EUR862 million (US$965.14 million). The adjusted EBITDA fell by 56% YoY to EUR70 million (US$78.38 million) with an adjusted EBITDA margin dropped from 16.9% to 8.1%. The net loss came to EUR90 million (US$100.78 million). Continuous weak growth in China along with ongoing trade conflicts have led ...

Seoul Semiconductor announced that its SunLike Series natural spectrum LEDs have been adopted by RAMO, a LED lighting manufacturer in France, for downlight fixtures used to illuminate wax figures the Grevin Museum of Paris. Seoul Semiconductor’s SunLike Series natural spectrum LEDs produce light that closely matches the spectrum of natural sunlight. The natural spectrum LEDs were co-developed through the combination of Seoul Semiconductor’s optical semiconductor technology and Toshiba Materials’ TRI-R technology, which defines its o...

EDM International, a US-based sustainable solutions provider for the utility industry, created a system which can prevent birds from crashing into power lines by using UV lights. The system can cut crane collisions with power lines by 98%. James Dwyer and his colleagues from EDM International created what they dubbed the Avian Collision Avoidance System, or ACAS, by mounting UV lights on power lines' supporting structures and shining them on the lines at night. They tested its effectiveness in 2018 at Nebraska's Iain Nicolson Audubon Center, where a ...

According to the newest 2019 Mini LED and HDR High-End Display Market Report by LEDinside , a division of TrendForce , after 3 years of mini LED backlight technology development, mini LEDs will finally make an official appearance on displays in 2019 and compete directly with OLEDs. Apple, with eyes set on the advantages of mini LED technology for a while, is also eager to strike collaborations with suppliers in Taiwan and Japan to introduce this technology into desktop displays, notebooks and tablets. TrendForce explains that, in comparing the two, Min...

Cree announced it will invest up to US$1 billion in the expansion of its silicon carbide capacity with the development of an automated 200mm silicon carbide fabrication facility and a materials mega factory at its U.S. campus headquarters in Durham, N.C. Cree said that the decision marks the company’s largest investment to date in fueling its Wolfspeed silicon carbide and GaN on silicon carbide business. Upon completion in 2024, the facilities will substantially increase the company’s silicon carbide materials capability and wafer fabrication capacity, allowing wi...

Focal Point, a North American manufacturer of commercial lighting solutions, announced its partnership with BIMsmith to expand its suite of free digital Building Information Modeling (BIM) resources for the global architecture and building design community. The partnership involves the addition of more than 150 Focal Point lighting product models to BIMsmith Market, a free cloud platform for architects, designers and contractors to discover and download building product data for use in their design projects. BIMsmith Market simplifies the product research and selec...

The rising market of autonomous vehicle has driven developments of LiDAR sensor and other sensing technology. LiDAR providers are also actively building up connections with industry partners for speeding up their market expansion and technology improvement. Quanergy Systems, LiDAR sensors and smart sensing solutions provider announced its partnership with NIT, a distributor of IP surveillance and physical security solutions in the META region (Middle East, Turkey, Africa). Through the partnership, Quanergy aims to expand the market for its LiDAR-based sec...

Orion Energy Systems (Orion Lighting), LED lighting and energy project solutions provider, and Arizona based energy solutions firm BC Energy Solutions, announced that they have completed US$4.9 million in LED lighting upgrade projects across nine states in the U.S. funded in part by helping clients secure nearly US$1.3 million in electric utility rebates from October 2018 to March 2019. The rebates provide added financial incentives for companies to prioritize their investment in converting to LED lighting systems and controls. In aggregate, the utility reba...

Equipment provider Veeco Instruments announced financial results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2019. Veeco posted revenues of US$99.4 million, down by 37.33% compared to 1Q18. The company reported a net loss of US$18.5 million on GAAP base and a net loss of US$6.4 million on Non-GAAP base. The company has been challenged by China’s MOCVD equipment manufacturers since the fourth quarter of 2018. Its blue LED business in China had shrunk drastically after the 2Q18. Veeco said that it has been transforming its business structure, putting mo...

Taiwan-based LED manufacturers Lextar and Epistar announced their financial reports for the first quarter of 2019. Both companies posted an on-year degrease for 1Q19; however, Lextar managed to stay profitable while Epistar had a loss in the past two quarters with impacts from the US-China dispute. Lextar registered revenues of NT$2.167 billion (US$70.13 million) for 1Q19 with an on-year decrease of 18.15% and an on-quarter decrease of 10%. Net profit came to NT$113 million (US$3.66 million). The company also posted a revenue of NT$815 million (US$26.38 millio...

Last week, Mr. Herbert Willmy, CEO of OSRAM Lighting Solutions, together with Mr. Wang Yamin, CEO of Shanghai Wellmax Lighting (WELLMAX) and WELLMAX’s top executive team, visited the State Key Laboratory of Solid State Lighting (SKL), a world-class LED lighting research center with complete series of cutting-edged testing equipment and the strongest R&D capability. The group has a field tour of the SKL laboratory and held a talk on the future development of the whole lighting industry. OSRAM CEO and WELLMAX C...

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the tariffs on US$200 billion of Chinese goods will be raised to 25 percent from 10 percent on Friday, May 10, 2019. The Chinese LED chip manufacturers have reached a record high inventory level due to increased capacity and tepid demand, as well as the trade disputes starting 2018. If the tariffs come to effect, the sluggish LED industry might encounter even greater challenges. The LED industry has suffered from low price competition thanks to over supply as Chinese LED makers continued their capacity expansion...

Epiwafer producer IQE and optoelectronic components maker II-VI have report orders and growth driven by demands for sensing and communication technology. UK-based wafer product supplier IQE announced that has received the first mass production order for its recently constructed Newport Mega Foundry from its VCSEL customer. Optical components manufacturer II-VI reported its Fiscal 3Q19 results with strong demands for communications products. IQE reported that it has achieved full product qualification with its existing VCSEL client and is processing furt...

As more Asian players demonstrate their progress in Micro LED, LED technology providers and researchers from Europe and North America also synchronize their advances through deepening collaboration with various solution providers. Europe: Plessey presents Micro LED AR/VR glasses; Osram joins in on Micro LED automotive display research After Plessey unveiled its GaN-on-Si monolithic Micro LED in 2018, the UK-based company has cooperated with several partners including Vuzix, JDC, Nanoco Technologies, Aixtron, Mojo Vision and others. In col...

Researchers at West Virginia University found that exposure to white light at night could impact recovery of cardiac patients and dimming the light can reduce the damages. With the results published in Experimental Neurology, the research team, led by Randy Nelson, who chairs the Department of Neuroscience in the WVU School of Medicine, linked white light at night to inflammation, brain-cell death and higher mortality risk in cardiac patients. (Image: Pixaby) The researchers re-created cardiac arrest in animal models and divided the models into three groups that w...

The development of Micro LED display technology has further materialized in 2019 in the form of more solid applications presented in big trade shows. Micro LED products demonstrations marked the intensified collaboration between industry players in the supply chain across the world. Researchers, chip makers, panel producers, equipment providers and application device developers have intensified their cooperation to accelerate Micro LED technology progress. Since the beginning of 2019, many companies have announced their Micro LED progresses and plans. Follow the update...

UK-based optoelectronic technology solution provider Plessey announced that it will showcase its latest Micro LED display solutions for augmented and mixed reality (AR/MR), head-up/head-mounted displays (HUD/HMDs), smartphones and other display applications at Display Week 2019 held from May 14 to 17 in San Jose, California, USA. Plessey said it will unveil its Micro LED technology breakthroughs and demonstrate why its scalable and repeatable GaN-on-Silicon monolithic process is the solution for next-generation display products. (Image: Plessey) C...

Osram announced the completion of the acquisition of Ring Automotive, a British aftermarket specialist. The acquisition was revealed in the end of January 2019. The acquisition will allow Osram to expand its product range in the automotive sector to include more automotive electronics and accessories. After approval by the British Competitors and Market Authority (CMA) for the takeover of Ring Automotive by Osram, the partnership between the companies will officially start in May. The common goal is to respond faster and better to new trends and challenges in the cons...

The development of agricultural innovation has become more and more urgent than ever given the factors of increasing world population and global warming. As a result, vertical farming, which serves as a feasible solution to mass produce healthy and safe food, is getting increasingly popular across the world. Samsung Electronics has launched full-spectrum white-based horticulture LEDs to keep up with the trend of agriculture innovation and underline the advantages of applying LEDs for smart farming approaches such as vertical farm. (Image: Samsung) Smart farming refers t...

Cree announced financial results for its third quarter of fiscal 2019, ended March 31, 2019. Revenue from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2019 was US$274 million, which represents a 22% on-year increase. GAAP net loss from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2019 was US$22 million, or US$0.22 per diluted share. On a non-GAAP basis, net income from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2019 was US$20 million, compared to non-GAAP net income from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2018 of US$17...

AIXTRON, the Germany-based semiconductor equipment provider, announced its financial report for the first quarter of 2019 with an expected performance. The revenue of 1Q19 increased by 10% YoY to EUR 68.7 million (US$ 77 million). Although the gross margin decreased slightly to 39% YoY due to a change in the product mix, the gross profit of EUR 26.7 million (US$29.92 million) in the first quarter of 2019 was on a par with the previous year. According to AIXTRON, the first quarter of 2019 was mainly influenced by the expected reluctance of customers to inve...

As the lighting partner for London’s Illuminated River project, Signify updated the progress of the exciting lighting art and how connected LED lighting creates a novel identity of the city. Iain Byrne, Project Manager of Illuminated River Project at Signify, addressed that urban lighting and architectural lighting serve as powerful tools in building impressive images for city landmarks. “Light is one of the most powerful means of breathing new life into cities and metropolitan areas and is becoming more and more of a focus when it comes to urban design and...

To select a LED driver with a proper voltage operating range (Constant Current region) may look fairly easy, but this article will explain that it is not that straight forward. Firstly, one has to realize that LED forward voltages are not identical from die to die. Secondly, the LED voltage varies when the junction temperature goes up or down. Since a correct working of the driver is crucial to the functionality and reliability of the lamp, it is worthwhile to look more into details of these factors which affect the LED voltage. This article explains the typical concerns o...

Samsung SDS, the digital arm of Samsung, and Telensa, a leader in smart street lighting and smart city data, announced their partnership for smart city projects. The two companies are collaborating on smart street lighting and the Urban Data Project, a cloud platform that creates a trust infrastructure for urban data which enables cities to collect, protect and use their data for the benefit of all citizens. The first collaboration will be in city projects in Korea, with wider deployments following across Asia Pacific and in the United States. The initial area of collabor...