In 2014, LED industry ushered in golden period of development, the competition and integration between enterprises kicked off. LED industry faces both opportunities and challenges: under the urging of the localization process, the upstream chip companies optimize capacity utilization, to compete with each other in technology. Flip chip technology breaks in full fury, which has attracted more and more attention of lighting and backlighting market gradually, becoming the most important developing item in this year. As the global LED lamp replacing tide comes, LED bulb and tub...

Researchers worldwide continue search for better luminescent materials for OLED manufacturing. Two new compounds with europium complexes developed at the Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw display in their class record high luminescence efficiencies in red, and their properties enable faster, low cost manufacturing of thin OLED films.

Royal Philips announces its fifth consecutive pan-African Cairo to Cape Town roadshow (from 14 April to 3 September 2014) continuing to focus on key challenges facing Africa today - the need for energy-efficient lighting and the revitalization of African healthcare infrastructure.

Japanese design studio YOY has created new LED luminaires capable of projecting its own lampshade this year, according to a Deezen report.

Emerging developments in the LED lighting industry has led to major Chinese, Taiwanese, Korean, American and European manufacturers expanded production capacity, as companies aim to gain larger market share. Taiwanese LED manufacturer Edison Opto, which focuses on LED components, has an optimistic outlook for the Plastic Leaded Chip Carrier (PLCC LED) and COB application market. 

In dense, urban centers around the world, many people live and work in dim and narrow streets surrounded by tall buildings that block sunlight. And as the global population continues to rise and buildings are jammed closer together, the darkness will only spread.

Detroit area electronics technology firm Electro-Matic Products, Inc. recently completed a joint venture partnership agreement with Kingsun Optoelectronic Co., Ltd., a global leader in commercial and industrial LED lighting solutions. The agreement will primarily benefit the Electro-Matic Visual Products Group, which builds and markets finished LED lighting fixtures for a variety of outdoor and indoor commercial lighting and display applications.

AU Optronics Corp. ("AUO" or the "Company") announced  that it will set “Experience the Ultimate with Curved Ultra High Definition” as the theme and participate in China Information Technology Expo & China Optoelectronics Display Expo 2014 in Shenzhen from April 10 to 12. AUO will demonstrate its full series of 42 to 65-inch UHD 4K curved LCD TV displays with wide color gamut that are mass produced ahead of the industry, curved monitor displays, and ultra high resolution smartphone displays. The Company aims to satisfy consumers' diverse needs for visual enjoyment with its ultra high resolution and complete product lines. 

In order to enhance the market for industrial applications of UV LED curing, Taiwan HPLighting has chosen industry's most advanced high quality UV LED chip and special UV LED packages to make UV LED devices with higher efficiency , uniform light irradiance, low power consumption , long life and environmentally friendly features.

On April 10, 2014, Nichia Corporation has filed a patent infringement lawsuit in Tokyo District Court to enjoin Tachibana Eletech Co., Ltd. and E&E Japan Co., Ltd.  from infringing Nichia’s patent (No. 3786114 and No. 3972943) and to claim damages for the infringement with regard to LED products (product number: 1254 series) after analyzing the LEDs purchased from Tachibana. 

Aurora Lighting from UK saw Light+Building 2014 as the perfect platform to showcase their Red Dot Award winning product, the m10 LED fire rated downlight.

NTNU researchers Dheeraj Dasa and Helge Weman have, in cooperation with IBM, discovered that gallium arsenide can be tuned with a small strain to function efficiently as a single light-emitting diode or a photodetector. This is facilitated by the special hexagonal crystal structure, referred to as wurtzite, which the NTNU researchers have succeeded in growing in the MBE lab at NTNU. The results were published in Nature Communications this week.

On the heels of BMW announcing its plans to introduce OLED lighting modules into automotive lighting, the company has also released news that they plan to do the same for motorcycle lighting, according to BMW Blog.

The Pixelate lamp, designed by Pablo Alvarez for Birot OLED Lighting, is a hanging OLED fixture that was inspired by the undulated movements of the manta ray as it glides through the water. 

Acuity Brands, Inc. announces the launch of new Autobahn Series ATBS LED Roadway and Security luminaires from American Electric Lighting®. The new LED luminaires offer a sleek, attractive appearance and 60 percent greater efficiency compared to traditional high intensity discharge (HID) systems. 

As the world’s largest biennial lighting show, Light + Building 2014, concluded last week, LEDinside has followed up with additional in-depth on Asian, Europe and U.S. manufacturers. Also new this week, LEDs smaller than half the width of a DNA strand are proving to be more energy efficient. Research organization iRunway also notes some of the key LED patent holders in the industry. Walmart’s will be using GE LED lights for its global shop lighting retrofit. An interesting application that emerged this week has been the use of smart LED lights in nail manicures. For more please see below:

The LED panel light expert, Maxray Optical Technology Co Ltd., has launched the newest innovation – Frame-Less LED Panel Light – has a huge visional difference when it compares to a same size of panel light as you see on figure. 

LEDs are tooted as having long lifespans, but as more traditional light sources are being switched out for SSL, manufacturers are realizing that long lifespans are not good for a sustainable business model. Therefore, companies such as Philips and Osram are looking into long-term installation contracts. Philips has secured such a contract with Washington’s transit authority to upgrade around 13,000 fixtures in parking lots, according to a recent Bloomberg report. 

BMW has finally set the date to release their Laserlights, according to a BMW Blog report. The world premiere is set for autumn 2014 and will be included in cars released later this year.

For the cool white NPW LEDs, the spectrum is similar to the conventional white LEDs obtained from the blue LEDs combined with yellow phosphors. The blue emission originates from the upper sidewalls of nanopyramids, and yellow light is mainly emitted from the lower ridges with respect to the base of nanopyramids. 

Jim Campbell is an electronic artist who has been working with light sculptures for over 30 years. After graduating from M.I.T with degrees in electrical engineering and mathematics, he worked as an engineer in Silicon Valley. Intrigued by pixilated images, he decided to apply the same principles of low resolution to moving images. He began experimenting with perception and the amount of information required to make an image recognizable in the human mind.

  Royal Philips, the global leader in lighting, announces that it has become the first patron sponsor of the International Year of Light in 2015, a UNESCO-led initiative.

Innovations in Optics, Inc. introduces the Model 2910A-300 high power, multi-wavelength LED illuminator for testing photovoltaic devices that meets Class AAA solar simulator requirements of IEC 60904-9 for spectral match, uniformity of irradiance, and temporal stability.

EcoLights is an innovative Swedish green technology company that is leading the way in environmentally friendly, energy efficient and cost- and maintenance-reducing, lighting solutions.

According to a Google research report, Taiwan’s smart phone penetration rate from 2012 to 2013 increased from 32 percent to 51 percent (//services.google.com/fh/files/misc/omp-2013-tw-local.pdf) this means smartphones multi-functions has brought more convenience to people’s life. UPRTEK’s vision for smart phone applications began in 2010, the company has invested in R&D of mobile application research for both iOS and Android, the current major two operating systems.

Forepi has shaken off the financial troubles the company experienced in 4Q13. The Taiwanese LED epitaxial manufacturer benefited from strong large-size backlight demands. Consolidated revenue for 1Q14 hit NT $941 million (US $), up 9.85 percent QoQ and 0.35 percent YoY. March experienced staggering growth of 42.73 percent from February with revenue reaching 386 million, but dipped 3.67 percent from last year.

Li Nannan, Leyard Secretary of the Board and Deputy General Manager, discussed the company’s fiscal 2013 financial performance in depth during an interview with social network service website for investors, Xueqiu, on April 8th. 

Lite-On Technology announced its March 2014 consolidated revenues. Rising demand for LED lighting boosted the company’s revenue for LED components and lighting products, which saw a growth of around 20 percent from February. 

Chinese smartphone maker BBK’s next Vivo flagship smartphone will be using dual flash LED, according to a GSM Arena Report.

Manicures are getting techy and flashier in Japan with Takara Tomy Arts smart LED nails.