Recently, Littelfuse Inc. has introduced the PLED 6 series, an open LED protector that provides a switching electronic shunt path when a single LED in an LED array fails as an open circuit. This ensures that the entire array of LEDs will continue to function even if a single LED in the array does not.  

It’s reported that Progress Energy and the city of Raleigh would complete the installation of LED streetlights downtown as part of a test of the lighting technology.

The residential zone, "Azabu no Oka," is located in Miyoshicho, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, and developed by Toyota Smile Life Inc. The roads and pathways in the zone, which has 204 housing plots, will be illuminated by LED lamps. It will take some time before the entire subdivision is completed, but LED lamps have been used since the start of the project.

IESNA's 27th annual Street and Area Lighting Conference (SALC) held this year in Denver on October 12th through 15th. It’s reported that the event broke previous records for attendance with over 500 people present.

It’a reported that Lighting Science (LSG), a global developer and integrator of intelligent and efficient LED solutions, and the ACO Group, the worldwide leader in water drain systems and intelligent water drainage, announced the global availability of the ACO Eyeleds solution for illuminating outdoor spaces.

Recently, Cree, Inc., a market leader in LED lighting, announces the release of its new-generation high-brightness 4-mm and 5-mm oval LEDs in blue, green and red. These new oval LEDs feature optically-matched radiation patterns in blue, green and red, resulting in superior image quality for digital billboard and full-color sign applications.

Recently, Spectronics Corporation has unveiled the powerful Spectroline® OPTIMAX(TM) 365 - a cordless, rechargeable true UV-A (365 nm) LED flashlight ideal for industrial leak detection. When used in conjunction with Spectroline® fluorescent fluid dyes, it is easy to pinpoint leaks in hydraulic systems, lubrication systems, pipelines, condensers, water storage tanks and much more.  

It's disclosed that fewer than 12 months after the introduction of GE’s exclusive Vio™ High-Power White LED, five lighting fixture manufacturers are marketing and selling commercial and residential fixtures that incorporate the violet-based, chip-on-board LED package from Lumination, LLC, GE Consumer & Industrial’s LED business.

Recently, ROHM Electronics announces the availability of the BD8113EFV-E2, a white LED driver IC designed to provide constant current drive for white LED backlights in medium- to large-format automotive TFT-LCD displays.

It’s reported that the new LED Engineering Kit from OSRAM Opto Semiconductors is a powerful tool for anyone who wants to test LEDs with various accessories and applications while gaining practical knowledge of LED lighting.

DDP, a leader in engineered LED solutions, has developed customizable, low-profile linear LED lighting designed specifically for small cove and indirect lighting applications in the commercial and high-end residential building markets.

Recently, Atlanta-based Acuity Brands, a lighting and cleaning products company, said that it's entered into a strategic partnership with Herndon, Va.'s Renaissance Lighting to work on the commercialization of LED lighting. Under the deal, Renaissance is licensing its intellectual property, including its Constructive Occlusion optical system, to Acuity. Financial terms of the partnership were not disclosed.  

It’s reported that LED backlight penetration will not be as quick as previously expected, it will only reach 10 percent this year. Previously LCD panel makers projected 15 to 20 percent penetration in the market this year.  

The global LED market is taking off in 2008 and is expected to become a full-blown one by the year 2010, according HP Lighting, a major LED manufacturer in Taiwan. HP Lighting’s insight is shared by LEDinside, which has predicted that as LED makers in Taiwan and Japan keep raising production, LED prices are bound to fall further before 2009. Lower prices will eventually lead to higher LED penetration among households, said the LED industry research group.

Recently, Irish company Nualight, which specializes in LED-based food display illumination, has announced its selection by leading retailer Tesco in a EUR1million deal to implement its energy-saving LED lighting product in Tesco Ireland’s stores.

School goes GREEN

Recently, Aluwave AB signed a development and supply contract for a light engine based on its LED-bearer material Alunat™. The contract value is estimated to 10 MSEK over four years and the unnamed customer is a European based multinational lighting manufacturer. With strong requirements on technical solution and quality Aluwave AB was selected and in order to reach high light output in combination with low power consumption and long product life the properties of Alunat™ was required.

It’s reported that Raja Parvez, CEO of Rubicon Technology, Inc., a leading provider of sapphire substrates and products, discussed the importance of the shift in the LED industry to larger diameter sapphire substrates in order to speed adoption of LEDs into high volume, high performance, green applications such as commercial lighting and large area display backlighting units.

Lighting in the future, as far as fact is concerned, is heading in the same direction. Ten to 15 years from now incandescent bulbs, fluorescent tubes and CFLs are going to be lightings of the past because of rapid advances in the field of organic light emitting diodes, or OLEDs. These are electronic devices made by placing a series of organic thin films between two conductors that begin to emit a bright light when an electrical current is applied.

It’s reported that LED chipmaker Epistar Corp. has landed hefty contracts to build the chips for Samsung and begun shipping the chips last month.

Recently, Lighting Science Group (LSCG), a global developer and integrator of intelligent and efficient LED solutions, announced that it has installed several integrated LED systems to create an interactive, dynamic lighting experience for the newly opened Club Devo in Goes, Netherlands. Using close to 100 percent LED technology for its lighting needs, Club Devo is the first nightclub in Europe believed to implement LED lighting systems on such a large scale.

Recently, Fort Walton Beach's public works department plans to install lighted street signs at three busy intersections this week. Employees spent last week completing the wiring work to install the LED signs. Public Works Director Tom Murray said “At nighttime it just makes the street name signs much more visible.” “It's very low energy because it's LED lighting and they're very, very effective lights at nighttime, that's very helpful for our visitors in the area,” Murray continued.

It’s reported that Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), with its One-Chip AC LED technology, has been selected a winner of the 2008 R&D 100 Awards competition sponsored by the U.S.-based R&D Magazine.  

LEDs have been used widely for decades in other applications—forming the numbers on digital clocks, lighting up watches and cell phones and, when used in clusters, illuminating traffic lights and forming the images on large outdoor television screens. Until recently LED lighting has been impractical to use for most other everyday applications because it is built around costly semiconductor technology. But the price of semiconductor materials has dropped in recent years, opening the door for some exciting changes in energy-efficient, green friendly lighting options.

Newly invented machines are now capable of printing "sheets" of light, which have found themselves in some business buildings in recent weeks. The light printers use eight-inch wide sheets of organic LEDs, or OLEDs, and cover them with a layer of metal foil. When electric currents run through the sheet, they produce a soft blue-white glow.

It’s reported that Kim Lighting, a leading manufacturer of outdoor architectural lighting, released a much-anticipated white paper on the lighting industry's overall failure to properly bring commercial outdoor LED lighting to market. Titled "Why Today's LED Site and Area Luminaires Are Not Measuring Up," the white paper explores the challenges associated with using LED technology for outdoor lighting to achieving results that are sustainable and do not sacrifice performance.  

It’s reported that Taiwan-based LED chipmaker Epistar has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against competitor Huga Optotech, seeking NT$200 million. Epistar filed the lawsuit with Taiwan's intellectual property court, claiming that Huga's blue and green LED products infringe on its patent.

Optimal Light Partner (OLP) has developed a patented fiber-optic light system that enables a powerful light source to be mounted separately from where the light leaves the lamp. An example is street lamps with light source mounted at ground level. The main benefit with this approach is simplified maintenance, and also that the light source can be protected from extreme environments. The product has already been commercialized.

It’s reported that Neo-Neon Holdings, one of the world's largest decorative lighting companies, plans to enter the LED chip-making sector, making it more vertically integrated. The company already has its own LED packaging capabilities and manufactures a wide range of LED lighting products.

OLEDs are beginning to be used in TVs and cell phone displays, and big names such as Siemens and Philips are throwing their weight behind the technology to make it a lighting source as well. The OLED printer was made by General Electric Co. on its sprawling research campus here in upstate New York. It's not far from where a GE physicist figured out a practical way to use tungsten metal as the filament in a regular light bulb. That's still used today, nearly a century later.