With recent significant advancements made in LEDs, some insiders claim may be the next wave in green lighting. LEDs are currently some of the most energy-efficient lighting, even exceeding compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs).

At CES 2009 some TV makers showed off their LED LCD TVs including Samsung, LG, Toshiba and so on. LED will be the next light source for flat panel displays in future. For many reasons such as LED light sources allow for lower power consumption; LED is solid state technology and improves ruggedness; LED allows for improved front-screen performance; LED allows for ultra-thin LCD modules, etc. Lower power consumption

Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) have developed and demonstrated a new type of LED with significantly improved lighting performance and energy efficiency. The researchers worked in collaboration with Samsung Electro-Mechanics to develop the new polarization-matched LED that they say exhibits an 18 percent increase in light output and a 22 percent increase in wall-plug efficiency, which essentially measures the amount of electricity the LED converts into light.

Luna Road Ltd, specialized in the design, manufacture, supply, and installation of the new high-tech "cat's eyes," now known as Luna Road Lights, is working to unveil their new Eco-Friendly Luna Road Light technology to countries all around the globe.

Incandescent light bulbs could soon become a thing of the past. The Ministry of Knowledge Economy is pushing a "15-30" move aiming to replace 30%of lights in the country with more energy-efficient LEDs by the year 2015. The European Union and Australia have announced plans to ban sales of ordinary light bulbs and halogen lighting within the next four years.

Everlight announces that it will re-organize its Business Group structure to better position themselves to more aggressively pursue and support the requirements of the fast growing, global LED environment. The company will be divided into two divisions – a Production Business Group and Sales and Marketing Business Group.

Philips will showcase its latest solid-state lighting systems at ARC 2009. The lighting solutions featured combine the many advantages of LEDs with proprietary technologies to generate millions of colors, high-quality white light, and customizable lighting effects without the cost and complexities of some traditional lighting methods.

Nexxus Lighting, Inc. announced that Gary Langford has been appointed as the Company’s new Chief Financial Officer effective January 5, 2009. Mr. Langford will replace John Oakley, who has resigned to pursue an opportunity as CFO and Senior VP of Operations at another publicly traded company outside of the lighting industry.

Cree, Inc. reported that Robert Ingram, vice chairman Pharmaceuticals of GlaxoSmithKline, was elected to the Company’s Board of Directors and to the Board’s Compensation and Governance and Nominations Committee beginning December 29, 2008. Robert Ingram does not have the electrical engineering background of some of the board members, but he has gained some notoriety for his role at the pharmaceutical giant.

Taiwan LED chips and products maker Opto Tech has decided to delay its factory construction in Ningbo, China. Opto Tech indicated the delay is for an unspecified period, and construction will begin when the business environment becomes favorable.

Everything else in the economy may be shrinking, but there's one thing that's getting bigger: the ball that drops on New Year's Eve, according to a recent report.

During the economic downturn, many manufacturers are setting to reduce the output and dismiss workers at manufacturing lines. But, small and mid-size LED makers are busy running manufacturing lines.

Cree Inc. has announced that it and Boston University have reached agreement with Bridgelux Inc. to settle the parties’ patent infringement litigation and to dismiss all claims and counterclaims in the suits. As part of the settlement, Bridgelux, a privately held company based in Sunnyvale, Calif., will pay royalties and license fees to settle litigation over patents held by Cree and Boston University.

As we know, light is so important to plant health, the purchase of grow lights requires a bit of thought and consideration. Fluorescent grow lights are very efficient and cool compared with incandescent bulbs, which are not a particularly good choice because of the heat generated.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Lighting Research Center (LRC) has enhanced its outreach education by taking the LED Lighting Institute “on the road.” In addition to the traditional three-day seminar held each spring and fall at the LRC, a two-day LED Lighting Institute program option has been added, which will be hosted at a program sponsor site each year.

One of America’s largest holiday light shows, the Winter Festival of Lights at Oglebay in Wheeling, West Virginia, started converting to LEDs this year. The energy-saving LED lights will be used in all new displays including the Mountaineer Christmas Display, added to the show this year. The conversion of all existing displays to LED lights begins in 2008 and the entire show should be LED by 2012.

According to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI)’s recent study, the emerging solid-state lighting that replaces incandescent and fluorescent bulbs with LED can reap enormous savings in cost, natural resources and pollution. The firm claims that over the next 10 years, savings of more than $1.8 trillion will eliminate the need to burn almost a billion barrels of oil in power plants that would otherwise produce 10 gigatons in the carbon dioxide emissions.  

Rohm Co Ltd has developed the SML-L1 and SML-J1 series of side-view and top-view high-output surface-mount LEDs designed to provide autofocus flash functionality and auxiliary lighting in low light conditions for increasingly compact digital still and video cameras.

It’s reported that GardenFest of Lights at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, Virginia will use more than 18 miles of LED strands in its 500,000+ light display.

Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. has released its first series of high-intensity white power SMD LEDs in the CLCC-2 flat ceramic package to offer InGaN/TAG on sapphire technology.

LEDs are emerging as the hottest choice in illuminating homes and businesses due to their Energy efficient. Now, LEDs are on the verge of a revolution, according to E. Fred Schubert, professor of electrical engineering and physics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute New York, there are tremendous opportunities that open up with LED.

Chinese LED lighting maker Everlite LED Lighting Co., Ltd, has launched its full range high power LED street lights including 30w, 42w, 60w, 84w, and 120w in terms of led power. All of them can be made into AC universal input voltage 85~265V, and also low voltage 12V/24Vdc for applying to solar lighting systems.

More homeowners and businesses than ever are replacing their old incandescent holiday lights for efficient LED bulbs, according to Pacific Gas & Electric Co. officials and businesses that sell lighting. Joe Molica, spokesman for PG&E, said as the public becomes more aware of them, they are becoming more popular. They are trying to raise the awareness that energy efficiency is one of the most important tools we have in the fight against global warming.

ilumisys Inc., developer and producer of next-generation solid-state lighting technology, is on behalf of its parent company Altair Engineering, announced that a favorable ruling was received from the United States Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences relative to Patent Interference Number 105,602.

The incandescent lamp is being discontinued in Europe because it is so inefficient, the replacement of 3.5 billion incandescent lamps installed throughout Europe will lead to a reduction in the power consumed by lighting systems by more than 30 percent.

Carmanah Technologies Corporation introduced a new benchmark in solar-powered obstruction lighting: the solar-powered A810 Obstruction Lighting System. Suitable for marking towers and other fixed obstructions up to 150 feet in height, this stand-alone lighting system installs quickly to produce a bright, steady red signal wherever it's needed.

The City of Chicago, IL, and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) present Chicago’s 95th Annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony in Daley Plaza. PolyBrite International announced that this year Borealis energy efficient LED light bulbs will be strung on the 85-foot tree.

Sharp Microelectronics of the Americas (SMA), announced the availability of two industrial LCD modules 10.4-inch model and 15.0-inch model. Both displays feature LED backlighting rated up to 50,000 hours of operation in all temperature ranges.

Taiwan epitaxial wafer maker Genesis Photonics Inc. has successfully landed orders from a globally leading printer supplier for yellow, green and blue LED light sources used in LED printers.

The new generation of Ceramos and Oslux LED flash products from Osram Opto Semiconductors are twice as bright as their predecessors. The brightest LED without a lens for flash photography is the Ceramos. The brightest LED without a lens for flash photography is the Ceramos. With its clear encapsulation it produces bright light and it is also available with a diffused encapsulation for a neutral white appearance. Oslux with its special lens is suitable for use without external optics in cell phones or digital cameras.