ON Semiconductor has introduced the NCP5680 supercapacitor-optimized LED flash driver capable of delivering up to 10A for photo flash and video light in ultra-slim camera phones and compact digital cameras.

LEDtronics last week added the T8/bi-pin LED lighting tubes to its green-technology lineup. The series LED48T8-288-001W bi-pin LED fits into standard G13 bases and is designed to directly replace conventional T8 fluorescent tubes that provide general lighting for commercial, residential and architectural lighting applications, according to the company.

OptoElectronix announced a unique LED-based lighting module that enables luminaire manufacturers to accelerate adoption of SSL (solid state lighting) for commercial lighting fixtures. It delivers the same light output as a 60-watt incandescent bulb at just one-fourth the power and has a 50,000-hour life.

In Bangor, Maine, the U.S., the city councilors have recently approved the recommendation to replace more than 300 streetlights in the downtown area of the city with LED lights, according to an article in the Bangor Daily News. The switch will cost $523,000. Broken down per light, it will cost the city an average of about $1,600 for each LED conversion. The new lights will be paid for with a combination of federal stimulus funding and downtown tax increment financing dollars. After the switch, an estimated $34,000 could be saved every year in electricity.

Market for LEDs in notebooks will grow from around $200 million in 2008 to over $800 million in 2010, according to a new research report available at Electronics.ca.

Future Lighting Solutions yesterday announced the release of SSL Designer, the first online design tool for solid-state lighting applications that combines the ability to set and optimize design parameters based on target specifications with the ability to calculate system costs and payback schedules. The new software – intended as the starting point for developing LED systems – facilitates and accelerates engineering design decisions as well as managing the tradeoffs between performance and costs.

European and U.S. Manufacturers in the Exhibition Cree Cree, the leading U.S.-based LED manufacturer, had its booth in Exhibition Hall 1.1. The major products exhibited by the company were LED components, which attracted a number of visitors. As the company’s featured product on the show, the XP-E,MC-E series, boasts its compact size and high luminous efficacy. The MC-E series, on the other hand, emphasizes multi-chip technology with its color-adjustable function.

Axiom NZ announced this week that it has started shipping its AX24 line of LED T-Bar Ceiling fixtures for false grid ceiling applications. The AX2424 is 24" by 24" (2'x2') and the AX2448 is 24" by 48" (2'x4'). Both are designed to be direct replacements for commonly used fluorescent fixtures.

As LED backlight is increasingly being used in LCD televisions, the new lighting source is also becoming common in portable pocket, or pico, projectors. Earlier this year, LED made its first debut in home theater projectors.

Vizio’s previously released 55-inch 1080p/240Hz full-area LED backlit TV, model VF551XVT ($2,200 suggested retail), will ship to retail this September, according to John Schindler, the company’s new product development VP.

The new Tetra® LED Lighting System Architectural Series from GE Consumer & Industrial's lighting business offers a 50,000-hour rated life and delivers high LED performance and energy savings for designs incorporating border lighting, architectural accent lighting, cove lighting and wall washing.

I-Chiun Precision Industry Co., Ltd., a global supplier of LED (light-emitting diode) light guide frames, announced that it has established a joint venture with the Chinese American tycoon Jeffery Wu, a major shareholder of United International Bank of the U.S., to explore the LED lighting market in the U.S., according to a report in Taiwan Economic News.

With an eye toward aesthetics and architectural enhancement, Amerlux Lighting Solutions has introduced its new Linear Wall Grazer, a polished extruded aluminum fixture housing 8 or 12 watt LED’s per linear foot, created specifically to enhance outstanding architectural surfaces and materials.   Optically and thermally engineered, Amerlux’s recessed LED Wall Grazer features a discreet 2-inch aperture, uses high-output white LEDs, and consumes less than 12 watts per foot with visually stunning results.

Lagotek Corporation, a developer of residential and commercial building automation systems, today announced an agreement with Advanced Control Technologies (ACT), a leader in the development of wired and wireless residential and commercial control products.

Recently, several companies have been reported to be misusing Energy Star logos to imply that SSL products are Energy Star certified, particularly at the Lightfair tradeshow. As a result, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued guidance on the correct use of Energy Star logos to stop the trend. Richard Karney, Energy Star Program Manager for Solid State Lighting for the DOE, issued a memo to Energy Star Stakeholders to “address a disconcerting trend the Department is seeing in promotional materials of LED products.”

Lighting manufacturer OSRAM SYLVANIA yesterday named Rick Leaman as president and CEO, effective Oct. 1. Leaman will succeed Charlie Jerabek, who will assume a new role as the company’s vice chairman. The announcement was made by Martin Goetzeler, CEO of Munich-based OSRAM GmbH.    Rick Leaman

In the U.S., the city of Raleigh, North Carolina, has completed its first outdoor lighting project that combines light emitting diode (LED) technology with solar renewable energy in place of traditional electricity. Progress Solar Solutions, the City's contractor on the project, LLC of Apex, installed the solar-powered lighting at the City Parks and Recreation Department's Marsh Creek remote operations facility near New Hope Road and Daly Road.

Light measurement companies Labsphere and Orb Optronix have announced a far-reaching collaboration to encompass product development, manufacturing and distribution.

Bulbrite, a manufacturer and supplier of innovative, energy-efficient light source solutions, has received SSL Quality Advocates' Lighting Facts Labels for its full line of LED MR-16s, LED R30, and Dimmable LED PAR30 and PAR38, signifying their test completion by a government approved lab.

Aimtec has expanded its AMLD-IZ series of step-down DC-DC LED drivers with five new models generating constant output currents reaching 1.2A. The new models have wide input ranges of 5-36V DC that step down to wide output ranges of 2-32V DC. They generate constant output currents of 800, 900, 1,000, 1,100 and 1,200mA, with an accuracy of up to +/- 2 per cent, ensuring the constant colour and brightness required by demanding LED applications. The AMLD-IZ series produces up to 38.4W of power in a compact DIP24 package (31.80 x 20.30 x 10.20mm).

The stadium of American football team the Dallas Cowboys is now the home of the largest high-definition LED screen in the world.

Luminus Devices Inc. and LG Electronics yesterday announced that Luminus’ PhlatLight LEDs are powering the LG HS-200G, a new ultra-mobile projector that delivers increased brightness, performance and reliability. Luminus and LG previously announced an agreement through which PhlatLight LEDs power the HS-102 pocket projector. LG is demonstrating the new HS-200G in Booth #5321 at the InfoComm Conference 2009, June 17-19, in Orlando, Florida.

Cree, Inc. (Nasdaq: CREE) announces the first commercially available water-resistant, surface-mount, high-brightness LEDs for outdoor video screens. This RGB (red-green-blue) LED has an IPx5 rating, indicating that the LED is protected against low-pressure jets of water from all directions.

Luminus Devices Inc., developer and manufacturer of PhlatLight® LEDs, yesterday announced that Doug Lawson has joined the company as General Manager of the UV Business. Lawson will be responsible for leading the strategic business unit and for developing new products to bring PhlatLight LEDs to the ultraviolet (UV) curing market, which Luminus technology provides a fast-growing approach to hardening paints, adhesives, varnishes, printing inks and a wide variety of polymer systems.

Several U.S. cities are planning to use federal stimulus funds to replace traditional streetlights with energy-efficient LED ones. Seattle plans to retrofit all 40,000 residential streetlights with energy- and cost-efficient light-emitting diode (LED) technology. It estimates that four to six years will be needed for the city to replace all streetlights with LEDs.

High-Brightness Device Offers Low Thermal Resistance of 10 K/W, High Luminous Intensity of 25,000 mcd Typical, and High Luminous Flux From 76,500 mlm to 99,400 mlm Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. (NYSE: VSH) expanded its Little Star® family of SMD power LEDs with a new automotive-qualified, 1-W natural white device that combines extraordinarily high brightness with a compact package outline. Utilizing InGaN technology, the VLMW711T3U2US LED offers a low thermal resistance of 10 K/W and high luminous intensity for a wide range of applications.

LightTools® 6.3, the newest release of the illumination design and analysis software from Optical Research Associates (ORA®), delivers an expanded, more powerful tool set for optical system modeling and optimization. The software now features an Alternate Optimization Engine, which supplements the existing optimizer and enables users to successfully address an even broader range of design problems.

Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), fabricated with layers of organic polymers, are flexible and use less power and less expensive materials than liquid crystal displays. However, OLEDs are expensive to produce-- because the polymers react easily with oxygen and water, they have to be created in high-vacuum chambers--and they need extra protective packaging layers to make sure that once they're integrated into display devices, they don't degrade when exposed to air or moisture.

Illumitex, a U.S.-based company, says that it is now in beta production of a light-emitting diode (LED) that it claims can brighten PC screens while using less electricity. The company had raised $10.5 million in March in its first round of funding, and is expecting an additional $20 million early in the summer, according to CEO Matt Thomas. The product is expected to reach full production in September.