Colliers Research

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Five New Ways to Use LEDs & Light Emitting Optical Fiber

Five New Ways to Use LEDs & Light Emitting Optical Fiber

Laser diode + optical fiber = The Future in Lighting

Laser diode based lighting is a powerful way to light our homes, offices and even apparel.  With lasers and with optical fiber we can deliver light precisely where we want it in increasingly attractive ways.

LEDs and fiber coupled laser diodes are two lighting techniques that we can expect to see an uptick in demand.

Five Ways to Use LD and LED’s in Lighting

  1. Christmas tree lights, whether it be a string of LED’s or a string of light diffusing fiber, both are available now to give a unique look to our holiday tree tradition.
  2. Flash lights are increasingly being made with LED’s. LED’s are more easily controlled have color control and typically last longer than other means of lighting if made properly.
  3. Lit ear-bud dongles. We can purchase ear bud dongles which plug into our phones and light up for an amazing experience. Using Corning’s Fibrance (R) fiber we can even sync our music to the laser light emission. The light can be made to pulse with our specific songs, check out and purchase GLOW headphones.
  4. Lighted Apparel lights can be woven into apparel and has been for some time. Recently light emission has taken the form of a glass fibers which can be woven into apparel. Imagine a hoodie that lights up for nighttime running or your favorite sports team with a baseball hat which lights up in custom colors. Versalume LLC has done just this with their growing number of light scattering fiber applications. (see video at the end of this post).
  5. Light pipes. Light pipes are rods or optical waveguide fibers which carry visible light from one location to another. They do not scatter the light, they deliver it wherever the light is needed. For example, I can use a plastic optical fiber as a light pipe to carry red light to my bed for night reading. I can deliver the light precisely where I want without disturbing anyone else in the room. I can easily control the laser with remote control and with USB power.

Learn some basics in laser diodes.

For more of the latest information about Laser and LED use in lighting sign up for our email list.

 

 

 

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What is Solid State Lighting anyhow?

What is Solid State Lighting anyhow?

Solid-state lighting refers to a lighting application that uses light-emitting diodes (LEDs), organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) or polymer light-emitting diodes. While incandescent or fluorescent lamps make use of filaments, plasma and/or gases to create light, solid-state lighting contain semiconductors, which converts electricity into light.

 

It produces visible light through a phenomenon called electroluminescence, which involves passing an electric current through a semiconductor diode, resulting in the glowing of the semiconductor material. Although LEDs have existed for nearly five decades, they did not see much development earlier and were mainly used as indicator lamps in electronic devices including home appliances (TV sets, clock radios) and radio transmitters. However, in the last two decades, LEDs came across technological developments, which facilitated their usage in signal devices such as exit signs and traffic lights, and flashlights. They are also being used in searchlights, indoor and outdoor arrangements, and cameras.

The energy-efficiency factor of SSL lights is what makes them superior over incandescent and fluorescent lamps. A typical incandescent bulb used at home is able to convert around 5% to 10% of the energy they utilize into visible light and the rest is converted into heat (infrared radiation). On the other hand, an SSL device can convert 90% of the energy they use into visible heat, while the remaining 10% is converted into heat.

SSL devices have longer lives than CFLs and incandescent bulbs; they can last for 50,000 hours in comparison to incandescent light bulbs, which last for nearly 1,000 hours. SSL devices would considerably reduce maintenance costs.

Solid-state lighting devices are free of mercury and other hazardous matters. They are highly durable as they do not contain filaments, and can withstand shock and vibrations. They come in a variety of color shades, shapes and sizes, and thus can be used for a variety of purposes.

Although solid-state lamps cost more than CFLs or incandescent lamps, they can ensure a lot of savings, owing to their long lifespan and lower energy consumption.

Thus, all these aspects and benefits indicate that the growth of solid-state lighting systems is certain for general lighting purposes.

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Announcing: Prolific Lasers & LED’s

Announcing: Prolific Lasers & LED’s

It s my pleasure to announce the Prolific Lasers & LED blog. This blog will focus primarily on the topic of Lasers, LED’s and other solid state lighting technologies.  This blog will be used mostly to generate and to share content around the topic of LEDs, RGB lasers and their growing number of applications, we may branch out to other topics and services down the road, including consulting for custom lighting needs.

If you have any specific laser needs please email Adam at collierak@me.com and I will respond to your laser or led needs.

Also please consider joining our email list below for up to the minute content updates and to get your free PDF ebook, “10 Reasons to Switch the Lighting in Your Home to LED or Laser Lighting”

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