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CFLs and LEDs Steadily Gain Popularity

Jun 122013

CFLs in Bulk 300x206 CFLs and LEDs Steadily Gain Popularity
New research shows that the number of U.S. households using energy-saving LEDs or CFLs is increasing. Around 87% of households use at least one of these energy efficient light bulbs, and 77% use three or more. That’s up from 86% and 75% respectively in 2011.

Why do the numbers keep rising?

The answer is multi-faceted.

In a large-scale energy audit survey of 32,000 homes about energy use and energy efficiency, researchers found consumers were primarily motivated to use CFLs and LEDs to save money on their energy bills. Those who were slightly more environmentally conscious were more likely to use multiple CFLs and LEDs.

This increase in popularity also comes from utilities offering incentives for homeowners to switch to energy-efficient lights, especially CFLs, and the general-service incandescent phaseout that began in early 2012, removing many standard household lamps from the market. Continue reading »

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LEDs Allow New Method of Data Transmission

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Feb 112013

PinExt LEDs Allow New Method of Data Transmission

Kozzi Computer Keyboard and Monitor 426x304 300x214 LEDs Allow New Method of Data Transmission
At the University of Strathclyde, researchers are developing tiny LEDs that can deliver Wi-Fi-like internet access. Called Li-Fi (short for Light Fidelity), this system has the potential to transmit data several times faster than what we’re used to.

Professor Martin Dawson and his team created tiny LEDs, each about the size of an end of human hair, which flicker on and off thousands of times every second. By altering the length of these flickers, the lights can send digital information to computers and other electronic devices. Picture it as a sort of digital Morse code.

The micron-sized LEDs are made so small to allow for more data transmission at a faster rate. The university’s LEDs can flicker at a rate 1,000 times faster than larger LEDs. Why? Well, if you have 1,000 micron-sized LEDs, they can fit into the same space as a single 1mm LED. Each tiny LED acts as an individual communication channel, which allows the transmission of about a million times more data.

Suddenly, a large LED display, with each tiny LED acting as a pixel, can also allow internet communications. Continue reading »

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LED Rebates For 2013

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Feb 052013

Considering switching your commercial lighting to LEDs this year? Learn how to get the most out of lighting rebates and incentives.

Have you gone shopping for new light bulbs or fixtures lately? If the answer is yes, you’re probably aware that LED lighting options have saturated the market as energy efficient alternatives to incandescent, halogen, and fluorescent lights.

But, what you might not know is that there are tons of rebates and incentives out there for buying LEDs that can help you save money when making the switch.

Since January 2012 the number of rebate programs for LEDs has increased by 54%.

Here’s an overview of the kind of rebates your company can expect in 2013:

Rebate Snapshot LED 1 13 LED Rebates For 2013

If you’re already familiar with rebates from electric utilities and government organizations in your area, you may notice that the dollar amounts for most rebates have decreased over the past year. The average rebate for an LED replacement lamp has gone down by 7% since last January. Rebates amounts also decreased for LED fixtures: recessed down lights decreased by 66%, accent lighting by 12%, and high bay fixtures by 8%.

You needn’t be alarmed by these numbers, though. They’ve only been adjusted to match the lower prices of LEDs in 2013. Less money is necessary to make purchasing an LED financially attractive. Also, since there are over twice the programs this year, money is even more accessible. Continue reading »

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Lighting Wins and Losses From Super Bowl XLVII

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Feb 042013

PinExt Lighting Wins and Losses From Super Bowl XLVII

Well, they told us yesterday’s Super Bowl would be the greenest one to date, but they failed to mention that as part of the plan to save energy they were going to turn the lights out in the second half.

Just kidding. This year’s Super Bowl might go down in the books for its lighting “abnormality,” but certainly there were some “bright spots” about this year’s lighting as well. Today, I’m going to reflect on both.

Superbowl Blackout NY Times Lighting Wins and Losses From Super Bowl XLVII

Image via NYTimes.com

Here at Pegasus Lighting, we were all so excited to ogle the Mercedes-Benz Superdome’s new lighting system, and it didn’t disappoint. (At least through halftime, that is.) The Superdome’s exterior featured more than 26,000 LED lights on a whopping 96 full-color graphic display panels. These panels flooded the building in a spectrum of animated colors, patterns,and images. We were especially impressed knowing that the system used only 10 kilowatts of electricity, which if you can believe it, is the amount used to power a small house. Not to mention that if the LEDs are used for an average of 6 hours per day, they won’t need to be replaced until 2057.

Super Dome Washington Post Lighting Wins and Losses From Super Bowl XLVII

Image via WashingtonPost.com

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An Enticing New Alternative To Fluorescents, CFLs, and LEDs

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Dec 072012

PinExt An Enticing New Alternative To Fluorescents, CFLs, and LEDs

No light source is perfect. With every different light source come consumers and critics who dislike it. We complain incandescent lights don’t last long enough. They use too much energy, give off too much heat, and then that heat jacks up our A/C bills.

Fluorescents and CFLs last longer, but some people are bothered by the small amount of UV rays they emit. Sometimes they might flicker or take a while to reach full brightness. If they break, they release harmful mercury into the environment.

Even the LED, the lighting industry’s golden boy, isn’t perfect. It lacks the incandescent’s beautiful, soothing light quality. LEDs are still expensive, and it can be hard as heck to make them with dimming capabilities.

Clearly, we still have work to do. But now, there’s a new light source that might just give these other guys a run for their money.

It’s called FIPEL. Doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, does it? Well, whatever the name, this new light source could be the answer to the comfortable, efficient light we crave.

An Enticing New Alternative To Fluorescents, CFLs, and LEDs

Image via Ken Bennett, Wake Forest University Photographer

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The Power of Silicon Comes to LEDs

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Nov 292012

PinExt The Power of Silicon Comes to LEDs

Light Emitting Diodes 300x198 The Power of Silicon Comes to LEDs
Silicon is amazing. We’ve all seen what those tiny silicon chips have done for computers in the past few decades – they’ve gone from mysterious machines to ubiquitous household objects capable of the stuff of dreams. Now, Bill Watkins, CEO of Bridgelux proposes silicon is about to do the same for LEDs.

Where Silicon Can Take Us

Silicon could revolutionize the solid-state lighting (SSL) industry. It has the potential to make light sources like LEDs faster, cheaper, and more functional.

Current SSL lights like LEDs have already come leaps and bounds ahead of older light sources like fragile incandescent lights, but with silicon, we could see them overcome the light socket completely, and become embedded in stairs, cabinets, and other household fixtures. They could also have added features like motion sensors or color changing abilities, so you can easily alter your home’s mood at will.

SSL Today

So technically speaking, why is silicon so great? Well, since the ‘60s, silicon has dominated high technology. It allows innovators many advantages in creating new digital products because it’s cheap to make, and holds structure well. You can shrink things like transistors without destroying their functionality with silicon.

Currently, light emitting diodes (the semiconductors that generate light inside SSL light bulbs and fixtures) are a rare digital technology that doesn’t rely on silicon. Continue reading »

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Election Results Displayed in LED

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Nov 072012

PinExt Election Results Displayed in LED

A long, long time ago, in 1932 to be exact, a tradition began. A simple searchlight atop the Empire State Building announced the election of Franklin Delano Roosevelt as President.

If you watched last night’s election results (or were conveniently somewhere in NYC) you probably saw that iconic building at it again. Last night’s exhibition marked the Empire State Building’s first use of its new custom LED panel technology.

CNN joined forces with the building to project a running tally atop the spire, presenting real-time election results with a brilliant display of colored light. The lights were visible from miles around, and broadcast worldwide to CNN’s viewers.

In case you didn’t see it last night, the lights worked like this: The four sided tower atop the building was lit in patriotic red, white, and blue stripes. The mast functioned as a meter with two blue sides, and two red to represent President Obama and Gov. Romney’s respective electoral votes. As each state was projected by CNN, and electoral votes were allocated to each candidate, the meter displayed a running tally.

EmpireStateBuildingElectionNewYork Election Results Displayed in LED

Image via CNN.com

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Rise…And Shine That Blue Short-Wavelength Light

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Nov 022012

PinExt Rise…And Shine That Blue Short Wavelength Light

LED Mini Guide Lights 300x195 Rise…And Shine That Blue Short Wavelength Light
Kids these days. They haven’t got it easy. According to the Center for Disease Control, almost 70% of school children don’t get their full 8 hours of sleep on most school nights. Whether this is due to heavy workloads, intense extracurriculars, goofing off, or simply having an overactive mind, the resulting problems are the same. Inadequate sleep has been linked to things like depression, behavioral problems, poor academic performance, drug use, and car accidents.

However, a recent study led by Mariana Figueiro and Mark S. Rea of the Lighting Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute may have found an unexpected remedy for stressed, sleep-deprived kids: blue light.

To understand the study, first we need to know a little bit about the human body.

The Cortisol Awakening Response

The hormone cortisol, produced by the adrenal gland, operates on a 24-hour cycle, helping regulate our bodies navigate in and out of sleep. Concentrations of cortisol reach a minimum at bedtime and a peak in the morning. Levels hit their max in the first hour of waking, this is called the Cortisol Awakening Response or CAR.

Experts associate a high CAR with better preparedness for the stresses and challenges of the day.

So how the heck does blue light factor in? Well, we’ve already seen how short-wavelength light can suppress melatonin to keep you awake at night (read more on that here), so it’s not surprising that it has an influence on us in the morning. Continue reading »

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Guiding Lights for the Great Indoors

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Oct 302012

PinExt Guiding Lights for the Great Indoors

bytelight 300x192 Guiding Lights for the Great Indoors

Image via ByteLight.com

Holiday shopping is already beginning – that time of year when we dart frantically from aisle to aisle trying to find just the right gifts for our friends and family, and to ready our homes for the season. But imagine with me for a moment what it would be like to have your own personal guide to help you map out an efficient route through the store. No more combing aisles to find that perfect shoe-rack, or having to book it the entire length of a Super Target to get that pair of headphones you forgot.

A new startup called ByteLight is working on an innovative new idea for an indoor GPS-like system with the help of LEDs and smartphones. The idea is to have an app or program for the phone that guides shoppers to find exactly what they’re looking for within a store (and even find discounts on products).

Instead of sending a signal out to space like a normal GPS, your phone would connect wirelessly with the LED lights in the store to guide you where you want to go.

For the system to function, the LED light bulb would blast a specially designed light signal to the camera of your smartphone to determine your location. The signal would consist of blinking patterns of light, too rapid for the human eye to notice. The technology would be able to detect a person’s location within one meter, and do it in less than a second.

To get the system to actually work for you, ByteLight’s software would need to be installed on your smartphone and the LED lights would need a special chip to send the signal.

The chip within the LED would be cheap to add, and would use the shopper’s location to help them find their way to the products they want, also delivering targeted ads. Any current smartphone camera would work with the system. Continue reading »

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UK Goes Pink With Light For Breast Cancer Awareness

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Oct 172012

PinExt UK Goes Pink With Light For Breast Cancer Awareness

Check it:

buckingham palace pink UK Goes Pink With Light For Breast Cancer Awareness

Image via BreastCancerCampaign.org

They’re not playing around across the pond this year when it comes to breast cancer. The Breast Cancer Campaign partnered with the city of London earlier this month to turn some famous landmarks pink with light.

Besides Buckingham Palace, the list includes (but isn’t limited to):

The Tower of London

Tower of London UK Goes Pink With Light For Breast Cancer Awareness

Image via Metro.co.uk

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