LEDs set to save trillions of dollars while spurring innovation globally
According to an article on Science Daily it turns out that with all the recent progresses with LED Lighting and related technologies, we could be saving huge sums of money very soon.Recent development in photonics and solid state lighting will lead to trillions of dollars saved, along with a massive reduction in the amount of energy consumed lighting homes and businesses around the world. At least, this is what the researchers say 
A new generation of lighting devices based on light-emitting diodes (LEDs) will supplant the common light bulb in coming years, the paper suggests. In addition to the environmental and cost benefits of LEDs, the technology is expected to enable a wide range of advances in areas as diverse as healthcare, transportation systems, digital displays, and computer networking.
Some heavy statistics from the article
If all of the world’s light bulbs were replaced with LEDs for a period of 10 years, Schubert and Kim estimate the following benefits would be realized:
- Energy savings of 1.9 × 1020 joules
- Electrical energy consumption would be reduced by terawatt hours
- Financial savings of $1.83 trillion
- Carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 10.68 gigatons
- Crude oil consumption would be reduced by 962 million barrels
- The number of required global power plants would be reduced by 280
Pretty crazy stuff. We love LED’s and are happy to be ahead of the curve when it comes to dedicated LED News.
New LED Micro Task Light for only 12 bucks!
Solutions has released this new LED micro task light. Perfect for those late night reading jaunts when your wife or girlfriend (or boyfriend if you swing that way) wants the lights off, but you want to read! We originally found out about this on Geek Alerts.
Of course, it’s energy efficient (all LED’s are), works off three triple A batteries, and provides nice bright LED white light to read. I’ve always found LED light the best to read by, besides sunlight.
Here’s a description of the handy little device:
Telescoping “arms” and a rotating head make it easy to aim the light where you want it across your page or keyboard. Unlike traditional bulbs, there are no filaments to break or wear out, so the LEDs never need replacing.
They also don’t waste energy by producing heat so batteries last longer.
Two settings. Uses three AAA batteries (not included).
High Powered LED Floor Lamps light your home, and save the environment!
Found this over on Metaefficient. Nice looking lamps, a little doctor’s office, sterile looking for me, but I assume this keeps manufacturing costs down. Great lamps and look like they spread a lot of light around too. Great for reading lamps, I swear LED lamps are the best to read by instead of halogen.
Here’s the article.
Koncept has released a new series of their I-Tower LED floor lamps. It’s good LED floor lamps becoming widely available. These lamps use the latest generation of high-power LEDs, which means they are brighter than the older I-Tower lamps, but they actually uses less power (8.8 watts). There are two models: a daylight version (~5500 Kelvin) and a warm-white version (~3500 Kelvin). The lamps have a built-in 4 step dimmer. Koncept says the lifespan of these lamps is “at least 40,000 operating hours”. They are available from Amazon for $154.
Mathmos releases cool LED Poplights. Delivering Colorful light, behind glass!
Found this one over on Technabob.. It’s cool that companies are doing this and releasing some nice styled lights, but what I would rather see is someone come out with something that is functional, not stylish. I would love to replace all the medium-base bulbs in my house with fully LED functional lights, but, at the current price points and longevity, it doesn’t make financial sense. If i went to brand names (phillips) etc, then I could replace everything, with longevity, but I’d be looking at like 1000$ to do the whole house with 12 lights. Granted, they’d last 35 years, but still. Bring that down to 500$ and I might take a gander.
Anyway, check out the fancy new lights.
The Poplight is the latest LED lighting fixture to come from Mathmos, the same guys responsible for the original Lava Lamp back in the 1960s.
Each Poplight is made from handblown glass and gradually fades between shades of blue, purple, violet, magenta, red, and back. The fixtures measure just a little more than 6-inches tall, making them perfect for a bookshelf or other small nook. While the LEDs are bright enough for an accent lamp, I wouldn’t try and read a book my the light of one of these.
Inside the glass shade, is an LED-illuminated plastic “bulb” which gleams with a mirrored silver coating when switched off.
If you live here in the States, you can grab the Poplight from Mathmos US for $75 each (about $88 with International shipping). If you happen to be fortunate enough to reside in Mathmos’ native UK, order from Mathmos UK for just £28 a pop.
New Portable LED work Light – the Tri-L
Found this over on MetaEfficient..
I’ve been testing the Tri-L LED light by Altus Lumen. I have to admit that this light has become one of my favorite gadgets. The design of the Tri-L shows great attention to detail. The metal housing is made out of 85% recycled magnesium which is lighter than aluminum, so the Tri-L feels solid yet light in your hand. When folded up, the light acts as a flashlight, and measures just 110×60×20mm, so it fits nicely in a pocket. When unfolded, the light becomes its own 360 degree tripod stand, and can be used as a serious worklight or booklight.
The Tri-L’s hinges are also impressive – they are made with fraction joins instead of screws. The light can be fixed precisely in any orientation you set.
The Tri-L has a built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery, which can be recharged using the provided USB charger, or via mini-USB cable attached to a computer. The runtime is around 1.8 hours for the flashlight, and around 8 hours for worklight once the battery is fully charged. The runtime can be extended with an optional extended battery pack.
The LEDs are latest high-intensity models and they are very bright. The worklight lit up my entire garage, and the flashlight is certainly bright enough for my needs.
The Tri-L will also warn you when it’s about to run out of power. It flashes for 30 seconds when its about to shut off — you have 30 seconds before the spotlight turns off, or 10 minutes before the flashlight runs out.
The manufacturer, Altus Lumen, state that 75% of the Tri-L is recyclable, and is built for easy disassembly. It is made with non-toxic components, and is LOHAS compliant. It is packaged in an eco-friendly carboard container.
The Tri-L sells for $99 and is available from Altus Lumen.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we now have a functional OLED lamp for Home use from Ingo Maurer
Found this over on Inhabitat today via Ecogeek.com. This is very cool, I for one am looking forward to more technology like this before I think about building a house so I can have solar/wind/water power instead of using hydro.
Exciting times.. read on..
It’s an exciting time for OLED technology as it finally begins to integrate into the home and designers start to realize its potential for efficient and inexpensive lighting solutions in a variety of stunning new applications. Resembling a tiny tree blossoming with lucent leaves, Ingo Maurer’s Early Future lamp is the world’s first to pack energy efficient OLED lighting into a tabletop form factor.
Organic light emitting diodes are incredibly energy efficient, long lasting, and can be produced on the cheap as evinced by GE’s recently rolled out OLED printing system. The two-dimensional panels emit broad swathes of diffuse light that is perfect for interior lighting applications, and they can even be rendered in a flexible format.
Ingo Maurer states: “They have a totally different look than traditional light sources. They neither require reflectors directing the light into the right direction nor large sockets. Their lightness allows the realisation of long-standing visions of mine”.
The Early Future lamp is the crowning achievement of Maurer’s artistic innovation and Osram’s team of 50 research engineers dedicated to the development of OLED technology. It features an elegant array of ten small (132 x 33 mm) OLED panels, and Maurer states that it “represents an important stage in the transition from abstract object to functional designer lighting”. The designer’s name and artistic acclaim are bringing to bear a hefty price tag for the lamp, but it’s a striking proof of concept that will hopefully light the way towards future innovations.
+ Osram
Photo source: Ingo Maurer/OSRAM
Via ecogeek.com
Loop LED Desk Lamp by TRØKK16
Award-winning Norwegian design house TRØKK16 will be exhibiting their latest designs at this year’s Milan International Furniture Fair , but before we unveil their latest works, we’d like to highlight a few of their outstanding past projects. The Loop LED Lamp puts traditional desk lamps to shame. This stylish desk light uses LEDs and needs only 5 watts to light up your work space and, perhaps, inspire your own eco-creations.
In addition to being a sleek, functional desktop accessory, the Loop lamp shines with impressive energy efficiency. It produces 600 lumen with just 15 Watts of power and the light source has a long expected lifespan of more than 50,000 hours. Since Loop takes advantage LED, the color of the light can be changed to fit any mood or set any ambient lighting feel, making it a versatile design that goes from work to play easily.
We’re not surprised that The Loop Lamp’s stellar design was the winner of the Prixluxo Award at the 2007 Stockholm Furniture Fair.
We first discovered TRØKK16 last year at HauteGreen in 2007, and since then, the Norwegian design team has continually inspired us with elegant, intelligent, eco-friendly interior designs. TRØKK16 will be debuting a whole bunch of brand new sustainable designs at this year’s Milan Furniture Fair and we can’t wait – stay tuned!
LED and OLED Home Lighting Systems Almost Ready for Prime Time
Found on Tree Hugger
Photo credit: matthewvenn
Today’s New York Times has a special section on innovation in technology, and among the things they see in their crystal ball is LED and OLED lighting systems for the home. Just around the corner, just about within reach.
The technology has been on the horizon for awhile now — we’ve seen a sprinkling of LED bulbs and lamps, and have been tracking the development of OLEDs (that’s organic light emitting diodes) with interest — and, as with many technological innovations, they’re a little buggy and a little (or a lot) spendy early in their development. But they’re getting some help; according to the article, “the Department of Energy is financing projects to overcome technical and marketing problems that have prevented the technology from successfully challenging more conventional incandescent and fluorescent lighting.”
Among their charms, LEDs and OLEDs have a nearly unlimited ability to be fine-tuned, allowing for things like improved light quality and focused directional light, and, perhaps most notably, are much more energy efficient than their incandescent and compact fluorescent counterparts.
Still, there’s a ways to go before we can expect to have an LED bulb in every socket, or an OLED in every panel or light box. Cost and light diffusion are two obstacles keeping the technologies from flooding the market, but that’s slowly changing; LEDs are finding their place as a replacement for halogen bulbs, and better diffusers are making them more viable as incandescent and CFL replacements. When will this happen? The crystal ball is a bit murky on this one, but it appears that the future of LEDs and OLEDs is brighter than ever. ::New York Times