LEDs
Home
Tesla coil sparks
Tesla coils
Modern Thinker
Red Alert Tesla
Hi volt Antivirus
Xmas
High Voltage supplies
High Voltage sparks
Lifters
Jacobs Ladder
Can Crushing
Pulse Power
Low Voltage Power
LEDs
Electronics
Laser - YAG gas
Laser - Nitrogen
Laser - Diode
Laser - Misc
Rail gun
Ferrofluid
Liquid Nitrogen
Magnetic Levitation
Magnetohydrodynam.
Nuclear, X-ray
Interesting Stuff
Public Displays
Nature Photo Gallery
Failures
Misc
Galleries
About Me
Links
Media
Whats New Blog?

       

 

 

    

 

 


Miscellaneous LED topics on this page with 50 photos include:

bullet

100 W LED

bullet

LED light patterns

bullet

Green ring

bullet

3 colour ring

bullet

Toe ring

bullet

Flashing glasses

bullet

1 W white LED

bullet

Pyramid

bullet

A whatchyamacallit

bullet

Power transistor as a LED

Miscellaneous LED topics on other pages include:

bullet

World's Brightest Bike Light

bullet

Xmas

bullet

LED light patterns

bullet

High speed Tesla spark photography - LED polarity, current indicator

horizontal rule

 

I have done many projects using LED's. The biggest and best is the World's Brightest Bike Light in 2010.  Head there if you want to see the big stuff first.

 LED Bike full power into trees.

100 W LED 2009

To paraphrase Crocodile Dundee:  "That's not an LED, THIS is an LED!"
Here a battery powered LED, balanced on a fence post, lights up a lighthouse.

Lighting a lighthouse! This is a hugely powerful LED made from a 100 x 1W LEDs.  It cost AUD$500 from China (in 2009) on an eBay store here. It produces 7000 lumens and runs on 34 V 3.2 A.  It needs to have a heatsink capable of perhaps 90W.  The Bunbury lighthouse is on but you cant see it's beams easily in the photo from this angle. The 100W LED runs on three 1.3 AH, 12 V SLA batteries attached to the LED which is resting on on the wooden fence here. It is fan cooled and runs around 3 A 34 V via a 0.4 ohm resistor, if I recall.

 

 (click to enlarge)

If you look closely, you can see the bonding wires for each row of 10 LEDs.  So lets turn it on and increase the power slowly.


  (click to enlarge)

This is a series showing increasing current from 0.1 uA, 1 uA, 1 mA, 100 mA in turn.  Voltages range from 16.36 V up to 27.61 V. The first pic is a long exposure of 19 seconds and the last pic is covered by dark glass from welding goggles and is 1/160th sec.

 (click to enlarge)

Note the uneven lighting of the different LEDs on the left at 10 mA.  I was particularly worried about the row where the rest of the LEDs are brighter suggesting the dead segment is a short circuit.  At a higher current of 100 mA, however, all segments lit equally.  I was worried for a while.


  (click to enlarge)

Above shows a small CPU heatsink bolted to the back of the LED. Last photo shows my infrared thermometer after a short run with the small heatsink.  It is rated at up to 80 C operating.

Specifications:
Long lasting (Last up to 100000hours), Low Power Consumption, Intensely Bright
More Energy efficient than Incandescent and most Halogen Lamps, Low Forward Voltage Operated, Instant Light (Less than 100ns), High ESD Protection (More than 3KV), No UV
Source Material: InGaN
Emitting Colour: White
Luminous Intensity: Min:6400 lumens Max:7400 lumens
Reverse Voltage:5.0 V, DC Forward Voltage: Typical: 32 V Max: 36V
DC Forward Current: Typical: 3000mA Max: 3500mA, Viewing Angle:160 degree
Lead Soldering Temp:260°C for 5 seconds
Size of led: 40mm X 46mm
led emitter size: 21.5mm X 21.5mm Viewing Angle:160 *Absolute Maximum Ratings at Ta=25°C:
Power Dissipation
Pd 125 Watt
Peak Forward Current
(1/10 Duty Cycle,0.1ms Pulse Width) IF(peak) 3500 mA
Continuous Forward Current IF 3000 mA
LED junction temperature JT 85 °C
Reverse Voltage VR 5 V
Operating temperature range
Topr -20°C to + 80°C
Storage Temperature Range
Tstg -30°C to + 100°C
*Electrical/Optical Characteristics at Ta=25°C:
Parameter Symbol Test Condition
Min. Typ. Max. Unit
Luminous flux ф IF=3000mA 6400 - 7400 Lumens
Viewing Angle 2θ1/2 IF=3000mA 160 deg
Forward Voltage VF IF=3000mA 32 - 36 V
Reverse Current IR VR=5V 100uA
Color Rendering Index Calculation Spm X 0.280 - 0.340
Spm Y 0.280 - 0.340
Correspondingly CCT IF=1500mA 5500 6500 7500 K

 (click to enlarge)

Above shows a comparison with a standard candle at 10 mA, 100 mA, 1000 mA and 2,700 mA.  Painfully bright and swamps the candle for photographic reference.

  (click to enlarge)

The left photo above shows my shed lit with the LED plus a 150 W incandescent globe for comparison.  The right photo shows it held up to the sun.

These LEDs are designed for street lighting.  Many US cities including LA and NY are doing feasibility studies on replacing their 100,000 plus streetlights. These would replace low or high pressure sodium lights or metal halides.  Low pressure sodium is unpleasant because of the monochromatic yellow but very efficient. High pressure sodium is more white but less efficient.  Some comparative information on luminous efficacy is here. LEDs are about as efficient but have lower maintenance. There are other advantages in smaller packaging and better beam direction to reduce wastage. For example there are different beams for a street than an intersection or junction. All this does stack the data in favour of the LED. Cost being the main difference.  A range of streetlights is here up to arrays of 200 W.  Different colors up to 500W here with 20,000 lumens. And cheaper 100W LEDs at $118 here.

 (click to enlarge)

I built it up into PVC tubing (above) with a rectangular connection that just nicely fitted the heatsink/fan. I used a CPU fan of medium size as the last one was nowhere near good enough. This one seems to keep the temp down to perhaps 42 C.  I was making the black housing to accommodate 3 SLA 12 batteries. Then I thought it might look interesting as a mechanical arm attachment vaguely reminiscent of Iron man or one of the Transformers (robots). You can see how bright it is in sunlight on my arm. I was rushing to finish this portable full power version by Earth Hour so I could turn off the lights (briefly) while I had a group of photographers here during a Tesla session.

  (click to enlarge)

The left photo above is the LED on the left in comparison with a 500 W halogen floodlight on the right.  Beam coverage is similar or better and it looks brighter to me particularly when you look at the shadows.  LED is running on the battery pack at perhaps 75 W. The right photo shows the LED in comparison with car headlights on high beam (100 W halogens each). Beams are very different but LED is easily brighter.

(click to enlarge)

Above is the LED shining through a 180mm camera lens which projects a very clear image onto the corrugated shed wall. You can see great detail with the 30 times magnification including the bonding wires and chip details. One can even pick out the light from a single segment with an additional lens like this "crystal ball".


 (click to enlarge)

Above is the LED on the left It so happens that the chip light is in a "3" shape brought out with contrast adjustment. One of the individual LEDs is marginally brighter or in better focus and stands out unusually.

   (click to enlarge)

Above is the LED with a focusing lens.  I have played with a lot of random lenses, spherical mirrors, Fresnel lenses and glass spheres out of my optics box but have no idea what I am doing. The best performance was with a magnifier used for looking at skin lesions and I have bolted this to the LED. It is close and broad enough to capture a reasonable proportion of the light output as given by the light output curves.

  (click to enlarge)

Above is the LED on my bike with the focusing lens. It makes my very adequate 3 W LED bike headlight look rather puny. It's like having a new weapon on your space fighter.  Now, let's go and use it irresponsibly...

  (click to enlarge)

Above, left, is the normal 3 W LED on my bike with the lights of a passing car just as it is about to pass me. Then the same with the 100 W LED.

Now, how about burning some stuff?

(click to enlarge)

Well, I tried the obvious (above) - black cloth on the unfocussed output. Here are the results in a sequence from switch on to 14 secs later. So there it is.  It can burn things.
LED safety 101. Do not stand next to a LED with your remaining black tee shirt. Can I do better?



 (click to enlarge)

How about burning a CD case above? Took 1:45 mins to make a hole, but my heatsink fan was also cooling the target a bit. I had to give my batteries a bit of a hand to keep up near rated power as I still don't have a proper constant current supply.

(click to enlarge)

To test the infrared output, I used a special infrared filter (specs here). By connecting it to my silicon photodetector cell in the center photo, I got 9 mV of infrared only output. On the right photo without the filter I get 425 mV which is total output. Hence the infrared is only 0.5 % of total output. Similar readings on an incandescent globe give about 92 % infrared. What this means is that the incandescent globe puts out much more total radiation but most of it is in the infrared. The globe radiates the heat whereas the LED puts it into a fan cooled heatsink.

The 100W LED article has done reasonably well in the media. It got 100,000 hits after it was slashdotted and made it to 80 websites.  These are shown on the Backwards links page - search with (control F) for 100W LED. Was popular on cycling, LED and scuba forums.

horizontal rule

LED light patterns 2008 
A selection of photos of moving LED light sources shows them in a new light.

   (click to enlarge) 

Above left photo This is a small commercial battery powered LED array that my wife wanted suspended above the BBQ.  I have covered one of the LEDs with blue cellophane.  The right photo shows it suspended above the camera. Now just give the lights a push and take a time exposure.


(click to enlarge) 

Above left photo Pushing the array in a simple circular motion with some spin gives intricate geometric patterns. Center photo It's like you could almost grab it.  This looks very much like a toroid used on top of my Tesla coils.  The right photo shows the path followed by the one blue colored LED.

This next one below is a little fan with programmed LEDs in one of the soft plastic blades and was bought in Hong Kong (thanks Gail).  The flash rate and sequence of each LED varies.

  (click to enlarge) 

Above left photo The fans with its 5 LEDs is stationary.   The right photo shows it running and you can see the pattern which constantly changes.


(click to enlarge)  

Left and center photos show the fan rotating spiral giving a lot of detailed patterns. Pushing the array in a simple circular motion with some spin gives intricate geometric patterns.  It's like you could almost grab it.  This looks very much like a toroid used on top of my Tesla coils.  The right photo? Hmm.. only a mother could love a nerd like this.

horizontal rule

Green ring 2002 (below) uses a 6 volt miniature battery, microswitch and a 120 ohm dropping resistor. The green super high intensity Gallium Indium Nitride LED is rated at 14,000 mcd at 20 mA (= 5 mW) and is dazzling in line with its 15 degree beam. They cost A$10. The microswitch is operated by a thumb press.

  (click to enlarge)

horizontal rule

3 colour ring 2002

(click to enlarge)

Three high intensity LEDs (red 8,000 mcd, blue 3,000 mcd, green 14,000 mcd) are flashed at different frequencies although the little battery doesn't handle the full rated power of the LEDs. It uses 3 x 555 IC's, 3 capacitors, 6 resistors, a microswitch and the battery.

horizontal rule

Toe ring 2002

(click to enlarge)

This was a bit of silliness as a one off for a "sock hop' dance to give my toe tapping some visual impact. The red Aluminium Gallium Indium Phosphide LED is rated at 8,000 mcd and is visible through a light pair of socks. It is flashed with a microswitch as your foot hits the ground.

horizontal rule

Flashing glasses 1981

(click to enlarge)

This model was made in about 1981. I think you have to be drunk or stoned to get much pleasure out of these and as I don't do either, they are only brought out on special occasions. It is interesting watching them circulate though a disco from person to person. I haven't lost them yet. They use a 555 timer driving a 4017 CMOS decade LED driver with each leg driving 4 standard low intensity LEDs (?20 mcd) with each side rotating in opposite directions and cycling through different colours. There is a speed control to go from standstill to continuously on. It takes a lot of interconnections around the frames. If I was to remake them I would use a smaller rechargeable battery and high intensity LEDs.  The coloured rings are, of course, the appropriate fashion accessory for the glasses.

   (click to enlarge)

Well, just occasionally I wear them in 2008, 27 years later like at night in this 24 hour charity relay walk.  I have resisted the temptation to put in high intensity multicolor modern LEDs but maybe I'll make a new model sometime.

horizontal rule

Pass4sure offers guaranteed 220-701 training resources including up to date N10-004 dumps and 640-822 test engine.

horizontal rule

1 W white LED 2004.  This LED (Luxeon Star) is 180,000 mcd and draws 1 watt (350 mA at 3.4 V) and was claimed to be the worlds brightest series of LEDs in 2003.  Since then 5 W LEDs are available (and of course, now that it 2011, the 100 W LED at the top of this page). It has a heat sink and a separate collimator for a 10 degree beam.  It cost AUD$36 on eBay.  Shown below after I mounted it on some acrylic with a voltage regulator in the handle.  The brightness comparison with a pencil torch is dramatic and is over 10 times brighter than the LEDs above. It came with its specifications on a floppy disk.

  (click to enlarge)

horizontal rule

Pyramid 1980's

  (click to enlarge)

This is an electronic art piece made in the early 1980's inspired by a sound only version in a local art gallery. This has a variety of circuits to flash the 50 or so LEDs in various ways. There are 3 mercury switches to sense the position of the pyramid which can be tipped with any of the 3 apices up with different results. It turns on in response to decreasing ambient light intensity hence will turn on as you approach. The actual light intensity controls the flash rate. It 'plays' electronic sounds and also has a door bell chime chip to play 24 tunes in sequence as one of the options. There are no printed circuit boards and all wiring is point to point and supported by the inner and outer pyramids which are also the supply rails.

horizontal rule

A whatchyamacallit  1980's   Not sure what to call this thing made about 30 years ago.

  (click to enlarge)

It used some sort of transistor oscillator (now covered in tape) driving an E core iron electromagnet at >20 kHz. It runs from a small 9 V battery and has a reed switch in it to turn on. You bring the box of matches with a hidden magnet just visible here close to turn it on. It induces a current in the coil of unknown turns to drive two LEDs on a smiley face. The LEDs still light up about an inch away.   It still works but I have replaced the LEDs after the leads broke and replaced some of the tape.  So, remote signaling and remote power transfer 1980 style!

horizontal rule

Power transistor as a LED 2006  This unusual effect shows how a current between base and emitter makes a semiconductor junction emit light.  To show this one needs to expose the silicon chip in a NPN power transistor such as a 2N3055.  With the 2N3055 base negative and emitter positive 11.4 V current 400 mA are drawn and the junction lights up. The chip is 2 mm wide.

  (click to enlarge)

Camera has 2 sec exposure in darkened room with a plastic magnifying lens.

This page was last updated January 19, 2011