LED Thermally-Related Premature Failure

How Lighting Innovations, Inc. LED Avoids this Dilemma

 

Despite an efficiency advantage over other light sources, LEDs can still suffer reliability issues if all parts of the lighting system, including the driver, aren’t properly protected from over-temperature situations, says Steve Roberts. (Technical Manager Europe Recom Power)

LEDs are typically around three times as efficient as traditional forms of incandescent lighting and yet they will still fail prematurely if not mounted onto a bulky heat sink. It seems counter intuitive to have a more efficient solid state light that needs more heat-sinking than an inefficient traditional light. A robust thermal system design must account for all elements of the lighting system including the driver. (Note that watts are the radiometric units of radiant flux while the more commonly given LED specification of lumens are photometric units of luminous flux.)

Lighting Innovations, Inc.’s LED fixtures prevent premature failure and rapid degradation of the LED lumens of photometric units of luminous flux by separating the LED from the Vac to Vdc driver. The LED is located inside the moisture resistant fixture body utilizing a specially designed heat sink, while the Vac to Vdc driver is located outside the fixture body with special heat dissipation design. The lower the temperature of the connection point of the LED to the circuit board, the brighter the lumen output of the LED and the longer rated life.