By Scott Watson

The history of lighting  is quite detailed and long. Lighting systems and sources have actually come a long way. If you must understand the practical aspects of LEDs and other lighting sources, it’s necessary you grab some details about their long history.  All the lighting sources and systems in use today didn’t fall from above. Some individuals somewhere invested their time and energy in invention them.   An attempt is made in this write-up to present a brief history   of how the issue of lighting began in our world.

The very first practical step taken towards the invention of light was done in the 1880s by the famous scientist; Edison.  He came up with the first incandescent light bulb.  This was after several attempts.  He kept thinking of creating something that will help people to enjoy life during the dark hours of the day. After several attempts, he finally succeeded in inventing the incandescent light. Thus, Edison is now well known as the father of light.   The bulk of the lighting systems and sources we enjoy today emanated from the very first attempt he made in inventing light.

Edison’s incandescent light bulb became highly cherished in his time and afterwards.  Several scientists and inventors keep improving upon the invention.  In the early 1950s, the fluorescent tubes came to the fore. They became very popular even till date.   Several variations of light bulbs were also invented.  LEDs were also invented and they actually became very popular in the early 2000s.

Now, the issue is what will  the future look like? There have been   progressive attempts  by many   inventors  in the creation of  light systems.   Since Edison came up with the first incandescent  light bulb, several variations of   the same bulb have been made.  Today, we have all manner of  incandescent bulbs  in diverse  shapes and designs.  Apart from this, fluorescent  tubes, halogens,  and many other lighting sources have been invented.   They keep changing by the day. Their inventors keep  looking for ways to make them look much better  as the years roll by.  Today, LEDs are  in use all over place.  From incandescent light, we moved to fluorescent tubes, halogens and then to LEDs.  Many  people are now asking what  the future will look like.

In an attempt to  answer the question  on what the future will be for the lighting systems, Jeff Tsao who is  a member of the Technical Staff in the famous Sandia National Labs  came up with some  research details in 2009.  He traced the history  of light  from the use of candles to kerosene lamps and from  the use of gas lighting to  incandescent bulbs, fluorescent  tubes and LEDs.   He came up with some startling revelations.  He opined that the world has actually spent over 0.72% of its GDP on lighting alone.  Tsao says that if this trend continues in the near future,  there are bound to be   consequences that will surprise the world.  One  of  the resultant effects is that  lighting systems and sources  are likely to become more  useful and efficient.  The use of light will also increase in leaps and bounds.

Tsao  is also of the opinion that  the  invention of  LEDs will also  increase the  efficiency of fluorescent tubes and other lighting systems.  This will also improve the  consumption of light in the world.  More energy will also be saved since LEDs don’t consume much power  like other  lighting sources  that were invented before them.  The cost of electricity will also decrease while the total GDP percentage used on lighting will also  decrease.  

Actually, the above conclusion presented by Tsao is  really  the scenario in our world today.  There’s apparent   decline  in the cost of electricity worldwide.  More efficient lighting systems  have continued to  be invented  by many manufacturers.  Many governments all over the world are now introducing measures to  minimize the cost of energy invested in light.    Some governments    suggest people should be replacing   incandescent bulbs with CFLs.  For instance,   if a  60W is replaced with 15W CFLs,  45W   energy will be saved  in the in the process.

Meanwhile, this idea of energy saving  has not been widely realized by many users of light across the world.  Some people don’t even know the energy  difference  in various lighting sources. Many  also don’t know the  energy concerns that involve the use of various kinds of lighting systems.  In most cases,  people desire to  use light bulbs that are brighter  for some reasons.  They don’t care about the energy consumption involved. All they want is to  enjoy the  use of the best light bulb that will give them enough brightness.

In any case, the fact is that  energy consumption will be highly  reduced if people start using LEDs.  If  many people will  take time to discover the rich benefits in the use of LEDs, more energy will be saved.  LEDs are known for their efficiency and low power consumption. The cost of electricity  is likely to reduce when  LEDs are fully  put into use.  All over the world, governments have become  interested in the regulation of light usage in their various countries.  The major steps  the government should take is to educate the masses on  ways  of reducing energy consumption.   Scientists and  manufacturers of quality LEDs and other  lighting systems should be  encouraged to educate the masses on the  best  lighting sources to use.  This will go a long way  to making  our world a better place to live in.  More energy will be saved as the cost of electricity will also be reduced.

In all, the history  of  lighting  is indeed a very  long  one.  The attempt made above  actually focused on the  effects  of lighting systems on our world.  Attention is currently being  focused on what the future will be especially with the introduction  of LEDs.   It’s becoming very clear by the day that LEDs have a lot to offer to the world.  If we take time to discover more about the practical aspects of LEDs,  our world will surely become a better place to live in.