It’s reported that Taiwan’s government-funded Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) has teamed up with scores of LED makers to form an R&D alliance, in a bid to integrate industry resources to develop applications for AC LED technology.

ITRI has led the development of AC LED technology, which allows LED makers to build AC drivers instead of DC drivers into LEDs for improved thermal conductivity and advanced packaging. Besides, AC LEDs are smaller and more energy efficient than conventional models-cutting energy consumption by 15-30% by going from DC to AC.

Johnsee Lee, president of ITRI, noted that AC LED technology is the pride of the institute, which is fully protected by international patents and has piqued intense interest among major, international LED makers, such as Philips. And the institute’s move to ally local LED makers will hopefully urge its members to set testing standards and safety certifications for AC LED applications.

So far, 19 LED makers have joined the alliance, including Epistar Corp., Lite-On Technology Corp., Tyntek Corp., Everlight Electronics Corp. and Forward Electronics Co., Ltd. Lite-On indicated that the AC LED technology will likely help insiders to go upmarket with patents and spark a revolution in Taiwan’s LED industry. In fact, four Taiwan-based LED makers are already working on AC LED technology by themselves, with Tyntek and Epistar already engaged in development of high-efficiency AC LED chips; Forward in mass production technology of 5W AC LED modules, and Lite-On in packaging technology for high-power AC LEDs.