Osram is definitely showcasing how it is exploring more profitable niche markets, such as the launch of green LEDs for heart rate monitoring in wearable devices. LEDinside thinks Osram might have been Apple Watch’s green LED supplier, due to the many similarities in the product features.

Authorities in Zhejiang Province, China reported seizing nearly 8,000 counterfeited Opple LED tubes valuing RMB 176,760 (US $28,483.03), reported Nanhu Evening News.  

NXP Semiconductors announced a partnership with Xiaomi, a global leader in wireless connectivity and security solutions. The agreement will see NXP provide its latest innovative low power wireless connectivity solution for the new Xiaomi Smart Home Suite.

Osram Opto has released new green LED products specifically designed for heart monitoring. The green LEDs for heart rate monitoring are probably similar to the ones used in Apple Watch for heart rate tracking. The mechanism used to measure heart rate is similar, in which it relies on measuring light absorbed by blood vessels and surrounding tissues. For further details about the new green LEDs please see Osram Opto’s full press release below:

Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA) announced that today’s Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (AGM) has approved the separation of the Lighting business from Royal Philips. Following the vote in Amsterdam, Royal Philips will continue the process to set up two market-leading independent companies that will focus on the vast opportunities in health technology and lighting solutions.

Rubicon Technology, a leading provider of sapphire substrates and products to the LED, semiconductor, and optical industries, today reported financial results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2015.

Universal Display Corporation, enabling energy-efficient displays and lighting with its UniversalPHOLED® technology and materials, reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2015.

Pixelligent Technologies announced that it has been selected for a Phase II Solid State Lighting award from the US Department of Energy to support the development of advanced light-extraction materials for OLED Lighting. Pixelligent has partnered with OLEDWorks for this grant, which follows work on a Phase I award from September 2014.

On April 30, 2015, Lunera Lighting issued a press release claiming to have filed a lawsuit naming seven defendants, including MaxLite, Inc., SATCO Products, Inc. and Topaz Lighting Corporation. Based on available information, the lawsuit appears baseless. MaxLite, SATCO and Topaz are aware of allegations made by Lunera directly to the industry, including allegations that a ballast-compatible plug-in LED lamp product is not in compliance with UL. The referenced LED lamp product is UL listed. All allegations to the contrary are completely without support. The three companies believe these allegations to be without merit and intend to disprove them. 

Litecool (//www.litecool.co.uk), a innovator in LED packaging and thermal performance, announced today that it has filed a patent on a PCB-free LED package known as Lumen Block™. This new technology enables the assembly of LED arrays with no circuit board putting the LED package directly on the heat sink for ultimate thermal performance and cost reduction.

To make bikers more visible on streets during night time, two Canadian designers have come up with a creative LED rear bike light design that literally requires bikers with “some balls” to mount on a bike seat.

Ledman Opto will be building on its LED package, display, lighting and energy saving service foundation to expand its operations in soccer and other sports applications, said the company’s Chairman Mantie Li at a 2014 financial result briefing.

Edison Opto and Epistar have jointly won a 10 million LED bulb Indian government contract valuing NT $300 million (US $9.77 million), according to an UDN report.

In two separate company statements released yesterday, Epistar board approved fully integrating TSMC Solid State Lighting (元芯光电), and non-public issuance of 165 million company shares to raise capital.

Veeco Instruments announced its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2015. Results are reported in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and are also reported adjusting for certain items (“Non-GAAP”). A reconciliation between GAAP and Non-GAAP operating results is provided at the end of this press release.

With the current lumen boost of many tier 1 LED manufacturers, the demand raised exponentially for ultra-low profile LED coolers for use in height restricted down light applications.

Luminus, a global manufacturer of high-performance LEDs , announced today a new family of ultra high density chip on board (COB) arrays designed to replace ceramic metal halide technology commonly used in spot lights for retail lighting.  The new "XH" series COBs are available in a variety of standard light emitting surface (LES) diameters including 6, 9, 11, and 14mm, which means that customers can use their existing ecosystems for optics and connectors, while producing new bulbs and fixtures with higher lumen output and increased center beam candle power(CBCP).  

Genesis Photonics Inc. (GPI) second largest investor, Chicony, has acquired a 7% stake worth NT $350 million (US $11.14 million) of Everlight bonds, reported China Times.

According to a new market report published by Transparency Market Research “Smart Lighting Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast, 2014 - 2020,” global smart lightning market was valued at US$  21 billion in 2013, growing at a CAGR of 15.9% from 2014 to 2020 to account for US$  56.62 billion in 2020.

Winners in the Indoor and Outdoor categories of the seventh annual Next Generation LuminairesTM Design Competition were announced today at LIGHTFAIR® International in New York. Sponsored by DOE, the Illuminating Engineering Society, and the International Association of Lighting Designers, NGL promotes excellence in the design of energy-efficient LED products for commercial lighting applications.

WeMo®, the Internet of Things brand from Belkin International, and Cree, the leader in LED lighting, today announced a strategic relationship to integrate Cree® LED lighting solutions with the WeMo ecosystem. Under the agreement, the first WeMo-compatible Cree bulb will be the Connected Cree® LED Bulb, with a potential to expand to other offerings in the future. 

Providing a distinct aesthetic advantage, LEDs are allowing designers to reinvent lamps and light itself in ways that once seemed impossible. The innumerable benefits of LED lights in terms of energy-efficiency, environment-friendliness, cost-saving, zero UV emissions and design flexibility opens new opportunities for architects & interior designers, urban, town and smart city planners, project management consultants, building contractors and Lighting engineers. The technological potential of LEDs is only beginning to be realized and with the right blend can provide designers and town planners the flexibility to adjust and adapt the ambiance of indoor, outdoor, commercial and residential spaces with minimal energy consumption.

Retailers eager to more effectively communicate with in-store shoppers can now use LED lighting to do so, as Acuity Brands announced the commercial availability of its lighting-based ByteLight™ Services for indoor positioning.

Beth Comstock, President & CEO, GE Business Innovations, today shared GE’s plans to engineer intelligent, color-changing LED lighting compatible with Apple’s HomeKit during GE’s Connected Future event, unveiling LED-enabled Intelligent Environments capabilities for cities, buildings and homes.

The U.S. Department of Energy has announced the competitive selection of nine solid-state lighting (SSL) projects to receive funding, in response to the funding opportunity announcement (FOA) DE-FOA-0001171 (“Solid-State Lighting Advanced Technology R&D – 2015”). These one- to two-year projects will focus on all three existing DOE SSL R&D program areas:

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., announced today that it will demonstrate for the first time, the company's new open, secure, and connected platform for smart lighting at LIGHTFAIR International 2015, being held in New York, May 5-7.

To become a leading country in the LED industry, Taiwan should not step down in patent lawsuits, a Chinese-language Liberty Times report quoted Everlight Chairman Robert Yeh saying.

In part one of the Dazhaoming article last week, a couple of Chinese LED experts offered their perspectives on how low pricing strategies would affect Philips. In this second half more experts offer their valuable insights.

Europe and Asia have been driving advanced automotive LED lighting developments, while the technology has been slow to pick up in the U.S., due to more stringent legal requirements, reported New York Times.

Apple admitted tattoos can interfere with Apple Watch heart rate readings, according to numerous media reports including Tech Crunch.