Jordan Valley, a leading supplier of X-ray based in-line metrology systems for advanced semiconductor manufacturers and equipment suppliers, today announced that it received a strategic order for its QC3 High Resolution X-ray Diffraction (HRXRD) System for strain & thin films metrology from AIXTRON R&D center in the U.S.

Veeco Instruments announced today that KaiStar Lighting, based in Xiamen, China has ordered multiple TurboDisc® EPIK700™ Gallium Nitride (GaN) Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition (MOCVD) systems. KaiStar, a joint venture between Epistar Corporation and Shenzhen Kaifa Technology Co., Ltd., will use the EPIK700 systems to ramp production of light emitting diodes (LEDs) for the general lighting market.

LEDinside recently interviewed Kevin Lucido, Director of Global Marketing Communications at Lumileds, Philips, about the company’s business and technology developments after Go Scale Capital acquires the company.

Much to the industry’s surprise, Philips Lumileds was sold to Asian consortium led by Chinese investment firm GO Scale Capital Investment. The investment firm, which also invests in several Chinese LED companies, has acquired 80.1% of Lumileds shares. This development will likely assist Chinese LED market developments.

Philips kicked off the smart bulb market nearly three years ago with its pricey Huebulb, but at this year's CES a horde of new entrants emerged.  The transition from incandescent to more energy efficient bulbs is an opening through which smart bulbs – LED bulbs with wireless radios built in, which can be controlled remotely – are gaining a foothold according to Strategy Analytics' Smart Home Strategies latest report. Belkin, GE and Philips are joined by Awox, Cree, LIFX, Sengled and a host of others are profiled in "Smart Light Bulbs: The Competitive Landscape".

Rival Korean consumer electronics manufacturers LG and Samsung have finally agreed to bury the legal hatchet, reported BBC and PC Magazine.

LED grow light module markets at US $395 million in 2014 are forecast to reach $1.8 billion by 2021.  Rapid growth is anticipated as green house and plant factory growers find the LED grow lights improve agriculture, projected WinterGreen Research.

Until now, the wearables revolution in technology has centered mostly on health and fitness devices. Today it enters the realm of music with the Soundbrenner Pulse, the world’s first wearable device designed specifically for musicians. Engineered in Berlin by a team of entrepreneurial musicians and designed to help musicians keep the beat and become better performers, the Soundbrenner Pulse is available now to pre-order at //indiegogo.soundbrenner.com with special pricing of US $129. The retail price will be $149.

The promising new material molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) has an inherent issue that’s steeped in irony. The material’s greatest asset—its monolayer thickness—is also its biggest challenge.

Flexfire LEDs, a producer of linear LED lighting products and accessories, announces the opening of a new distribution center at 14761 Franklin Ave, Unit G, Tustin, CA, 92780. The U.S.-based company applauds the opening as an opportunity to expand its global operations, and further solidify its standing as a leading producer and supplier in the global marketplace for signature brand LED strip lighting products and accessories.

Over the past year, the LED industry had pondered about the company that would eventually take over Philips lighting component (Philips Lumileds) and automotive business. Go Scale Capital's acquisiton of Lumileds just might be the solution to Chinese manufacturers lack of LED patents, said LEDinside analysts.

GO Scale Capital, an investment fund sponsored by GSR Ventures and Oak Investment Partners has announced today that it will acquire an 80.1% interest in Philips' combined LED components and Automotive lighting business, with Philips retaining the remaining 19.9%* interest. The transaction values the business at an enterprise value of approximately USD 3.3 billion. The transaction is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2015, subject to closing conditions, including customary regulatory approvals.

Leicester, a city in UK, will be spending almost GBP 1 million (US$1.48 million) in LED traffic lights, reported Leicester Mercury.

Veeco Instruments announced Susan Wang has been nominated for appointment to its Board of Directors. Her appointment is subject to shareholder approval, which is being sought at Veeco’s 2015 annual meeting of stockholders, scheduled to occur on May 13, 2015.

Innovative technology allows LED fixture manufacturers to create wireless-enabled LED lighting solutions for their commercial and industrial customers to seamlessly interact with wireless control solutions

Lincoln today introduces the Continental Concept, signaling an all-new full-size sedan coming next year and the future of quiet luxury.

A Canadian-financed company, Graphene Lighting, has succeeded in commercializing graphene LED light bulbs, and will be launching the lights on the market sometime later this year, reported BBC.

Traffic signals in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) will be replaced with LED technology, said the city’s Department of Transport (DoT) recently.

By replacing inefficient incandescent bulbs with LEDs, India could save up to $7 billion per year, said the country’s Power Minister Piyush Goyal recently.

North America is the largest region and Asia represents the fastest-growing region in the surgical lamps market. LED represents the largest and fastest-growing technology in surgical lamps market. High color rendering index (CRI) light lamps account for the largest segment while vein light lamps are the fastest-growing light lamps segment in the market.

Nanoco Group plc, a world leader in the development and manufacture of cadmium-free quantum dots and other nanomaterials, and Marl International, a pioneer of the LED lighting industry, today announced that they have entered into a partnership to bring novel LED lighting products to market. The new products will feature Nanoco’s cadmium-free quantum dot technology.

Shunfeng International Clean Energy Limited (SFCE) announced that it has signed an MOU with Lattice Power to acquire a 51% ownership stake in the company. SFCE's successful bid in Lattice Power is a milestone for the listed company as it transitions to become a global low carbon solutions provider. Lattice Power's gallium nitride (GaN) on silicon technology is exclusively patented worldwide, offering significant cost advantages compared to sapphire substrate technology LED. The partnership expands SFCE's portfolio and increases the profitability of the listed company.

Digital Lumens announced strategic expansions to its team, with Kaynam Hedayat joining as Vice President of Product Management, and Jason Hanna as Director of Software Products. These new executives will help Digital Lumens expand its lighting and energy management solution portfolio, which brings the benefits of the Internet of Things (IoT) to commercial and industrial customers worldwide.

How many researchers does it take to change a light bulb? And how many lives could they save by changing it?

LEDinside team was at TILS 2015 for most of this week, so apologies for the low article volume. There will be more articles coming up next week about some of the trending technologies and products at the show, so please stay tuned for more. Philips is working on a Philips Hue App for the Apple Watch, which allows the smart watch to also work as a controller.

Backlight orders have eased this month, but will rebound in April, a UDN report cited Epistar Chairman B.J. Lee saying at Taiwan International Lighting Show (TILS) 2015.

Royal Philips, the global leader in lighting, has been selected by the city of Szczecin in Poland to renew its street lighting system with LED technology. By September 2015, Philips will replace 5,000 existing street lights with new LED luminaires, reducing the city’s total energy bill by EUR 360,000 per year. The project is executed within “SOWA – energy efficient street lighting” run by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management in Poland.

C3 Lighting Solutions has developed the first Advanced Digital Classroom Lighting System that can address lighting and acoustics, both necessary for improved learning.  “Imagine the impact on a child’s academic career if they attended a school where the classroom lighting reduced their test errors by 45% and increased their reading speed by 35%” said Rick Farrell, President of C3 Lighting Solutions. 

Bad LED streetlight installations can be a nusiance for local residents, as seen in the latest complaint from residents in Windsor Terrace, New York, U.S.

Traditional methods of learning to play an instrument can be frustrating for beginners, especially when it comes to memorizing instrument key position and music scores.