Vizio’s previously released 55-inch 1080p/240Hz full-area LED backlit TV, model VF551XVT ($2,200 suggested retail), will ship to retail this September, according to John Schindler, the company’s new product development VP.

The new Tetra® LED Lighting System Architectural Series from GE Consumer & Industrial's lighting business offers a 50,000-hour rated life and delivers high LED performance and energy savings for designs incorporating border lighting, architectural accent lighting, cove lighting and wall washing.

I-Chiun Precision Industry Co., Ltd., a global supplier of LED (light-emitting diode) light guide frames, announced that it has established a joint venture with the Chinese American tycoon Jeffery Wu, a major shareholder of United International Bank of the U.S., to explore the LED lighting market in the U.S., according to a report in Taiwan Economic News.

The new LED series from Sharp encompasses eight new white SMD chip LEDs in PLCC2 packages. Their main feature is the high color rendering index of 80 and a light efficiency of up to 90 lm/W, depending on model. Sharp offers herewith its high brightness LEDs with an optimized light quality.

After several technology breakthroughs, Lebelight has become the first manufacturer in the world to mass-produce 130 lm grade 1W LEDs. This new grade of 1W white LEDs are low-cost, long-lasting, and ROHS and CE certified. Lebelight also announced similar breakthroughs to its 0.5W, 1W, 3W, 5W, 10W, 30W, and 100W single-packaged LEDs. Lebelight also produces LED light-fixtures including street lights, tunnel lights, solar-powered outdoor LED lights, coal miner lamps, emergency LED lights, LED bulbs, office and family LED lights, etc.

Samsung Electronics Co said it aimed to sell 2 million light-emitting-diode (LED) TVs this year, bringing the share of the ultra-slim and power-efficient TVs to 10% of its overall LCD TV shipments, according to Taipei Times. The figure would be two times higher than the current 3% average in the global market this year, according to the latest forecast by a market researcher released recently.

With an eye toward aesthetics and architectural enhancement, Amerlux Lighting Solutions has introduced its new Linear Wall Grazer, a polished extruded aluminum fixture housing 8 or 12 watt LED’s per linear foot, created specifically to enhance outstanding architectural surfaces and materials.   Optically and thermally engineered, Amerlux’s recessed LED Wall Grazer features a discreet 2-inch aperture, uses high-output white LEDs, and consumes less than 12 watts per foot with visually stunning results.

Lagotek Corporation, a developer of residential and commercial building automation systems, today announced an agreement with Advanced Control Technologies (ACT), a leader in the development of wired and wireless residential and commercial control products.

Light emitting diodes (LEDs) have been a hot topic in the TFT LCD market due to their rapid adoption in notebook PC displays and the high potential in LCD TV panels. In 2012, 34 billion LEDs will be used in TFT LCD backlights, in sizes ranging from 1" to more than 70", up more than 300% from 8 billion in 2008, according to the new DisplaySearch report Display LEDs: Lighting Up the Display World.

Recently, several companies have been reported to be misusing Energy Star logos to imply that SSL products are Energy Star certified, particularly at the Lightfair tradeshow. As a result, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued guidance on the correct use of Energy Star logos to stop the trend. Richard Karney, Energy Star Program Manager for Solid State Lighting for the DOE, issued a memo to Energy Star Stakeholders to “address a disconcerting trend the Department is seeing in promotional materials of LED products.”

Lighting manufacturer OSRAM SYLVANIA yesterday named Rick Leaman as president and CEO, effective Oct. 1. Leaman will succeed Charlie Jerabek, who will assume a new role as the company’s vice chairman. The announcement was made by Martin Goetzeler, CEO of Munich-based OSRAM GmbH.    Rick Leaman

The UK-based Lighting Association is holding a one-day seminar entitled “LEDs — Time to Engage?” on July 7, 2009 in Stratford upon Avon, UK. The seminar is with the purpose of helping lighting manufacturers better understand the current position of LEDs, where the future lies and to evaluate if the time is right to engage with LED technology.

Light measurement companies Labsphere and Orb Optronix have announced a far-reaching collaboration to encompass product development, manufacturing and distribution.

Bulbrite, a manufacturer and supplier of innovative, energy-efficient light source solutions, has received SSL Quality Advocates' Lighting Facts Labels for its full line of LED MR-16s, LED R30, and Dimmable LED PAR30 and PAR38, signifying their test completion by a government approved lab.

Aimtec has expanded its AMLD-IZ series of step-down DC-DC LED drivers with five new models generating constant output currents reaching 1.2A. The new models have wide input ranges of 5-36V DC that step down to wide output ranges of 2-32V DC. They generate constant output currents of 800, 900, 1,000, 1,100 and 1,200mA, with an accuracy of up to +/- 2 per cent, ensuring the constant colour and brightness required by demanding LED applications. The AMLD-IZ series produces up to 38.4W of power in a compact DIP24 package (31.80 x 20.30 x 10.20mm).

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co, currently Taiwan’s biggest manufacturing conglomerate in terms of revenue, will enter into LED (lighting emitting diode) lighting segment by investing in Alpha Xtal Technology Corp. of Taiwan, which manufacturs sapphire-based wafer ingots, the material for making LED epitaxy wafers. After acquiring Alpha, Hon Hai can equip itself with integrated capability for LED lighting manufacturing. The company now has LED packaging and lighting module affiliates.

Market conditions are right for the LED replacement lamp market to accelerate in the next few years, Strategies Unlimited forecasts in a latest report. And the lamp revenues are expected to grow at a CAGR of 107% through 2013, according to the report. Dramatic improvements in commercially available LED performance in recent years, as well as significant cost reduction, has made it possible to design LED lamps to offer comparable lumen output on the basis of cost of ownership.

Luminus Devices Inc. and LG Electronics yesterday announced that Luminus’ PhlatLight LEDs are powering the LG HS-200G, a new ultra-mobile projector that delivers increased brightness, performance and reliability. Luminus and LG previously announced an agreement through which PhlatLight LEDs power the HS-102 pocket projector. LG is demonstrating the new HS-200G in Booth #5321 at the InfoComm Conference 2009, June 17-19, in Orlando, Florida.

Cree, Inc. (Nasdaq: CREE) announces the first commercially available water-resistant, surface-mount, high-brightness LEDs for outdoor video screens. This RGB (red-green-blue) LED has an IPx5 rating, indicating that the LED is protected against low-pressure jets of water from all directions.

Taiwan-based Walsin Lihwa Group has invested US$200 million to build an LED lighting plant in Shannxi, China, to seize the huge business opportunities in Chinese LED market, according to the group chairman Chiao Yu-lon.

MagnaChip Semiconductor Ltd., a S. Korean provider of analog and mixed signal semiconductor products, newly entered the power LED driver market. MagnaChip announced today that it released two new LED driver models (MAP1040, MAP1042) for constant current-based portable applications.  

The innovative lighting of low energy bulb manufacturer Megaman performs like traditional halogen spotlights, but uses a fraction of the power. The new range of mains voltage are direct plug-in replacements for traditional halogen spotlights.



Luminus Devices Inc., developer and manufacturer of PhlatLight® LEDs, yesterday announced that Doug Lawson has joined the company as General Manager of the UV Business. Lawson will be responsible for leading the strategic business unit and for developing new products to bring PhlatLight LEDs to the ultraviolet (UV) curing market, which Luminus technology provides a fast-growing approach to hardening paints, adhesives, varnishes, printing inks and a wide variety of polymer systems.

Traxon Technologies, a subsidiary company of Osram, announces that it has joined the cross-licensing program between Osram and Philips for LED-based technology used in luminaires.

High-Brightness Device Offers Low Thermal Resistance of 10 K/W, High Luminous Intensity of 25,000 mcd Typical, and High Luminous Flux From 76,500 mlm to 99,400 mlm Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. (NYSE: VSH) expanded its Little Star® family of SMD power LEDs with a new automotive-qualified, 1-W natural white device that combines extraordinarily high brightness with a compact package outline. Utilizing InGaN technology, the VLMW711T3U2US LED offers a low thermal resistance of 10 K/W and high luminous intensity for a wide range of applications.

LightTools® 6.3, the newest release of the illumination design and analysis software from Optical Research Associates (ORA®), delivers an expanded, more powerful tool set for optical system modeling and optimization. The software now features an Alternate Optimization Engine, which supplements the existing optimizer and enables users to successfully address an even broader range of design problems.

Illumitex, a U.S.-based company, says that it is now in beta production of a light-emitting diode (LED) that it claims can brighten PC screens while using less electricity. The company had raised $10.5 million in March in its first round of funding, and is expecting an additional $20 million early in the summer, according to CEO Matt Thomas. The product is expected to reach full production in September.

Supply of LED chips is expected to fall behind demand until the second half of 2010, with prices to trend upward, Robert Yeh, chairman of Everlight Electronics Inc., a leading LED chipmaker in Taiwan, said at the Photronics Festival in Taiwan 2009 which took place last week.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, or TSMC, the world's largest contract IC maker, plans to explore business opportunities in the green energy sector, including light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and solar energy. The plan is in line with the company's goal to diversify its revenue channels besides its foundry business. TSMC has decided to set up a new business development unit and Rick Tsai has been appointed to head the unit.

In China, energy-efficient bulbs and alternative power sources are increasingly used in the Christmas lights industry. Two years ago, about one-fifth of the 1,000 suppliers had the capability to make LED-equipped models. And less than 20 percent of their total production was allotted to the segment, as incandescent designs were mainstream. By now, nearly all the suppliers boast regular manufacturing lines for LED Christmas lights. In fact, such types now account for 60 to 70 percent of the output in most factories.