Taiwan’s Inventec Corp., the world’s fourth-largest notebook PC maker, has spent NT$540 million (US$16.61 million at US$1: NT$32.5) to buy a 4.9% stake in the island’s leading LED maker Huga Optotech Inc., according to Taiwan Economic News.

Carmanah Technologies and PTL Solar(TM) announced a manufacturing partnership that will bring leading-edge solar LED lighting technology to the Middle East and selected countries in Africa. PTL Solar and Carmanah have partnered to manufacture solar LED lighting solutions for outdoor lighting applications at a facility under ENPARK in Dubai.

Mitsubishi Electric announces that it will reveal LED option for its Seventy Series range of cube displays at ISE 2010. The new LED cube engine is fully compatible with the existing Seventy Series cube chassis and hardware, offering users an easy upgrade path from conventional to solid-state lighting.

Taiwan’s Delta Electronics Inc. plans to close its cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL) operations from March 1, 2010, due to the growing use of LED for backlights in applications such as LCD TVs, according to an article on Taiwan Economic News.

Eastman Kodak Company announced Dec. 4 that it would sell substantially all the assets associated with its OLED business to a group of LG companies, and had entered into a technology cross-license agreement with LG Electronics, Inc., which will allow each company broad access to the other’s patent portfolio.  

Instrument Systems GmbH introduces its new calibration LEDs to its ACS-530 Series. The special feature of the new products is their temperature-stabilized high-power LED, according to the company. The new calibration LEDs enable customers to check their instruments easily and reliably. It also means that the photometric value can be recalibrated by customers in conformity with the CIE International Commission on Illumination.

Epistar Corp, Taiwan’s largest LED maker, yesterday signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Nan Ya Photonics Inc, the LED unit of Taiwan’s Formosa Plastics Group, according to an article on Taipei Times.

Luminus Devices Inc., developer and manufacturer of award-winning PhlatLight(R) LEDs, Thursday announced a partnership with Marubun Corporation, to distribute its award-winning, large-chip, PhlatLight LEDs to electronics companies in Japan selling projector systems in the home and commercial market.

Nexxus Lighting, Inc. Thursday announced that it has been issued three new design patents related to its Array™ Lighting LED replacement light bulb product line. US Design Patent No. D600,837 – LIGHT (Par 38); US Design Patent No. D601,276 – LIGHT (Par 30) and US Design Patent No.

Cree, Inc. announces that it has acquired a portfolio of patents and patent applications related to semi-insulating silicon carbide (SiC) material and power device technology from Daimler AG. The portfolio consists of approximately 20 patent families, including issued patents in the United States, Germany, Japan, and China. U.S. Patent No.

At the Lighting Japan Special Seminar taking place on December 2 in Taipei, Mr. Sumio Shimode, Chairman of Planning & General Committee of Japan LED Association, pointed out that Japan’s CO2 emission was aimed to be reduced by 20% in the first phase (2008-2012) according to the Kyoto Protocol. However, the emission slightly rose by about 1.9% in 2008. As a result, saving energy and reducing carbon emission has been one of the policies most aggressively promoted by the government.

KLA-Tencor Corporation, a supplier of process control and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related industries, introduced the next addition to its wafer inspection portfolio, the ICOS(R) WI-2250. According to the company, the ICOS WI-2250 offers a dramatic improvement in inspection speed, compared to currently available products, allowing manufacturers to transition to larger LED and MEMS wafer sizes.

Neo-Neon Holdings Ltd, a China-based decorative lighting manufacturer, Wednesday said it planned to expand its LED wafer output seven-fold over the next three years, according to an article on Taipei Times.

Cree, Inc. Wednesday signed an agreement with LED do Brasil Comercio de Produtos Eletronicos Ltda. to promote the sale of Cree LED components in Brazil. Brazil is the 10th largest energy consumer in the world and the 3rd largest in the Western Hemisphere, behind the United States and Canada.

Intematix Corp., an innovator in phosphors, LED components and solid state lighting modules, announced the introduction of its proprietary, patent pending, custom signage product and service offerings. Intematix claimed it has combined the advantages of LED-based lighting systems with the company's phosphor expertise to create a next-generation retail signage solution that delivers the low maintenance and energy savings of LEDs while improving on the visual qualities of high resolution film approaches.

The Federal Trade Commission of the U.S. recently proposed new labeling requirements for light bulbs, including traditional incandescent bulbs, CFL bulbs and LED products. According to FTC, the proposed labels provide consumers with clear, easily understandable information to help them choose among different bulb types.

Marines at Camp Lejeune, N.C. are seeing better at night, and cutting electricity usage by half, thanks to new LED roadway lights. Nearly 1100 metal halide and high-pressure sodium streetlights throughout Camp Lejeune roadways are being progressively replaced through the end of this year with 75- and 105-watt EvoLucia(TM)-brand LED luminaires, from LED manufacturer Sunovia Energy Technologies, Inc. This replacement reduces energy just below 50% compared to the metal halide or high pressure sodium lights.

The Consortium for Energy Efficiency (CEE) has released a position paper that identifies the information and test data needed to evaluate solid state lighting (SSL) products. CEE members, representing the energy efficiency program administrators of the United States and Canada, plan to use this product information to evaluate the efficiency and quality of SSL products they will consider promoting to the commercial and residential markets.  

Philips announced that it is to enable people with little or no access to electricity to enjoy playing or watching sport long into the night with the world’s first dedicated solar-powered LED floodlighting (intense beams of light) solution.

NEC Display announced Tuesday its first ever LED-backlit desktop monitor for business, education, government and healthcare markets, the 22-inch MultiSync® EA222WMe.

Royal Philips Electronics announced that the Philips’ LED candle, from the Novallure series, has been recognized by the Hong Kong Designers Association with the silver HKDA Asia Design Award 09. According to Philips, advantages of the LED candle include reduced energy consumption, reduced carbon pollution, bright sparkle and similar ambient light effect at significant lower power wattage.

Cree, Inc. announces it has achieved industry-best reported R&D results of 186 lumens per watt for a white power LED.

Airfield lighting technology provider ADB Airfield Solutions, LLC and solar technology provider Carmanah Technologies have teamed up to provide a line of solar-based LED airfield lighting for ADB. The arrangement will augment ADB’s line of airfield lighting products with a range of solar-powered LED lighting alternatives. Formerly part of Siemens AG, ADB Airfield Solutions is widely recognized as a market leader in airfield visual guidance and ground lighting systems.

West of the Panasonic Group has recently decided to shut down its cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL) factory in the Southern Taiwan Science Park, as LED backlight is gaining ground for various applications including LCD TVs, the Taiwan Economic News reports. According to industry executives, the closure of the CCFL factory indicates the trend of LED quickly replacing CCFL as backlights in LCD TVs, laptops and monitors.

Commercial lighting-class 2700K, 90 lumen/W, high CRI >90 was achieved by HPLighting in its 2828 LED package series for interior lighting applications.

In order to complete the Primax product portfolio and fulfil the lighting market demand, DOMINANT is now extending this series with a high Color Rendering Index (CRI) product in a 0.5-Watt white version, the NAW-BSC. This high CRI LED is compliant to the United States Energy Star guidelines; fulfilling the required minimum CRI of 75.

Cree, Inc. and Ningbo Liaoyuan Lighting Co., hosted the 2009 LED Lighting Fixture Promotion Conference last week in Guangzhou, China. The conference featured government officials and leaders from city street lamp management offices.

Underwriters Laboratories (UL), a world leader in safety testing and certification services, Monday announced the publication of ANSI/UL 8750, Safety Standard for Light Emitting Diode (LED) Equipment for Use in Lighting Products. The first edition standard creates a global platform of safety requirements for LED lighting equipment as well as the entire supply chain of components used in lighting products employing LED technology.

Infineon Technologies AG introduced the new BCR320 and BCR420 LED driver families to address the burgeoning market for LED lighting solutions. According to the company, the new products are specifically designed for driving 0.5W LEDs with a typical current of 150mA to 200mA, and feature a negative thermal coefficient contributing to a long lifetime of LEDs and a digital interface for a pulse width modulation (PWM) signal for dimming.

Epistar, one of Taiwan’s leading LED maker, has reportedly signed a contract to supply more LED chips to Samsung for LCD TV backlights in 2010, according to industry sources.