Japanese LED chip manufacturer Citizen booth might have been the furthest from the show entrance at LED Expo Thailand this year, but its prototype LED COB and AC LED modules attracted a steady stream of visitors towards its booth.

Citizen stood out from most LED chip manufacturers at the four day trade show, which took place from May 21-24, 2015 at IMPACT Exhibition and Convention Center, by showcasing prototype products highlighting cost reductive designs.

The One Core COB LED has very small dimensions, but nearly 1,000 LEDs are packaged into this LED module. (LEDinside)

The One Core COB for example is capable of emitting a blinding 58,000 lm at 500W (109 lm/W), and will not be available for sampling till July 2015.

With 963 LEDs packed into a very small dimension of 38.0 mm x 38.0 mm, the design is very different from existing products that is designed with two COBs hence requiring two heat sinks and drivers to achieve 57,200 lm, said Tetsuya Koike, a Field Application Engineer (Switch) from Citizen’s Hong Kong office.

Tetsuya Koike, a Field Application Engineer (Switch) from Citizen’s Hong Kong office. (LEDinside)

“This new design only requires one COB and one heat sink,” said Koike. This leaner design for sports and flood light applications indicates manufacturers can spend less on other LED component designs.

Another new cost reductive design the company is working on is COB for AC applications, which is set for mass production six months later, and expected to reach the market by 2016.

Citizen's new COB for AC applications. (LEDinside)

The small and light COB for AC is designed for streetlight applications, and does not require additional drivers.It is capable of achieving  better illumination and deliver 4,200 lumens when driven under 40W. Pricing for the chip remains undecided at the moment.

The company has a global partnership with fellow compatriot Setsuyo Astec, and the LED chip Citizen supplies are already incorporated in Setsuyo Astec high bay LED lights in Thailand.

Citizen's COB+, COB for AC Solution. (LEDinside)

Citizen has been in the Thailand LED market for about two years already, and has been selling LED modules to other Thai LED companies, but declined to name the clients.

Nevertheless, the company has been growing steadily in the Thai LED market. “Maybe five years later the LED component sector will grow to a very big market,” said Koike. “Currently, our revenue is growing at about 30% per year.”

(Author: Judy Lin, Chief Editor, LEDinside)