Android meets LED bulbs in Google smart-home push

By the end of this year, people will be able to buy an LED light bulb controllable from an Android device, part of Google’s move into home automation.

At the Google I/O conference today, Google demonstrated how Android devices, including tablets and smartphones, can act as a hub for controlling multiple devices in the home, including lighting, appliances, thermostats, and music.

Coming to a home network near you: a Lighting Sciences Group A19 LED bulb controllable by Android devices.

Google concocted a lighting demo system with Lighting Sciences Group, which developed an LED bulb that can talk to Android. It uses a new mesh network wireless protocol rather than Wi-Fi, ZigBee, or the other proprietary home automation protocols.

The hope is that software developers will create applications that use the home automation system of connected devices. The demo at Google I/O was of a person playing a shooting video game with the lights turning on and off as shots were fired, said Eric Holland, the director of electrical engineering at Lighting Sciences Group.

“Lighting is very visible and prevalent so it made sense for it to be first foray for the platform,” Holland said. “Every one of the lights has a radio integrated inside the lamp so there’s no additional equipment.”

Many companies are building home automation systems built around connected objects, which give people a way to set up schedules around lighting and heating/cooling. People can also turn plugged-in items on and off from a central point, such as a tablet or small dashboard.

Having many devices communicating using ZigBee or Wi-Fi could create interference problems, one reason why a new protocol is being used, Holland said. Since it is open-source, Google and Lighting Sciences Group hope it will be adopted by other lighting and home automation companies. The networked bulbs will be available by the end of the year at the same cost as their general-purpose LEDs, for which prices range from under $20 to about $35 for a 60-watt equivalent.

Google enters a crowded field of home automation and consumer smart-grid companies that are trying to get a foothold for smart-home products.

Solais Lighting Selected for Final LED Test at Smithsonian American Art Museum

Solais Lighting, Inc., a leading manufacturer of lightweight, specification-grade LED lamps featuring actively-cooled Luxiance® thermal management technology, proudly announces that it has been selected from a wide pool of LED manufacturers for a final LED test installation at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C.

Following a preliminary installation at the museum beginning in October 2010 and involving multiple manufacturers, Solais Lighting’s 18 Watt PAR 30 Long-Neck LED lamps with 10°, 25°, and 40° beam spread successfully met performance objectives and were selected from a wide field of competitors to participate in next-tier testing, the outcomes of which will be officially monitored by the Department of Energy through the installation’s appointment as a DOE Solid State Lighting GATEWAY Demonstration Project.

Solais Lighting’s PAR30 LED lamps are currently being evaluated by the Smithsonian American Art Museum for their performance in a permanent collection gallery which displays more than a dozen early modernist artworks and a mural by Thomas Hart Benton. Within the room, which features 15-16 foot ceilings, the museum aims to upgrade to a high quality, long-lasting, and more energy-efficient light source than the technology previously installed and is testing the LED lamps’ ability to light the walls flatly and achieve a broad distribution of light on the floors while spotlighting the artwork precisely.

According to Naomi Miller, Senior Lighting Engineer within the Energy and Environment Division at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, “performance criteria include beam spread, color appearance, light output, and the absence of UV or IR that could damage artwork without providing any visual benefit, as well as how the LED lamps fit into the museum’s existing track heads and deliver the desired effect.” As part of the DOE’s GATEWAY initiative, the lamps’ performance will be tracked and documented at several different points over their lifespan.

Solais Lighting’s PAR30 Long-Neck lamps combine the long life and outstanding energy efficiency of LEDs with the high output and intensity of halogen technology, resulting in a high-performance product ideal for track and recessed applications within commercial, museum, retail, hospitality and residential settings. Delivering a CRI of 82 and sporting a rated average life of 50,000 hours, the lamps are fully dimmable, free of hazardous substances such as lead and mercury, and are ETL-certified (certified to UL Standard 1993) and RoHS-compliant.

“We’re delighted to have been selected to participate in such an elite lighting test within one of the most prestigious and discriminating applications in the world,” said James Leahy, president of Solais Lighting. “Through the unique thermal management capabilities enabled by our Luxiance technology, Solais offers the lightest and best-performing LED lamps on the market, delivering superior light quality and higher light output than passively-cooled LED lamps with bulky metal heat sinks. We’re excited to be recognized by the Smithsonian American Art Museum for our cutting-edge lighting technology and to be in consideration for supporting the lighting performance and environmental goals of this national treasure.”

Conquer the night with an LED grill light

When grilling, it helps to be able to see.

Grilling is all about good times that nobody wants to see come to end. So despite the encroachment of dark, boundaries get pushed as one more item gets thrown on the grill. And then ends up burnt to a crisp because nobody can see when grilling in the dark. Fun in the sun is fun and all, but when the sun goes down, it doesn’t mean the party (or the food) has to end.

The LED Barbeque Grill Light is a heavy-duty model that supplies illumination via 18 LEDs. The 13-inch light mounts horizontally, vertically, or even to angled surfaces up to almost 5 inches thick. The business end of the light is at the end of a flexible gooseneck, allowing for maximum versatility and illumination wherever the light is needed.

Capable of extending the grill session well past the recommended limit (at least as dictated by Mother Nature), the light also features a weatherproof housing. Three D batteries supply the oomph needed to get through the night, and the unit features an automatic shutoff for those who forget. With low heat, bright LEDs supplying the light, and three hefty batteries the power, the oncoming of night doesn’t need to mean the end of the good times–or anymore burnt hot dogs and burgers.

Marvell chip designed to improve LED light quality

Semiconductor company Marvell today is set to introduce a chip geared at improving the light from LED bulbs and connecting them to a network.

The 8801 chip is small–about the size of a penny–and will be about the same price as existing LED lighting electronics. If Marvell signs on light manufacturer customers, it could bring the very good light quality of some commercial LEDs to more affordable consumer products, said Kishore Manghnani, vice president of Marvell’s Communications and Consumer business. He said the chip, which integrates multiple functions on this single controller chip, is being tested by commercial or consumer light fixture makers now and it takes them about six months to introduce products with new chips.

Light quality for consumer LED bulbs has improved over the past few years but the color rending index (CRI), a measure of quality, is still not as high as incandescent bulbs. With the chip, Manghnani said a CRI of 95, higher than most of the consumer LED bulbs available now, is possible.

The chip can control the current and temperature of two types of LED light sources. So a fixture or bulb maker could use the chip and driver to use LEDs with two different colors, such as white and red, to improve color rendering. Until now, the electronics to control different colored LEDs would be too large or expensive for consumer products, Manghnani said.

Samsung UN60D6400 LED TV

The good: The Samsung UND6400 series offers beautiful, compact styling with an ultrathin bezel and panel for a nearly all-picture look. It produces relatively deep black levels for an edge-lit LED-based LCD TV, with accurate color in bright areas, excellent video processing, and improved 3D picture quality. The Smart Hub Internet portal boasts more apps and streaming services than the competition.

The bad: This Samsung LED TV is relatively expensive. Its picture suffers from imperfect screen uniformity and blue-tinged darker areas, while its glossy screen reflects a lot of ambient light. The UND6400’s Smart Hub lacks Amazon Instant, its search is next to useless, and its interface can be cluttered and confusing.

The bottom line: Solid overall 2D and 3D picture quality, as well as a wealth of features and beautiful looks, mark the Samsung UND6400 as one of the better edge-lit LED-based LCD TVs we’ve tested.

Samsung 2011 LED TV prices and availability reeled out

It doesn’t matter whether the market is thronging with people hunting down an 18” LED TV or one that stretches to 55”. Samsung has them covered with a huge array of LED TVs including 3D-capable models. Most of these feature Smart TV capabilities, Samsung Smart Hub and the company’s One Design concept.

The 31.5” UN32D6000 and 40” UN40D6000 are available in the market for $899.99 and $1,099.99, respectively. The UN55D8000 and UN55D6000 sport 54.6” displays. They are attached with price tags reading $3,599.99 and $2,099.99, correspondingly. Also falling within this bracket in terms of screen size are the UN55D7000, UN55D6400 and UN55D6300 costing $3,099.99, $2,399.99 and $2,299.99, concurrently.

“The living room is the activity center for many people and the TV is an ideal media hub for the home. Our products make it easy for anyone to instantly access and share the content they want, when they want it,” remarked John Revie, senior vice president of Home Entertainment, Samsung Electronics America. “Together with new breakthrough designs, Samsung is encouraging people to take entertainment to the edge with our TVs.”

Flaunting 45.9” panels, the UN46D7000, UN46D6400 and UN46D6300 may be picked up for $2,299.99, $1,599.99 and $1,499.99, respectively. The list does not stop there. The 40” UN40D6400 is pegged at $1,299.99, while the 40” UN40D6300 has been stuck with a $1,199.99 label. The UN22D5010 and UN22D5000 share the same 21.5” screen size as well as the $299.99 cost.

The four other LED TVs Samsung has on offer include the 40” UN40D5500, 18.5” UN19D4000, 31.5” UN32D5500 and 31.5” UN32D4000. The last two are chalked at $529.99 and $699.99, correspondingly. The UN40D5500 can be purchased for $899.99 and the UN19D4000, that happens to be the most modest-sized in the group, costs $249.99.

Apart from the TVs, Samsung also tossed in four new pairs of 3D active glasses, one of which is the SSG-3700CR with ergonomically designed flexible ‘legs’ and nose pad.

First Haier 3D LED TV Launched

Haier has announced its venture into the 3D TV space with the LE55A310 LED backlit TV. The TV sports a metallic finish and is supposed to be super slim. The 55-incher will also sport USB 2.0 with video (no word on DivX HD playback), a ‘mega’ contrast ratio and 120Hz refresh rate. On the sound front, we have SRS TruSurround XT technology for a simulated surround effect .

“India is fast emerging as the key driver in the global television market and 3D LED TV is one of them.” said Eric Braganza, President, Haier India. “Haier’s new range of 3D LED TV’s provide an experience similar to one in a movie theatre. The new range of televisions from Haier represents company’s efforts to continuously innovate and introduce new cutting edge technologies offering convenience to the consumers in the Indian market. Innovation, functionality, durability, eco-compatibility and clear user-friendly functions were the criteria kept in mind while designing these ranges of 3D LED TVs,” he added.

However, the company did not disclose the pricing details of the TVs as yet. Expect to see them in store in the following months.

Pocket LED Penlight provides output of work light

Delivering 120 lumens, Pocket Floodlight(TM) features wide-angle light beam for up close use. Design provides clear, uniform light pattern, without hot spots and dark spots that are common to most flashlights. Measuring 6 in. long with 9/16 in. head diameter, Pocket Floodlight(TM) has glass lens and T6 aluminum body with black Type II anodizing. Threaded joints have rubber O-ring seals and tailcap switch is sealed with rubber cap.

Eco-friendly LED light bulbs contain hazardous substances, research shows

Small LED bulbs that are promoted as eco-friendly alternatives to traditional light bulbs contain high levels of lead, arsenic and a dozen other potentially hazardous substances that have been linked to various cancers, a new American study shows.

Researchers at the University of California in Irvine and Davis crushed LED bulbs from strands of Christmas lights and found that the red ones had up to eight times the amount of lead allowed under California law, while the other colours bulbs had even more contaminants. White bulbs contained the least lead, but they had high levels of nickel, said researcher Oladele Ogunseitan, chair of the university’s department of population health and disease prevention.

“LEDs are touted as the next generation of lighting. But as we try to find better products that do not deplete energy resources or contribute to global warming, we have to be vigilant about the toxicity hazards of those marketed as replacements,” he said in a statement.

The report is the first to look for toxic chemicals in LEDs, he added.

His team also studied larger LED bulbs in everything from traffic lights to headlights in cars. But the results, which are similar to the Christmas lights, have not been published yet.

LED lights have been widely hailed as a safer, more green choice compared to fluorescent bulbs, which contain mercury. Ogunseitan said he sent his findings to U.S. health regulators to warn them of potential dangers consumers could be facing.

LEDs are not classified as toxic products and there aren’t any disposal regulations, although the scientists now urge consumers to use gloves, a mask and a broom when they handle broken LED lights. Manufacturers and emergency crews who clean broken traffic lights should treat the LEDs as hazardous waste, they said.

The lead and other metals in the bulbs have been linked to hundreds of previous studies that look at cancer, neurological damage, kidney disease, skin rashes and other sicknesses, his team writes in their report, published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology.

Inhaling the fumes of a single broken light would not lead to cancer, but it could be a “tipping point” on top of chronic exposure to other carcinogens, the report warns.

It said that the copper used in some LEDs is also an ecological threat to fish, rivers and lakes.

“Risks are present in all parts of the lights and at every stage during production, use and disposal . . . consumers, manufacturers and first responders to accident scenes ought to be aware of this,” Ogunseitan said in the statement.

The LEDs could be redesigned so they’re made of safer materials, he said, calling the concern a “preventable risk.”

Some LED lights spark concern over toxins

Because it’s energy-efficient, LED lighting is spreading into new areas, but an academic study cautions that some types of LED lights use hazardous metals.

The University of California at Irvine last week published results of a study into the materials used for LEDs in Christmas tree lights and car brake lights and headlights. After crushing these types of lights, researchers measured the contents and found they contained varying amounts of toxic materials, including lead and arsenic.

“What our study showed clearly was that some LED lights qualify as hazardous waste, depending on color and light intensity, according to federal (US EPA) regulations, and State (California) regulations. The red, low intensity fixtures that we tested exceeded lead (Pb) standards for California regulation by about 8 times, and exceed the federal regulations by about 35 times,” said Oladele Ogunseitan, chair of UC Irvine’s Department of Population Health & Disease Prevention via e-mail.

Right now, these products are not classified as hazardous waste, but Ogunseitan recommended that people dispatched to clean up vehicle collisions use protective gear. Homeowners should also wear gloves and masks in the case of clean-up. The copper used in some LEDs can pose health hazards to river and lake ecosystems as well if disposed of in a landfill.

Ogunseitan said that the move to LED lighting is a case in which there should be mandatory product replacement testing. He claims that the potential environmental health impacts were not sufficiently tested before manufacturers put them in products as a replacement for incandescent bulbs.

Recycling recommended for large LEDs
Large LEDs bulbs with a screw-in bottom designed for home use are just coming onto the market as replacements for 40-watt or 60-watt incandescent bulbs. In addition to good efficiency and long life, these bulbs are marketed as an improvement over compact florescent bulbs because they don’t contain mercury. CFLs can be returned to many retail stores or municipal hazardous waste handling services for recycling.

When LED maker Cree introduced an LED bulb it expects to come out later this year, I asked about toxins and disposal. Cree vice president of marketing Greg Merritt said that there were no hazardous materials used in its bulb and that it is expected to comply with the ROHS European hazardous material directive.

UC Irvine’s Ogunseitan is testing large LED bulbs but has not yet published the results. “However, I can say that precautionary principle supports not throwing this in the regular trash for landfills,” he said.

Last month, I asked the Department of Energy about hazardous materials and large LED bulbs designed for home use. A representative said that, in general, these LED bulbs do not contain toxic chemicals in any significant amount. She added that consumers will face disposal only a few times in their lives given the long projected life of LEDs, which could be over 20 years, but it’s best for consumers to recycle them.

“That said, like most consumer electronics, at the end of their useful life, LEDs contain materials that are both valuable and recyclable. Where available, LEDs should be recycled using municipal recycling programs,” she said.