Display Lighting Ltd

1. What are LED Retrofit lamps?
The “new” generation of “retrofit” LED lamps have been available for approximately 12 months and have proven to be both reliable and viable replacements for either MR16 G5.3 12V or PAR16 GU10 240V halogen reflector lamps due to their long life and low heat emissions compared to halogen reflector lamps.
They are rated with a 30′000 hour life which is not as long as luminaires incorporating dedicated LED’s but the beauty of the “retrofit” lamps is that they have a superb light output and are repaceable at the end of their life.

Display Lighting will only supply the highest quality products and is delighted to be able to supply the best retrofit lamps available on the LED market.

These lamps are available in two types being MR16 G5.3 and PAR16 GU10. Each type can be supplied in 3W or 5W versions with either warm white (3500k) or cool white (7000k) LED’s with a 7W lamp already in production and available later in the year.
The PAR16 GU10 LED lamps operate straight from a 240V mains supply but the MR16 G5.3 LED lamps require a 12V power supply also known as an LED driver. Multiple lamps can be operated from one driver up to a total of 60W (12 lamps).

12V LED lamps will also operate on standard 12V AC electronic halogen transformers but this seriously reduces their life by up to half!

2. Why use LED Retrofit Lamps?

LED lamps are the perfect lighting solution for jewellery, china watches and diamond displays particularly within showcases and display cabinets. All LED lamps generate heat (there is no light source that does not produce heat) but when compared to using 12V dichroic reflector lamps the reduction in heat emitted is dramatic making them the perfect solution for lighting systems installed into display cases and counters to keep the ambient temperature to an absolute minimum. The manufacturers state that the 5W high power lamps are equivalent in output to between 20W halogen lamps.

1. What is 12V Track Lighting?

A lighting “Track” is a term used by the lighting industry to best describe a metal (or sometimes plastic) extrusion. The extrusion houses two copper conductive strips that are designed to carry 12V positive + and negative - currents along its length. 12V Tracks are available in varying shapes and sizes and are generally manufactured in 1m or 2m lengths.

2. Why use Track Lighting?

The 12V spotlights that are designed to fit into or clip around the 12V Tracks are generally very easy to move along the length of the track usually requiring only the loosening of a thumb screw or quarter turn of a locking nut. For this reason track lighting offers a great deal of flexibility and is an excellent system for use within applications that are constantly changing.

3.  Where can I use 12V Track Lighting?

12V tracks can be installed into almost any type of retail or exhibition applications including ceilings, window displays, wall displays and showcases. Different designs usually have their own way of fixing but most can be mounted using screws. There is also a 12V track system that carries a double sided adhesive backing that will adhere to most surfaces including glass, wood and metal.

4.  How does 12V Track work?

“We strongly recommend that all electrical installation is carried out by a qualified electrician so the following information should be used as a guide to understanding how track lighting systems operate”.

As with all 12V lighting, a power converter or transformer is required to “transform” the mains voltage (240V in the UK, 120V in the US) into the Seperated Extra Low Voltage (SELV) operating voltage of the bulbs, known as “lamps” in the lighting industry. When purchasing a 12V track you will require a “live end” (also known as a live feed) and a “dead end” (also known as an end cap). A live end allows the electrical connection between the transformer and the lighting track using a suitable 2 core flex and the live end simply plugs into one end of the track whilst the dead end finishes the track at the opposite end.

“It is possible to operate 12V track from electronic transformers that are light weight and much more compact but in this case the transformer should be positioned no more than 2m away from the track”.

The cross sectional area of the flex is dependant upon and should be calculated on the total number and power of spotlights being operated on the track.

“Some 12V track systems offer transformers that incorporate a live end and simply “plug in” to the end of the track. Our experience has found plug in track transformers to be very unreliable and would strongly recommend installing a remote alternative”.

5. How many spotlights can I use on a lighting track?

Each 12V lighting track system will have a recommended maximum power rating usually measured in amps (A). For example, if the maximum rating of a 12V lighting track was 20A this means that no more than 240W should be operated on it (Amps x Volts). The Ampage (A) of a spotlight can be calculated by dividing its Wattage (W) by the operating voltage (V) for example 35W / 12V = 2.916A. In this case a 20A track will accept a maximum of 6 x 35W halogen spotlights and lamps.

Again, from experience, we have found that 12V track systems operate at their optimum when they are not “pushed to their absolute limit” and would recommend running 12V tracks at least 15 to 20% below their maximum rating.

6. Which 12V track is best for my display?

Due to the small physical size of 12V track they can be incorporated into applications where space is an issue. Tracks can be screwed or rebated into timber uprights, they can be glued to glass panels and aswell as illuminating products, can be used to support glass and wooden shelves to form part of the display case structure.

7. What lamps should I use on the lighting tracks?

For applications where budget is the key factor then halogen lamps can be used to illuminate products on display. As with all halogen lamps, they do tend to emit a lot of heat, but for applications such as china, jewellery and crystal displays, halogen lamps are ideal. Halogen dichroic reflector lamps are available in 2 main sizes, 35mm diameter (MR11) lamps and 50mm diameter (MR16) lamps. MR11 lamps tend to be the most popular when incorporating into display cases as they are less obtrusive and are available in 10W, 20W or 35W versions. They are also available with a silver or black coated reflector to completely cut out glare and ensure all of the heat is emitted through the front of the lamp.
We would recommend, installing 20W lamps into most display case installations in conjunction with a transformer that will operate 35W lamps should you wish to increase the brightness at a later stage.

Although 50mm diameter (MR16) halogen reflector lamps are bigger in diameter they are available in a much more diverse range. These lamps are avilable in 10W, 20W, 35W or 50W and as well as being available with coated reflectors are also available in different colour temperatures meaning that along with the standard warm (almost yellow) light normally associated with halogen lamps there are also 4000k, 5300k and even 6500k lamps that are cool (blue) white almost replicating actual daylight. This kind of lamp is perfect for diamond and watch displays that require extra sparkle.

As a rule of thumb, we have found that warm white lamps are more effective for illuminating gold displays and cool white lamps for illuminating silver, crystal and china displays.

8. Is there a cooler lighting solution that won’t damage my heat sensitive displays?

Yes, LED lamps are the ideal lighting solution for applications where heat emissions are an important factor. LED or Light Emitting Diodes run relatively cool (compared to halogen) and will also last for up to 50′000 hours, 10 times longer than an average halogen lamp. The down side of using LED lamps is the cost but when the energy consumption and maintenance costs of an LED lamp are compared to 10 halogen reflector lamps the average savings are roughly 70 to 80%. LED lamps are available in warm white and cool white versions with up to 3 high power LED’s incorporated inside. Due to the importance being placed on LED’s for the future, the brightness of these lamps is increasing at an astonishing rate and the current 5W LED lamps that are equivalent to 35W halogen are soon to be superceded by a new 7W version.

LEDs, or light emitting diodes, in lighting are becoming attractive alternatives to incandescent or fluorescent lighting in both residential or commercial lighting applications because they are very energy-efficient, have very long lives, are very small in size, do not have any re-strike time, generate relatively little heat, have a slow failure rate, are shock resistant, work well in low temperatures, their light can be easily focused, and they contain no toxic mercury unlike today’s popular energy-efficient lighting product, the compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL). Here are 10 things to know about LED lighting:

1. Colored and White LEDs LEDs can be red, green, blue, or amber. The color emitted by an LED is dependent upon the materials used to produce it. For example, a red LED is made from the chemical elements of aluminium, gallium, and arsenic. White LEDs are created by covering a blue LED with a yellow phosphorous coating. A white LED can also be created by using a red, blue, and green LED in close proximity to each other. At this time, there is not an LED that can emit white light. Producing an LED that could emit white light is the “holy grail” of LED light research.

2. LED Brightness A single high power LED can produce about 80 lumens of light. In comparison, a standard 60 watt incandescent light bulb produces about 900 lumens. Thus, a single high power LED is only about 1/11th as bright as a 60 watt incandescent light bulb. In order to produce adequate lighting, therefore, an LED fixture must contain groups of LEDs. However, the future is bright, pun intended, for LEDs. The lumen output of LEDs has almost doubled in the last two years.

3. LED Color Temperature Color temperature is a measure of the color appearance of a light source which helps describe the apparent “warmth” (reddish) or “coolness” (bluish) of that light. Light sources below 3200 Kelvin (3200K) are considered to be “warm;” while those above 4000K are considered to be “cool” light sources. For comparison, a traditional household incandescent light bulb is 2800K. The color temperature of a light source is not related to how hot the light source will get or how much heat is given off by the light. White LEDs vary in color temperature. Some white LEDs can be as “warm” in appearance as 2600K but most white LEDs are slightly “cool” in appearance. This is because most white LEDs are created by putting yellow phosphors over blue LEDs.

4. LED Color Rendering Color rendering index (CRI) is the ability for any light source to render colors accurately. The CRI scale goes from 1 (low pressure sodium) to 100 (the sun). A CRI of 75 is considered to be good, a CRI of 85 is considered to be very good, a CRI of 95 is considered to be excellent, and, of course, a CRI of 100 is considered perfect. LEDs in a warm white color temperature are currently available with a CRI of 80.

5. LED Efficacy As with all light sources, the efficacy of LEDs is measured in lumens/watt, the amount of light produced by one unit of power. Warm white LEDs produce between 25-44 lumens/watt while cool white LEDs are more efficacious by producing 47-64 lumens/watt. In comparison, the typical household incandescent light bulb creates 10-18 lumens/watt while compact fluorescent light bulbs produce 35-60 lumens/watt.

6. LED Drivers Fluorescent light bulbs require a ballast in order to function. The ballast provides a starting voltage and limits the electrical current to the light bulb. LEDs also require a similar electronic power source. For LEDs, this electronic power source is usually called an LED driver. The LED driver converts line power to the appropriate voltage (usually between two and four volts DC for high-brightness LEDs) and current (typically 200-1000 milliamps or mA), and may also include dimming and/or color correction controls. LED drivers are generally about 85% efficient. Thus, the efficacy of LEDs should be reduced by 15% to account for the LED driver.

7. LED Heat Generation It is a myth that LEDs do not generate heat. In fact, all light sources generate heat and LED lights are no different. Thus, it is important that an LED fixture is well-designed with “heat sinks” to adequately dissipate the heat that is created.

8. LED Lifespan LEDs do not burn out like an incandescent light bulb. Instead they get progressively dimmer over their lifetime until they no longer emit enough light to be useful. An LED is generally considered to be no longer useful when it is emitting only 70% of the original amount of light the LED produced. The time that this takes is often referred to as the “rated life” of an LED. While some LEDs may have a rated life of 100,000 hours, this is usually only under perfect laboratory conditions. Under real-world conditions most LEDs operating in light fixtures might last up to 50,000 hours. The rated life of an LED is often much less when the LED is operating in a light fixture as opposed to the same LED operating outside of a light fixture due to the buildup of heat inside the fixture. The typical LED inside of a typical light fixture may have a rated life of 35,000 to 60,000 hours.

9. OLED An OLED is an organic light emitting diode. It is an LED that also contains carbon. OLEDs are generally manufactured as flexible lightweight sheets. Today, OLEDs operate at significantly lower efficiency than inorganic (crystalline) LEDs. OLEDs typically generate less light per area than inorganic, solid state LEDs, which are usually designed for use as point-light sources.

10. Infrared and UV Radiation White LEDs do not emit infrared, or heat radiation like an incandescent light bulb. In addition, white LEDs do not create ultraviolet radiation (UV rays) like a fluorescent light bulb.

Hello,

I am delighted to be able to announce the launch of the new Display Lighting blog. This enables our experienced team to share their knowledge and offer useful information and discussion on all aspects of “illuminating displays…”. They welcome and will respond to all questions relating to this subject so that you are confident that the lighting system you choose to install into your displays is the right one for both your products and for your budget.

Paul Breedon. MD