Gone are the days when the obsolete incandescent bulbs ruled the automotive lighting industry. It's time to go hi-tech! It's time to go the LED way! Light emitting diodes or LEDs, as they are commonly referred, are a type of transistor which emits highly directional light whenever current is passed through it. These highly advanced lighting devices have a large number of advantages over their conventional counterparts including:
Less sensitivity towards vibrationsLonger life periodCan withstand all sorts of harsh weather environmentsQuick response timeHighly compactRemains relatively cool.More lumen outputToday, for almost every purpose, LED lighting is available in the automotive industry. Interestingly, these illuminations can even be installed in locations where the conventional fluorescent and incandescent bulbs cannot be installed with easy.
LED: The History!
The first ever use of a LED lighting bulb in the automotive industry was on a Corvette (1984) as a high mount stop centered lamp. They worked excellently as the stop bulbs had the ability to spark up almost instantaneously. This provides the drivers with enough time to avoid any severe accident if a car undergoes a sudden braking action. Thus, the initial use of these bulbs as braking lights was not just for the mere sake of styling, but for an extremely important purpose of safety. With time, they have resulted in the development of much better brake lights.
LED: The potential hurdle!
Over time, they have emerged as a standard automotive lighting technology, especially as turn indicators and rear lights. However, the only factor that hinders the adoption of this highly efficient technology is its high price as compared to the conventional light fixtures. However, the compactness and long lifespan makes them clearly win the race. Moreover, the instant lighting capability makes them highly desirable from the safety point of view, especially when employed as turn signals and rear lights.
When employed as automotive lighting fixtures, they are used as an assembly of a large number of LEDs, rather than a single bulb. It is because individual bulbs emit the light in extremely narrow angle and of a lesser light intensity.
LED: Emission of different colors!
LEDs (RGB) encompass the capability to emit light of almost any color from the same assembly. They can be constructed either by combining three red, blue and green lights in a single unit or by doping three different substrates for emitting three different lights.
LED: Hiding away!
One of the major advantages is that they can be twisted and turned into an assembly of thin strips, owing to their small size and can even be placed at locations, where conventional lights cannot reach. This is the reason why they are being extensively employed as running lights.
In years to come, LEDs are rapidly emerging to replace the conventional lights as automotive headlights!
To see more about how the LED lights have been developed in the automotive world, please visit iJDMTOY.com, the car LED lighting super store.
