LED technology for public lighting
Public lighting is an indispensable part of the infrastructure of any city. The term refers to the lighting of all public spaces such as airports, train stations, public transport stations, squares, facades and streets.
We live in a new and exciting era of change in outdoor lighting. Major changes are taking place in most cities as a result of technological advancements that are promoted by the lighting industry. Nowadays, lighting managers in cities are looking for high-quality light, dedicated to the new values of the 21st century, such as energy efficiency or ecological design. This means that a street light is no longer the point of light that used to illuminate and no longer had any interaction other than a simple ON/OFF. Now, it has become a dynamic bright spot with the ability to adapt to the needs of the user regardless of the date or place where it is installed.
Manufacturing processes and design have changed radically over the past 5 years due to the dynamics in the LED industry. These changes have forced electronics manufacturers to modify their R&D and industrial departments to meet the new design challenges. A few years ago, R&D departments were experienced in power electronics and dominated topologies.
Factors such as energy savings, reduction of CO2 emissions or the use of ecological models that are recyclable and manufactured according to the latest directives, without including prohibited materials such as mercury, are intended to be implemented in a few years in each country or state by directives or standard regulations.
In previous years, most outdoor lighting systems were made with high-intensity discharge lamp technology and conventional ballasts. Electronics have been installed as ancillary equipment to conventional ballasts to enable double the power level and reduce power consumption.
In the end, it was LED technology that definitely revolutionized outdoor lighting, transforming it from a conventional street light into an efficient and intelligent point of light. Constant improvement in the field of LEDs has improved the performance of luminaires in terms of lm/W.
There is a new challenge for electronic equipment manufacturers in designing and manufacturing robust and reliable solutions with the least possible power loss. In addition, it should consider and take care of other aspects such as the constant current at the output waveform, because it affects the luminous efficiency of the LED.
Comparing the different technologies used in street lighting, the first advantages of LED technology that are important are light efficiency, long lifetime, high quality of light with CRI between 70 and 90 and high percentage of luminous flux throughout the lifetime of the module.
A step up on the technological ladder are wireless lighting systems. Wireless management allows participation on a bi-directional communication channel to control each light point and obtain information about it such as LED module status, network, consumption, in real time.
When technology seems to reach its highest peak in public lighting, the question arises of how the future of lighting evolves, as well as other questions about the importance of lighting in the cities of the future and the type of new features that will be included.