TTI’s technical marketing manager for optoelectronics, Roland Chapa, highlights LED technology trends, plus innovative products and applications.
As one of the world’s most energy-efficient lighting sources, LEDs are steadily dominating the global market. Statista projects that by 2030, around 87 per cent of all light sources will be LEDs. As sustainability efforts increase and prices for LED components fall, the industry is seeing tremendous growth and a myriad of new applications.
Advances in LED chip performance, plus more compact packaging, have fueled its integration into most electronics—products used in everything from factory and building automation to healthcare settings and home design.
Lighting is now considered part of smart building technology, the new standard in commercial facilities. Lighting systems based on IoT include sensors that communicate with other smart devices. Smart light fixtures are controlled by voice commands, timers, occupancy sensors and response controls. They collect data, measure energy consumption and monitor room temperature. Others sound alerts when exceeding energy use and send maintenance reminders.
These strategies streamline facilities management, reduce a company’s carbon footprint and lower energy costs. They also enhance employee security and comfort, an example of human-centric lighting designed to enrich human lives. Nowhere could human-centric lighting be more beneficial than healthcare facilities, where it can directly impact the effectiveness of medical staff and patient recovery. An LED technology known as color-tuning lighting is proving effective in these settings that lack natural light. Color tuning simulates sun light indoors, working with humans’ natural circadian rhythms to help regulate the body’s internal clock and boost melatonin levels that affect mood and well-being.
This can assist healthcare professionals in many task- specific ways, improving their outlook and efficiency. For example, hospitals can use LEDs to produce blue-colored light, which encourages alertness and concentration, helping to reduce fatigue and burnout. This is especially important given the long hours and high- stress nature of their work.
Color-tuning can have an equally significant, albeit opposite, effect on patients. LEDs producing red light can help patients relax and sleep better, which aids in recovery times. Adjusting light in patients’ rooms improves recovery, particularly among seniors.
The same smart building technology used in commercial facilities has become more commonplace in residential construction. Lighting systems feature remote monitoring and controls that adapt to weather conditions, energy usage and homeowner preferences. IoT- powered lights can automate processes and increase security.
For therapeutic purposes, multicolored LED lights have been shown to reduce depression and seasonal affective disorder. New LED technology can simulate natural light using a solar-powered robot. Solenica produces a natural lighting system called Caia, which illuminates indoor spaces with real sunshine, increasing vitamin D levels and improving health.
TTI is at the forefront of these technology trends and for decades has partnered with industry’s premium suppliers to become the LED lighting resource of choice, providing an extensive inventory of high-quality, authentic electronic components. Experienced specialists are available to customers locally to connect them to the best application information.