[BC] Cyan LED lighting

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martygoodman

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Mar 5, 2007, 7:14:43 AM3/5/07
to chico...@yahoo.com, Bikecurrent
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Before I was able to play with high power emitters (like Luxeon emitters), there were relatively high power cyan LEDs available.  I modified a white LED headlamp to use these high output cyan, misled by the same oversimplified and incomplete view of things the author of that article about the 4  1watt cyan headlamp labors under. 
 
The fact is the monochromatic light from those things is pretty useless for much of what you expect to be able to do with a white light.  I ended up chalking the cyan LED headlamp up to experience, and haven't used it for years, except to show off an odd color headlamp now and then to a friend.
 
I suggest your brother not waste his time on the project, unless his interest is whimsey and oddity.  If he thinks this will make a reasonable and useful bike headlamp, he's simply mistaken.  Not to mention the highly questionable legality AND... more important, as far as I personally am concerned... social irresponsiblity of putting a bluish green headlamp on a bike.
 
The project makes somewhat more sense... but NOT a lot more... as a hiking headlamp.
 
Ya is... it's like dis:  The fact the eye is 2 or 3 times more sensitive to that shade of monochromatic light really only translates into somewhat greater perceived brightness... not overwhelmingly so.  And the problems from using monochromatic light vs white light, in most lighting situations, are very significant, and OUTWEIGH (for most applications) the added perceived brightness from that cyan light.
 
I found that article VERY misleading in that respect.
 
My advice, again: don't waste your time with it.
 
To that add Willie Hunt's comment (he KNOWS his LEDs!) that there just isn't all that much advantage... may well be a DISADVANTAGE... using the cyan LEDs over white even if one ignorse the physiologic issue.
 
Agian... for many compelling (I think) reasons, that project with the cyan LEDs is foolish, and a waste of time.
 
---marty
 
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Willie Hunt

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Mar 5, 2007, 10:31:23 AM3/5/07
to martyg...@sbcglobal.net, chico...@yahoo.com, Bikecurrent
Yes, the cyan LED's are not anywhere near as efficient as the current crop of white LED's.  Sure in time they may catch up, but I suspect the white will go and leave them again.  The bottom line is that right now, the white LED's are the most efficient at producing Lumens!  And forget about all the arguments about eye sensitivity to various wavelengths, because that's already built into the Lumen measurement.  So, take the project, and substitute in the best white LED's.
 
Willie
-----Original Message-----
From: martygoodman [mailto:martyg...@sbcglobal.net]
Sent: Monday, March 05, 2007 4:15 AM
To: chico...@yahoo.com; Bikecurrent
Subject: [BC] Cyan LED lighting

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Before I was able to play with high power emitters (like Luxeon emitters), there were relatively high power cyan LEDs available.  I modified a white LED headlamp to use these high output cyan, misled by the same oversimplified and incomplete view of things the author of that article about the 4  1watt cyan headlamp labors under. 
 
The fact is the monochromatic light from those things is pretty useless for much of what you expect to be able to do with a white light.  I ended up chalking the cyan LED headlamp up to experience, and haven't used it for years, except to show off an odd color headlamp now and then to a friend.
 
I suggest your brother not waste his time on the project, unless his interest is whimsey and oddity.  If he thinks this will make a reasonable and useful bike headlamp, he's simply mistaken.  Not to mention the highly questionable legality AND... more important, as far as I personally am concerned... social irresponsiblity of putting a bluish green headlamp on a bike.
 
The project makes somewhat more sense... but NOT a lot more... as a hiking headlamp.
 
Ya is... it's like dis:  The fact the eye is 2 or 3 times more sensitive to that shade of monochromatic light really only translates into somewhat greater perceived brightness... not overwhelmingly so.  And the problems from using monochromatic light vs white light, in most lighting situations, are very significant, and OUTWEIGH (for most applications) the added perceived brightness from that cyan light.
 
I found that article VERY misleading in that respect.
 
My advice, again: don't waste your time with it.
 
To that add Willie Hunt's comment (he KNOWS his LEDs!) that there just isn't all that much advantage... may well be a DISADVANTAGE... using the cyan LEDs over white even if one ignorse the physiologic issue.
 
Agian... for many compelling (I think) reasons, that project with the cyan LEDs is foolish, and a waste of time.
 
---marty
 
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