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LEDs with Strobe lights



 
 
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  #1  
Old August 26th 03, 09:25 PM
pekka1510
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Default LEDs with Strobe lights

Hello fellow aviators,

Does anyone has deeper knowledge of the following thing?
I have been thinking to modify Strobe/Nav.Light system. Halogen bulbs
will be replaced with ultra bright leds.
Benefits; low current draw, cheaper than incandenscent bulbs, long
life time.
Low points; narrow beam, mechanically challenging .... BUT....

Does semiconductor LEDs work near with strobe flashtubes (HIGH
VOLTAGE)??? I am looking ElectroMagneticCompatibility.

Anyone experiences or recommendations, please?

regards,
pekka, FL
  #2  
Old August 26th 03, 09:58 PM
Juan E Jimenez
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I think you are going to have a hard time finding LED's that are bright
enough to do this and meet the FAA requirements for strobe lights.

Juan

"pekka1510" wrote in message
om...
Hello fellow aviators,

Does anyone has deeper knowledge of the following thing?
I have been thinking to modify Strobe/Nav.Light system. Halogen bulbs
will be replaced with ultra bright leds.
Benefits; low current draw, cheaper than incandenscent bulbs, long
life time.
Low points; narrow beam, mechanically challenging .... BUT....

Does semiconductor LEDs work near with strobe flashtubes (HIGH
VOLTAGE)??? I am looking ElectroMagneticCompatibility.

Anyone experiences or recommendations, please?

regards,
pekka, FL



  #3  
Old August 26th 03, 10:22 PM
Ron Natalie
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Default


"Juan E Jimenez" wrote in message news:2SP2b.268078$YN5.183108@sccrnsc01...
I think you are going to have a hard time finding LED's that are bright
enough to do this and meet the FAA requirements for strobe lights.

I believe he was only talking about replacing the NAV light part of the fixture.
He specifically asked if the LED's would survive near the flashtubes.


  #4  
Old August 26th 03, 10:35 PM
Ron Natalie
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"pekka1510" wrote in message

Does semiconductor LEDs work near with strobe flashtubes (HIGH
VOLTAGE)??? I am looking ElectroMagneticCompatibility.

Anyone experiences or recommendations, please?

Can't answer the question about interoperability with flashtubes, but these
are starting to show up for marine use, however there's nowhere near
bright enough (at least the marine ones) to meet the Part 23 brightness
requirement for position lights.

You need up to 40 candela over 110 degrees horizontal and +/- 90
degrees vertical. Can be done I guess, but can't find anything canned
that has that kind of specs.


  #5  
Old August 26th 03, 11:30 PM
Juan E Jimenez
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Absolutely correct. I misread.

"Ron Natalie" wrote in message
m...

"Juan E Jimenez" wrote in message

news:2SP2b.268078$YN5.183108@sccrnsc01...
I think you are going to have a hard time finding LED's that are bright
enough to do this and meet the FAA requirements for strobe lights.

I believe he was only talking about replacing the NAV light part of the

fixture.
He specifically asked if the LED's would survive near the flashtubes.




  #6  
Old August 26th 03, 11:32 PM
Juan E Jimenez
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Default

A while back Jim Weir said he was working on something like this -- at least
he was asking where to find the specs, then he asked if anyone had the
expertise and hardware to do the analysis of the output of the unit to see
if it met the specs. However, he did not say he was planning to put them
inside an assembly next to strobe flashtubes.

"Ron Natalie" wrote in message
m...

"pekka1510" wrote in message

Does semiconductor LEDs work near with strobe flashtubes (HIGH
VOLTAGE)??? I am looking ElectroMagneticCompatibility.

Anyone experiences or recommendations, please?

Can't answer the question about interoperability with flashtubes, but

these
are starting to show up for marine use, however there's nowhere near
bright enough (at least the marine ones) to meet the Part 23 brightness
requirement for position lights.

You need up to 40 candela over 110 degrees horizontal and +/- 90
degrees vertical. Can be done I guess, but can't find anything canned
that has that kind of specs.




  #7  
Old August 27th 03, 01:01 AM
Pete
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Default

in assemblies they appear to be bright enough... see:

http://www.killacycle.com/Lights.htm

Or cert'd units from Whelen:
http://www.dallasavionics.com/whelen/

Cheers,
Pete
Europa Builder

"Ron Natalie" wrote in message
m...

"pekka1510" wrote in message

Does semiconductor LEDs work near with strobe flashtubes (HIGH
VOLTAGE)??? I am looking ElectroMagneticCompatibility.

Anyone experiences or recommendations, please?

Can't answer the question about interoperability with flashtubes, but

these
are starting to show up for marine use, however there's nowhere near
bright enough (at least the marine ones) to meet the Part 23 brightness
requirement for position lights.

You need up to 40 candela over 110 degrees horizontal and +/- 90
degrees vertical. Can be done I guess, but can't find anything canned
that has that kind of specs.




  #8  
Old August 27th 03, 01:27 AM
Dave S
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Default

From my observations, I will say they are VERY compatible...

There are traffic signals on stretches of road that place white strobe
tubes across the red LED signals of the latest generation of stoplights,
as an attention-getter for the red light (I see it mostly on highways
that have a long stretch of nothing with a red light in the middle of
nowhere.. easy to get road hypnosis and ignore)...

Also, many of the latest generation emergency vehicle lighting signals
have both LED and Strobe tubes in close proximity.. and we are talking
LOTS of strobe tubes... not just one..

I do believe aviation tubes have a higher amount of joules than the
typical 10 joules used in public safety applications, but if
non-aviation applications are any indication, it should be workable.

Dave

Y
pekka1510 wrote:

Hello fellow aviators,

Does anyone has deeper knowledge of the following thing?
I have been thinking to modify Strobe/Nav.Light system. Halogen bulbs
will be replaced with ultra bright leds.
Benefits; low current draw, cheaper than incandenscent bulbs, long
life time.
Low points; narrow beam, mechanically challenging .... BUT....

Does semiconductor LEDs work near with strobe flashtubes (HIGH
VOLTAGE)??? I am looking ElectroMagneticCompatibility.

Anyone experiences or recommendations, please?

regards,
pekka, FL


  #9  
Old August 27th 03, 03:20 PM
baltobernie
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The newest blue, white and green LEDs are static sensitive, and typical ESD
precautions are required during handling and assembly. Once installed as
part of a circuit, they should be resistant to damage. An interesting
question; lemme check with our engineers in Japan. I'll post when (if)
they respond. What is the voltage present at the tube?

Spatial distribution is going to be your greatest challenge, and you'll need
to design a multi-surfaced PCB to achieve the required viewing angle spec.

BTW, the newest LEDs have an intensity of 5 cd. New traffic signal designs
use only a few of these vs. hundreds of the "old" (last year's) ones.

I'm not well-versed in aviation lighting requirements, but I believe that
your green spec is a little towards the blue. Should not be a problem, you
can get "green" from 502 to 525 nm. Only one choice with one red, though,
at 625 nm dominant and 635 nm peak. Its the hue difference between
incandescent auto stoplamps and the LED center one. Perhaps OK for an
Experimental, but, again, I'm no expert.

Bernie
(remove my age to Reply)


pekka1510 wrote:

Hello fellow aviators,

Does anyone has deeper knowledge of the following thing?
I have been thinking to modify Strobe/Nav.Light system. Halogen bulbs
will be replaced with ultra bright leds.
Benefits; low current draw, cheaper than incandenscent bulbs, long
life time.
Low points; narrow beam, mechanically challenging .... BUT....

Does semiconductor LEDs work near with strobe flashtubes (HIGH
VOLTAGE)??? I am looking ElectroMagneticCompatibility.

Anyone experiences or recommendations, please?

regards,
pekka, FL




  #10  
Old August 27th 03, 09:03 PM
baltobernie
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Default

The new "high flux emitters" I referenced are packaged differently than the
conventional T-1 3/4 (5mm) LEDs. I haven't seen the design you describe
below, but LED leads are not designed to support the housing, particularly
in a wingtip environment. Also note that, while much more efficient than
incandescents, LEDs still have thermal management issues, particularly the
high power versions.

Bernie


Jay wrote in message
om...
"baltobernie" wrote in message

link.net...
Spatial distribution is going to be your greatest challenge, and you'll

need
to design a multi-surfaced PCB to achieve the required viewing angle

spec.

At least one design bends the device leads at a variety of specific
angles to attempt to get that distribution that's so natural for the
incumbant incandescant bulb and color filter combination.

As for color specs, the regular nav light color filters tend to bleach
out after years in the sun. By comparison the LEDs should look pure.



 




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