EZ-Color LED Lighting Controller from Cypress Semiconductir
Filed Under LED Landscape Lights, Lighting Controllers | Leave a Comment
This is a fascinating product for controlling large arays of LED lights. It may be beyond what’s needed for an average domestic landscape lighting application - unless you have a taste for clever technology or maybe a super-sized Christmas lighting installation.
The EZ-Color high brightness LED controllers pair with the “PSoC Express” software to deliver a design solution for applications that require precise light-blending, including architectural lighting and entertainment lighting.
The system overcomes the two biggest problems LED lighting engineers face today:
(a) having to account for differing High Brightness (HB) LED performance specifications and
(b) the LEDs’ performance variation over different temperatures.
With PSoC Express, designers simply select a color from a palette presented on-screen. Pre-loaded manufacturers’ LED specifications and temperature feedback algorithms are automatically applied to the selected design and programmed into the EZ-Color controller.
In other words its pretty much like using a run-of-the-mill Windows graphics of photo application, where the picture on the PC is translate dinto LED light display. Awesome!
This can save a designer / installer anywhere from weeks to months of design time for a complex design, or if you’re a home (not so) handy-person - years of wasted weekends!
The EZ-Color controllers can support up to 16 LED channels (more than you’ll ever need at home), compared to four or five channels for competitive devices. These additional channels can mean a savings of dozens or even hundreds of controllers in very large designs (which would definitely be beyond the scope of a domestic set up), saving on design complexity, power consumption and board space.
You can get more information on EZ-Color, education materials on HB LED color mixing, and a free download of PSoC Express 3.0 software are all available at www.cypress.com/EZ-Color.
So in summary a useful tool and/or a fanbtastic toy for controlling light installations. Imagine its your wife’s birthday and you program a message into your landscape lighting.
“Hi Darling happy birthday . . . PS what’s for dinner tonite?”
Or maybe you have an annoying neighbor you’d like to send a message to . . . the possibilities are endless!
Stay tuned for the latest landscape lighting news.
LED Landscape Lights - Efficient & Bright
Filed Under Energy Efficient Lights, LED Landscape Lights | Leave a Comment
The compact “mini fluoro” light globes are popular now as a replacement for traditional incandescent light globes because of their lower powr consumption.
LED lights are the next wave of energy efficient lights. Their power consumption is lower again than compact fluoros and the light they emit is in many ways preferable.
LEDs can produce an intense, penetrating white light if that’s what you need e.g. for spot lights or security lighting. For example, a 30W LED spotlight can produce 1500-1800 lumens which is a very efficient energy/light output ratio.
LEDs are also available in a variety of colors and packaging forms. Their small size makes it simple to produce landscape lights in innovative shapes and sizes.
Here is an example of a stanles steel LED landscape light.
For landscape lighting tips keep an eye on http://landscapeoutdoorlighting.com/