Tue, Jul 28, 2009
Direct Replacement For Incandescent Lighting
By Gene Yarbrough
One thing some exhibitors have learned about Oshkosh is that
food will draw a crowd. So AeroLED sponsored a media lunch today at
AirVenture 2009 to introduce their new line of high performance LED
lighting solutions. Pronounced "aerolead" the company produces
retrofit and OEM lighting options based on super-bright LED
technology that is fully replaceable with original lighting
systems.
Nate Calvin of AeroLED reported the company’s product is a
direct replacement for existing incandescent, or "legacy systems"
products now in the field, including a replacement for the GE 4509
landing light bulb. Components include options for replacement of
navigation and strobe units as well.
Calvin said all components exceed FAR requirements for lumen
output. Stating that incandescent systems operate in the 2500
Kelvin range whereas the AeroLED product operates in the 6500
Kelvin range, providing a more white colored and intense light
output. The lighting is directional for the strobe application,
more closely matching the diminishing requirements from horizontal
to vertical plane of the FAR’s. The units are also on the
order of 4 times lighter than traditional systems with
significantly lower amperage draw.
Initial products were offered to the experimental and homebuilt
markets to facilitate a positive cash flow and to support FAR 23
and TSO testing requirements for certified systems. An added
benefit to this business approach was the opportunity to receive
feedback from the initial customer base. AeroLED also allowed OEM
customers to provide opinions for improvements. Calvin stated that
all the feedback was considered key to current product line
development, resulting in a superior product.
AeroLED Pulsar
The Pulsar series is the first all LED nav and strobe light
combination according to Calvin. The units are ruggedly constructed
having gone through complete and thorough vibration and abuse
testing, including installation on aircraft equipped with diesel
engines that destroyed incandescent bulbs in as little as 10 hours.
The units are hermetically sealed and are displayed under water to
demonstrate their durability for all weather operation. Calvin
quipped that the underwater display was a bit “cheesy”
but proved to be an eye catcher and brought people over to
investigate. Testing on the units has indicated a life expectancy
of around 60,000 hours, well beyond most airframe lifetimes. While
not specifically stating a price for the components, Calvin said
they were comparable to costs of traditional lighting systems when
replacement bulbs and power supplies over the life of the aircraft
were factored in.
All AeroLED units have built in overtemp protection and offer
very low RF emmisions and will not interfere with radio operations.
Operating on 9-36 volts the systems do not dim, as incandescent
lights do, at lower voltage levels and deliver the same lumen
output regardless of input voltage.
AeroLED Sunspot
AeroLED is committed to providing a see and avoid product. The
company believes, and is receiving encouraging reports, that their
system allows much greater visibility at a longer range than any
other system currently available. All systems have wigwag
capability allowing spotting far in advance of typical legacy
systems and AeroLED systems are more visible in daytime than other
systems. PMA certification is expected by year end.
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