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The PhlatLight LED back light unit (BLU) of Luminus Devices Inc of Billerica, MA, USA has won the 2008 Display Component of the Year Gold Award from the Society of Information Display (SID). The other two gold award winners are Apple’s iPhone and Sony’s OLED TV. The follows Luminus last year winning the 2007 Silver Award from SID for PhlatLight LEDs used in projection applications.

Luminus will receive the award next Wednesday at Display Week 2008 (the SID International Symposium, Seminar & Exhibition) in Los Angeles, CA (18-23 May). Luminus will demonstrate the PhlatLight BLU and other PhlatLight LED powered projection products in private demonstrations at the Sheraton Downtown near the LA Convention Center.

The PhlatLight 46” BLU is illuminated by eight light modules, each containing a single red, green and blue PhlatLight (Photonic Lattice) LED. The LEDs illuminate the BLU from the edges, not the back, enabling thinner designs. “We believe the PhlatLight BLU earned this distinction because it provides a low-cost and reliable solution that can finally enable RGB LED backlighting in mainstream, large-screen LCD TVs,” said John Langevin, VP sales & marketing.

The PhlatLight BLU is the result of collaboration with Global Lighting Technology, which specializes in MicroLens light guides for backlighting and other applications. “We consider GLT a full partner in the product and in the honor of this award”, added Langevin. More recently, Luminus and GLT engaged Jabil Corp as a design and manufacturing partner for integrating the technology and taking it to market.

The Display of the Year Awards is the most prestigious accolade commending the chief influential technologies across the global display community, reckons Dick McCartney, SID’s DYA chair. “Among the significant number of nominations received from around the world, Luminus Devices’ PhlatLight technology stood out for the second year in a row,” he added.

*Last week, Luminus was also named a winner of a 2008 Small Business Association of New England (SBANE) Innovation Award, which recognizes firms that have transformed their ideas into a product or service (in this case PhlatLight LED technology) that delivers proven value to its customers. This year, 165 companies were nominated for the 2008 SBANE Innovation Award, and 15 semi-finalists were announced on 4 April, leading to final presentations before the judges on 8 April.

In addition to the display market, Luminus is also expanding PhlatLight LEDs into lighting applications. “In the months and year ahead it is obvious that Luminus has a business plan and strategy for impacting our local economy by providing a solid base of jobs while at the same time helping to revolutionize the solid-state lighting industry on a global scale,” said SBANE president Bob Baker.

Luminus’ CEO Udi Meirav said that he sees the human capital of the greater Boston area as a competitive advantage. “Luminus's achievements would not have been possible anywhere else in the country,” he reckons. Luminus was founded in 2002 on the basis of research conducted at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

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Luminus closes $72m VC round

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