News

11 September 2008

 

Luminus’ LEDs used by Samsung and LG in ultra-compact projectors

Luminus Devices Inc of Billerica, MA, USA, which develops and manufactures solid-state light sources for illumination applications (including high-definition TVs, video projectors, avionics displays, and lighting systems), says that its award-winning PhlatLight (Photonic Lattice) LEDs are powering two of the newest portable LED-based projectors: the Samsung P400 Pocket Imager and LG Electronics’ HS-102 Ultra-Mobile Projector. Both are lamp-free, weigh less than 2 pounds and fit in the palm of a hand.

The PhlatLight PT54 LEDs used in both units enable brightness to reach and exceed 150 lumens, which is a breakthrough for pocket projectors, Luminus claims. Their pure RGB color produces a brighter, more vivid image than the ANSI brightness specs would suggest, yielding a picture that’s easily viewable when projected to a 40 inch size even in a well lit office.

In addition to PhlatLight LEDs being free of hazardous materials such as mercury or lead, the projectors consume about one-third the power of comparable lamp-based projectors and produce an instant-on image at full brightness without the cost and inconvenience of lamp replacement. Both projectors were demonstrated at the Internationale Funkausstellung IFA 2008 consumer electronics trade fair in Berlin, Germany (29 August to 3 September) and are launching worldwide. The Samsung P400 is now shipping in the USA.

“The HS-102 offers consumers superior picture quality for presentations, games or movies anywhere you want it thanks to the brightness and long-life of PhlatLight LEDs,” said LG Electronics’ marketing manager Sean Uhm.

Luminus began making its patented PhlatLight LEDs for TVs in 2006. They are larger than conventional LEDs and are designed to operate at much higher intensity. The firm claims that they remain the only LEDs bright enough to replace arc lamps, and that projectors illuminated by PhlatLight LEDs produce more than 50% wider color gamut than the NTSC standard.

Delta demos PhlatLight LED-based DLP projectors

Also at IFA 2008 was a new prototype home theater projector from DLP projector manufacturer Delta Electronics, demonstrating a collaboration that has brought together Luminus’ PhlatLight LEDs with the technology of Texas Instruments (TI) DLP Products to yield high-quality, long-lasting solid-state illumination for mainstream projection applications.

Luminus and TI say that they have been working together to increase brightness in LED-based DLP projectors by creating brighter and more efficient PhlatLight LEDs and through improvements in the DLP processing algorithms, enabling projection manufacturers such as Delta to introduce DLP home theater projectors later this year. Further developments should lead in the future to the launch of lamp-free projectors for corporate and education markets.

Luminus says that PhlatLight LED performance and reliability has been proven with hundreds of thousands of DLP TVs and ultra-portable projectors shipped over the last several years. The increased brightness should allow manufacturers to create lamp-free projectors delivering much improved picture quality, superior reliability, convenience and environmental friendliness by eliminating the need for lamp replacement, adds the firm.

“These projectors can produce outstanding images with far superior contrast and deeper blacks than lamp-based projectors,” says Christian Hoepfner, Luminus’ VP of products. “PhlatLight LEDs give DLP projectors a pure RGB light source, producing vivid, accurate, stable color images that will not shift or fade over time.”

“Delta engineers recognized very early the reliability, value and astounding performance of this new platform and knew immediately that this breakthrough technology is the way of the future for projector technology,” said Kirk Chang, the firm’s manager of technology development. Delta adds that it is expanding the use of PhlatLight LEDs across its DLP product range to further grow its projector business.

See related items:

Luminus Devices awarded 21st US patent

Luminus launching PhlatLight LEDs for lighting applications

Search: Luminus PhlatLight LEDs LED-based projectors Samsung LG Electronics

Visit: www.luminus.com