News

13 May 2010

 

Philips unveils first LED replacement for 60W household light bulb

At this week’s Lightfair International 2010 tradeshow in Las Vegas, Royal Philips Electronics has unveiled its 12W EnduraLED light bulb, which is claimed to be the industry's first LED replacement for a 60W light bulb (the most commonly used incandescent bulb), delivering up to 80% energy savings and lasting 25 times longer.

The development of an LED equivalent to the 60W has been recognized by many international organizations, including the US Department of Energy (DoE), which created the L-prize competition to spur development. Philips' entry was the first (and to date the only) submission for the L-Prize, which was used as the basis for the 12W EnduraLED. Exceeding the Energy Star specifications for a 60W bulb, the EnduraLED uses only 12W of power while delivering what is claimed to be an industry benchmark of 806 lumens.

Every year more than 425 million 60W incandescent light bulbs are sold in the USA (about 50% of the domestic incandescent light bulb market). Philips reckons that its LED replacement could save 32.6 terawatt-hours of electricity in one year, enough to power the lights of 16.7 million US households (14.4% of the households in the USA), as well as eliminating the generation of 5.3 million metric tons of carbon emissions annually.

Philips says that the new lamp uses an innovative design and remote phosphor technology to deliver the same soft white light and shape that consumers are familiar with in an incandescent. The EnduraLED works with standard dimmers, simplifying use and providing an effective, low-energy solution for home lighting. For business users, particularly those in the hospitality sector, the new lamp can provide instant plug-in savings, through extended life and reduced energy and maintenance costs, compared with traditional bulbs, says Philips.

Expanding on the EnduraLED family of replacement lighting solutions, the new lamp has a rated life of 25,000 hours, compared with about 1000 hours for a standard 60W incandescent bulb. So, over the course of the LED’s life, replacing a 60W standard bulb could save $120 per lamp. The new EnduraLED lamp will be available in the US in fourth-quarter 2010, well ahead of US legislation requiring the use of more energy-efficient lighting from 2012.

“We have been able to show people around the world that LED lighting can deliver energy efficiency and the warm-white light people desire for their homes, without compromise to quality,” claims Philips Lighting’s CEO Rudy Provoost.

To accelerate the EnduraLED's development and introduction to the market, Philips researchers in The Netherlands created a new remote phosphorous technology and light distribution design; LUXEON LEDs were integrated from Philips Lumileds of San Jose, CA; and electronics for the bulb were built at Philips Color Kinetics in Burlington, MA and Philips Lighting Electronics in Rosemont, IL. The bulbs were then sent to the Philips Quality Assurance team in Shanghai to be rigorously tested, ensuring that they meet quality and safety standards.

See related item:

Philips launches 60W-replacement LED lamp that consumes just 12W

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