Total Light Quality

Light quality of LED lamps from Leapfrog Lighting

What constitutes a high quality LED light?

• Even light distribution

A high quality LED lamp is able to evenly distribute the bright, highly concentrated light—with a flux 200x that of halogen—within a very limited emitting area. The challenge is not only in redistributing the point light, but in ensuring it is uniform in order to create an even light (acceptable light curve).

• Anti-glare technology

A high quality LED lamp both maximizes the emitting area of luminaries and uniformly redistributes the ultra bright points of LEDs to remove glare. The challenge is in removing glare without lowering the lamp’s performance in other areas.

• Gentle roll-off at edges

A high quality LED lamp produces a gentle roll-off at the edges that fades out gradually instead of stopping suddenly. The challenge is in redistributing the light while minimizing light loss.

Why most lamps fail to produce high quality LED light

To produce a high quality LED light, the lamp must be designed in a way that can redistribute the ultra bright points of LEDs. The aim of redistribution is to maximize the emitting area and to provide a uniform brightness. Most manufacturer’s don’t pay adequate attention to the design of the lens. Without careful lens design, the product performance drops considerably (loss in lumens, lumen output, energy efficiency).

• Diffuser

Many manufacturers use diffusers to reduce the intense points in LEDs. However, this results in a lack of control over the spread of light, leading to a less accurate distribution (poor internal reflection) and lower efficiency. It also reduces the amount of light output.

• Reflectors

Direct imaging of light sources can be avoided and luminaire cutoff angle can be controlled with the use of reflector scales and multi-facet features. However, the light intensity is still high because the emitting area of the lens is smaller than a reflector.