Glossary

A

Addressable

A long flexible strand of LEDs each of which can be individually set to a certain colour. By varying the level of red, green and blue (RGB) per LED, many colour combinations can be made.

Ambient temperature

The room temperature or the temperature of the air surrounding equipment under consideration.

B

Beam angle

The angle at which light is emitted from a given light source.

Bend radius

It is measured to the inside curvature. The minimum radius one can bend an object without kinking, damaging, or shortening its life. The smaller the bend radius, the greater is the material flexibility – as the radius of curvature decreases, the curvature increases.

C

Colour Rendering Index (CRI)

A quantitative measure of the ability of a light source to reproduce the colours of illuminated objects accurately in comparison to an ideal or natural light source.

Colour temperature

The appearance of light colours of fluorescent lamps is based on a system defined by the International Electrical Commission (IEC); the reference to the colour temperature is related to the radiation of a black body of steel through a heating process. According to the different status, during the heating process, the temperature level is determined. The unit of colour temperature is Kelvin (K). The scale for light sources intended for general lighting reaches from 2,000 to approximately 10,000 K.

Cutting interval

The indication of the lengths at which a product can be cut.

D

Dimmable

Capable of being dimmed; able to have illumination decreased in brightness.

Driver

An electrical device which regulates the power to an LED or a string of LEDs. An LED driver responds to the changing needs of the LED, or LED circuit, by providing constant quantity of power to the LED as its electrical properties change with temperature.

E

Efficiency

A general term for the amount of useful work per quantity of energy.

H

Heat dissipation

The intentional transition of thermal energy from a hotter object (such as a sensitive electronic device) to a cooler object.

I

Injection moulds

A shape-forming, manufacturing process in which molten material (metal or plastic) is injected into aluminium or steel moulds (shaped like the end product) and squeezed under high pressure.

IP (Ingress Protection)

Defines the levels of sealing effectiveness of electrical enclosures against intrusion from foreign bodies such as dirt and water.
The rating consists of the letters ‘IP’ followed by 2 digits. The first digit stands for the level of protection that the enclosure provides against solid bodies, the second digit describes the degree of protection of the equipment inside the enclosure against water.
The following is a chart of the IP ratings of our products:
IP Rating First Digit - Solids Second Digit - Liquids

IP20

Protected against a solid object greater than 12mm, such as a finger No protection

IP54

Protected from total dust ingress Protected from water spray from all directions – limited ingress protection

IP57

Protected from total dust ingress Protected against the effect of immersion between 15cm and 1m in depth – limited ingress protection

IP65

Protected from total dust ingress Protected from low pressure water jets from any direction, limited ingress protection

IP67

Protected from total dust ingress Protected from immersion between 15 centimetres and 1 metre in depth, limited ingress protection

IP68

Protected from total dust ingress Protected from long term immersion up to a specified pressure, limited ingress protection

K

Kelvin (K)

A thermodynamic (absolute) temperature scale, based on a measure of absolute zero – the absence of all thermal energy – at zero K. The Kelvin is described without reference to degrees and is written without a degree symbol.

L

LED

Acronym for Light Emitting Diode.

LED efficiency

A measure of the light output of an LED device, generally measured in lumens, divided by the power, generally measured in watts, required to operate the device. This relationship, lumens per watt, is a key measure of LED performance.

Light Emitting Diode (LED)

An electronic light source derived from a semiconductor diode possessing unidirectional electric current properties – in other words, diodes are one-way switches. When a voltage is applied in the forward direction, electrons from one side of the p/n junction recombine with holes on the other side of the junction, and energy is released in the form of light.

Lumen

A measure of how much visible light is emitted by a source.

Lumen Output

The amount of light produced by a luminaire at a given time.

Lumens Per Watt (lm/W)

Refers to the energy efficiency of lighting; how much visible light you get for a given amount of electricity.

Luminaire

A lighting fixture consisting of one or more electric lamps, complete with all of the wiring and necessary parts such as housing, power supplies, etc.

M

MacAdam ellipse

A region on the CIE chromaticity diagram that contains all colours which are indistinguishable, to the average human eye, from the colour at the centre of the ellipse. Adjacent ellipses are “just distinguishable” in terms of colour. This is used to refine the binning process of LED colours. Sight colour differences in the appearance are measured in MacAdam ellipses or steps.

O

Operating temperature

Normal operating temperature ranges are affected by several factors, such as the power dissipation of the device. These factors are used to define a “threshold temperature” of a device, i.e. maximum normal operating temperature, and a maximum operating temperature beyond which the device will no longer function.

Overcurrent

A situation where a larger than intended electric current exists through a conductor, leading to excessive generation of heat, and the risk of fire or damage to equipment.

Overload

To put too great a demand on the electrical system.

Overtemperature

A temperature that is significantly higher that encountered in normal operation. The difference between such a temperature and the normal one.

P

Pixel

The smaller the pixel pitch number, the more pixels used to make up the image on your display, thus improving the resolution and optimal viewing distance.

Power consumption

The electrical energy per unit time, supplied to operate the LED. Usually measured in units of watts (W) or kilowatts (kW).

Power supply

A generic term for any device that supplies electrical or other types of energy to a load. In lighting, common power supplies include fluorescent and HID ballasts, various types of transformers, and LED drivers. The latter are available as devices providing either constant current or constant voltage.

Printed Circuit Board (PCB)

A material used to mechanically support and electronically connect electronic components using conductive pathways, or traces, etched from copper sheets laminate onto a non-conductive substrate. Common types include FR-4 (Flame Retardant 4) and metal-core PCBs. The latter are commonly used with LEDs to aid in thermal management.

R

Rated voltage

The term ‘rated’ in ‘rated voltage’ is the maximum value of current, voltage or any other parameter beyond which the machine will not be operating according to its desired operation.

RGB

The RGB colour model is an additive colour model in which red, green and blue light are added together in various ways to reproduce a broad array of colours.

RGBW

In a regular RGB display, white is produced by illuminating red, green and blue subpixels at their highest intensity; however, the colour filters diminish some of the light.

S

Short circuit

An electrical circuit in a device of lower resistance than that of a normal circuit, especially one resulting from an unintended contact of components and consequent accidental diversion of the current.

V

Voltage

Electrical potential difference, which is commonly expressed as (VA – VB). Voltage is conceptualised as the electrical driving force that drives a conventional electric current in the direction from A to B. LED voltage is determined by the physical structure of the semiconductor material, and the level of light produced by the LED is determined largely by the level of current flowing to the LEDs.

W

Wattage

An amount of electrical power expressed in watts.

Watts

A measure of power, or the rate of energy conversion. The watts consumed by an LED are typically derived from a relatively fixed voltage level and varying levels of current.