Dec 9 2008
Future Lighting Solutions today announced the availability of Carclo Technical Plastics' Ultra Wide Angle Optic, the first off-the-shelf optic for LED lighting applications requiring uniform illumination over a wide area. The new optic will be available in both 120° and 130° beams and is suitable for low bay lighting, emergency lighting, parking facility illumination, street lighting and other applications with wide-beam and high uniformity needs.
Carclo's 'bubble optic' - so-called because of its hemispherical outer shape - works by re-mapping the light output from the LED to spread the beam evenly across the entire field. The 120° optic, available now, will evenly illuminate an area 26 feet (8m) in diameter when mounted at a height of 8 feet (2.5m).
The 130° optic, available in Q1 2009, mounted at the same height will evenly illuminate an area 33 feet (10m) in diameter. Both models come in a one-piece design for the LUXEON® Rebel and add-on holders for LUXEON® K2 will be introduced Q1 2009. They operate at greater than 90% efficiency, are manufactured in optical grade polycarbonate with UL certification, and are suitable for continuous operation up to 120° C. "Until now, LED luminaire designers who needed to illuminate a wide area had only two choices for optics: use standard collimators or reflectors and simply accept that light output would fall off at the edges of the field, or build a custom optic with associated time and tooling expenses," said François Mirand, European Technical Manager of Future Lighting Solutions.
"Carclo's Ultra Wide Angle Optic fills the void and furthers our goal of simplifying LED application development through a combination of solutions and services." "Our new Ultra Wide Angle Optic provides much-needed optical support for one of the fastest growing segments of the LED lighting market," said Jim O'Connor, Business Development Manager for Carclo USA. "Now designers can achieve uniform light distribution over a wide area with a standard optic for the first time."