Are your LEDs wearing out faster from using energy-saving lighting controls? This LED is made to withstand twice as many switching and dimming cycles

by Brianna Crandall — August 31, 2018 — LED innovator and manufacturer Cree announced this week the XLamp XP-G3 S Line LED, an extension of the company’s popular XLamp XP-G3 light-emitting diode (LED) that is optimized for the connected lighting future. With the XP-G3 S Line, Cree delivers high-power LED technology optimized for long-lifetime, high-power general lighting applications where sensors and the Internet of things (IoT) are becoming common, such as commercial indoor, parking, industrial and roadway.

Connected lighting systems use information from occupancy sensors and other sources to continuously react to the target environment, dimming or switching off unneeded lights to conserve energy. On average, a connected lighting system will dim or switch off lights up to 10 times more often than with a standard lighting system, according to Cree. These additional dimming and switching cycles put more stress on the LED system and can limit the luminaire’s lifetime. Through innovations in component architecture, the new XLamp XP-G3 S Line LED is made to withstand double the number of switching cycles when compared to competing LEDs in its class.

Round-on-square yellow LED component

With connected lighting dimming or switching off up to 10 times more often than standard systems, the Cree XP-G3 S Line LED is made to withstand double the number of switching cycles. Image courtesy Cree

According to Cree, the new XP-G3 S Line LED further improves the standard XP-G3 with better reliability through switching and dimming cycles, improved resistance to sulfur exposure and higher light output and efficacy. This more robust version of the XP-G3 LED delivers excellent LED system reliability in all lighting applications, including those with harsher environments.

Mario Sergio Martins, co-owner, Genesis Devices & Equipment (GDE), commented about the new LED:

Our customers want LED solutions that are highly efficient, cost effective and reliable enough to last in the harsh outdoor environments of Brazil. With the new XP-G3 S Line LEDs, Cree is delivering a solution that is quickly and easily implemented to improve the performance and reliability for all my products, whether they include IoT controls now or will be retrofitted later in the field.

Dave Emerson, Cree LED’s executive vice president and general manager, stated:

Cree’s lighting-class LEDs enabled the lighting revolution and LED lighting is now the industry standard. Looking forward, the lighting market will require LEDs designed to withstand the rigors of connected intelligent lighting. Cree’s new S Line LEDs employ a unique chip and package architecture that delivers the reliability and performance to withstand harsh environments, repeated dimming and on/off cycles.

The XP-G3 S Line LED provides an easy upgrade path for existing XP-based LED systems, allowing manufacturers to quickly implement these LED innovations into their designs, so facilities managers (FMs) can look for these LEDs in lighting products soon. The XP-G3 S Line LED has LM-80 data available to enable luminaires to immediately meet the requirements for DesignLights Consortium qualification. Find out more on the company’s website.