The first dimmable GU10 lamp to be submitted for approval to the Energy Saving Trust in the UK is based on resonant asymmetric inductive supply (RAIS) technology from Isle of Man company Elight.
Key to this approval are impressive figures for both efficiency and power factor – typically 91.2 percent and 0.96 respectively. Also important is the technology’s ability to work across all types of dimmer and not just the leading-edge rotary push or end-click on-off type dimmers. RAIS technology will also work with trailing-edge MOSFET dimmers or the increasingly popular touch or leading-edge domestic dimmers.
The Energy Saving Trust runs a logo-based program called Energy Saving Recommended (ESR) to direct consumers towards the most energy-efficient products across a wide range of sectors (see UK incentives for LED lighting).
The scope of ESR was recently expanded to include LED lighting, and manufacturers wishing to obtain ESR status for their products need to have their products independently tested against the Energy Saving Trust's performance requirements. The Elight submission is the first application received by the Energy Saving Trust for the endorsement of an LED product.
The Energy Saving Trust told LEDs Magazine that it “sees the endorsement of LED lighting as critical, when the market for domestic LEDs is developing rapidly and the number of products available are growing quickly. When a new technology comes onto the market it is important for customers to be directed towards the best quality products, so that the public perception of the technology is not damaged by poor quality products. We have been endorsing compact fluorescent lighting for many years and we believe that ESR has been instrumental in ensuring the majority of CFLs sold in the UK are of the highest quality.”
When approved by the ESR program, the Elight product will be eligible for a manufacturer’s subsidy that will effectively reduce the price paid by the consumer. The company also believes that the product hits the targets necessary to be approved by the Energy Star scheme in the USA.
Elight is now considering ways of taking products made with this technology to market, and it invites those interested in distribution or licensing to get in touch.
The lamp has also been given the thumbs-up by the UK-based Lighting Association, which said in a recent report comparing it with a Philips Master LED lamp: “The RAIS lamps offer a higher degree of functionality across different dimmer types, together with added driver efficiency over its competitor.”
For more information on the technology and the comparison with the Philips product, see the article “Advances in TRIAC dimmable drivers open way for lamp subsidies.”
