DOE Caliper report indicates AR111 LED lamps not ready for prime time

Aug. 14, 2012

Caliper testing of five AR111 directional lamps demonstrated these LED lamps are unlikely to be effective replacements for halogen AR111 lamps due to color quality and luminous intensity distribution characteristics.

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The US Department of Energy (DOE) has completed Series 17 of testing through the DOE Solid-State Lighting Caliper program. Report 17 analyzes the performance of a group of five LED products labeled as AR111 lamps, a niche product. Results indicate that although the lamps may perform acceptably and provide some energy savings, this product category is lagging behind other types of directional LED lamps and continued performance improvement is warranted. A summary of the results is available on the DOE SSL website.

For comparison, the eleven 6-in downlights tested in Round 14 of Caliper testing performed substantially better than halogen or incandescent downlights. Ten of the eleven LED products met Energy Star criteria for correlated color temperature (CCT) and color rendering index (CRI) and the efficacy was equal to or better than the system efficacy of a typical compact-fluorescent lamp (CFL) downlight luminaire.

Beginning in 2012, each Caliper summary report focuses on a single product type or application. Products have been selected with the intent of capturing the current state of the market – a cross section ranging from expected low- to high-performing products – with the bulk characterizing the average of the range. The Department allows detailed test results from Caliper testing to be distributed in the public interest for noncommercial and educational purposes.