T&M LED and Luminaire Test Equipment Overview
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This article discusses LED test equipment and luminaire test equipment, covering basics like measurements and manufacturers and benefits of these test equipments. The LED luminaire test equipment includes an LED Integrating Sphere, Goniophotometer, Thermal Resistance Tester, Light Flicker Analyzer, Spectroradiometer, and Aging and Life Cycle Tester.
Introduction
As the LED and Luminaire markets boom in developing countries such as India, it’s essential to test LEDs and Luminaires before launching them to the consumer market. This allows for various tests at both the manufacturer and customer ends. Manufacturing tests ensure the hardware’s ruggedness and reliability, while customer tests ensure the product’s safety and cost-effectiveness.
The following are common LED parameters that should be tested and measured:
- Intensity
- Luminous Flux
- Color
- Spatial Radiation
- Pattern Image
Manufacturers of LED Test Equipments and Luminaire Test Equipments
The equipment used for LED chips, LED luminaires, and LED arrays can be categorized into two types:
- Electrical Test Equipment: Used to measure current, voltage, and power of input and output ports.
- Photometric Test Equipment: Used to measure lumen, intensity, temperature, color coordinates, etc.
LED Test Equipments or Luminaire Test Equipments
| LED Test Equipments Or Luminaire Test Equipments | Measurements | Manufacturers |
|---|---|---|
| LED Integrating Sphere | All the light from the lamp is captured within the sphere. The light measured by a detector is proportional to the total amount of light emitted by the LED or luminaire under test. It measures luminous flux measurement for LEDs and lamps. | * EVERFINE Corporation, China * Instrument Systems, GmbH * Ophir Optronics Solutions Ltd, Israel, USA, Japan etc. * LABSPHERE, INC., USA |
| Goniophotometer | It measures light intensity in many directions. The accuracy of result depends on the number of measurement points taken. Refer Goniophotometer vs Integrating Sphere >> | * EVERFINE Corporation, China * Lisun Group Limited, Hong Kong, China, Korea, INDIA |
| Thermal Resistance Tester | It is used for transition thermal resistance measurement. It is used for measurement of LED chip and LED arrays. The equipment works based on the forward voltage of the LED. | * Lumileds Holding B.V. United States * Thermtest Inc., CANADA |
| Light Flicker Analyzer | It is used to measure flicker index, percentage flicker, and fundamental frequency. | * EVERFINE Corporation, China * EM TEST, France |
| Spectroradiometer | It is used to measure spectral radiance or irradiance across different spectral ranges. Refer Radiometer vs Spectrometer vs Spectroradiometer >> | * Apogee Instruments * EVERFINE Corporation, China * Instrument Systems, GmbH |
| Aging and Life Cycle Tester | They are used accelerated aging and lumen maintenance measurements, lifetime evaluation, temperature tests, chromaticity shift measurement etc. | * EVERFINE Corporation * Lisun Group |
Benefits of LED or Luminaire test equipments
Following are some of the advantages of LED/Luminaire test equipments.
- Ensures Accurate Light Output Measurement : Measures luminous flux, intensity, and color temperature, ensuring LEDs and luminaires meet industry standards for brightness and efficiency.
- Enhances Energy Efficiency Compliance : Helps manufacturers verify power consumption, efficacy, and thermal performance, ensuring compliance with global energy regulations such as ENERGY STAR and IEC standards.
- Detects Defects and Performance Degradation : Identifies issues like flickering, color inconsistency, and premature lumen depreciation, reducing failures and improving product quality.
- Optimizes LED Color and Spectrum Consistency : Ensures precise color rendering (CRI), chromaticity, and spectral distribution, critical for applications in automotive, medical and architectural lighting.
- Speeds Up Product Development and Quality Control : Provides fast, repeatable, and automated testing, streamlining R&D, production validation, and quality assurance processes for LED and luminaire manufacturers.
Conclusion
LED and luminaire test equipment play a vital role in ensuring lighting products meet performance, efficiency and safety standards. By providing accurate measurements, detecting defects, and optimizing color consistency, these tools help manufacturers develop high quality, energy efficient lighting solutions while meeting regulatory requirements.
