Induction Lighting

Induction lighting is an emerging technology that is energy efficient and environmentally friendly.  Many of the larger induction lighting fixtures now house lamps of up to 400W in power.  These, along with smaller, self ballasted induction lamps, wireless and remote controlled dimmable functions, motion sensor integration capability, and an extensive array of customized fixtures represent RLLD Commercial Lighting’s growing and comprehensive inventory of this remarkable new technology. 

BENEFITS

Induction lighting offers benefits to both large scale and small scale projects.  With the longest rated lamp life of outdoor lighting technologies, induction lights provide an ideal lighting source in places where replacements must be minimized for the sake of cost effectiveness and where routine maintenance represents a major inconvenience.  Places such as tunnels, bridges, rail yards, and airports can easily recover their front-end investment by reducing both equipment replacement costs and man-hours associated with labor.  Many municipalities are now turning to induction lighting for a similar reason.  Smaller cities and towns often lack funding for street and highway lighting, so the purchases they make when they do invest in new equipment often has to last a good 10-20 years before more funding becomes available for procurement.  The short ignition time that characterizes induction lights also makes them ideal for security lighting systems, where motion detectors can pinpoint potential invasion and instantly turn the lights on to ward off suspected intruders.  Due to the high color rendering capabilities of induction lighting, these lamps are also ideally suited to high-end commercial lighting and hospitality lighting.  Contractors are installing more and more of these lamps in conference rooms, hotel lobbies, banquet rooms, and special event facilities.

TECHNOLOGY

The figure below illustrates how an induction lamp produces light.  A current loops through a primary coil and induces a magnetic field.  This, in turn, induces a secondary current in the mercury vapor within the induction lamp.  As free electrons subsequently accelerate, they collide with mercury atoms and create excited electron orbits for a brief period of time.  When the electrons finally settle back into their normal orbits, they emit UV radiation that interacts with fluorescent powder coating on the lamp’s interior and creates visible light in the process.

FEATURES

A number of features characterize induction lighting as an across-the-board improvement over HID and incandescent light sources.  Induction lamps do not require an electrode or a filament to operate and last for up to 100,000 hours.  Because they lack electrodes and filaments, they are vibration resistant and do not flicker when they power on.  They produce a very high quality white light ranging between 4,000-5,000K Kelvin, and rate 82 on the color rendering index.  They are also highly resistant to cold, having been known to operate reliably at temperatures as low as -40C.

Perhaps more than anything, the energy saving abilities of induction lighting makes it a milestone in illumination sourcing.  LPW efficiency ranges from 70-90W, even in larger fixtures operating at 200W and 400W.     Small wattage lamps feature a medium base and internal ballast.   Induction lights are also dimmable, making them ideal for indoor commercial and residential lighting where additional energy savings through lighting control may be required.  

ADVANTAGES OF INDUCTION LIGHTS

The following table shows the many competitive advantages induction lighting offers to commercial designers seeking to bid projects for clients on a budget.  In all but one attribute, induction lighting offers a clear superiority to other light sources.  While incandescent sourcing does rate slightly higher than induction sourcing on the color rendering index (100 versus 82), this margin is negligible, and the many disadvantages of incandescent both from an energy standpoint and a replacement cost standpoint hardly justify any consideration of this slight aesthetic differentiation.

TYPES OF INDUCTION LIGHTING LAMPS

Commonly used induction lighting lamps are globe type induction lamps (40W~ 250W), circular type induction lamps (40W~300W) and rectangular type induction lamps (70W~400W).  Fixture types vary per application and include all the major architectural area, site lighting, outdoor lighting, and street lighting fixtures types.  Ask an RLLD Commercial Lighting Expert about Cobra-head and Shoebox roadway lights, post-top mounted street lights, lights for tunnels, canopy lights for gas stations, wall-mounted architectural site lighting fixtures, high bay/low bay lights, office lights, and many more.