Electronic – How to achieve very bright light

ledlight

I'm not sure if this is right site for this, but couldn't find better.

I've been given an task to create something that has light intensity like police beacon. I need it to be cheap, so I'm looking at dealextreme.com LED emitters , but there aren't any good user experience videos.

I don't know if the LEDs are right for this and how should I pick right one from these LEDs.

Best Answer

Maximising brightness:

Brightness is a function of amount of light and area illuminated.

  • More light = more brightness.

  • Less area = more brightness.

So

For more light obtain as many lumens as you can afford.

For less illuminated area use LEDs with low "radiation angle" or "cone angle".

Lenses:

If that is not bright enough you can use a lens or reflector.
Many companies provide lenses for LEDs.
Deal Extreme have a range here

Effect of colour: Note also that brightness is related to eye response to colour - yukky yellow green is about the best colour for optimum eye perceived brightness - but if you want a specific colour this is not much help in optimising brightness.


Related: Mind plasticity add on for the ever young:

Lime Green is close - Lime Green Fire Engine from here - BUT more recent studies suggest that familiarity is more important than visibility for emergency vehicles.

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