The growth of the LED industry has been enormous since the 1960′s when LEDs first entered the market. The efficiency and light output of these devices has risen exponentially, doubling every 36 months. The growth has mainly been attributed to parallel developments of semi-conductor technologies and advances in both material and optic sciences. Another reason for this growth, however, is the wide variety of applications in which LEDs can be utilized.

Most everyone can relate to any one of the many visual LED applications. By a visual application, we are referring to a visual signal where light travels from the source to the human eye to convey a specific message or meaning that can be quickly understood. You can see them practically everywhere you look including status indicators, equivalent display, message displays on railways, trains, trams and ferries, traffic signals, signs, vehicle turn signals and brake lights and even such simple applications as glow lights and LED art. There are also many visual applications that you may not immediately think of such as decorative displays, TV and laptop backlighting, DLP Projectors, night vision devices, security cameras, aviation instruments and there are even applications from NASA using LEDs that have been instituted to promote astronaut health.

The portion of the LED field that uses non-visual LEDs can include broadband data, wireless transmitters, access points for data transfer, optical fiber and freespace optical communication, remote controls, movement sensors, photodiodes, sterilization, UV curing devices, machine vision, voltage references and even on the latest and greatest flatbed scanners.

There are many systems that rely on a light source for operation and communication. There are also a myriad of reasons that LEDs are dominating this market more everyday.  Among these reasons are the following:

• Instant On and Off Switching
• Low Cost
• Optimum Design Flexibility
• Repeatability
• Color and Wavelength Variation
• Uniform Light Display
• Low Power Consumption
• High Speed Response
• Long Life Cycle
• Low maintenance

VCC Optoelectronics has a wide variety of LEDs for your visual and nonvisual applications. We also have a staff of knowledgeable experts to help you implement your ideas and value-added services if you need some extra staff to carry out the design, prototyping, production and other parts of your project. Simply contact us and one of our engineers will speak with you to evaluate your needs and provide reliable and detailed assistance for your application development.

SAN MARCOS, CA –November 14, 2011—VCC, a pioneer in the development and delivery of today’s most high-performance, innovative LED indication solutions, has partnered with Lynx Micro Electronics LLC, to make its complete line of LED indicators available to OEMs in vertical markets through the franchised stocking distributor. Lynx Micro’s business is based upon a flexible electronics distribution model; it carries a limited number of suppliers in order to provide customers with more focused and dedicated service, which makes it an ideal partner for VCC.

“Teaming up with Lynx was an easy decision for VCC,” said Andrew Zanelli, CEO, VCC. “Strategically, our companies share a core focus that revolves around delivering the highest quality service to our customers.”

Lynx Micro, a woman-owned company, was established to provide exceptional value to customers through collective business experience by providing superior online marketing with a first-class sales model.

“Adding a world-class optoelectronics supplier like VCC to our line card allows our customers to access more than 40 years of optoelectronics and electromechanical experience,” said Michael Pecoraro, vice president of marketing for Lynx Micro Electronics LLC.

“VCC’s ability to understand the customer’s design needs from initial concept and prototyping to final assembly is a valuable asset for any company. The growing demand for LED products in the OEM base is a perfect fit for our two companies and will allow us to penetrate various market verticals.”

For more information about VCC products and their availability through Lynx

Micro Electronics, please visit www.vcclite.com or www.lynxmicro.com.

About Lynx Micro Electronics LLC

A franchised stocking distributor, Lynx Micro was founded by a team of seasoned professionals. Their expertise includes all aspects of the electronic components distribution channel, lending a credible alternative to the competition in their market. Lynx Micro understands that the majority of distributors focus on the 20% of customers who bring them 80% of their revenues. The mission at Lynx Micro is to target and service the often overlooked, yet equally valuable, 80% of customers and manufacturers who remain. They do so by offering worthy alternatives for purchasing franchised electronic components.

It’s often said that we can’t determine where we are going without an understanding of where we have been. While today’s market is rapidly becoming inundated with LED-based products, it is not as new to the world as you may think. Below we will take a look at the many developments and people who have gotten us to where we are today.

1907

Henry J. Round, an assistant to Marconi in England and the chief of Marconi Research added a 24-line note in Electrical World describing a “bright glow” that eminated from a carborundum diode. This was the first reported discovery, not of a LED but the phenomenon of electroluminescence.

1927

The first development of an actual LED-type device was discovered by a self-educated Inventor named Oleg Vladimirovich. He wrote a series of papers from 1924-1930 that provided a comprehensive study of the LED and its possible applications. He had observed light emission from a zinc oxide and silicon crystal rectifier diode that he was using in a radio receiver. He noted a glowing light that was produced when current ran through them.

He called the process “Inverse Photo-Electric Effect” and received a patent relay in 1927.

The basis of his patent was the following:

“The proposed invention uses the known phenomenon of luminescence of a carborundum detector and consists of the use of such a detector in an optical relay for the purpose of fast telegraphic and

telephone communication, transmission of images and other applications when a light luminescence contact point is used as the light source connected directly to a circuit of modulated current.”

1955

Rubin Braunstein from the radio Corporation of America reported on an infrared emission from gallium aresenide (GaAs) and other semi-conductor alloys. This was the beginning of today’s LED material design.

1961

Americans Experimenters Robert Biard and Gary Pittman from Texas Instruments applied for and received the first patent for an infrared LED.

1962

Nick Holonyak developed the first practical, visible spectrum LED while working at General Electric Company. Due to this, Honolyak is viewed as the “Father of the Light Emitting Diode.”

1968

Hewlett Packard introduces the first cost-effective red LEDs. The revolution then takes off as LEDs become widely used for alphanumeric displays and a wide variety of indicator and signaling applications.

1970

Commercially successful LEDs started being manufactured by Fairfield Electronics at a cost of less than five cents per device. They used compound semi-conductor chips and used the ‘planar process’ of development invented by Dr. Jean Hoerni.

1980′s

A wide array of LED developments led to blue, ultraviolet, RBG and white LEDs.

1995

Alberto Barbieri from the Cardiff University lab developed a transparent contact made of indium tin oxide (ITO) on an (AlGaInP/GaAs) LED. This device demonstrated a highly efficient and bright LED design that is now used in many high efficiency LED designs.

2006

The Millenium Technology Prize was awarded to Nakmura for the first lone LED device that appears as a white light. It employs a “YAG” phosphor coating to mix yellow down converted light with blue light to produce a light that appears white.

2008

Luminous efficacy of 300 lumens of visible light per watt of radiation and warm light emission was achieved using nanocrystals.

2009

A new process for growing gallium nitrade (GaN) on silicon was reported. This development will allow costs to be reduced by approximately 90%.

The future of LED development is progressing and improving at rapid rates. It’s safe to say that within the next decade, the majority of lighting applications, whether architectural, equipment-based, signaling, display-based and more will be produced and operated with LED devices.

To make sure your next, best idea is set to grow with the times, contact VCC today to order the latest and greatest LEDs to use in your design.

Cloud services such as Cloud Computing, Back-up, Productivity, Administration and more have been skyrocketing in popularity over the last few years. It’s an exciting technology shift that provides businesses, especially smaller businesses, with the flexibility and accessibility to acquire services that can boost growth at a moments notice. It is no longer necessary to wait until more full-time employees can be hired or facilities built, thereby stifling expansion and causing stress at the thought of laying off those employees if the expansion is temporary or growth levels off.

VCC Optoelectronics has been a participant in allowing companies this option in the Engineering field. Our value-added services allow you to increase your Engineering Infrastructure with little more than a phone call or e-mail. We enable you to leverage the power and economic benefits of cloud resources to solve engineering problems by providing design support, rapid prototyping, manufacturing services, supply chain connections and global logistics to move you forward.

The benefits of Engineering from the Cloud are many, including:

Reduced Costs: In any economic climate, especially today’s, there is a drive to reduce costs. Contracting additional Engineering services from the cloud will meet this goal by permitting you to hire additional staff to perform various services without bringing them into your facility on a full-time basis. This saves the cost of insurance, training and other benefits, as well as finding the space to house them in your offices.

Shorter Time-to-Market: Hiring an expert with knowledge of your product and field will help decrease the time it takes to design, develop and manufacture a new product, enhanced feature or develop a fix for a current feature.

Elasticity: Engineering services in the cloud allow more than just scalability, they offer elasticity. You can quickly scale up or down quickly to meet the demands of the market whether they are expected or unexpected.

Availability: Our value-added services are available at any time. When a sudden increase in design or production is needed, when additional supply and logistics demands are required, cloud services are readily attainable and can be accessed at will.

Expansion of Market Share: Cloud based Engineering and Production services help you expand without a large increase of capital investment.

• When contracting our value-added services from the cloud, it is important to do the following in order to achieve optimum results:
• Develop a strategy early in the process to migrate data and design information from your current platform to VCC.
• Plan and discuss performance, security, reliability and availability expectations and requirements at the beginning of the project cycle.
• Work with VCC to adopt a set of procedures that assure high visibility, traceability and control to maintain communication between companies and allow seamless integration.

Our expert engineering, production, supply and global logistics experts are available around the clock to discuss your needs and how we can be instrumental in helping you achieve your goals. Contact VCC today for more information on the quality, speed and cost involved in implementing our services to increase your efficiency and profitability.

Emergency lighting and signaling is required in a large variety of enterprises including commercial, industrial, utilities, military, security, personal safety and more. One thing that is common to all emergency lighting and signaling applications is that extreme care must be taken when selecting the components used to make up the emergency circuitry.

Emergency lighting and signaling isn’t a case where damaged or defective lighting components are simply an irritation requiring maintenance, rather a time when an outage can mean shutdown of equipment for safety reasons or in the worse case, an injury or fatality. Today’s emergency lighting and signaling systems are increasingly being manufactured with LEDs to meet safety challenges such as:

• Reliability – LEDs are, by far, more reliable that other lighting options. When it is imperative that a lighting system function at a moments notice, using LEDs in your design will ensure consistent and reliable operation.
• Lower Power Consumption – LED circuits have lower power requirements than typical lighting options, thus resulting in a lower power requirement for your entire emergency lighting circuit.
• Improved Illumination – LEDs are brighter and can be seen from double or triple the distance of incandescent or fluorescent bulbs.
• No Filtering Circuit Requirements – Unlike standard luminaries, LEDs do not require a filtering circuit to remove the peaks of light outside the usable bandwidth.
• Durability – LEDs can withstand vibration, movement and rougher environments than lighting elements that have bulbs and filaments.
• Faster Switching – An emergency lighting circuit requires fast switching that is a characteristic of only one lighting type, LEDs. LEDs lighting circuit can be instantly switched on and/or off dependent on circuit requirements. There is no delay that can result in lost time in a circumstance where a second’s notice can prevent harm or damage.
• Extended Lifecycle – LEDs can have lifecycles anywhere from 5-10 years making them last many times longer than other luminaries.
• Simple Automation and System Integration – LED characteristics such as ‘Instant On/Off’, the low power requirements and pulsing allow them to be easily integrated into an existing circuit design or a newly automated system.
• No Mercury or UV Radiation – LED lighting options are not filled with mercury, neither do they emit radiation making them safer for any circuitry but especially circuits designed for safety. In addition, their safe composition means there are no special disposal requirements.
• Reduced Maintenance – LED usage as your lighting component will mean less downtime and therefore, less maintenance; this not only saves time but also increases safety and reduces costs.

VCC is ready and able to supply all your Emergency LED lighting and signaling needs. Contact us today and make your emergency lighting application more reliable, durable, earth friendly and flexible.

Code, specification or circuitry changes, inventory errors, forecasting changes and missing or damaged parts are all challenges faced in the development and production of both new and established printed circuit board based equipment. In accordance with Murphy’s Law, inventory deficiencies inevitably occur when a supply chain schedule is already behind or when a client needs their part in an expeditious manner. The department foreman and supply chain management personnel are often in a panic, and burdened with the undesirable job of informing upper management or clientele that his department is unable to meet or advance production schedules without a acquiring specific components such as an LED, standoff, connector or lite pipe device.

Supply and demand is a basic economic principle that has taken on a new meaning in today’s production environment. The days when the electrical stockroom was packed with all the possible elements needed to produce a variety of circuits or circuit boards is gone. Such an inventory would quickly become outdated and obsolete as the advancement of technology present today demands a malleable inventory, ready to change without months, weeks or at times, even days of notice. New developments, ideas and product improvements mean that inventory must be fluid, ever ready to change and adapt to new requirements. While this idea sounds great in writing, realistically, it’s a hard goal to meet.

One way many production facilities are overcoming this challenge is to develop relationships with suppliers that permit on-demand supply of the most critical components, which in today’s circuitry world includes PCB components, LEDs, Lite pipes and other elements. On-demand PCB component supplies allow you to reduce stock levels while still decreasing process times as you can procure system components at the right time and in the right quantity to complete even advanced production schedules.

Every production facility pursues ways to fine-tune Supply Chain Management, determined to meet unexpected changes without production downtime and to seamlessly overcome data and forecasting deficiencies. The advantage of on-demand supply is that it offers you a virtual inventory that can be on its way to your facility simply by placing a call, writing an e-mail or clicking an online order button. It provides production and lifecycle equilibrium, permitting your facility to better manage the flow of strategic inventory reserves. Components that can be received ‘on-demand’ allow you to reduce inventory of that item without the challenges associated with lower inventory counts. Inventory space can then be used for components that aren’t available on-demand, to enhance the production floor or to store completed products.

VCC Optoelectronics offers on-demand supply of various PCB components, LEDS and Litepipes to help your production facility become and remain highly flexible, quickly able to adapt to the ever-changing product development environment. Call or e-mail us today and begin a relationship with our professional staff who can help you set-up receipt of our large number of ‘always in stock’ elements.

When a business is undergoing a transformation such as adding new products or processes, Change Management effectiveness, determines the amount of success that is achieved and how efficient the change is implemented or the product launched.

Careful planning and preparation when adding a new product will help not only leaders, but also lower level employees embrace and efficiently implement changes. Proper communication will also provide support for associates who must incorporate changes in their daily work schedule.

Our own recent addition of Value Added Services, inspired us to share some of the ways VCC was able to plan, design and incorporate this product addition to our offerings. The most important components of managing product changes are covered below.

• Real Time Data – The ability to generate reports based on the latest data is essential to planning, analyzing and actualizing new production practices and concepts. No successful changes can take place if plans are made based on outdated or invalid data. In actuality, it can cause a bump in the road that slows the change process or even derails it entirely.
• Communication – One of the most important aspects of managing a product change or addition is to make sure that people are fully informed about the change, especially those parts of the change that most directly affect their job. Typically, the more information employees have, the less uncertainty they feel, and the greater their level of acceptance for the need to change. Take action to ensure that all levels of your production and design teams are informed about the change and that change-related information is not “lost” or “distorted” as it passes through the company communication channels.
• Impact Analysis – After gathering the latest data and receiving input from valued team members and employees, impact analysis is the next most important component of change management. From production schedules to employee task modifications and identification of third party integration requirements, defining the impact of your change is critical. Not only do it permit you to be prepared for process changes but also enables your organization to recognize possible stumbling blocks but to address them before they become an obstacle to success.
• Challenging and Inspiring Personnel – Communicating a change or addition to the product line can be done in such a way that it creates an environment of cooperation and positive, proactive attitudes among team members. This is accomplished by encouraging questions and discussions about proposed changes and seeking the input and suggestions of those who will be affected.

Without accurate data, successful change is just a dream; without team member input; efficient implementation is out of reach; without believers in the process; the change will meet indeterminate amounts resistance and without effective Product Change Management, the process will not be as streamlined and cost effective as it could be.

Contact VCC professionals today for more on effective product change management. VCC will effectively manage your projects by working closely with all of our dedicated manufacturing partners daily across multiple time zones. We can provide advice, design support, manufacturing resources, global logistics or complete turnkey solutions for a successful product change or addition.

LED usage has increased exponentially over the last few years with no end in sight. Market after market is experiencing an increase in the number of applications that use LED devices over other indicator and lighting options. From increased design flexibility, to their efficient use of power and environmental benefits, LED usage is growing.

Below we explore the basic parameters that must be considered when implementing an LED device into your design.

Electrical Parameters of LEDs

Maximum Electrical Ratings

Power Dissipation: It is the maximum power that can be dissipated in LED before it gets permanently damaged.

Continuous Forward Current: It is maximum permissible forward current through the LED. Exceeding this value will result in circuit failure.

Reverse Voltage: It is the maximum permissible voltage that can be applied to the diode in reverse polarity. An LED will not conduct with a reverse voltage applied but if that voltage is over the maximum reverse voltage capacity, LED failure will occur.

Operating Temperature: It is the range of temperature over which the LED can be safely operated. Effective heat management can be accomplished with the use of heat sinks and fans.

Reverse current: It is the maximum permissible value of reverse current.

Forward Voltage: It is the maximum allowable forward voltage across the LED for safe operation. Forward voltages are dependent on the LED material but are typically around 2-4VDC.

Nominal Optoelectrical Characteristics

Luminous Intensity: It is a measure of the light output produced (Candela –Cd orLumen-Lm) at given forward voltage and forward current. This value is critical in the design and purpose of your LED circuit. Different LED applications can require a large range of luminous intensity requirements.

View angle: It is the angle from the center of the light source to the area or device receiving the light. Maximum viewing angles allow for the greatest flexibility in design and production. When LED indication is part of the process, the viewing angle becomes a vital element of LED design.

Color – Color is actually one of the first LED characteristics that are selected. Red, Blue, Amber, White or some combination can be used to indicate a condition or communicate process factors.

Who Can Help Me Select the right LED device for my application?

When you are looking for an LED supplier, choosing VCC will ensure that you have a professional and experienced team of engineers and sales people who will find the right fit for each one of your projects. VCC will work directly with your design team to ensure manufacturability of new designs, assist in LED configurations to maximize panel space and use while minimizing costs and adhering to your project specifications. Contact VCC today for all your LED design needs.

LEDs began their automotive use in the 1980’s with the first LED center high-mounted stop lamp found in the 1984 corvette. Growth in the automotive industry was slow for LEDs and it wasn’t until the 2000 Cadillac Deville was released that LEDs supplied the entire rear cluster of stop lamps. Since that time, LED use has quickly taken over the automotive industry with close to 95% of both interior and exterior lighting being provided by LEDs. This includes the front headlamps, side indicators, rear stop lamps, auxiliary lamps, interior dashboard and overhead lighting.

Why the Rapid Change to LED Use in Automobiles?

The first years of LED development, from the 1970’s to the mid- 1990’s saw significant increases in the brightness and control of LEDs. Since the 1990’s innovation in the material and design of LEDs has provided such increases in luminosity that LEDs have become the most practical, flexible and cost effective selection for all automotive indication and lighting needs.

What Additional Benefits Do LEDs Provide in automotive applications?

The list of benefits that LEDs provide over standard lighting options is vast and includes:

• Long service life – Most LEDs will outlast the automotive system in which they currently operate. As opposed to previous lighting and indicator lamps with hundreds of hours of operation, LEDs offer thousands of hours. This is critical for high use applications such as DRLs (Daytime Running Lamps).
• Extremely resistant to vibration and stress – LEDs have no moving components and no small filaments that can be jostled about and broken as vehicles travel up and down the nation’s roadways.
• Better performance – LEDs reach full intensity faster than it’s predecessors. For application such as brake lights, the few milliseconds of speed in reaching full intensity provides increased safety.
• Reduced vehicle downtime – In commercial vehicle applications, the stability and strength of LED device operation provides increased profits as the vehicle spends less time out of commission.
• New styling potential – The flexibility in design and placement of LEDs allows manufacturers to provide distinctions between models through their lighting design.
• Reduced design space – LEDs are low profile and compact compared to other lamp alternatives. This increases design options and allows other components to be added in the space saved from lamp placement.
• High Efficiency – LEDs are highly efficient and help reduce the overall heat of the lighting system. Heat that is generated can be easily managed with heat sinks and fans.
• No Hazardous Gases or IR Radiation – Everything we produce today and every way we produce it, contributes to the improvement or degradation of the environment. LEDs do not contain hazardous gases nor do they emit IR Radiation, which places them at the top of environmentally responsible lighting choices.

VCC offers an array of LED indicators that can be implemented in a wide variety of automotive applications. Contact us today for more information and assistance in your automotive LED application needs.

Solar power, also known as photovoltaic or PV power, has been around for quite some time but despite its potential to produce clean energy, PV systems were not commonly implemented until recent years. The main reasons in the past for limited use were a high initial cost, system inefficiencies and low power production. Also, PV systems produce DC electrical power, which cannot be power many traditional loads without conversion and battery storage, which also introduce efficiency losses.

The current pattern of rising conventional energy consumption cannot be sustained in the near future has led to growing need to promote the use of renewable energy technologies in an environmentally sustainable manner. Among others, solar photovoltaics has gained wider acceptance due to proven maturity of the technology and ease in use. One major area of recent growth and expansion in the PV field has been in the implementation of solar powered LEDs for lighting applications.

Why should I use PV LED systems?

Unlike many standard electrical loads, LEDs can work effectively off DC electrical power. Solar LED lighting products also come with the added benefits of energy savings, meeting environmental goals, power reduction, safety, reliability, long life, easy installation and virtually no maintenance. Photovoltaic LED applications can be widely used in green lighting, road lighting, marketing and signage applications, traffic signaling, automotive and aerial panels, urban landscape lighting, home lighting systems and more.

Solar LED lighting has other benefits as well, including, a small opening angle, point size, high brightness, light scattering that is highly directional, good optical uniformity and other factors that are fostering its application in the lighting field.

Solar LED Innovations

Through the structure of traditional solar lighting, intelligent controllers, the angle of light reflection and technical improvements are making LED usage more conducive to photovoltaic applications.

In recent years, solar PV has been coupled with LEDs to provide more energy efficient light. Recent advancements in LED technology have led to the development of white light emitting diodes WLEDs. WLEDs provide a bright white light that’s ideal for domestic lighting. The advantage of using LEDs with solar PV systems is that the LED requires much lower wattage, therefore the size and the cost of the solar system is much reduced for each system. For indicator and signaling applications, use of a filter, diffuser or lens allows use of WLEDs in other areas as well as standard PV lighting applications.

VCC has LEDs, lenses, lite pipes and all the components you may need to implement LEDs into your photovoltaic powered system. Contact us today and talk to our LED experts!