Third quarter 2012, Aeon Lighting Technology Inc. (ALT) has submitted the ALTLED® A55 LED light bulb, with a 360° omnidirectional lighting, for Energy Star certification—approved in January 2013. For many consumers and clients, this has opened up many opportunities for them as well as ALT.
ENERGY STAR is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy" designed to promote energy efficient products and practices through financial incentives and high standards.
One of the reasons to trust ENERGY STAR products is its testing for consistency, performance, and energy efficiency. One example of this is its requirement of an uninterrupted 6,000-hr "burn" test where sample products' lumen output cannot fall below 91.8% of its initial value to ensure a minimum 70% lumen maintenance after 25,000 hours of operation. In order to meet this requirement, a LED lamp must account for several factors: overall quality, heat dissipation, and power driver performance and stability.
Heat dissipation is a key factor prolonging LED lifespan because, as heat increases, the lifespan of the LED decreases dramatically. ALTLED® A55 was able to achieve ENERGY STAR certification through its unique heat dissipation and optical designs allowing for a 360° omnidirectional lighting while maintaining a 40,000-hr lifespan, an estimated 22* year lifespan, approximately replacing 60W traditional incandescents.
In order to achieve 360° omni-directional lighting and to fulfill a seamless transition from incandescent bulb to LED lamp, ALT engineers were successfully found a solution to bend the typically monodirectional light into 360° omnidirectional light without noticeable variations in the intensity at any given angle. They accomplished this feat by using a specially designed light transferring pole and the unique fin type heat sink design, which allows light to pass through the heat sink housing, allowing for the 360° omnidirectional light.
Additionally, ALT developed a proprietary power supply with a power factor of ≥0.90 and high current stability. A higher power factor means that the actual power usage is closer to the nominal power usage; stable input power means more reliable and long lasting LED lamps. The ALTLED® A55 is usable globally with an input voltage of 110-240V, standard, and applicable ANSI bases.
ENERGY STAR's impact on the LED lighting market has been enormous, making LEDs cost competitive with traditional and other energy efficient alternatives, such as CFLs and fluorescents, through the use of incentives. ENERGY STAR also acts as a standardizing agent for energy efficiency in consumer based lighting, as well as other technologies.
The incentives can be found in many formats, ranging from tax credits and rebates, coupons, and mail-in rebates, to discounts on bills and online stores. The incentives can be offered on different government levels ranging from local to state to federal; they can also be offered by private companies, such as the electric company.
