With LED lighting, various technical specifications play a role, determining the lamp's performance, efficiency, and application possibilities. Below is an overview of the most important specifications:
1. Electrical specifications
- Wattage (W) : The power an LED bulb consumes, usually ranging from 1W to 100W or more.
- Voltage (V) : The supply voltage, often 12V, 24V (for low-voltage LEDs), or 230V (for mains applications).
- Current (A) : The amount of electrical current passing through the LED, usually specified in milliamperes (mA) or amperes (A).
- Power Factor (PF) : A measure of how efficiently the LED current is used (preferably >0.9 for professional applications).
- Inrush Current : The peak current at switch-on, which influences the choice of drivers and switches.
2. Lighting technical specifications
- Luminous flux (lumen, lm) : The total amount of light emitted. A higher lumen rating means a brighter LED.
- Luminous efficacy (lm/W) : Efficiency of the LED, expressed as lumens per watt. LEDs often have 80-200 lm/W.
- Luminous intensity (candela, cd) : The intensity of light in a particular direction, especially important in spotlights.
- Luminance (cd/m²) : The brightness of the surface of the LED.
- Beam angle (°) : The opening angle of the light (for example 30°, 60° or 120°), important for focused or diffuse lighting.
3. Color and spectral properties
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Color temperature (Kelvin, K) : Indicates the color of the light:
- <3000K (warm white, yellowish)
- 4000K (neutral white)
- 5000K (cool white to daylight)
- Color Rendering Index (CRI or Ra) : A value between 0 and 100 that indicates how accurately colors are rendered. For indoor lighting, CRI >80 or CRI >90 is often recommended.
- RG (Retinal Gradient) values : Relation to eye safety and blue light risk.
- S/P ratio : The ratio between scotopic (night vision) and photopic (day vision) responses, which is relevant in street lighting and work lighting.
4. Dimming and control
- Dimmability : Not all LED lamps are dimmable; dimmable variants often work on leading edge or trailing edge phase cut-off.
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Dimming methods :
- PWM (Pulse Width Modulation)
- 0-10V dimming
- DALI (Digital Addressable Lighting Interface)
- Zigbee / Bluetooth / Wi-Fi (IoT-based dimmers)
5. Physical and durability specifications
- Lifespan (burning hours) : LEDs can last 25,000 - 100,000 hours depending on quality and cooling.
- IP Class (Ingress Protection) : Determines the water and dust resistance (e.g. IP20 for indoor use, IP65 for outdoor use).
- IK class (impact resistance) : Indicates the mechanical robustness (e.g. IK08 for public lighting).
- Thermal Management : Heat sinks and heat dissipation mechanisms affect the lifespan of the LED.
6. Electronic components
- LED chip type : COB (Chip-on-Board), SMD (Surface Mounted Device), CSP (Chip Scale Package), etc.
- LED driver : The power supply of the LED, can be constant voltage (CV) or constant current (CC).
- EMC & Power Quality : Electromagnetic compatibility to prevent interference with other devices.
All these specifications determine the performance and applicability of an LED lighting product.