Forums > Technical Discussion > Luxeon Poi...
Login/Join to ParticipateBRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
I just finished soldering up my 'Hyperlights'. Red, Green, and Blue Luxeon PIC Uber poi
Non-Https Image Link
Non-Https Image Link
Non-Https Image Link
More images with the Luxeons running here
I just finished soldering up my 'Hyperlights'. Red, Green, and Blue Luxeon PIC Uber poi
Non-Https Image Link
Non-Https Image Link
Non-Https Image Link
More images with the Luxeons running here
Cake or Death?
GOLD Member
king of the hedgehogs
125 posts
Location: Madtown, USA
king of the hedgehogs
125 posts
Location: Madtown, USA
Posted:
If you are looking for a way to recharge without opening, and dislike the concept of any kind of jack, you could always try magnetic induction...
If you are looking for a way to recharge without opening, and dislike the concept of any kind of jack, you could always try magnetic induction...
Yellow and blue make green.
GOLD Member
still can't believe it's not butter
6,978 posts
Location: Melbourne, Australia
still can't believe it's not butter
6,978 posts
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Posted:
that's great work mate, you should feel proud of your work.
very innovative.
as soon as they become available, i would like to throw currency at you too
keep it up!
BIll
that's great work mate, you should feel proud of your work.
very innovative.
as soon as they become available, i would like to throw currency at you too
keep it up!
BIll
Laugh Often, Smile Much, Post lolcats Always
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
@pricklyleaf: I'm a way off testing materials yet, but I'll look into the silicon stuff you mentioned. A thinnish layer in there somewhere would probably help avoid everything going bang when the poi collide. Once I've finalised (yeah right - i keep finding more bits and pieces to add!) the elctronics side, I'll start playing with housings. I think the design I have in mind may be strong enough to cope with knocks and bangs... time (and some harsh punishment) will tell
@jinvicible: Interesting idea, but I'm happy to put a jack in there. I'd like these things to be as energy efficient as possible and I suspect that magnetic induction is probably quite lossy? I could be wrong of course
@bender et all: Ta muchly for the complements. It's nice to know people are interested in what I'm developing here. I don't know if these will ever get sold commercially, but I will certainly produce a few batches for people from HoP for a fairly reasonably price. Guinea pigs will be very useful for feedback!
Keep your comments, suggestions, (constructive) criticisms etc. coming
@pricklyleaf: I'm a way off testing materials yet, but I'll look into the silicon stuff you mentioned. A thinnish layer in there somewhere would probably help avoid everything going bang when the poi collide. Once I've finalised (yeah right - i keep finding more bits and pieces to add!) the elctronics side, I'll start playing with housings. I think the design I have in mind may be strong enough to cope with knocks and bangs... time (and some harsh punishment) will tell
@jinvicible: Interesting idea, but I'm happy to put a jack in there. I'd like these things to be as energy efficient as possible and I suspect that magnetic induction is probably quite lossy? I could be wrong of course
@bender et all: Ta muchly for the complements. It's nice to know people are interested in what I'm developing here. I don't know if these will ever get sold commercially, but I will certainly produce a few batches for people from HoP for a fairly reasonably price. Guinea pigs will be very useful for feedback!
Keep your comments, suggestions, (constructive) criticisms etc. coming
Cake or Death?
BRONZE Member
Member
5 posts
Location: Brownsville, Texas, USA
Member
5 posts
Location: Brownsville, Texas, USA
Posted:
looks good bro got a vid of those?
looks good bro got a vid of those?
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
I have a short one from a while back: Testing a very slow rainbow fade.
I have a short one from a while back: Testing a very slow rainbow fade.
Cake or Death?
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
Right, I finally got my ass in gear last night and ordered all the bits I need to make a second prototype! I should also have enough bits and peices to make some improvements to the design - yay Amazing how fast all those components costing £0.08 each rack up when they all have to be ordered in batches of 25! I spent about £90 including a pack of 8 2500mAh batteries 
Right, I finally got my ass in gear last night and ordered all the bits I need to make a second prototype! I should also have enough bits and peices to make some improvements to the design - yay
Amazing how fast all those components costing £0.08 each rack up when they all have to be ordered in batches of 25! I spent about £90 including a pack of 8 2500mAh batteries Cake or Death?
SILVER Member
member
21 posts
Location: Bellingham and Seattle, WA, USA
member
21 posts
Location: Bellingham and Seattle, WA, USA
Posted:
I know the idea of making LED poi that can be programed to music has already been mentioned, however, you know those "music visualization" programs you can run that fill your monitor with all sorts of cool colors/designs/fractals that fluctuate with the beat/intensity of the music?
It seems (from my technologically-infantile state) that it wouldn't be too great a stretch to write or adapt a basic music-visualization program so that you could:
1. "plug" your LED poi into your computer
2. Select a specific song you want to perform to with your LED poi
3. Transfer the song into your music/LED Poi visualization program
4. Have the program analyze the music, and program the LED poi to (a) strobe to the beat (b) change color to the beat (c) increase or decrease in brightness depending on volume intensity (d) etc etc etc -- all the things a regular music visualization program can do, except with LED poi !!!
When you wanted to perform, you would just need to hit the "play" button on your CD/MP3 player, at the same time that you hit the "on" button on your LED poi... Then the performance would already be all in sync, and you wouldn't have to individually program each effect (which it seems would take a long time for just one song)
With this program, it would always be easy to set up a performance to any song you want -- quickly and simply -- for the non-technically-minded user.
Maybe the program could even have a "preview" window, that showed you a graphic display of the LED poi responding to the music, while doing a simple butterfly pattern.
Anyway -- all just ideas -- but I cant help but see this as the direction all this LED poi stuff is eventually headed...
I know the idea of making LED poi that can be programed to music has already been mentioned, however, you know those "music visualization" programs you can run that fill your monitor with all sorts of cool colors/designs/fractals that fluctuate with the beat/intensity of the music?
It seems (from my technologically-infantile state) that it wouldn't be too great a stretch to write or adapt a basic music-visualization program so that you could:
1. "plug" your LED poi into your computer
2. Select a specific song you want to perform to with your LED poi
3. Transfer the song into your music/LED Poi visualization program
4. Have the program analyze the music, and program the LED poi to (a) strobe to the beat (b) change color to the beat (c) increase or decrease in brightness depending on volume intensity (d) etc etc etc -- all the things a regular music visualization program can do, except with LED poi !!!
When you wanted to perform, you would just need to hit the "play" button on your CD/MP3 player, at the same time that you hit the "on" button on your LED poi... Then the performance would already be all in sync, and you wouldn't have to individually program each effect (which it seems would take a long time for just one song)
With this program, it would always be easy to set up a performance to any song you want -- quickly and simply -- for the non-technically-minded user.
Maybe the program could even have a "preview" window, that showed you a graphic display of the LED poi responding to the music, while doing a simple butterfly pattern.
Anyway -- all just ideas -- but I cant help but see this as the direction all this LED poi stuff is eventually headed...
A bird can fly, but a fly cant bird...
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
That's a really nice idea - I'd not thought of using something outside the poi to set up a sequence, but it makes alot of sense. The only issue I can imagine is storing what could be a quite complicated sequence.
I'd always planned to write some software for the PC to allow you to quickly put together sequences and program the poi. I really like what you've suggested there actually. Storing programs generated purely by the music might take a lot of space, but I don't think it would be too difficult to make something that retrieved the beat at different frequencies as a start point for a sequence - setting up a basic beat, maybe some special bits if there's intense bits in the music.
It'd be much more reliable than using a microphone too because it's already pre-programmed, and you can garauntee that both Poi will do the same thing!
Nice one - I shall give this some more thought
Written by: crazycarl
I know the idea of making LED poi that can be programed to music has already been mentioned, however, you know those "music visualization" programs you can run that fill your monitor with all sorts of cool colors/designs/fractals that fluctuate with the beat/intensity of the music?
It seems (from my technologically-infantile state) that it wouldn't be too great a stretch to write or adapt a basic music-visualization program so that you could:
1. "plug" your LED poi into your computer
2. Select a specific song you want to perform to with your LED poi
3. Transfer the song into your music/LED Poi visualization program
4. Have the program analyze the music, and program the LED poi to (a) strobe to the beat (b) change color to the beat (c) increase or decrease in brightness depending on volume intensity (d) etc etc etc -- all the things a regular music visualization program can do, except with LED poi !!!
That's a really nice idea - I'd not thought of using something outside the poi to set up a sequence, but it makes alot of sense. The only issue I can imagine is storing what could be a quite complicated sequence.
Written by: crazycarl
When you wanted to perform, you would just need to hit the "play" button on your CD/MP3 player, at the same time that you hit the "on" button on your LED poi... Then the performance would already be all in sync, and you wouldn't have to individually program each effect (which it seems would take a long time for just one song)
With this program, it would always be easy to set up a performance to any song you want -- quickly and simply -- for the non-technically-minded user.
Maybe the program could even have a "preview" window, that showed you a graphic display of the LED poi responding to the music, while doing a simple butterfly pattern.
Anyway -- all just ideas -- but I cant help but see this as the direction all this LED poi stuff is eventually headed...
I'd always planned to write some software for the PC to allow you to quickly put together sequences and program the poi. I really like what you've suggested there actually. Storing programs generated purely by the music might take a lot of space, but I don't think it would be too difficult to make something that retrieved the beat at different frequencies as a start point for a sequence - setting up a basic beat, maybe some special bits if there's intense bits in the music.
It'd be much more reliable than using a microphone too because it's already pre-programmed, and you can garauntee that both Poi will do the same thing!
Nice one - I shall give this some more thought
Cake or Death?
SILVER Member
veteran
1,228 posts
Location: on the wrong planet, United Kingdom
veteran
1,228 posts
Location: on the wrong planet, United Kingdom
Posted:
If found a page that mentioned a web server that consists of just two 8 pin chips (a pic and an eeprom), so putting more data into the poi, and having it remotely accessable shouldn't be too difficult.
I've already been thinking of having wireless modules in the poi, so a group on stage could have a choreographed act, where someone backstage can change the sequences of individual or groups of poi, in time to the music.
Music visualisation would be a much bigger step, and would have to be external to the poi, as the code is so complex. I can't imagine trying to write fast fourier transforms in assembler, also it probably wouldn't run fast enough on a PIC.
I could probably come up with a web interface, or something like a python program with a tk interface. (I've already done network programming with python at the packet level).
At the moment though I'm working on having a large number of patterns stored on the poi, and a way of sequencing them together without having to plug in a computer. I may even use the eeprom to store sets of sequences, to save reprogramming after the poi have been turned off.
All the remote would have to do is modify the timing to keep everything synchronised, and send the pattern numbers in sequence.
If found a page that mentioned a web server that consists of just two 8 pin chips (a pic and an eeprom), so putting more data into the poi, and having it remotely accessable shouldn't be too difficult.
I've already been thinking of having wireless modules in the poi, so a group on stage could have a choreographed act, where someone backstage can change the sequences of individual or groups of poi, in time to the music.
Music visualisation would be a much bigger step, and would have to be external to the poi, as the code is so complex. I can't imagine trying to write fast fourier transforms in assembler, also it probably wouldn't run fast enough on a PIC.
I could probably come up with a web interface, or something like a python program with a tk interface. (I've already done network programming with python at the packet level).
At the moment though I'm working on having a large number of patterns stored on the poi, and a way of sequencing them together without having to plug in a computer. I may even use the eeprom to store sets of sequences, to save reprogramming after the poi have been turned off.
All the remote would have to do is modify the timing to keep everything synchronised, and send the pattern numbers in sequence.
You aren't thinking or really existing unless you're willing to risk even your own sanity in the judgment of your existence.
Green peppers, lime pickle and whole-grain mustard = best sandwich filling.
SILVER Member
veteran
1,228 posts
Location: on the wrong planet, United Kingdom
veteran
1,228 posts
Location: on the wrong planet, United Kingdom
Posted:
Also, how many lies of code are people at? I've got the basics down, but a lot of my stuff is still in the pseudocode stage, as I'm planning things out before commiting it to code (Optimise! Optimise! Optimise!), and I'd like an idea of how big the program could get.
Also, how many lies of code are people at? I've got the basics down, but a lot of my stuff is still in the pseudocode stage, as I'm planning things out before commiting it to code (Optimise! Optimise! Optimise!), and I'd like an idea of how big the program could get.
You aren't thinking or really existing unless you're willing to risk even your own sanity in the judgment of your existence.
Green peppers, lime pickle and whole-grain mustard = best sandwich filling.
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
I've got 11 versions of my software all trying different ideas out. The current file isn't _that_ long, but then it's not testing much - just button presses and using interrupts instead of timing loops.
I'm still learning this platform, so my development cycle is more experimental - it's hard to come up with an optimised solution when you don't know what your kit's capable of
I've got 11 versions of my software all trying different ideas out. The current file isn't _that_ long, but then it's not testing much - just button presses and using interrupts instead of timing loops.
I'm still learning this platform, so my development cycle is more experimental - it's hard to come up with an optimised solution when you don't know what your kit's capable of
Cake or Death?
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
Q: What's better than a HyperLight?
.
.
.
A: TWO Hyperlights!
Non-Https Image Link
Now I just need to build a second container to stick it in
Q: What's better than a HyperLight?
.
.
.
A: TWO Hyperlights!
Non-Https Image Link
Now I just need to build a second container to stick it in
Cake or Death?
GOLD Member
ARRRR!
529 posts
Location: Charlotte, NC, USA
ARRRR!
529 posts
Location: Charlotte, NC, USA
Posted:
That board is huge! What size tube does it fit in?
More importantly, when are you building the assembly line so all of us can have a set?
That board is huge! What size tube does it fit in?
More importantly, when are you building the assembly line so all of us can have a set?
"My skin is singed but it heals my heart and with glowing pride I'll wear my scars." -Davey Havok
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
The tube is ~40mm across IIRC. The next revision will slip neatly into something only 33mm across, and a bit shorter too. Everything's got to go to SMT (That's Surface Mount Technology) first
...and as for assembly lines, well, unfortunately that's a way off. It's hard developing these things in my spare time when I have a 37 hour working week as well. Fun though
The tube is ~40mm across IIRC. The next revision will slip neatly into something only 33mm across, and a bit shorter too. Everything's got to go to SMT (That's Surface Mount Technology) first
...and as for assembly lines, well, unfortunately that's a way off. It's hard developing these things in my spare time when I have a 37 hour working week as well. Fun though
Cake or Death?
SILVER Member
big and good and broken
7,330 posts
Location: lunn dunn, yoo kay, United Kingdom
big and good and broken
7,330 posts
Location: lunn dunn, yoo kay, United Kingdom
Posted:
i found a company that makes swinging clubs with luxeon leds here.
i have no information other than that though i'm afraid...
cole. x
i found a company that makes swinging clubs with luxeon leds here.
i have no information other than that though i'm afraid...
cole. x
"i see you at 'dis cafe.
i come to 'dis cafe quite a lot myself.
they do porridge."
- tim westwood
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
Impressive looking stuff they've got there. Shame there's not any more information on it
Looks like I'll have my first public HyperLight viewing session on Friday - MrChutney (and Polarity maybe) is/are heading over for a spinning session. Better still, Chutney has a DV camera! Expect videos soon
Impressive looking stuff they've got there. Shame there's not any more information on it
Looks like I'll have my first public HyperLight viewing session on Friday - MrChutney (and Polarity maybe) is/are heading over for a spinning session. Better still, Chutney has a DV camera! Expect videos soon
Cake or Death?
SILVER Member
Tosser
1,712 posts
Location: Bristol,UK
Tosser
1,712 posts
Location: Bristol,UK
Posted:
Huzzah!
Huzzah!
enthusiast
523 posts
Location: Edinburgh, UK
523 posts
Location: Edinburgh, UK
Posted:
I'll be dead impressed if they are luxeons - it's a very small and sealed package to put them in...
(and there also seem to be lots of leds...)
Written by: coleman
i found a company that makes swinging clubs with luxeon leds here.
i have no information other than that though i'm afraid...
cole. x
I'll be dead impressed if they are luxeons - it's a very small and sealed package to put them in...
(and there also seem to be lots of leds...)
monkeys ate my brain
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
That was my impression.. no obvious sign of any kind of heatsinking either!
That was my impression.. no obvious sign of any kind of heatsinking either!
Cake or Death?
lovable smart-ass
785 posts
Location: vineyards, Vienna, Austria
785 posts
Location: vineyards, Vienna, Austria
Posted:
so when can i get me hands on these babies?
so when can i get me hands on these babies?
"is optimism in austria just a lack of information?"
-Alfred Dorfer
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
It's going to be quite a while before they are ready to sell. They're still in a very prototypey form and will probably stay that way for a while. I still have a lot of ideas to try out before I settle on a final package. Things are definitely progressing though... it's just a matter of time
It's going to be quite a while before they are ready to sell. They're still in a very prototypey form and will probably stay that way for a while. I still have a lot of ideas to try out before I settle on a final package. Things are definitely progressing though... it's just a matter of time
Cake or Death?
SILVER Member
big and good and broken
7,330 posts
Location: lunn dunn, yoo kay, United Kingdom
big and good and broken
7,330 posts
Location: lunn dunn, yoo kay, United Kingdom
Posted:
i think you are assuming that they are luxeon III's?
could they not be using something like luxeon I 'line' leds?
i don't think these need heatsinking but admittedly, they are nowhere near as bright as the III's and V's
cole. x
Written by: mo-seph
I'll be dead impressed if they are luxeons - it's a very small and sealed package to put them in...
(and there also seem to be lots of leds...)
i think you are assuming that they are luxeon III's?
could they not be using something like luxeon I 'line' leds?
i don't think these need heatsinking but admittedly, they are nowhere near as bright as the III's and V's
cole. x
"i see you at 'dis cafe.
i come to 'dis cafe quite a lot myself.
they do porridge."
- tim westwood
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
Possibly, although the link you gave there seems to be a line of luxeon emitters with collimeters on top. I use the same Luxeons in my Poi; Luxeon I Emitters, but without the collimeters.
I just finished building the second unit - I now have two spinnable prototypes Now if only I hadn't used all the batteries which normally go in my camera I could take some nice photos
I've got a couple of new problems to overcome now:
1) How to start them at exactly the same time so that they are in sequence.
2) How to keep them in time - I think I need to tune them a little so that they stay in sequence.
Possibly, although the link you gave there seems to be a line of luxeon emitters with collimeters on top. I use the same Luxeons in my Poi; Luxeon I Emitters, but without the collimeters.
I just finished building the second unit - I now have two spinnable prototypes
Now if only I hadn't used all the batteries which normally go in my camera I could take some nice photos I've got a couple of new problems to overcome now:
1) How to start them at exactly the same time so that they are in sequence.
2) How to keep them in time - I think I need to tune them a little so that they stay in sequence.
Cake or Death?
BRONZE Member
Bastard Newbie Messiah
1,269 posts
Location: Apparently lost in my ego, USA
Bastard Newbie Messiah
1,269 posts
Location: Apparently lost in my ego, USA
Posted:
ok so I have a question.. how big are these led's I see you are using the star model.. I was thinking of getting the single ones.. I havent really been following the discussion, so forgive me if some of these questions seem a bit off..
and how much power does it take to run one of these? because from the looks of it, I should be able to just mount the single emitter to a board, stick the batteries and whatnot on the bottom side with a switch, slide in the end of a tube, and voila no more chemical sticks for me..
depending on how mmuch power these ababies drain I might can stick one on either end of the stick just to make them hell bright.. though I'm not sure how I'd run the wires, since I want all the weight on the bottom..
ok so I have a question.. how big are these led's I see you are using the star model.. I was thinking of getting the single ones.. I havent really been following the discussion, so forgive me if some of these questions seem a bit off..
and how much power does it take to run one of these? because from the looks of it, I should be able to just mount the single emitter to a board, stick the batteries and whatnot on the bottom side with a switch, slide in the end of a tube, and voila no more chemical sticks for me..
depending on how mmuch power these ababies drain I might can stick one on either end of the stick just to make them hell bright.. though I'm not sure how I'd run the wires, since I want all the weight on the bottom..
More useless information courtesy of Rev...
Confusing the masses, one post at a time...
"Obviously, you're not a golfer.."- The Dude
"Buy the ticket... Take the ride..." -Raoul Duke
"FEMA has never done catastrophe planning..."-Michael Brown
GOLD Member
ARRRR!
529 posts
Location: Charlotte, NC, USA
ARRRR!
529 posts
Location: Charlotte, NC, USA
Posted:
The stars are just under an inch in diameter, 20 some odd cm. The LED part is actually quite small. They can pull up to 350 mA of current which is quite a bit. I run mine with a 9v battery and a 20+ Ohms resistor rated at 5 watts. I have not run into any overheating issues even with a small heatsink.
The stars are just under an inch in diameter, 20 some odd cm. The LED part is actually quite small. They can pull up to 350 mA of current which is quite a bit. I run mine with a 9v battery and a 20+ Ohms resistor rated at 5 watts. I have not run into any overheating issues even with a small heatsink.
"My skin is singed but it heals my heart and with glowing pride I'll wear my scars." -Davey Havok
BRONZE Member
Bastard Newbie Messiah
1,269 posts
Location: Apparently lost in my ego, USA
Bastard Newbie Messiah
1,269 posts
Location: Apparently lost in my ego, USA
Posted:
that's a bit big... so I guess the single emitter ones should be quite small and sould do the trick nicely..
what's the smallest size battery that you can run it off of.. I'm trying to keep these from getting too weighty(relative a glowstick) and I'm trying to kee it from taking up too much room in the stick.. (<- though I'm making my own stick from clear tubing.. I dont' like the mangled glowstick look)
that's a bit big... so I guess the single emitter ones should be quite small and sould do the trick nicely..
what's the smallest size battery that you can run it off of.. I'm trying to keep these from getting too weighty(relative a glowstick) and I'm trying to kee it from taking up too much room in the stick.. (<- though I'm making my own stick from clear tubing.. I dont' like the mangled glowstick look)
More useless information courtesy of Rev...
Confusing the masses, one post at a time...
"Obviously, you're not a golfer.."- The Dude
"Buy the ticket... Take the ride..." -Raoul Duke
"FEMA has never done catastrophe planning..."-Michael Brown
GOLD Member
ARRRR!
529 posts
Location: Charlotte, NC, USA
ARRRR!
529 posts
Location: Charlotte, NC, USA
Posted:
The smallest setup would probably be some type of specialized 6v and a 12-15 Ohm resistor (1 Watt rating). I hate hunting down odd batteries and paying premiums for them so the 9v is a good alternative.
Keep in mind, if you go with the single emitter, you will need to supply your own heatsink. The stars are big because they are mounted on a heatsink plate.
The smallest setup would probably be some type of specialized 6v and a 12-15 Ohm resistor (1 Watt rating). I hate hunting down odd batteries and paying premiums for them so the 9v is a good alternative.
Keep in mind, if you go with the single emitter, you will need to supply your own heatsink. The stars are big because they are mounted on a heatsink plate.
"My skin is singed but it heals my heart and with glowing pride I'll wear my scars." -Davey Havok
BRONZE Member
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
old hand
1,174 posts
Location: Great Malvern [UK]
Posted:
The emitters are about 7 or 8 mm across - that's what's in my Poi, 3 Luxeon emitters. One red, one green, and one blue. They're powered off 4xAA batteries for the moment, although I plan to move to using 3 ...and if that's still too heavy, I may try using Li-ion. With 4xAA batteries, you get at most 3.8v. The blue/green LEDs will drop about 3.5v and the red more like 2.95v. You can get away with some pretty small resistors (I use 1Ohm for the blue/green Luxeons) which means it's a fairly efficient circuit.
If you want low weight / size, lithium batteries are the way to go. Only problem is you need a special charger for them. You can get some pretty tiny / powerful lithium beasties. The bigger the battery, the more time it will last between charges though.
The power that Luxeons dissiate depends on the model. I'm using Luxeon I's which consume about 1W each (350mA*~3v).
The emitters are about 7 or 8 mm across - that's what's in my Poi, 3 Luxeon emitters. One red, one green, and one blue. They're powered off 4xAA batteries for the moment, although I plan to move to using 3 ...and if that's still too heavy, I may try using Li-ion. With 4xAA batteries, you get at most 3.8v. The blue/green LEDs will drop about 3.5v and the red more like 2.95v. You can get away with some pretty small resistors (I use 1Ohm for the blue/green Luxeons) which means it's a fairly efficient circuit.
If you want low weight / size, lithium batteries are the way to go. Only problem is you need a special charger for them. You can get some pretty tiny / powerful lithium beasties. The bigger the battery, the more time it will last between charges though.
The power that Luxeons dissiate depends on the model. I'm using Luxeon I's which consume about 1W each (350mA*~3v).
Cake or Death?
BRONZE Member
Bastard Newbie Messiah
1,269 posts
Location: Apparently lost in my ego, USA
Bastard Newbie Messiah
1,269 posts
Location: Apparently lost in my ego, USA
Posted:
ok now I'm confused.. I thought led didnt have heat issues... is this something specific to luxeons that I would need a heat sink? because I'm trying to keep the diamter under 3/4" (19mm) across... and I'm trying to keep the weight under 35 grams.. preferably under 20-25 (since I ahve to figure in casing), but I'm sure this stuff can get bulky.. at least from what I'm reading...
also I'm trying to use the led to light the stick.. not as the light itself.. if that makes any sense.. so I'm going to need small batteries.. AA or anything of the sort is simply too long.. I thought you could stack smaller batteries..
ok now I'm confused.. I thought led didnt have heat issues... is this something specific to luxeons that I would need a heat sink? because I'm trying to keep the diamter under 3/4" (19mm) across... and I'm trying to keep the weight under 35 grams.. preferably under 20-25 (since I ahve to figure in casing), but I'm sure this stuff can get bulky.. at least from what I'm reading...
also I'm trying to use the led to light the stick.. not as the light itself.. if that makes any sense.. so I'm going to need small batteries.. AA or anything of the sort is simply too long.. I thought you could stack smaller batteries..
More useless information courtesy of Rev...
Confusing the masses, one post at a time...
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GOLD Member
ARRRR!
529 posts
Location: Charlotte, NC, USA
ARRRR!
529 posts
Location: Charlotte, NC, USA
Posted:
Most LEDs do not have heat issues, but Luxeons are a different beast altogether. The price you pay for uber brightness is excess heat buildup.
You can always stack smaller batteries (they add up in voltage) but you will probably need a lot of them. 6 volts is a good number to shoot for.
You might want to try some other ultra bright LEDs that pull less current and maybe cluster them. Then you could easily fit them in a small space and wouldn't need all the batteries.
Most LEDs do not have heat issues, but Luxeons are a different beast altogether. The price you pay for uber brightness is excess heat buildup.
You can always stack smaller batteries (they add up in voltage) but you will probably need a lot of them. 6 volts is a good number to shoot for.
You might want to try some other ultra bright LEDs that pull less current and maybe cluster them. Then you could easily fit them in a small space and wouldn't need all the batteries.
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