LED Electronic Drivers

L E D D R I V E R S

Julio Vera
Solid State Lighting North America
June 2009
What is an LED Driver?

Driver = The ballast for an LED system

Fundamental purpose : drive the LED

array at a specific voltage / current

Transforms system voltage (e.g., 120,

240, 277Vac)

Proper current/voltage/power critical for

light levels and life

Regulates power to counter system fluctuations

Isolate the LED system from the high voltage to reduce shock hazard and increase safety

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Types of LED Drivers

Four Basic Types of Power Converters are as follows:

Type 1: AC Voltage to DC Current

Type 2: AC Voltage to DC Voltage

Type 3: DC Voltage to DC Current

Type 4: DC Voltage to DC Voltage

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LED Drivers (Type 1 & 2)

Our Class 2 LED Drivers can be operated as type 1 or type 2 converters.

Constant
V Voltage
(R load > Rc)
Vmax
Constant
Current
(R load < Rc)
Rc = Vmax / Imax
Vmin

I
Imin Imax

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LED Drivers Types 1 & 2 (cont)

Advantages/Disadvantages between Type 1 and Type 2

Type 1, constant current output (350mA, 700mA, 1050mA )

+ Maximizes energy efficiency

- Limited flexibility in number of LEDs (limited configurations)

Better choice in medium/high volume, fixed designs (constant number of LEDs)

Type 2, constant voltage output (12V, 24V)

+ Maximizes LED load flexibility (numbers of LEDs to operate)

- Compromised energy efficiency story extra components required, extra losses

Better choice for low volume, variable designs (multiple lengths of LEDs)

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Regional Requirements
North America
Input: 120V, 277V, 347V, 480V
UL Class 1 or Class 2 (grounded)
UL, CSA, NOM
Surge Protection, ~10KV
Leads preferred
PFC, THD, I/O Isolation

Europe/APR
Input 220V, 230V, 240V (Japan excluded)
Class II (no ground)
CE, ENEC
Surge protection, ~10KV
Connectors preferred
PFC, THD, I/O Isolation, RoHS

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Xitanium Value Proposition

Delivers:
Long Lifetime: 50,000 hours (5% rate)
Wide Operating Ambient Temperature: -40C to +60C
Lighting Technology Independent: 0-10V, DALI, DMX
Performance Reliability: Designed for Lighting applications

Enables:
Global Lighting Solutions: 120V, 230V, 277V, Intellivolt
LED-independent Solutions: LumiLeds, Cree, Nichia

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Applications LED Drivers

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UL Class 2

UL Class 2 rating represents compliance with standard UL1310

UL Class 2 rating means output is considered safe to contact and no major

safety protection is required at LED/luminaire level

UL Class 2 has the following electrical restrictions:

Maximum output current: 5Adc
Maximum output voltage: 60Vdc (dry); 30Vdc (damp/wet)
Maximum output power: 100W

Any LED Driver used for Signage applications must be listed in the UL Sign
Components Manual

As component of an LED system, an LED Driver is not listed but

recognized by UL ( )

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UL Class 2 Drivers

50K hours lifetime

4W/0.35A-12V; 8W/0.70A-12V
matching the useful lifetime
expectancy of LEDs
5 years warranty provide
12W/0.35A-33V; 17W/0.70A-24V peace of mind to select an
Advance product
10W/0.35A-28V; 12W/12V;
17W/0.70A-24V; 20W/0.70A-28V; DC voltage or current
20W/0.70A-28V/Dim output provide freedom to
100W/12V-24V/Dim Controller select any 12V, 24V, custom
LED system in the market
25W/1.05A-24V; 25W/1.05A-24V/Dim;
25W/2.10A-12V; 34W/1.40A-24V; Intellivolt one solution for
40W/1.75A-24V the world, 120V~277V 50/60Hz

UL/CSA Class 2, CE safe to

34W/1.4A-24; 40W/1.75A-24V use, low voltage (below 30V),
no risk of high voltage hazard
Indoor IP20, Outdoor IP66
60W/12V; 67W/2.8A-24V;
80W/24V; 100W/4.1A-24V
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UL Class 1

LED Drivers with output outside the range required by UL1310 (Class 2)
need to comply with standard UL1012

Under this standard, LED Drivers are considered UL Class 1 devices

An LED Driver with UL Class 1 rating means its output is considered high
voltage and safety protection is required within the fixture

Fluorescent and HID ballast fall under this category

Also as a component of an LED system, an Class I LED Driver is not listed

but recognized by UL ( )

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UL Class 1 Drivers

50K hours lifetime

matching the useful lifetime
expectancy of LEDs
150W/0.35A-425V;
150W/0.70A-210V 5 years warranty provide
peace of mind to select an
Advance product
100W/0.35A/0.53A/0.70A-140V High Efficiency Greater
than 92%.
Thermal protection
150W/0.35A-425V/Dim; Minimized thermal management.
150W/0.70A-210V/Dim; DC current output provide
150W/0.70A-210V/LumiStep freedom to design any custom
LED system while maximizing
energy savings
Isolated Output safe to
contact, one lead & ground
UL, CSA, NOM, CE

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Class 1 vs. Class 2

Class 2
Easier to accommodate in fixture design
Simpler UL process
Electrical restrictions limit number of LEDs per driver

Class 1
Allows larger numbers of LEDs per driver
Added protection necessary in fixture
UL process not well understood relative to LEDs

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 Surge Protection (ANSI C62.41.2)

In a typical LED system, the LEDs are

mounted to a heat sink which is
connected to earth ground for thermal
reasons.
A common mode surge voltage of 10KV
would break over the insulation between
the LEDs and the heat sink in most installations
and, therefore, voltage clamping is required.
The typical breakdown of the LEDs to the heat sink is in the order of 2KV, so clamping below
this level is necessary even if the driver is designed to handle higher voltages.
This is why a Driver design that can handle 10KV surges does not help the system pass 10KV.
The voltages must be clamped to a level that the LED-to-heat sink insulation can safely
withstand to prevent LED failure.
Also, not clamping the common mode surges would put a large burden on the wiring inside the
fixture as everything would need to be designed to withstand 10KV (wires, connectors, wire-
nuts, etc.).
Implementing the above suppression circuit in the fixture eliminates the need to the high
withstand voltages on the wires, connectors, and LED to-heat sink interface.

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 LED Driver Reliability Statement

Failure rate < 0.01% / 1,000 hours at Tc=70C

Assumptions: continuous operation, exponential distribution and constant failure rate

F(1 year) < 876ppm, F(2 year) < 1750ppm, F(5 year) < 4370ppm

(F: Failure probability)

Model LEDINTA0024V41F0 (100W 24V Intellivolt Xitanium LED Driver):

Field Failure Record Reliability Requirement
P(24 months) = 883ppm P(24 months) < 1750ppm

Top failures:
1) Mosfet short 2) Solder missing
3) Transformer open 4) Water damage
5) Tested good (NFF)

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Energy Star Initiative
Scope
Complete systems -Driver and lamp (or LED array) in a luminaire.

Metric
Energy Star grants its logo based on compliance to lumens per input watt requirements specific to each
application.
Test measurements are performed by third party labs -NVLAP certified.

Xitanium & Energy Star

There is not Energy Star Driver or lamp.
Drivers and lamps have individual entry requirements to meet - Xitanium Drivers meet those 'entry'
requirements.

Energy Star and NEMA

NEMA has lists of Drivers/ballasts/lamps/luminaires/ used in Energy Star compliant systems.
These lists act as quick reference for Energy Star to consult history of a device.
This does not guarantee the new system using those devices will automatically be approved.

Energy Star Compliance

An Energy Star-compliant luminaire can only be assembled using the Driver and LED array specified in their
report.

Energy Star Literature for SSL

Energy Star Program Requirements for SSL Luminaires released Dec. 19, 2008.

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Solid State Lighting North America, June 2009 L E D D R I V E R S