LEDEngin, starting my first flashlight

[joecarrow]

Hey all, this is my first post.

I'm looking to design and build my own flashlight as a fun project to learn Pro/E Wildfire, and I'd like to try to get as close to state-of-the-art as I can.

Does anybody know if LEDEngin LEDs are actually any good? This part at Mouser claims 135 lumens at 2.7 watts.

http://www.mouser.com/search/refine.aspx?Ntt=897-LZ005003W1G1

From what I've read around here, 50 lm/w seems to be fairly good, and 135 lumens off of a single rechargeable cell with a single LED seems to be about as good as anyone is doing.

Am I missing something? Is there a post or thread somewhere that compares available LEDs, both from existing flashlight as well as newer LEDs that are available but not in commercial products yet?

 

[Gunner12]

The newer Cree and Seoul LEDs will give off 200 and above lumen at one amp drive at about 45 lumen per watt. over 100 lumen per watt at low drive currents. Edison has an LED that should give off 1000 lumen but it will require high voltage or high amperage. A single 18650 could supply 2200 mah of power so you should be able to run two Cree or Seoul LEDs and get 400 lumen out the led.

Look here, White LED Lumen testing

I can't open the link you posted,

Welcome to CPF! I hope you find this place helpful.

 

[joecarrow]

Gunner,

Thanks for the welcome. I must look like such a n00b! The Mouser part number is 897-LZ005003W1G1. Hopefully this link will work better:

http://www.mouser.com/search/Produc...1virtualkey62410000virtualkey897-LZ005003W1G1

It really looks like those Cree LEDs are the way to go; I found a link to DealExtreme, and it looks like there are a lot of off-the-shelf DIY parts. The holders, reflectors, and glass protectors ought to save me an enormous bunch of trouble- and money- and will allow me to spend more time and money on making my first light a bit more unique and useful.

This place looks like an awesome resource.

 

[Gunner12]

Cree LEDs have a narrower emitting angle. Seoul has a wider emitting angle, similar to the previous leader Luxeon. The Sandwichshoppe sells regulator boards to supply a constant current to the LED. They also sell a bunch of other stuff. Look around this site, you will find every thing related on flashlights on sale form time to time.

Goldserve's Flupic is a great buck board for LEDs, has multiple programmable levels and is on sale now for $15 I think. Most people use this board with a 3.7V lithium rechargeable battery (if you are new, go for the protected kind, lessens the risk of damaging the battery) or 3-4 1.2V rechargeable battery.

Don't worry about looking like a Noob, that's how most of us started.

Have fun building you flashlight.

If you have trouble, ask some of the more knowledgeable members (I haven't even modded a light yet), most are willing to help.

Dealextreme and Kaidomain's shipping time is a little long, you usually get what you bought two or more weeks later. A US dealer usually have a faster shipping time and better return and exchange policy but at a higher price.

Glad I could help

 

[TORCH_BOY]

Welcome to CPF, I also would go for the Cree or Seoul LEDs

 

[Gunner12]

If possible, could you keep us updated on your project?

Oh and Kaidomain is also selling a linear regulator(?) circurit for 3.6v to 6V batteries. Link, [url="https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/162646"]Discussion,
[/url]

 

[joecarrow]

Sure, I'd be glad to keep everyone updated.

I've been climbing up the learning curve on the flashlight scene for the last few days. I had no idea it was such a big thing! I used to spend most of my time at http://htguide.com/forum/forumdisplay.php4?f=6 and http://diyaudio.com. For a long time DIY audio has been my thing, and I've designed and built a few speakers over the years. I've fixed and built amplifiers, and I'm not scared of electronics.

Right now I'm an out of work mechanical engineer, and this seems like an ideal project. At first I thought that I'd be doing something innovative by mating a state of the art LED with some 18650 cells. Apparently there are 20 or 30 commercial ventures that have already done exactly that, so I need to up the ante a little bit for this project to be interesting.

It appears that the Cree XR-E emitters are without a doubt the way to go for a high brightness light of reasonable efficiency and durability. What I'm starting to think is that there is a very real market for these hand-crank flashlights:



I own one of these, and I bought it at the drug store for about $10. It's useful, and I keep it around for emergencies. The main problem with it is that it's very dim, and has a very cold, blue, monochromatic color. Why not make a version of this with a few changes?

I'd want something that:
-Uses a more ergonomic input to realistically get 20 or 40 watts of input
-Is as bright enough to really be useful, basically a "good beam"
-Has a battery life that allows you to really use the light without having to stop and crank every 5 minutes

Something similar to the stuff Freeplay does is what I have in mind. Has anybody around here seen something along those lines? Should I start a new thread to get more interest? Any interest to begin with?

 

[GeorgePaul]

joecarrow - Take a look at http://www.theledlight.com/led-specs.html.

 

[joecarrow]

George,

Thanks for the link. Also, if you're the one who moved the thread to a more relevant forum, thanks for that too.