McLux Regulation with Runtime Results

In a not too scientific test, I'm trying to understand the regulation of the McLux. The method I'm using is the same that I've done on many ARC-LS lights throughout the last year or so. I believe some of these results are actually posted on CPF somewhere.

Anyway, I'm still in the midst of this 1st run test and I've yet to discover any regulation. These numbers are really not important, however the key for this test is that they are changing, whereas I'd expect something more constant if regulation was occuring.

18:35 785
18:45 780
18:55 773
19:05 768
19:15 765
-----------
19:25 764
19:35 763
19:45 762
19:55 762
-----------
20:05 762
20:15 761
20:25 760
-----------
20:35 758
20:37 McLux drasticly fails out of regulation.
20:38 560
20:45 219
21:05 123
21:15 087
-----------
21:25 067
21:35 056

I've yet seen anything constant which would convince me of any regulation ocurring. What am I not understanding here?

Edit #1: As you can see, it appears the McLux regulation is now stabilizing. More to come.

Edit #2: Now we're cooking. Regulation is now apparent.

Edit #3: For the most part, this test is over. To sum it up, this McLux gets a constant 2-hours of regulated bright light.

Edit #4: I was so close to the 3-hour mark, I figured I'd let the test continue until 21:35. You can see the entire timeline above, in 10-minute increments.

Re: McLux Regulation

Nascar,

I asume that you are measuring light and that this is the number that has gone down by 2.5% over 40 minutes? I agree that this number isn't constant but the variation could be a function of temperature effecting the LED, circuit or battery, ambient light change or who knows what else. Although not constant, it seems pretty close? I am not big on tests myself so I really don't have much to compare or any depth in experience for comment. I can say that I have seen greater changes in luminous output in constant current circuits within the first 30 seconds of operation.

Perhaps those who do a bunch of testing can comment here.

- Don

Re: McLux Regulation

I'll edit my post to put the next sequence of samples in there. It appears that this particular unit my not be finding its sweet spot until 30 or so minutes into the test.

As far as the environment, everything in the test case is remaining constant. The ambient light, the placement to the light sensor, the tempature, etc.

Re: McLux Regulation

If the BB400 is doing it's job, it's holdin the current to the LED constant within 1-2mA of current during the period you have just measured. Since photon efficiency goes down as the LS temperature goes up, you are probably seeing the LS heat up and the light metering go down. To prove this, you can put an external fan blowing on the flashlight and re-run the experiment. I think you will see two completely different set of numbers.

I have full confidence that the electronics appears to be functioning just fine from your measurements.

If you have an IR thermometer or can take the reading of the flashlight housing temperature, I think you find a 1:1 relationship that as temperature goes up, the light reading goes down.

Wayne

Re: McLux Regulation

Thanks Wayne. I'm still running this 1st round and getting ready to update the numbers. It appears to have stabilized.

Re: McLux Regulation

Edit #1 (in original message) has been posted. Much better results.

Re: McLux Regulation

Edit #2 has been posted.

Re: McLux Regulation

Light appears to have similar qualities to sound, single decibel increments up or down are not discernable to the human ear, and in order to go up 3 decibels in sound it requires double the amplification power, I don't think any of those measurements(as Don says, 2 1/2% down) would be discernable, looks pretty good to me in an unregulated world.

Re: McLux Regulation

Edit #3 has been posted. This concludes my first round of testing. In short, this McLux provides 2-hours of bright regulated light. For this test, I was using the NX05 optics with a new SureFire 123-cells which was registering 3.26 volts at the beginning of the test.

Re: McLux Regulation

Edit #4 has been posted. I was so close to the full 3-hour mark, I couldn't see not completing it. Anyway, my results are posted above. I'm not sure if these means anything to those way more technical than I, but the voltage of the 123-cell immediately after the final sampling was 1.49 volts. Even at this last sampling of the test, the McLux produced enough light to be usefull. In a totally dark room you could easily see to manuveur around.

Re: McLux Regulation

Man, that sounds GREAT! I want one of them McLuxes! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Re: McLux Regulation

Hey Darell,

Have you checked your pockets yet? I bet you might find one there or perhaps attached cell-phone style to your belt.

Re: McLux Regulation

Me too! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Re: McLux Regulation

Actually, my daughter has the dang thing right now. I've been chasing her all around the hotel room trying to get it back. I REALLY want one -- mine in particular! Though I think I'll need a new battery when/if I do get it back. She started off with it in the bathtub, had it all through dinner and is now playing "fort" in the bed. It has been on the whole time.

If you want to see these things fall out of regulation fast, try 'em with NiMH batteries. When regulation is over, it falls off a cliff. Not quite like my Llambda Illuminator (dead) but certainly faster than with a Li bat. (see how I actually brought this back around to the topic?)

Re: McLux Regulation

I'll second that... Stuck in a couple of 1/5A NiMHs and although I haven't done a runtime test yet, when it hits the wall, it dies quick...

Re: McLux Regulation

In fairness to my ARC LSH-P, I just completed the same test. The environmentals where the same, as well as the testing methods and measured intervals.

Here's the results:

17:35 642
17:45 611
17:55 606
18:05 603
18:15 602
18:25 600
18:35 600
18:45 600
18:55 600
19:05 599
19:15 599
19:25 598
19:35 597
19:40 Out of regulation.
19:41 460
19:45 240
19:55 173
20:05 109
20:15 058
20:25 062
20:35 045

At the end of the test, I did the same walk around the house test. Much more difficult to see with the amount of light being produced, however still usable. The SureFire 123-cell registered 1.47 volts at the end of the last sample.

Re: McLux Regulation

Interesting Ray! I wonder if the 5% drop in the first 10 minutes is a result of the LED heating up. Conduction is the fastest/ quickest method of phonon management and I don't think the LSH-P has the mass of Al or path, readily available for quick phonon accomodation. (Like I knew what I was talking about... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/twak.gif )

In all fairness and with no offense meant to anyone, this is one test and perhaps not too scientific at that. However in the interest of sharing information and learning as a group, I aplaud T.I. Nascar for taking the time to do these tests and share the results. I would be interested in folks take on this; Doug S. comes to mind for one. How, or does thermal management, manifest itself in measurable light output?

Now that you are on a roll, Ray, do you have a KL1 you can subject to the same test? Hey, next package going your way will include a couple SF battteries if you want. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

- Don

Re: McLux Regulation

Yep, I have several KL-1's lying around. What I'll do, is perform a couple tests. One with the KL1 on the E1 body and the other on the McLux body.

Re: McLux Regulation

Ray,

That could be interesting. I am more curious now about the first say 5 or 10 minutes of the lights being turned on from cold. The McLux dropped 5 units in the first ten minutes but I wonder if those were in the first minute or even across ten minutes. The Arc dropped 31 units in the first ten minutes. Again, was this an even drop over ten minutes or more at the start? I ask because when a bunch of us were trying to get Lux readings on different lights, we would see a noticible drop right from the get go with some of the lights.

- Don

Re: McLux Regulation

I will recreate the 2-tests again at 1-minute intervals, for 10-minutes. If I recall, most of that drop-off occurred in the first 3-minutes. I won't be able to get to this until tomorrow night. It's almost 22:00 here and I still have to sleep an hour or so and be in work at 02:00.