Bright Multi LED pocket light

After having viewed the ARC 4 light prototype, my interest in a very bright pocket lights have increased. It appears to me that all the pocket sized lights are variations of the Photon for brightness. I think that a variable brightness light that has at its highest setting output equivelent to to at least two Photons worth would be more useful. Obviously, the run time would not be very long but most people don't need that much light output for very long. A dimmer switch that pulses the light (similar to the Eternalights) could then increase the run time for an adequate duration.

The ARC 4 would be great if it was dimmable but a smaller form factor would be even better. I think that the large button cell lights could work but it would obviously be bigger than the Photon - but not necessarily that much bigger.

What do you lighthead experts think. What would be your specifications for a really bright preferred pocket light. Remember, it has to be production doable. Cost considerations are secondary.

Anxiously awaiting your thoughts.

Could be a double barrel Arc...or a two LED Photon IIII using the larger 2032`s...there`s some thoughts on this at the Photon disussion board www.photon.com or a two LED Infinity with a better step up---like the Arc...I think CMG will have to do something as I believe more people will be interested in the Arc once the news gets out on it`s excellent performance and the Infinity has been there best selling item.

But all in all I think a 2 LED Photon IIII useing the i/c from the III and larger batts would be the big winner. Who knows though...

Again, I think that the AAA Arc will be a great addition, but its light output will not be any better than what is out there. I really think that we need to think outside of the box in terms of the brightness that was set by the Photon.

Well to make a light brighter than the Arc or Photon, you need a brighter LED and right now it doesn't exist. The Luxon star has hope but until it is in production were are limited to what we are currently seeing.

Using the current LED's my guess as to the brightest light would be something along the lines of the prototype Arc made of a single AA using 4 LED's. Now it would be cool if you could turn one on at 1/2 brightness for a runtime of say 50 hours, then all 4 at full brightness for 3 hours? That would be nice.

Brock

I'm not sure there would be many viable options for a light 2x as bright as the Photon in a similar size package. You'd be asking for too many amps from those little button batteries. Look how quickly a the single LED Photon loses brightness. With new batteries, it's amazing, but doesn't take all to long for the light level to drop off.

I imagine you'd need to use AA's or AAA's as the power source. A light with 3 AAA's side by side (not in-line) might have enough capacity to run the two LEDs and wouldn't be much larger in diameter than a light with 2 AAA's. But it would still be nowhere near as compact as a Photon.

All I want is everything.

Do you think it would be possible to replace the reflector on the Luxeon with an integral case reflector like on the Arc?

Well...er....probably not.

You see, it`s not actually a reflector. It`s a solid prismatic lens made entirely of clear Acrylic plastic, the lens action works because it is conical in shape and smooth sided- it`s more efficient this way than to use a silvered reflector, plus the LED is quite low profile and it would be hard to design a small efficient reflector that would have its focal point that low. A nice thing about Luxeons is the very smooth beam- no rings! Other reflector/lens arrangements might not perform nearly as well.
Also, the bare Luxeon LEDs come pre-mounted on a metal PCB 1" square which is there for a reason- to keep the LEDs cool. Cutting the PCBs down is a possible option but it can`t go too small because of the electrical connections more than anything.
Now it may be possible to design a P60 type drop in replacement lamp for SureFire lights, and have a custom designed lens to fit perfectly and give SureFire beam quality. They may even fit in as they are with minimal mods (I`ll find out soon enough) but for a miniature Infinity-size light they`re just not really viable. Too much current and too much heat. It`s a bit like making a Solitaire with a 10 watt xenon bulb!

I reckon before long Nichia (or someone) will come up with the next genetration of more efficient 5mm LEDs- we`ll maybe see 10-000mcd whites pop up as standard which will replace the 5600s but draw the same current, but that`s really just speculation, I don`t know. We can all hope....

It`s going to be interesting to see what flashlight manufacturers make of Luxeons though. They have a lot of potential in numerous lighting applications but are very different to LEDs we are used to. Needless to say I`ll be the first in line to snap up the debut commercial Luxeon LED flashlight. Wonder when (or if) it will show up (asides from the inevitable 3D MAG-lite conversions)?

I second K Horn. An eternalight with AAA would be a good answer. I think that the auto off switch and several dimmer levels are all that interest me. All the strobe features just seem to be unneeded extras. I would also keep the 4 leds and that would make it just as bright as the AA light, but with less run time.

Maybe what we are trying to get at is the smallest form factor light with the greatest output tempered with a dimmer for adequate run time?

You'd probably want a case shaped along the lines of a BIC lighter, only wider and shorter. Avoid sharp corners that would poke in a pocket.

Thanks Chris. I'll have to wait until I can get a hold of one to see what might be done with it. In the meantime, I hope a manufacturer will put it to good use. Hmmm. Now if it's using a prism instead of a lens, then it isn't necessary to make a reflector, but merely to cement the prism to the case. If I understand you correctly, the prism is using total internal reflection to keep the light inside the prism, so it doesn't matter if you block the outside of the cone. Then the waterproof feature should still remain. This could be even easier than I originally thought. I'll have to check your website again for more details.

Maybe a pager...rip out the guts and install somehow...have I seen this done before?

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by K Horn:
How about something along the lines of a smaller eternalight. 3aaa batteries and maybe just 3 LEDS. The push button features included.
This should be easily fit in a plastic case the size of a lighter.

This would seem to fit all the criteria.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

K.Horn,
Did you happen to see another company's answer to the Eternalite? www.giantsavings.com/neonstarlight.html
Even though I've got 3 different
E.Lights, the smaller "Star" light that I use just beats the PANTS off of the Eternalights when it comes to practicality.(uses 4AAA + 4LEDs) ps.newer version avail.@ only $25 and it runs a looooong time on those AAAs.

Videocal, where can one see these "Star" lights? Is it the light that projects the leds out the side rather than the top?

Vidoecal. Oops, didn't see your URL come. I tried the link and the the price they show is an on-sale $59.95 for the Neon Star. Which star is for $25?

Thanks.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by my:
Videocal, where can one see these "Star" lights? Is it the light that projects the leds out the side rather than the top?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

For anybody to look at:.... www.ravingrainbow.com
(just click on "pulsating lights") this is the
new version-"Gecko" of that same little flashlight, and trust me, even though the picture doesn't do it justice, it's a bright little bast*rd! ($25.)

I posted something about this on another thread. My idea is to make a stubby Infinity (Arc) that runs off of a single DL123 battery. I swear you could cram 7 LEDs into the Infinity, but the DL123 diameter would be a little greater, so they should certainly fit. I also think a DL123 could handle this much current with no problem.

Guy, I agree. I am surprised that more thought is not given to powering small form factor led flashlights with 123s. Given the amount of talk about converting E2s to led, I would think that an E1 with multiple leds and a dimmer or a UK 2L with a dimmer would work well.

I know that every time someone says that it can't be done (i.e., make a pocket led light any brighter than a Photon), sure enough that person is proved wrong.

I want a brighter pocket led light.

Are you folks going to be satisfied with the photon light output of the AAA Arc?

How about something along the lines of a smaller eternalight. 3aaa batteries and maybe just 3 LEDS. The push button features included.
This should be easily fit in a plastic case the size of a lighter.

This would seem to fit all the criteria.

my:

A posted about an E1 with LEDs on the Surefire forum in response to PKs inquiry about LEDs a while back. Let's see if they're listening. The thing is, it doesn't need to be done with an E1, which would probably cost alot. An Infinity (Arc) type case would be fine. How to waterproof it would be an issue, though, since the circuit board would be external to the case. In that case, an E1 with a Luxeon LED might be a great goal.

Chris, Craig:

Do you think it would be possible to replace the reflector on the Luxeon with an integral case reflector like on the Arc? The DL123 battery would require that the case have a larger diameter than the Infinity. Seems to me this could help make it waterproof, and the metal body would help as a heat sink.

Hey, I like K Horns idea. You could have the low, mid, high be...one, two, or three without the need for a step up or resistors...simple.