UL (Underwriters LaboratoriesInc.) Is an American product safety certification and standards in the security organization established in North America and around the world has a significant impact. Headquartered in the United States, engaged in the preparation of product evaluation and criteria have been 110 years of history, every year there are 18,000 kinds of products tested, the use of the UL mark on the product more than 190 million around the world over more than 60 subsidiaries. Lighting plan, according to the Ministry of Commerce UL, general manager of the company said EliPuszkar: UL is working to develop a series involving LED (product) safety assessment standards.
In the field of technological innovation in lighting, LED application is undoubtedly the most exciting, it will change the structure of the lighting market, and its wide application around the corner. Speaking of LED, the technology itself is not a very new thing, many years ago, had already begun to use LED lights for instruments and equipment. With technological development, performance chips and materials to improve and enhance both the new, making the LED's brightness and life has improved greatly, and thus to promote wider use of the LED.
Today, many manufacturers have launched their own LED lighting products, LED lighting products with the use of large-scale, long before we see LED lighting applications will be mainstream. Long life and require little maintenance characteristics of these two deeply attracted a large number of lighting designers, coupled with its low energy consumption, adaptability, color and brightness and good controllability, the LED lamps become the new darling of lighting products.
In order to ensure that the new LED lighting products to lighting the same as ordinary and accepted by the public trust, UL has begun the preparation of the safety assessment of LED standards.
When a new product development and design time, manufacturers should consider the following factors that affect safety:
Electric shock:
To prevent electric shock, generally treated separately for the two cases: ① The power supply Class2 power supply LED products; ② directly connected to the grid or use of non-Class2 power supply power supply LED lamps. ① Class2 power supply for the apparatus used, the power supply itself has voltage and current limits, so there is no risk of electric shock; ② use other power supply for the products you need to live on its insulating properties and conduct a body can be touched assess and meet the standards. But with Class2 power supply, taking into account the use of a special occasion - and humid environment, if the product is used in wet conditions, its open circuit voltage can not exceed 15V AC (30V DC).
Fire:
To prevent fire, to make many aspects of product testing and evaluation, such as the LED spacing, scattering pieces of the structure and materials, housing location and the type and installation work and so on. Although the design of the product we use Class2 type of power supply devices to limit the energy of the product in order to avoid or reduce the fire, but according to UL on past experience, these products still possible to reach temperatures above 90 ℃ degrees (National Building Code Inside the installation of equipment in ordinary combustible materials, surface temperature should not exceed 90 ℃). Therefore, in the design of LED lighting products, should take into account this aspect, and temperature need to test (lamp surface temperature of each component should be in their rated temperature range.)
Physical hazards:
LED emitted light on visual or other physical parts of the skin may cause harm, which has been under the attention, but so far, been unable to have a resolution of research to show that the use of LED does not cause significant physical harm. For any class of light sources, using the film to less light scattering can effectively reduce the intensity of the radiation injury to persons.
LED initiatives in terms of UL:
Probably by the end of January this year, UL will officially release a new standard UL8750 - LED lamps draft assessment. On this basis, UL will use LED lighting to LED as the light source safety evaluation. UL8750 UL stressed is a parallel with other standard criteria (which does not belong to a specific lighting standards), in assessing the product, in addition to the standard assessment with LED's security, the entire lighting products to the existing lighting standards are still the basis for the assessment. For example: fixed lighting, using LED as a light source, it is necessary to evaluate the use of UL8750 LED light source itself, in addition, to evaluate the use of UL1598 safety performance of the lamps. Similarly, for the use of LED as a light source luminaries, but also with UL8750 and UL153 for product safety assessment.
Standard Technical Panel (STP):
First quarter of 2007, UL will be formed by the producers, testing and certification bodies, construction supervision staff, government officials, consumers, commercial / industrial users, and so the composition of Standards and Technology panel (that is, we are familiar with the STP-StandardTechnicalPanel), the group to draft the basis of the above, will draft and publish a suitable LED American National Standard (ANSI standard), to assess the LED lighting products sold in North America.
