Systems for providing tunable white light with high color rendering

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9609715-B1
Application number	US-201615173554-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Jun 3, 2016
Priority date	Jan 28, 2016
Publication date	Mar 28, 2017
Grant date	Mar 28, 2017

Abstract

The present disclosure provides systems for generating tunable white light. The systems include a plurality of LED strings that generate light with color points that fall within blue, yellow/green, red, and cyan color ranges, with each LED string being driven with a separately controllable drive current in order to tune the generated light output.

First claim

What is claimed:

1. A semiconductor light emitting device comprising:
a first light emitting diode (“LED”) string that comprises a first LED that has a first recipient luminophoric medium that comprises a first luminescent material, wherein the first LED and first luminophoric medium together emit a first unsaturated light having a first color point within a blue color range defined by a line connecting the ccx, ccy color coordinates of the infinity point of the Planckian locus (0.242, 0.24) and (0.12, 0.068), the Planckian locus from 4000K and infinite CCT, the constant CCT line of 4000K, the line of purples, and the spectral locus;
a second LED string that comprises a second LED that has a second recipient luminophoric medium that comprises a second luminescent material, wherein the second LED and second luminophoric medium together emit a second unsaturated light having a second color point within a red color range defined by the spectral locus between the constant CCT line of 1600K and the line of purples, the line of purples, a line connecting the ccx, ccy color coordinates (0.61, 0.21) and (0.47, 0.28), and the constant CCT line of 1600K;
a third LED string that comprises a third LED that has a third recipient luminophoric medium that comprises a third luminescent material, wherein the third LED and third luminophoric medium together emit a third unsaturated light having a third color point within a yellow/green color range defined by the constant CCT line of 4600K, the Planckian locus between 4600K and 550K, the spectral locus, and a line connecting the ccx, ccy color coordinates (0.445, 0.555) and (0.38, 0.505);
a fourth LED string that comprises a fourth LED that has a fourth recipient luminophoric medium that comprises a fourth luminescent material, wherein the fourth LED and fourth luminophoric medium together emit a fourth unsaturated light having a fourth color point within a cyan color range defined by a line connecting the ccx, ccy color coordinates (0.18, 0.55) and (0.27, 0.72), the constant CCT line of 9000K, the Planckian locus between 9000K and 4600K, the constant CCT line of 4600K, and the spectral locus;
a drive circuit that is responsive to input from one or more of an end user of the semiconductor light emitting device and one or more sensors measuring a characteristic associated with the performance of the semiconductor light emitting device,
wherein the drive circuit is configured to adjust the relative values of first, second, third, and fourth drive currents provided to the LEDs in the first, second, third, and fourth LED strings, respectively, to adjust a fifth color point of a fifth unsaturated light that results from a combination of the first, second, third, and fourth unsaturated light and,
wherein the blue color range comprises a region on the 1931 CIE Chromaticity Diagram defined by a 60-step MacAdam ellipse at 20000K, 40 points below the Planckian locus.

2. The semiconductor light emitting device of claim 1 , wherein the red color range comprises a region on the 1931 CIE Chromaticity Diagram defined by a 20-step MacAdam ellipse at 1200K, 20 points below the Planckian locus.

3. The semiconductor light emitting device of claim 1 , as wherein the yellow/green color range comprises a region on the 1931 CIE Chromaticity Diagram defined by a 16-step MacAdam ellipse at 3700K, 30 points above Planckian locus.

4. The semiconductor light emitting device of claim 1 , wherein the cyan color range comprises a region on the 1931 CIE Chromaticity Diagram defined by 30-step MacAdam ellipse at 6000K, 68 points above the Planckian locus.

5. A semiconductor light emitting device comprising:
a first light emitting diode (“LED”) string that comprises a first LED that has a first recipient luminophoric medium that comprises a first luminescent material, wherein the first LED and first luminophoric medium together emit a first unsaturated light having a first color point within a blue color range defined by a line connecting the ccx, ccy color coordinates of the infinity point of the Planckian locus (0.242, 0.24) and (0.12, 0.068), the Planckian locus from 4000K and infinite CCT, the constant CCT line of 4000K, the line of purples, and the spectral locus;
a second LED string that comprises a second LED that has a second recipient luminophoric medium that comprises a second luminescent material, wherein the second LED and second luminophoric medium together emit a second unsaturated light having a second color point within a red color range defined by the spectral locus between the constant CCT line of 1600K and the line of purples, the line of purples, a line connecting the ccx, ccy color coordinates (0.61, 0.21) and (0.47, 0.28), and the constant CCT line of 1600K;
a third LED string that comprises a third LED that has a third recipient luminophoric medium that comprises a third luminescent material, wherein the third LED and third luminophoric medium together emit a third unsaturated light having a third color point within a yellow/green color range defined by the constant CCT line of 4600K, the Planckian locus between 4600K and 550K, the spectral locus, and a line connecting the ccx, ccy color coordinates (0.445, 0.555) and (0.38, 0.505);
a fourth LED string that comprises a fourth LED that has a fourth recipient luminophoric medium that comprises a fourth luminescent material, wherein the fourth LED and fourth luminophoric medium together emit a fourth unsaturated light having a fourth color point within a cyan color range defined by a line connecting the ccx, ccy color coordinates (0.18, 0.55) and (0.27, 0.72), the constant CCT line of 9000K, the Planckian locus between 9000K and 4600K, the constant CCT line of 4600K, and the spectral locus;
a drive circuit that is responsive to input from one or more of an end user of the semiconductor light emitting device and one or more sensors measuring a characteristic associated with the performance of the semiconductor light emitting device,
wherein the drive circuit is configured to adjust the relative values of first, second, third, and fourth drive currents provided to the LEDs in the first, second, third, and fourth LED strings, respectively, to adjust a fifth color point of a fifth unsaturated light that results from a combination of the first, second, third, and fourth unsaturated light;
wherein the drive circuit is configured to adjust the fifth color point so that it falls within a 7-step MacAdam ellipse around any point on the black body locus having a correlated color temperature between 1800K and 10000K; and,
wherein the light emitting device is configured to generate the fifth unsaturated light corresponding to a plurality of points along a predefined path with the light generated at each point having light with Rf greater than or equal to about 80, Rg greater than or equal to about 80 and less than or equal to about 120, or both.

6. A semiconductor light emitting device comprising:
a first light emitting diode (“LED”) string that comprises a first LED that has a first recipient luminophoric medium that comprises a first luminescent material, wherein the first LED and first luminophoric medium together emit a first unsaturated light having a first color point within a blue color range defined by a line connecting the ccx, ccy color coordinates of the infinity point of the Planckian locus (0.242, 0.24) and (0.12, 0.068), the Planckian locus from 4000K and infinite CCT, the constant CCT line of 4000K, the line of purples, and the spectral locus;
a second LED string that comprises a second LED that has a second recipient luminophoric medium that comprises a second luminescent material, wherein the second LED and second luminophoric medium together emit a second unsaturated light having a second color point within a red color range d

Assignees

• Ecosense Lighting Inc
• Ecosense Lighting Inc

Inventors

• Petluri Raghuram L V
• Pickard Paul Kenneth

Classifications

• H05B45/20

  Controlling the colour of the light · CPC title

• H05B47/105

  in response to determined parameters · CPC title

• F21V5/04

  of lens shape · CPC title

• H05B45/24

  using electrical feedback from LEDs or from LED modules · CPC title

• H05B45/22

  using optical feedback · CPC title