Now that light emitting diode (LED) luminaires have become ubiquitous in the home, office and elsewhere, technology is pushing forward with ways to expand the features.
Along these lines, LG Innotek has introduced a new technology called Visible Disinfection Lighting, a functional light source that gives the effect of sterilization by sunlight with indoor lighting.
Bacteria can die when exposed to sunlight for a long period of time. A material called porphyrin inside the bacteria that destroy cells by reacting to certain wavelengths of sunlight. The Visible Disinfection Lighting uses the 405 nm wavelength to which porphyrin reacts most actively with its LED light extraction technology.
The technology can be used to sterilize an indoor space without having to use any chemicals. Since the product does not harm humans, the lighting can be used in places where many people pass by such as kitchens or restrooms. The technology can optimize the sterilization power according to the indoor conditions in the same way as one controls the brightness of the light.
LG said it will target the Visible Disinfection Lighting at local and international LED lighting manufacturers that can promote products that work in facilities related to health and medical treatment, restaurants, public restrooms and other food and drug-related facilities.
The company said the technology has already been installed in coffin rooms of funeral halls and waste storage rooms in Yonsei University Severance Hospital in Seoul, Korea, in a trial project.
The technology can be used to differentiate lighting products and can be used across various types of LEDs including flat panel, tube and downlight types.
