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Bright Prospects on the Street

8/27/2021

Street lighting is becoming an ever greater energy cost trap for towns and cities, since they are still using lighting technology from the 1960s. Efficient LED technology supplants mercury vapor lamps: The new Vulkan Series from Nordeon in Springe, Germany provides impressive evidence of the savings LED streetlights can achieve. Nordeon uses innovative connection technology from WAGO for component installation to tailor its modular lighting solutions perfectly to specific street conditions.
Street lighting has a real potential – particularly when the town coffers are empty. If cities and towns invest in efficient lighting technology, they can save up to 80 percent on electrical power, according to industry groups such as the German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers’ Association (ZVEI). A quick glimpse at Germany makes the amounts involved clear: savings of 2.2 billion kilowatt hours, which, according to ZVEI, corresponds to 1.4 million metric tons of CO2 and 400 million euros on the electricity bill at a price of 18 cents per kW/h. Legislation to discourage use of inefficient technology is also a factor: First the familiar old incandescent bulbs became ineligible for CE approval, then mercury vapor lights followed in 2015.

The Vulkan Series from Nordeon

Modular Construction Kits for Perfect Lighting
Flexible Retrofitting
Innovative, Economical Technology
Durability

Modular Construction Kits for Perfect Lighting

LED streetlights are significantly more innovative and – what’s most important – economical . To make it as easy as possible for cities and towns to convert to this technology for reliably illuminating streets, parks and sidewalks, manufacturers such as Nordeon design their LED streetlights as modular product kits. These include everything required for the right power, illumination and retrofitting.

Introduced for the first time at the Light+Building 2016 trade fair, the company developed the V3610 model light for use in residential areas and side streets under the brand name “Vulkan.” The V3610 is available with three light output levels depending on the conditions of use and available space. For the different options, Nordeon simply scales the number of LED circuit boards. Up to three can be combined, forming an assembly consisting of 24 high-efficiency, high-power LEDs. Each module, equipped with eight LEDs, is based on a circuit board with an aluminum core that effectively dissipates heat losses from the LEDs through the light’s flat aluminum housing.

We anticipate a minimum service life of 100,000 hours.

Sascha Müller

Product Manager

“We anticipate a minimum service life of 100,000 hours,” says product manager Sascha Müller, adding that the service life is highly dependent on how much the prevailing temperature remains within the tolerance range during operation. The standard test is performed at 25 degrees. “In Germany, the annual average is just 10–12 degrees Celsius, which helps extend the service life.” As a rule of thumb, a decrease of 10 degrees Kelvin doubles the service life. Müller puts it simply: “Heat is often lethal for LEDs.”

Four cables are required to connect the LED boards: two for the positive and negative poles for the DC supply, as well as two more for the vitally important temperature monitoring circuit. “We’ve integrated temperature diodes into the modules, giving us the capability to measure the temperature of the LEDs in the light driver and keep it within the tolerance range,” says Müller. If it gets too hot, the light reduces the power or, if necessary, shuts off completely. Once the components have cooled down sufficiently, the lights switch back on automatically. Ultimately, operational reliability and longevity are the essence of this control concept.

Nordeon uses the 2060 Series SMD PCB Terminal Blocks, reworked by WAGO over a year ago, to connect the LED circuit boards to the drivers of these outdoor lights. Functionally, the term “driver” refers to the LED electronic ballast unit, which is responsible for the entire control of the lighting equipment, as well as the DC power supply delivering 24 volts per module. If two modules are connected in series, the voltage increases to 48 volts.

Thanks to WAGO’s proven Push-in CAGE CLAMP® technology, the electrical connections are held securely via spring pressure.

Through a newly developed plastic formulation, as well as minor design enhancements, WAGO has succeeded in making the SMD PCB terminal blocks more robust with a longer service life. The terminal blocks accommodate solid and fine-stranded conductors with cross-sections between 0.2 and 0.75 mm² (24–18 AWG). Thanks to WAGO’s proven Push-in CAGE CLAMP® technology, the electrical connections are held securely via spring pressure. In comparison to screw connections, spring clamp connections are significantly more resistant to vibration and material expansion caused by changes of season. And these are precisely the environmental conditions that these outdoor lights, which Nordeon produces under the brand name Vulkan at its plant in Springe, Lower Saxony, are exposed to. Another highlight of the new 2060 Series SMD PCB Terminal Blocks: the option of fully automatic installation on circuit boards with robots.

At the plant in Springe, Nordeon used prefabricated circuit boards produced in one of the company’s other plants. The company supplies the V3610 ready for connection, including a sturdy flexible cable, in the form of a 3 x 1.5 mm square. Since the angle of the lamp post connection can be adjusted, the lights can even replace streetlights on curved-arm posts with a 15 degree angle. The ideal mounting height of the V3610 is between 3.5 and 6 meters. The series’ modular approach applies to more than just the power – the lens configuration is also modular, allowing a standardized range of solutions for customers to provide ideal light focus/scatter. Nordeon’s main customers are cities and towns – and they use a lot of lights.

“On average, dividing the number of residents in a town by ten gives you a pretty reliable estimate of the number of lights,” explains Müller. In Germany, this means approximately eight million streetlights – with enormous potential for retrofitting efficient LED technology. Just west of Germany, we can see a nice example of what can be achieved. The Dutch island of Texel has set the goal of a climate-neutral power supply by 2020. Its approach includes establishing its own power supply using solar and tidal power plants. Drastic power consumption reductions will also be necessary, so the island has set up the V3630 streetlights in various power stages, with an open-source light management system integrated into the lights. To ensure that such efforts also pay off financially, Nordeon makes its Vulkan series visually attractive, while still prioritizing the price–performance ratio.

By Patrick Schirrmacher | 2016-11-09