Controlling LEDs Part 4 - Five questions when trying to dim an LED product?

Before you commit yourself or your customer to investing in LED technology you need to understand its limitations, especially when it comes to dimming control compatibility. Many LED luminaire manufacturers are new to the lighting industry and are not familiar with the multitude of control types and the corresponding product design requirements that accompany them. This has resulted in “dimmable” products that do not work as claimed, that never turn off completely, or that flicker. These are major problems that need to be addressed so that consumers do not associate all LEDs with poor performance and become averse to using them. High-performing LED products do exist, but you need to ask the right questions to make sure you have chosen one of those products appropriately.

Answering the following five questions will allow you to align your expectations with the potential
performance of your selected LED dimming system.

1. What type of LED product am I using: an LED lamp or LED fixture?
2. What is the dimming range of the product?
3. What is the dimming performance of the product?
4. What is the minimum or maximum number of fixtures/lamps that can be connected to one dimmer?
5. On what type of control does the LED product operate?

The following articles detail what you need to know to answer these questions.

Stay tuned...

Extracted from "Controlling LEDs" Copyright 01/2011 Lutron Electronics Co. Inc. P/N 367-2035 REV. B