Luminaire winners: Winners of the first annual Next Generation Luminaires (www.ngldc.org) awards were announced at the Strategies in Light Conference in Santa Clara, CA (www.strategiesinlight.com). Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America, and the International Association of Lighting Designers, the competition recognizes excellence in the design of energy-efficient LED commercial-lighting luminaires. Of the 68 entries, 22 were selected for recognition in the market-ready category, and three of these products were designated Best in Class: GE Lighting for Immersion jewelry case lighting; Journée Lighting for AZARA track-mounted luminaires; and Winona Lighting for STEP03 indoor/outdoor step lighting.
40 years of optical tables: Newport Corporation (Irvine, CA) is offering a collection of limited-edition optical tables to commemorate its 40th anniversary. The collection of limited-edition optical tables feature enriched graphic side panels that celebrate the company’s heritage in laser research and aerospace. Two families of tables, the RS4000 and RS2000, will each be available with two designs. According to James Fisher, group director of Newport’s Vibration Control business, “Going into 2009 we wanted to do something special to celebrate our 40th anniversary and also offer something unique and commemorative to our customers and our community. These limited-edition optical tables are very distinctive and certain to stand out in any lab.&drquo; Newport has a special 40th anniversary page at www.newport.com/VC40.
Aircraft video recorder: Physical Optics Corporation (POC; Torrance, CA) announced that Sikorsky Aircraft (Stratford, CT) chose POC’s FAERITO Digital Video Recorder product line to support its customers with video flight recording capability to complement its existing flight data analysis and animation capability. The agreement between POC and Sikorsky Aircraft stems originally from a Navy SBIR project for advanced flight data recording systems. Sikorsky is the first helicopter manufacturer to select POC’s system. In addition to the current crash-survivable FAERITO Digital Video Recorder, POC is also developing a Universal Avionics Recorder (UAR) for U.S. Navy and commercial aircraft.
Display conference collaboration: Display market research firm DisplaySearch (Austin, TX) and the Society for Information Display (SID; Campbell, CA), dedicated to the advancement of electronic display technology, announced that both organizations will collaborate on this year’s Business Conference, which will be held during the 47th annual SID International Symposium, Seminar and Exhibition, dubbed Display Week 2009, in San Antonio, TX. The Business Conference will feature presentations from top executives of leading companies throughout the display supply chain. SID President, Paul Drzaic, said, “We are pleased to announce that we are working with DisplaySearch to augment our annual Business Conference. With their help, we can continue to deliver the right information and insight to the people responsible for charting the course of the display industry.&drquo;
LED lighting emphasis: Luminus Devices (Billerica, MA) is breaking into the general illumination market with its SST-90 white PhlatLight LED--a large-chip white LED in a surface-mount package that combines the benefits of high power and efficiency, enabling lighting fixture OEMs to replace bulbs and LED arrays with a single PhlatLight LED. It also has a CST-90 LED in a connectorized chip-on-board package. “The SST-90 is a surface mount package in a form factor that OEMs are familiar with and use regularly,&drquo; said Dave Sciabica, head of the Lighting Business Group at Luminus Devices. The SST-90 produces 1,000 lumens with 10 W input (at 6500 K) and 2,250 lumens at its maximum rated drive current; it is mercury free with a lifetime of 60,000 hours.
Pocket projector: Luminus Devices announced that BenQ’s new GP1 lightweight pocket projector is powered by the high-brightness PhlatLight LED PT-39 chipset. PhlatLight LEDs work in conjunction with Texas Instruments’ digital light processing (DLP) technology. The PhlatLight LED PT-39 chipset is designed specifically for projection systems that use micro-displays ranging from 0.4 to 0.55 inches with individual red, green, and blue LEDs. “PhlatLight LEDs are ideally suited for projectors today as opposed to traditional lamp technologies due to the high levels of brightness and to the fact that the light source should never need replacing,&drquo; said Matt Mazzuchi, general manager, Projection Display Business Group, Luminus Devices.
Photonics investment in 2010: The Invest in Photonics (www.invest-in-photonics.com) event held in Bordeaux, France in December 2008 attracted more than 100 of the world’s leading photonics specialists and presented 16 projects representing a total potential investment of nearly $129 million dollars. Due to its success, the event will be held for the second time in 2010. There were 50 international applications for funding received, with 16 selected projects presented during the event. Of these 16 projects, 30% were received from outside France, with applications from Canada, Poland, and Austria.
Roll-to-roll agreement: Vitex Systems (San Jose, CA), a technology developer, licensor, and engineering service provider for thin-film encapsulation and moisture barrier films, expanded its license agreement with Korea-based Advanced Neotech Systems (ANS), granting ANS rights to develop and manufacture roll-to-roll coating equipment used in the production of Barix Barrier Film. Chyi-Shan Suen, director of business development at Vitex, said, “We have seen strong demand for our Barix Barrier Film, also known as Flexible Glass, particularly from companies in the photovoltaic industry. Several film producing companies and thin-film photovoltaic customers are interested in moving to production and need a source for the proper equipment. We have a long history with ANS and are confident in their ability to serve these customers.&drquo;
Fiber to the screen: The Lumexis (Costa Mesa, CA) Fiber To The Screen (FTTS) system is airborne with the assistance of Tyco Electronics. This new system brings weight savings and new capabilities to the commercial airline industry as demonstrated during the maiden flight of the U.S. Airways A320 launched February 3, 2009. The fiber-optic backbone and interconnect scheme was developed by Lumexis and Tyco Electronics, along with In Flight Canada, to provide the most efficient installation--minimizing the time spent out of revenue service. It combines industry standard ARINC 801 fiber-optic interfaces with a very flexible fiber routing approach that maintains room for growth, assuring affordability for the long term regarding installed and applied costs.
McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center: The new 45,000 square-foot McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center will make its home in Concord, NH, opening on March 6. It will house new interactive science exhibits and theater space. The new Discovery Center is a major transformation of the Christa McAuliffe Planetarium. The first phase of this transformation comes after ten years of planning and development. “The McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center will be New England’s preeminent center for experiential education in space science, astronomy, aviation, and Earth science,&drquo; says planetarium commission chair Rich Ashooh. The center features a state-of-the-art planetarium and a variety of science and engineering programs.
People in the news: Originally scheduled to begin his duties as CEO of semiconductor equipment manufacturing company SUSS MicroTec AG (Garching, Germany) starting June 1, 2009, Frank Averdung will assume the position of SUSS CEO four months earlier effective February 1, 2009. Averdung is the former managing director of Carl Zeiss Semiconductor Metrology Systems GmbH.
Vytran (Morganville, NJ), a supplier of fiber fusion splicing, assembly, and glass processing solutions, hired Jim Stathis as business development manager. Stathis’ appointment follows several recent management changes aimed at growing the company and maturing its operations, including naming a new president and CEO, VP of operations, and VP of R&D. Stathis has over 20 years of experience, with a particular focus on capital equipment and fiber laser product sales. He was most recently director of worldwide laser diode sales at IPG Photonics, and prior to that held positions at JDSU, Coherent, and Newport.
The Optical Society of America (OSA; Washington, DC) recognized Rep. Rush Holt (D-N.J.) this week as its 2009 Advocate of Optics. Holt was chosen for the honor because of his extraordinary leadership in seeking to increase federal investments in the sciences, including critical research and development (R&D). He is also being recognized for his work as co-chair of the Congressional R&D Caucus, which hosted a briefing with OSA on Strengthening National Defense with Laser Technology in 2007.