Decorative lighting of rooms and individual sections of street spaces is organized in a variety of ways. One of them is the use of modern LED strips operating from low voltages (12 and 24 Volts). The effectiveness of their use depends on the correct choice of model and the characteristics of a particular product, mounted in the right place. To connect them to a power supply unit (PSU), it will be necessary to take into account the type of backlight, the total power consumption, as well as the required margin for this parameter.
Description, principle of operation and design of LED strip
LED tapes are flexible printed circuit boards with semiconductor elements placed at an equal distance. Miniature resistors are also mounted on them, limiting the current flowing through the semiconductors. These products are manufactured using the well-known SMD and DIP technologies. The first of them is the most common in the field of interior lighting, since it involves surface mounting of lighting elements.
The abbreviation of each of them indicates the type and size of the semiconductor. Marking SMD 3528, for example, corresponds to an electronic crystal with working dimensions of 3.5 and 2.8 mm. The width of the tape base is 0.8-2.0 cm, and its thickness together with the diodes is 0.2-0.3 cm.
The basis for the operation of strip lighting elements is the principle of the sequential inclusion of point sources (LEDs) in a loop of the desired length. In simple monochrome products, the ribbon contains the same type of elements, the power of which is supplied from a special unit.
The magnitude of the supply voltage of LED strips is usually not more than 12 volts.
Understanding the principle of operation will help acquaintance with the device of this flexible lighting product.
Design
The design and layout of the 12-volt LED strip is simple and reliable because it contains only a few elements. They include the LEDs themselves, turned on by a loop in the form of a ribbon chain, and limiting resistors per one 3 diodes. Every three elements are provided with copper contact spots, used if a piece of the desired length is cut off from the roll in this place. When connecting LED products, it is necessary to observe the polarity indicated on the side of the ribbon along with the designation of the supply voltage.
In more complex and attractive designs, three-color LED products are used, allowing you to get original combinations of the main spectral colors (red, blue and green). To control their combinations, special electronic devices are used - controllers.
Advantages and disadvantages
The advantages and disadvantages of LED strips should be considered in relation to their purpose and appearance. For monochrome products, most often used as highlighting of restricted areas or hard-to-reach places, the advantages declared by the manufacturer are expressed in the following:
- low power consumption;
- small size of the ribbon, almost not occupying space in the working area;
- the ability to adjust lighting by changing the total length of the loop;
- relatively low cost excluding power supply.
Some advantages are achieved due to the restrictions characteristic of other indicators. Small sizes, in particular, are the cause of insufficient lighting.The need for low voltage leads to additional costs for the purchase of a power supply or a powerful current source. The same thing is noted with tri-color decorative ribbons, when you have to pay for the positive effect of the paint game with the high cost of an RGB controller or a special network module.
12 Volt LED Power Supplies
As power sources for 12-volt LED strips, proprietary power supplies designed specifically for this purpose are traditionally used. A number of domestic and foreign manufacturers have developed a whole line of devices similar in design, differing only in output power.
All these models are designed to include a different number of monochrome LED elements (ribbons of various lengths).
For LED strips of 12 Volts, power per meter length is the main parameter that determines their choice for specific purposes. Its value depends on the number and type of LEDs used in the tape. For products of the SMD 3528 brand, for example, 60 diodes placed on one meter consume a total power of 4.8 watts. It follows that the work of a 5-meter strip with LEDs of this type will require 24 watts. Since the power supply is always selected with a small margin, in this case, a power device with a declared power of about 32 watts is suitable. Given these features of the choice of the desired indicator, its maximum value can reach hundreds of watts or more.
Scopes of LED tapes
The main function of LED devices is the organization of artificial lighting in a particular room or outside the building. In this case, the LED strip replaces ordinary bulbs, located around the perimeter of the ceiling or in a pre-marked area. Such an approach to decorating free spaces allows you to improve the quality of the light painting and evenly illuminate the serviced objects. Thanks to this, it is possible to increase the comfort of people in places of rest or in the working area.
Typically, ribbons with elements of increased brightness are used for these purposes, characterized by a warm white glow. The use of low-power lighting devices, even if they are evenly distributed around the entire perimeter, will require the installation of an additional lamp.
In some cases, a deviation from the main profile is possible. This applies to the situation when the elements included in the lighting tape are suitable for installation in car headlights.
Decorative use
Modern LED lighting devices are very popular in the practice of decoration and are widely used in the following areas:
- illumination of shelves, construction niches and stairs;
- architectural zoning of workspaces;
- highlighting of elements of landscape zones, with flowerbeds and trees on them;
- decoration of building facades, as well as individual architectural details.
In addition, they resort to their help, if necessary, focusing on the elements of the environment: furniture, mirrors, paintings and other objects. To meet the constant demand, manufacturers have developed many varieties of LED strips, which provide various visual effects.
One of the possible uses of led products is for marketing purposes. The originality of the performance of three-color LED devices helps to attract the attention of a potential buyer. They are widely used in the design of the interior spaces of trading floors, as well as advertising structures placed on the street.
