Tsutomu Ochiai, lighting designer (M&O Design Office)

LED Next Stage 2010, a comprehensive exhibition of LED lighting, was held at Tokyo Big Sight from March 9 to 12, 2010 (Organizer: Nikkei Inc., Special cooperation: Japan LED Association). As part of the Urban Development & Retail Renaissance, a comprehensive exposition comprised of seven different exhibitions (including JAPAH SHOP and ARCHITECTURE + CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS etc.), the 3rd LED Next Stage attracted 83,826 visitors during the 4-day period and a great success.

Photo 1 : Entrance gate to LED Next Stage 2010

Photo 2 & 3 : Floor photo of LED Next Stage 2010

Difference Between Established Manufacturers and Newcomers

Among the 145 exhibitors (which was more than twice as many as the 57 exhibitors of the 2008 show), there were a number of companies that had recently entered the lighting industry. The products showcased by such newcomers were different from those of established manufacturers. The former included LEDISON (a manufacturer of security cameras) and EFFECT MEIJI (a company spun out from Neon Sign Division of Meiji Clock a long-established clock manufacturer in Nagoya). The latter included Japan's leading lighting apparatus manufacturers such as PANASONIC ELECTRIC WORKS, MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC LIGHTING + MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC OSRAM, and TOSHIBA whose booths occupied a large space at the center part of the exhibition hall. The products presented by these two groups were quite different, not only in their producer countries (Japan and Asian countries) but also in their intended purposes. The main products presented by the established manufacturers were LED bulbs, downlights, and base lights for office use to replace standard light bulbs or modules in existing buildings for the purpose of saving energy. On the other hand, the newcomers exhibited a wide variety of LED lighting products for newly-built commercial facilities ranging from illuminations, downlights, spotlights and brackets (manufactured in Asian countries). While the newcomers, such as LEDISON and EFFECT MEIJI, impressed visitors with their wide selection of products, the products of the Japanese leading manufacturers attracted a considerable attention with their effective presentations and the energy-saving feature of LEDs as light sources.

Photo 4 & 5 : The central part of the exhibition hall

Photo 6 The booth of PANASONIC ELECTRIC WORKS showcasing a renovation plan for a fast food restaurant using LED downlights.

Photo 7 : The booth of TOSHIBA effectively exhibiting LED bulbs

Photo 8 : The booth of MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC LIGHTING featuring LED base lights for office use and LED line lights on a high ceiling.

PANASONIC ELECTRIC WORKS exhibited a new line of its renowned EVERLEDS series. The highlight of the company's booth at the center of the exhibition hall, however, was a presentation of the illumination plan for the TOKYO SKY TREE featuring computer graphic renderings. Many visitors, including the author, were glued to the spectacular presentation using a 6-meter screen.

What impressed the author most at TOSHIBA's booth was not the energy-saving E-CORE LED bulb series exhibited at its entrance area but a small showcase featuring a group of LED bulbs designed as display lights for food at its back. The author was amazed at the clear, bright colors of the things lit by the LED lights. It was truly the color saturation no other LED lights had ever reproduced. The color rendering index (Ra100 as the maximum) is a quantitative measure of the ability of a light source to reproduce the colors of various objects faithfully in comparison with an ideal or natural light source. The index, however, is a measure of the 20th century. In fact, we might say that the color rendering ability of the LED lights in the showcase was Ra130. The author could not help thinking that there should be a new measure of the 21st century, something like "the color saturation index."

What was noteworthy at the booth of MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC LIGHTING was the groundbreaking brightness of its LED LINE on a high ceiling. With vertical illuminance equivalent to two 40W fluorescent lights (86 lm/w), the company's LED LINE had revised the long-held view that LED lights are not practical in terms of brightness. Since the LED LINE also features dimming control and adjustable color temperature function, it could be immediately applied as base lighting for convenience stores if sold at accessible prices.

At the booth of LEDISON, a wide variety of LED lighting apparatuses for commercial facilities were exhibited. Popular in Europe with their sophisticated designs, these beautifully finished products seemed to be competitive enough in the Japanese market. The most impressive product among them was a LED pendant lamp to be fixed on a high ceiling. It had been designed to replace a 1000W mercury lamp. With no mercury used in this product, it could be accepted well in the Japanese market as a product conforming to the RoHS directive.

In general, commercial customers take into consideration various factors when selecting lighting apparatuses for their stores. They include not only the quality of each apparatus, but also its technical specifications (such as luminance distribution and installation requirements) and other different conditions (such as cost and the architectural specifications of their stores). In this context, it is very important for the LED industry to promote users' understanding of the characteristics and features of LED lighting apparatuses. It is also true that commercial customers have intense interest in lighting effects that make their products look as attractive as possible. Thus, the LED industry needs to develop effective lighting methods and techniques taking advantage of the characteristics and features of LED lighting apparatuses.

EFFECT MEIJI also presented a wide variety of imported LED lighting apparatuses for commercial facilities. At the LED Next Stage 2009, the company exhibited mainly LED apparatuses to illuminate building exteriors. This year, the company presented LED down lights and spotlights to be used in stores.

Photo 9 : The EVERLEDS products exhibited at the booth of PANASONIC ELECTRIC WORKS. (The presentation included sensor-controlled LED down lights and LED brackets designed for architectural lighting )

Photo 10 & 11 : TOSHIBA's presentation of LED bulbs designed as display lights for food, and the E-CORE FOR OFFICE, a ceiling-embedded lighting system for offices

Photo 12 & 13 : LEDISON's LED pendants and the panel describing their features and specifications

Photo 14 : EFFECT MEIJI's booth

LED Manufacturers' Exhibits and Their Products

Japan's leading LED manufacturers exhibited their products at LED Next Stage 2010. There are various types of LED manufacturers. Among them are LED chip manufacturers, LED device manufacturers, and LED module manufacturers. A LED chip is the most primary light-emitting element of a LED apparatus. A LED device is a LED chip mounted on a substrate. A LED module is comprised of two or more LED devices and some other components such as a heat sink. Some companies manufacture both LED chips and LED modules. Other companies manufacture LED chips, devices, modules and lighting fixtures. There are also an growing number of fabless manufacturers which concentrate on design and marketing, and contract out manufacturing.

CITIZEN ELECTRONICS showcased its full line of LED devices. The highlight among them was the CL-103, a new, high-efficient (116 lm) LED device series which included high-power, middle-power and low-power LED packages. SEOUL SEMICONDUCTOR from Korea also focused on LED devices at the exhibition.

Photo 15 : CITIZEN ELECTRONICS emphasized the outstanding quality of its LED devices based on the 3-step MacAdam ellipses.

Photo 16 : The panel describing the main line of CITIZEN ELECTRONICS' LED packages.

Photo 17 : The booth of SEOUL SEMICONDUCTOR

Stanley Electric Co., Ltd., ROHM Co., Ltd. and Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd. are LED manufacturers with skills and experiences. They have developed, mass-produced and distributed various LED products long before the current LED boom. As comprehensive LED manufacturers, they exhibited a wide variety of LED products ranging from LED chips to LED bulbs and other apparatuses at LED Next Stage 2010. The author thinks, however, their products could have been more attractive and appealing to visitors if they had been presented more effectively in their booths to emphasize their features and characteristics. The lighting industry is divided into several different sectors such as light source manufacturers, apparatus manufacturers, lighting designers and others. The competition in each sector is fierce and all players therein are making various efforts to differentiate themselves from competitors. The author sincerely hopes that above three companies will create globally competitive LED apparatuses utilizing their world-class technology and also develop methods for creating optimum lighting effects with such apparatuses.

Photo 18, 19 & 20 : STANLEY ELECTRIC's booth, exhibits and descriptions

Photo 21,22 & 23 : ROHM' s booth and exhibits

Photo 24,25 & 26 : TOYODA GOSEI's booth, exhibits and descriptions

Other Notable Exhibitors and Their Products

Photo 27 : MURAKAMI SANGYO showcased the HIKARI-TATAMI, a combination of traditional tatami mats and durable, long-life LED devices. The light emitted from LED devices was seen through the coverings of the tatami mats made of woven natural rushes. This original product created a special, fantastic atmosphere at the company's booth. MURAKAMI SANGYO is a manufacturer headquartered in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.

Photo 28 : SHIMANE ELECTRONICS IMAFUKU-WORKS exhibited the Advanced LED Module, a new LED module with a high luminous efficacy (110 lm/W), an excellent color rendering index, and an efficient heat release mechanism without using insulators. The company attracted considerable attention with its original products in which a traditional craft of Shimane Prefecture was effectively combined with advanced LED technology.

Photo 29 : MARUZEN ELECTRIC, a manufacturer well known for its LED flat down lights, showcased the SUMILOOK/AGLED, a new LED light guide plate series bright enough for residential use. Developed in collaboration with SUMITOMO CHEMICAL, a manufacturer of various acrylic products widely used in the lighting industry, the light guide plates of the series come in many sizes and designs.　The author believes that they will be widely used with higher luminous efficacy and lower cost. LED light guide plates in the foreground, and flat down lights in the background.

Photo 30 : NAYUTA, a manufacturer well known for its semi-permanent, totally waterproof LED power supply units, presented a highly original fluorescent-tube-type LED lamp with a daylight sensor for automatic switching and dimming. No additional sensor units are necessary for this lamp with a compact design. The fluorescent-tube-type LED lamp with a daylight dimming function (green lamp to indicate power-on-status).

Photo 31, 32 & 33 : A group of manufacturers from Tokushima Prefecture exhibited their original products using LED lamps at the booth "LED Kingdom Tokushima."　Among them were a hydroponic vegetable cultivation system using LEDs by SYNERGYTEC, a compact, flat and lightweight sensor-controlled underwater LED lighting system by FUJISAKI ELECTRIC, and a unique electronic signboard made of natural wood by TANAKA MOKUZAI KOGYO. descriptions

Photo 34 : INEX exhibited LED underwater fishing lamps. Well known as a manufacturer of landscaping materials headquartered in Sasebo, Nagasaki, INEX has developed and manufactured LED lighting products for about 10 years. The company's development of LED underwater fishing lamps is significant not only for the fishing industry in Nagasaki but also for Japan as a seafaring nation. It is very likely that energy-saving LED fishing lamps will replace the conventional fish lamps.

The next exhibition, LED Next Stage 2012, is scheduled to be held at TOKYO BIG SIGHT from March 2012. I am looking forward to seeing the further evolution of LED lighting there. Prior to LED Next Stage 2012, LIGHTING FAIR 2011, a comprehensive exhibition on lighting fixture and light source will be held at TOKYO BIG SIGHT from March 8 to 11, 2011. For further information, please see the official web site of the exhibition.

If you are interested in participating in the next show, please contact the following for further information:
LIGHTING FAIR/LED Next Stage Overseas Contact Office
Tel. +81-3-3512-5670/Fax. +81-3-3512-5680
E-mail:tradefairs2011@smj.co.jp

Tsutomu Ochiai, lighting designer (M&O Design Office)