LED BASED ALTERNATIVE LIGHTING SYSTEM FOR LOW ENERGY CONSUMPTION IN ELECTRICALLY CHALLENGED ENVIRONMENTS

The paper reviews the properties of light emitting diode (LED) as a lighting element which makes it a better choice, as compared to other light sources in use today, for low energy consumption lighting systems. LEDs use direct current (D.C) electric energy sources, and consumes small amount of energy in terms of voltage and current to produce a proportionate light output. They are small in size but produce high output light efficacy and are highly efficient. They are dimmable, can be switched ON and OFF millions of times, easily controllable, withstand mechanical stress, and live longer than other light sources. With its current-to-output light linearity, the transistor current gain characteristic is used to provide a simple intelligent control for an LED lamp through a light dependent resistor. To further explore the controllability property of the LED, a more advanced microcontroller control system is also presented.