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Tip: Glare Shield LED strip comparison

Bugsy

Well Known Member
I researched several LED light strips for placement under the glare shield. *** See discussion at end of thread for Color choice comparisons ***

First photos of the end product: The strip is on a dimmer, this is full blast at night with all lights off in the garage. With this on full blast you can see throughout the cockpit. I wont need any other cockpit ambient lighting. The glow is comfortable and very cool. Dimming reduces canopy reflections.

DSCN0162.jpg


My son works the panel, while I take the picture. Here you can see the individual LEDs on the right edge. Inside the cabin you dont get any direct view only the comfortable glow. I have have an edge installed on the glareshield.

DSCN0172.jpg


Now the facts:

RV7 - 3.5 inches is a great length for the LED strip. 3ft would be plenty.
Dimmer is highly recommended, use a lower wattage SMD3528 strip if using without a dimmer.

I bought 3 different LED strips to experiment:
DSCN0159.jpg


All driven together with a 12V power supply:

On the far left: 120CM LED strip bought off ebay for $5 shipped. version SMD 335.

Center: 120CM LED strip from EBAY for $15 shipped.. version SMD 3528. 1.44W/foot, 0.12A/foot

Right: 4ft LED strip from www.ledlightsworld.com. This is what I installed in the plane. Cost $60 shipped. 3ft would have been enough and would have saved $13. Version 5050 18 LED/ft. 4.32W/foot, 0.36A/foot. So my 3.5feet put out 15 watts at 1.26A at full grunt, I have a dimmer installed on the panel.

DSCN0157.jpg


A good reference photo I found with all the various versions of light strips:

NWP-SMD3528-LED-STRIPS_09.jpg


Bottom line: I am very happy with the SMD5050 300LED/5meter or 18 per ft version of the LED light strip. At total of 15 watts, it provides plenty of light at a soft glow that impresses all who see it.
 
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I researched several LED light strips for placement under the glare shield.

First photos of the end product: The strip is on a dimmer, this is full blast at night with all lights off in the garage. With this on full blast you can see throughout the cockpit. I wont need any other cockpit ambient lighting. The glow is comfortable and very cool. Dimming reduces canopy reflections.

DSCN0162.jpg


My son works the panel, while I take the picture. Here you can see the individual LEDs on the right edge. Inside the cabin you dont get any direct view only the comfortable glow. I have have an edge installed on the glareshield.

DSCN0172.jpg


Now the facts:

RV7 - 3.5 inches is a great length for the LED strip. 3ft would be plenty.
Dimmer is highly recommended, use a lower wattage SMD3528 strip if using without a dimmer.

I bought 3 different LED strips to experiment:
DSCN0159.jpg


All driven together with a 12V power supply:

On the far left: 120CM LED strip bought off ebay for $5 shipped. version SMD 335.

Center: 120CM LED strip from EBAY for $15 shipped.. version SMD 3528. 1.44W/foot, 0.12A/foot

Right: 4ft LED strip from www.ledlightsworld.com. This is what I installed in the plane. Cost $60 shipped. 3ft would have been enough and would have saved $13. Version 5050 18 LED/ft. 4.32W/foot, 0.36A/foot. So my 3.5feet put out 15 watts at 1.26A at full grunt, I have a dimmer installed on the panel.

Bottom line: I am very happy with the SMD5050 300LED/5meter or 18 per ft version of the LED light strip. At total of 15 watts, it provides plenty of light at a soft glow that impresses all who see it.

I should point out that blue is probably a poor choice for night cockpit lighting from a physiologic standpoint.

Red is not ideal, but is better.

Best is probably white, or green.
 
1005.jpg


This is what we have in my dads plane. Not sure of the type because i didnt build the plane. It is actually a great color for night flight and not at all distracting.
 
Is it possible

to use the leftover strip of LED lights if you cut off a section or do you have to discard it? Also, what dimmer sw. did you use.
Thanks
Steve
 
The navy did a study on night vision vs. color and found that white is actually better than red as long as it can be dimmed low enough to allow night adaptation. White allows better viewing of color charts, etc. than monochrome lights.
 
The navy did a study on night vision vs. color and found that white is actually better than red as long as it can be dimmed low enough to allow night adaptation. White allows better viewing of color charts, etc. than monochrome lights.

Two problems with blue:

First, short wavelengths scatter more than long ones (which is why the sky is blue). This maximizes glare, especially if the pilot is older, has early cataracts, or imperfect lens correction.

More importantly, humans have no blue cones in the fovea which is the center part of the retina where our best visual acuity is. What this means in a practical sense is that visual acuity is significantly reduced in monochromatic blue light--we don't have the hardware.
 
But, in this application...

Two problems with blue:
......
More importantly, humans have no blue cones in the fovea which is the center part of the retina where our best visual acuity is. What this means in a practical sense is that visual acuity is significantly reduced in monochromatic blue light--we don't have the hardware.

...do we need that visual acuity?

If your modern instruments are LED or LCD and self-lit, is'nt the panel lighting more for ambient effect and just guiding your fingers to the right place rather than looking for fine details?

Map reading might be a special case, but if you have a LCD moving map....
 
Pick Your Color

Well pick whatever color your most comfortable with, the purpose of the thread was to provide a reference and comparison of different option of LED strips.

In the Air Force we have gone away from red light, mostly because of NVG compatibility, but also because, under red light, warning lights and red things on a map are invisible. I like blue because it closest to white (least impact on color displays and maps) without bleaching rodopsin as much as white.

I would never fly with a panel light up this bright, dimmer is better. But when you need light its nice to turn up the dimmer and have light, rather than fumble for a white flashlight.
 
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Those strips may work but seems like a lot of light.

I've installed two sets (four lights each) of blue LED's on just those instruments and switches I need to see when flying at night. I've got them on a dimmer but even at the "barely on" level they are almost too bright for cross-country night flying. I like a very dark cockpit unless it's for the approach and at that point brightness doesn't matter so much.

All those LED's are pretty but seems like way too much.

Edit:

I meant to say "instruments and switches" that don't already have their own internal dimmable lighting. The LED's I installed I got at Auto Zone I think, although I've seen them at other auto parts stores. They come either two to a set or four to a set. I got two sets of four, less than $20 each. They work very well.
 
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To the guy who asked if you can use some of the strip that you cut off, the answer is yes. On mine, you could cut off 3 lights at a time and I cut off 12 from a strip that was probably 3 feet long, purchased from Stein. I then cut these in two, making 2 6 light strips that I mounted above the switch panel and throttle quadrant on my RV-8, all connected to the original power supply and through a dimmer. I had to scrape the paint off the back of the printed tape and find the tracks leading to the +/- and then just soldered on wires. Protected all this with some tight shrink wrap and it works great.
 
Color choice

I researched the Military spec for cockpit color. MIL-STD-3009 was developed by the Department of Defense in February 2001 and calls for NVIS white. NVIS is an NVG compatible spectrum of light.

I have a call in to a couple of Air Force opthomologists that consult to Air Force Research Labs.
 
Paul

Thanks for the informative post. I had purchased the cheap $10 strip but after looking at how much light the 5050's put off, I'll opt for those.
 
SMD 5050 on Dealextreme

I found SMD5050 version LED light strips on www.dealextreme.com for a little over $10. just search 5050 LED light strip. I cant vouch for the quality, the are made by the same manufacturer as the 2 black strips that I show. All I can recommend is that if you use light strips select the latest LED version which today is the SMD5050.

They are availble in all colors and white.
 
Thanks Scott

That's exactly how I was thing of using them. I'm also thinking of placing a small strip of 3 or 4 in the back of my-8 for the pax to use as a reading light.
Steve
 
Color choices

James' comments have energized me to answer the color choice question. I have scheduled a telecon tomorow to discuss with the Air Force's experts in cockpit lighting at the AF research laboratories in Mesa AZ. I'v worked with these folks on NVG issues for years.

So far the discusion is leaning to recommendations for dim white lighting in our cockpits. I'll let you know what the telecon concludes tomorow.

Im not going to rip out my pretty blue and change for white, but its best if we make our decisions knowing all the information.
 
Thanks

Bugsy,
Thanks for your help with finding out what is the best lighting choice, I was going to go with NVIS Green as that is what I am used to in the C-130. But if a dim white light is better then why not be able to see everything (the green light distorts a lot of colors on the charts, especially red) but is very nice on the eyes after adapting to low light.

Also I am glad that you are talking to the "advisers" to the USAF not just encouraging what the USAF has implemented, I am not knocking the DOD but paying to remove cell call on our HF radios and only adding TCAS in 2005-2006 for the C-130E's is not cutting edge by any means.

Looking forward to the info.
KC
 
James' comments have energized me to answer the color choice question. I have scheduled a telecon tomorow to discuss with the Air Force's experts in cockpit lighting at the AF research laboratories in Mesa AZ. I'v worked with these folks on NVG issues for years.

So far the discusion is leaning to recommendations for dim white lighting in our cockpits. I'll let you know what the telecon concludes tomorow.

Im not going to rip out my pretty blue and change for white, but its best if we make our decisions knowing all the information.

Outstanding :D

It will be good to have expert input.

If I could make a modest suggestion, it would be to point out that the pilot population here is very different from the military.

Military pilots are much younger, generally not presbyopic, and are carefully pre-screened for 20/20 vision and physiologically normal eyes.

General aviation pilots skew much older, many require reading glasses, and many have mild ocular pathology. A third class medical can be had with 20/40 vision. Mild media opacities like early cataracts or dirty/scratched spectacle lenses are rampant.

Modern cars, generally, have gotten much better at designing with older drivers in mind. General aviation airplanes are not as good, but in XGA, we have the opportunity to fix things.
 
Make sure that their...

James' comments have energized me to answer the color choice question. I have scheduled a telecon tomorow to discuss with the Air Force's experts in cockpit lighting at the AF research laboratories in Mesa AZ. I'v worked with these folks on NVG issues for years.

So far the discusion is leaning to recommendations for dim white lighting in our cockpits. I'll let you know what the telecon concludes tomorow.

Im not going to rip out my pretty blue and change for white, but its best if we make our decisions knowing all the information.

...recommendations are not influenced by the Night Vision goggle requirement - unless you are planning on flying with the googles...:D

That one specific requirement can rule out other color choices right off the bat....:(
 
Those strips may work but seems like a lot of light.
1005.jpg


This picture (posted by my son in the third or fourth post of this thread) was taken in the late evening descending into Provo airport KPVU. The picture is deceptive because it was taken looking UP at the LED light strip. Actually, the lights are very muted. There is no glare on the panel or the instruments, and all instruments are lit well enough to read, but not too bright to be distracting. I guess I would describe the blue glow as "relaxing".

If I had to do it over again, I would do the blue LED strip again. I don't know all the vision science behind it, but it definitely is more visible than my other plane/panel with red LEDs shining on it.
 
COLOR CHOICES

Well I concluded my telecom with the experts at the Air Force Night Vision Research Lab. I called to discuss color choices in interior lighting.

I made it clear that discussion was for general aviation and without regard to NVIS (night vision imaging systems) compatibility, ie NVG, FLIR etc.

Bottom line: Cool white or green are best, blue is worse.

Here are my notes from the discussion:

None of them had heard that we were using blue ambient lighting. When they asked why I said ?cause it looks cool?, which evoked giggles on the other end.

What do you think about the SMD 5050 version of strip lighting? All strip lighting is SMD which means surface mounted display. 5050 is a tri LED diode which has a greater luminosity than previous versions. They recommend 5050s with a good dimmer.

Cool White: White was preferred by 2 of the experts, the 3rd chose green 1st and white 2nd. Cool white encompasses the scotopic (night vision)sensitivity peak of 507nm while providing the benefit of full color readability on maps etc. The Air Force has established cool white as a MILSPEC for ambient cockpit lighting due to emergency procedure concerns. Dimmed down low everyone said that cool white would be fine for night vision.

Green lights: Scotopic (night vision) is most sensitive to light of 507nm wavelength which is an aqua green. This means that with green light you can dim the lights to a greater degree while still perceiving objects. Practically this means better night vision, maintaining pupil dilation and reduced reflections in our cockpit.

Red/orange: The old red goggle adage has lost its fame. Yes red minimizes the bleaching of rodopsin which is important for night vision. But Red lighting is another matter because we lose red on charts etc. Green minimizes rodopsin bleaching while maximizing sensitivity.

Blue: This was unanimously the worse color choice. Blue also messes with reds/orange making them shades of grey. But Blues greatest detractor is that as the shortest wavelength of visible light it is easiest to refract. This means those with corneal scars from PRK/LASIK or scratches on glasses will aggravate glare under blue light. This also means the possibility of increased reflections as we need to have them turned up alittle higher than the other colors or white.

Wavelength of 5050 LEDs by color:
Cool white ? 6,000k-7000k which encompasses all vivible spectrums
Blue ? 465-470nm
Red ? 625-630nm
Green ? 515-520nm

So What Now: I?ll stick with my blue 5050 LED strips for now ?cause they look kewl?. Probably augment with cool white 5050 strip on the back of the roll bar on a separate dimmer. See what its like real world at night and replace with white if necessary.

I?m not making recommendations for others, we?re experimental for a reason, just want folks to know the facts.
 
...........Bottom line: Cool white or green are best, blue is worse................
Wavelength of 5050 LEDs by color:
Cool white ? 6,000k-7000k which encompasses all vivible spectrums
Blue ? 465-470nm
Red ? 625-630nm
Green ? 515-520nm


First, thanks for your very informative post, great stuff. Just a quick question: You show the Cool white spec in Kelvin, and the others in nanometers. Is there a relationship between the two? I understand color temperature ratings, but not so much nanometers.

Just curious.........
 
Bugsy, the cool white recommendation is a good one. I found a study that showed that reading acuity is best under cool white, and cool white is well aligned with the scotopic peak and does provide color vision when reading charts. As long as you can dim it all the way down to a very low level, cool white will work in all conditions from dark night adaptation in flight to reading charts on the ramp.
 
Degrees Kelvin...

White light is described in terms of degrees kelvin while spectrums of light in nanometers. this is the picture we stared at while we had the telecon.

http://www.ledtronics.com/html/1976UCSChromaticityDiagram.htm

White light is shown on the curved line going through the middle white part of the graphic.

...is also called "Color Temperature"

I believe that the 6000-7000 K number is best described as "Daylight" rather than "Cool White" which is more appropriate to flourescent bulbs at 3400 K.

It sort of makes sense that the eye is adapted to outdoor sunlight for a full range of color recognition rather than the color of a flourescent light...:)

Since a white LED is a mix of three colors, the relative strength can "tint" the output in any direction. Cool White will make things look a little blue tinted.

Some good definitions here -

http://www.hunterlab.com/appnotes/an05_05.pdf
 
Well I concluded my telecom with the experts at the Air Force Night Vision Research Lab. I called to discuss color choices in interior lighting.(snip)
I’m not making recommendations for others, we’re experimental for a reason, just want folks to know the facts.


Paul, thank you. Nice work.

One very simple thing you can do to demonstrate some of these issues is to change font colors or background colors. We do this daily with patients when checking refractions (determining whether letters are sharper or clearer on a red vs. a green background can tell you quickly if the lens is correct).

A crude example is here. The effect will be exaggerated if you dim your computer monitor as much as possible.

If you use reading glasses, or a bifocal, try reading the letters without them, while leaning close :)
 
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James, thanks for keeping me honest.

The link doesnt work to google. can you check it.
 
James, thanks for keeping me honest.

The link doesnt work to google. can you check it.

Ha, you were always honest, just lacking some very specialized knowledge IMHO :D

Link works for me in a couple of browsers, but I just changed the permission to "anyone on the web" and relinked it.

should work, or I can paste it into a message...
 
...is also called "Color Temperature"

I believe that the 6000-7000 K number is best described as "Daylight" rather than "Cool White" which is more appropriate to flourescent bulbs at 3400 K.

It sort of makes sense that the eye is adapted to outdoor sunlight for a full range of color recognition rather than the color of a flourescent light...:)

Since a white LED is a mix of three colors, the relative strength can "tint" the output in any direction. Cool White will make things look a little blue tinted.

Some good definitions here -

http://www.hunterlab.com/appnotes/an05_05.pdf

Actually white LEDs are typically blue LEDs with a yellow phosphor applied to them to produce a broad spectrum white. The type and thickness of the yellow phosphor determines if it is a cool white, neutral white, or warm white color temperature. Using Red/Green/Blue LED die to create white by color mixing is not typical for white LEDs, but is often seen in LED backlighting applications or for stage lighting where virtually any color can be created by adjusting the RGB mix ratios.
 
Thanks for the clarification...

Actually white LEDs are typically blue LEDs with a yellow phosphor applied to them to produce a broad spectrum white. The type and thickness of the yellow phosphor determines if it is a cool white, neutral white, or warm white color temperature. Using Red/Green/Blue LED die to create white by color mixing is not typical for white LEDs, but is often seen in LED backlighting applications or for stage lighting where virtually any color can be created by adjusting the RGB mix ratios.

...on the materials, but do the white LED makers use "cool white" to describe the spectrum that would be called "daylight" by the fluorescent lamp makers?

There are a few thousand degrees K difference...:)
 
...on the materials, but do the white LED makers use "cool white" to describe the spectrum that would be called "daylight" by the fluorescent lamp makers?

There are a few thousand degrees K difference...:)

LED companies typically label any LEDs that have CCTs above 4500K as cool white, CCTs between 3500K and 4500K as neutral white, and CCTs below 3500K as warm white.
 
Just a quick question: You show the Cool white spec in Kelvin, and the others in nanometers. Is there a relationship between the two?
Just curious.........

Well, it's a very strained relationship. :)

Colors are often listed in nanometers of wavelength, as they are (conceptually, at least) a single wavelength. White light (again, conceptually) is comprised of all the wavelengths of visible light. The color temperature (typically given in Kelvin) of white light is an indication of how the percentage composition of wavelengths is biased to the red or the blue end of the spectrum.
 
Does that mean...

LED companies typically label any LEDs that have CCTs above 4500K as cool white, CCTs between 3500K and 4500K as neutral white, and CCTs below 3500K as warm white.

...the "daylight" LEDs with a CCT of around 7000 K, like the earlier lab. recommendation are hard to come by, or do the LED makers just lump them into the "cool white" bucket?

I would think that artists and other folks who want accurate color rendering would specifically want the 7000 K devices, just like they go for the 7000K fluorescent fixtures.
 
...the "daylight" LEDs with a CCT of around 7000 K, like the earlier lab. recommendation are hard to come by, or do the LED makers just lump them into the "cool white" bucket?

I would think that artists and other folks who want accurate color rendering would specifically want the 7000 K devices, just like they go for the 7000K fluorescent fixtures.

Daylight standards are D65 and D55 (6500K and 5500K). 7000K is higher than the two standard daylight color temps. Most artists use light boxes set at D55 or D65 to check their color renderings.
 
LED Dimmer

I got my order from LEDLightsWorld today and wanted to add on to this thread and highly recommend their LED dimmer. I ordered 3 feet of the SMD 5050 in cool white (they call it pure white) and will be installing the strip and dimmer in my RV-6 soon.

Anyway, the dimmer is $12 and rated at 8 amps so if you are so inclined you could use if for all of your LED lighting. The LED strip I'm installing will draw about 1 amp full up. I have been playing with it here at home for the last couple of hours and I really like the feel of the pot, etc. I wouldn't say that it is entirely linear because most of the dimming happens in the last 10% of the pot travel. However, the maximum brightness does seem to peak at the upper end of the pot. So I guess it is about as linear as you're going to get with LED lighting. I like this little dimmer a lot, seems to be high quality and will mount nicely behind my panel. You can actually remove and discard the faceplate if you're going to mount it that way. I couldn't detect any heat at all in the dimmer after a couple of hours of having it on. The face plate measures 2 1/4 X 2 1/2 inches.

I'll take some more pictures after I have it mounted under the glareshield of my RV-6 in a few days. Here is the strip dimmed down to about 10% of pot travel.

016-1.jpg


017.jpg


020.jpg


[EDIT: For anyone referencing this thread for LED lighting, I ran into RF problems with the dimmer shown in the photographs above. The LEDs would flicker when I would transmit and became kind of annoying so I found a better mousetrap:

http://www.kicklighting.com/PWM-dimmer-switch-for-LED.htm

Thanks to Chris Schmitt for suggesting this dimmer. I paid around $16 plus shipping for the Kick KR6 dimmer and it has been perfect since I installed it in the airplane a few months ago.]
 
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Colors

Paul, thank you. Nice work.

One very simple thing you can do to demonstrate some of these issues is to change font colors or background colors. We do this daily with patients when checking refractions (determining whether letters are sharper or clearer on a red vs. a green background can tell you quickly if the lens is correct).

A crude example is here. ...
Hi James, The link worked fine for me. The best combinations for me are Black on Red, Black on Green, Black on White, and White on Grey. They all felt equally clear. How do you recommend I use this information to choose a LED color or label color on the panel? I'm currently leaning towards the "cool white" LEDs with the dimmer solution shown by Pat. Great thread, Bugsy, and very timely for me.
 
Likewise, timely for me as I start planning my panel. Had already decided to use an LED strip for panel lighting.

Pat, I took your advice, and ordered the same setup. I look forward to seeing photos and reading your impressions once you have the LED strip and dimmer mounted. I take it you'll make the dimmer in-flight accessible?
 
Hi James, The link worked fine for me. The best combinations for me are Black on Red, Black on Green, Black on White, and White on Grey. They all felt equally clear. How do you recommend I use this information to choose a LED color or label color on the panel? I'm currently leaning towards the "cool white" LEDs with the dimmer solution shown by Pat. Great thread, Bugsy, and very timely for me.

Hi Mickey.

I think the "pure white" LED strip and supplied dimmer are perfect, although a lot of choices would be reasonable.

Another factor is the color choices on the panel and labeling. Remember that white letters will effectively be the color of the illumination. The same applies to the background color. If the contrast is good during daylight conditions, it should be OK at night under white light, and the tolerances are less.

As we age, our ability to shift our focus to near objects declines (presbyopia). This is exacerbated by long (e.g. red) wavelengths. Older BMWs used to have red dash illumination--newer ones are dimmable white which is easier to read if you are over 40.

In your own airplane, I suspect that identifying switches, etc. is unlikely to be much of a problem. Modern radios and EFIS displays are also typically a non-issue. This makes cockpit lighting less critical.

The most demanding task will continue to be, I think, reading paper charts and approach plates. I think that one or more focused "task" lights is the best approach here. Think about what works in your car--every vehicle I've owned over the last twenty years has had "map lights" that were helpful for nighttime map reading, or looking at the address you wrote on a scrap of paper.

The best aircraft map light I ever used was built into the bottom of the control yoke on a Cessna 337. A tiny bulb with a dimmer that illuminated your lap, without creating glare in the cockpit. Functionally perfect.

I think the best approach in an RV-8 is dimmable white "floods", with maybe some single LED spots on items like the fuel selector. A separate, individually switchable and dimmable task light (maybe one of the little LED "stalk" lights that plug into UDB ports) focused on your right thigh.

Be aware of the large reflective inner surface of the bubble canopy--It can be a source of distracting reflections, although from the front seat of the -8 it's not really a problem in my experience.
 
If I had it to do over... I think you made the right call Pat.

Thanks for starting this thread. Good information and it got me to finally get around to installing flood lights under my glare shield. I was able to get out to the hangar today and installed them. All I had with me was my point-and-shoot and hand held to boot, so the quality of the photos is not the best but it gives an indication of the final look. I really like the way it came out. Probably in flight these floods would be dimmed to an absolute minimum, but on the ground for writing clearances, etc., they will be great turned all the way up.

This one is of the whole cockpit with the lights full up (really a lot of light!):

018.jpg


Here it is dimmed to about 10%:

004-2.jpg


Same shot with the floods all the way up:

007.jpg


And here from below so to show the LEDs:

010.jpg


And one more with the map light on:

015.jpg


Someone asked about the dimmer. I removed the face plate and the pot dropped out. I then cut the 3 wires to the pot and soldered on an extension so that I could position the pot on the panel by itself. I mounted the dimmer behind the panel but I didn't want to drill 4 more holes in the panel so I mounted it behind the panel using a couple of existing screws. I put the face plate back on and put a piece of tape over the hole to make it airtight. I just filed a small notch under the face plate for the wires going to the pot.
 
Update on LEDLightsWord Dimmer

I finally got a night flight in last night to try out the new LED lights and dimmer. I wanted to mention a problem I had with the dimmer for those following this thread. It wasn't a huge deal, but when I transmit, the intensity of the lights will vary (dim) when you push the mike button. So obviously RF is affecting the dimmer circuity in some way. I might try shielding the dimmer as it's in a plastic box now and enclosing it in aluminum might help. Here's a photo from last night:

096pp.jpg


The iPad kind of washed out because of its brightness even though it was turned down to the minimum. It really isn't that bright, just the photography I think. This was a 5 second exposure and it makes the cockpit look at lot brighter than it actually is. I needed to change to the spot metering system as opposed the matrix system I used.
 
Wow. That photo is sublime. It looks like a candidate for a calendar, or an advertisement.

I have the same dimmer assembly sitting on my bench waiting for installation in the panel. When I get to that point I'll look into shielding. I would be interested in anything you do that mitigates the dim-on-transmit phenomenon.
 
Silly question, but pertinent... For those of you who have installed these LED strips, how much distance from the face of the instrument panel to the light strip is sufficient to ensure light is cast all the way down to the bottom edge of the instrument panel? I fly something other than an RV and will need to fab a glareshield in order to support the LED strip lights - getting a handle on the distance the glareshield needs to project would be a big help.

As a follow-on question, how much of a downward-projecting lip is required on the aft edge of the glareshield to ensure the LED's aren't directly visible to the pilot? My best guess is that only a small lip, perhaps 2x the height of the LEDs would be sufficient. Am I close?
 
Shadows can be dangerous

Years ago in the Air Force we had a serious problems with chem lights creating shadows across the panel. I investigated a couple mishaps attributed to potential shadow across the ADI making the top of the ADI dark. This resulted in a black ADI. Dark on top from the shadow, dark on the bottom from the lower half of the ADI.

How far away from the panel? The same question I had but found as I worked this that the LEDs flood the panel and the cockpit, so they can go pretty close to the panel as long as you dont have anything that will create a shadow. You wont know that until you try them out.

How big a lip? The LED strip is about an 1/8" thick. you definetly want something to block direct view of the LED, but it doesnt take much to block it. I think a 1/4" would work fine, but it depends how high you panels comes up to eyeball.
 
Thanks for sharing this info, Paul. Time for me to spend a little while fumbling around and experimenting in my dark cockpit to see if I can come up with a workable solution using LED strips!
 
I see a January calendar desktop in this one! Very nice pic!! I'm looking forward to getting out of my 40 so I can get night current again!:cool:
 
Slider LED

I have a RV6 Slider and took the hose I used for the combing and made holes with a hole maker in the bottom and put some 525nm green wide angle leds in the hose. They shine on the panel and do a nice job of lighting it up. I made a voltage regulator from a LM 317 chip usine 3 sets of 4 leds , total cost ~ 15 $
Green is better for old eyes the new LED are pretty bright
Peter

PS what a nice picture
 
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