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What do LM-79, LM-80 and TM-21 mean?

Published: 19 October 2015 Category: Trade Talk

Why are they important for my LED luminaires

What do LM-79, LM-80 and TM-21 mean?

Answer provided by Alfonso, Technical Engineering Manager for EYE Lighting with experience in Europe and Australasia in lighting, electrical systems, energy efficiency and renewable energy.

They are testing methodologies approved by the IES (Illuminating Engineering Society) of North America to measure electrical parameters, photometric data and lumen maintenance of LEDs (also called Solid-State Lighting). 

Whereas LM-79 focuses on electrical and photometric parameters of LED luminaires, LM-80 deals with lumen maintenance test methods of the LED light sources, (LED chips, arrays etc.) and not the whole luminaire. TM-21 standard, based on a mathematical algorithm, specifies how to extrapolate the data from LM-80 tests to foresee the future performance of the LED components.

Lumen maintenance is the operating time (in hours) in which a LED light maintains a certain percentage of its initial light output. LEDs, as any other light source, depreciate after certain time of operation. LM-80 and TM-21 standard methods provide information to manufacturers, suppliers and end users about the performance of LEDs in terms of light levels output and hours of operation.

For example, a L70 of 30,000 h means that after 30,000 hours the LED shall maintain at least 70 % of its initial lumens.

These methodologies also define the requirements of the tests such as temperature of operation, duration or data collection procedures.

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