New Light I am working on !

RandyMan79

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Hi Everyone, Here is a light I am working on that has a cut off beam and a wide beam to light the sides of the road or trail.
Let me know what you think.
IMG_4243_zpswgkvb5xl.jpg

IMG_4242_zpsa2dy3acs.jpg
 

Steve K

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I like the idea. A proper StVZO sort of beam is probably the ideal, but likely impossible for the hobbyist to ever create. My best attempt was to combine a LED with a narrow beam with a LED with a slightly wider beam that was aimed slightly lower.

I hope you'll share info on the details of your design. Good luck!
 

RandyMan79

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Cool! Do you have more details?

Well I do not want to say too much right now, because I do plan on selling these if I ever get a READY product.
Hardest thing about this is finding an easy solution for the housing and mounting option. It is hard to find a housing solution that is cost effective.

This will not be the BRIGHTEST light or the longest lasting, but the idea is to have it be a cost effective option for people (under $100).

Other lights that have a cut off line are expensive, minus the philips safe ride light, but I heard that one is discontinued ?
 

angerdan

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This will not be the BRIGHTEST light or the longest lasting, but the idea is to have it be a cost effective option for people (under $100).
Other lights that have a cut off line are expensive, minus the philips safe ride light, but I heard that one is discontinued ?

A lot of cut off lights are available in germany.
bumm.de/de/produkte/akku-scheinwerfer/parent/164/produkt/164bla-silber-164bmla-schwarz.html
bumm.de/de/produkte/akku-scheinwerfer/parent/1922/produkt/1922qmla.html

Even 80lx only cost 50€.
idealo.de/preisvergleich/ProductCategory/11732F868329-868339-1543768-1550701-1756363.html?param.resultlist.sortKey=minPrice

What advantage has your light?
USB charging+replacable 18650 cell?
 

RandyMan79

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Well While I am not super familiar with those German lights, it seems that most of them run on dynamo power and they do not seem to perform nearly as good as they say they do.
(from what I have read and seen)

My light will have roughly a 180 degree light spread, so it will be visible from the side so to speak and also give you wide visibility off to the side of the road. It will be running off a battery pack as of now.

I just ordered a LUX light meter, so I will be able to test the lux output. How far away is the standard for measuring ? 20 feet ? 25 feet ?

Like I said, I am not an avid commuter, so any feedback is greatly appreciated.
 

RandyMan79

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The beam shots on the IXON website looks grossly exaggerated....but they say 150 lux, so I will be curious as to what my light measures at 33 feet.
But it seems there are so many lights with good cut off beams... so why are more people here in the USA not using them or even selling them for that matter ?
 

Steve K

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....
But it seems there are so many lights with good cut off beams... so why are more people here in the USA not using them or even selling them for that matter ?

My impression is that there is a general lack of awareness of what a beam pattern is, or what patterns/shapes are suitable for different types of riding. A lot of the demand for powerful headlights is for mountain bikes, where a wide beam is useful.

Another factor is that there is no legal requirement (in the USA) for a beam with cutoff. This wasn't a concern with the lights being produced 20 years ago, but with the development of 15 watt MR16 halogen lights, it became relevant. Generally, there have been a few on the market, but they have been designed to comply with the German StVZO standard.

My guess is that while the large suppliers of bike lights know how to make a proper cutoff beam (i.e. B&M, Cateye, ..), a lot of lights are being designed for companies that sell a variety of bike parts and accessories. These companies will go to an electronics design house and tell them to design a light with some general specs. It is likely that neither the bike components company nor the electronics house know anything about optics or beam pattern standards, so the designers just use some commercially available optics or reflector designs and call it good.
 

RandyMan79

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The beam shots on the IXON website looks grossly exaggerated....but they say 150 lux, so I will be curious as to what my light measures at 33 feet.
But it seems there are so many lights with good cut off beams... so why are more people here in the USA not using them or even selling them for that matter ?


So I have been reading about LUX and it seems that unless otherwise stated, MOST companies measure the LUX output at the standard 3 foot range.
Can anyone confirm this ?
This is just what I have read on multiple sites.
 

angerdan

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Last edited:

RandyMan79

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No.
flashlightwiki.com/ANSI-NEMA_FL-1#Beam_Distance

As i write earlier above, in germany the output has a real standard measuring distance.
de.wikipedia.org/wiki/10-Lux-Regelung

You can also take a look here:
wetestlights.com


I emailed Busch+Muller and they confirmed a distance of 10m as well.
Now I find the reading of 150 lux at 30 feet hard to believe from ONE light... anyone know what they are using for an led chip inside the IQ-X Speed light and the IXON Space light.
I can't seem to find any info.
 

angerdan

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In the past, B&M often did use Philips Lumileds LUXEON LEDs.
Could still be possible two Luxeon TX (274lm, 129lm/W, 2,9W).
 

Fred Bikebury

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Any new Infos?
How is your project going on?
Have you messured the LUX of your light already?
 

gewe

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In the IQ-X they are using an Osram OSLON Black Flat (see here). No idea what binning, nor what they are using in the higher lux models (like the IQ-X E).
 
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