RE: [DML] Re: Dash Led's

["John Hervey" <john@xxxx>]

Hedeki, Im intrested in the #161 bulb used for the battery light. Was it
replaced with the LED's and did it work ok.I haven't tested it.
John Hervey
www.specialTauto.com


-----Original Message-----
From: dmc12jp [mailto:hidesuke@xxxx]
Sent: Monday, June 02, 2003 11:15 PM
To: dmcnews@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [DML] Re: Dash Led's


Hello list,

First post to DML and probably the first post from Japan also.

I would like to share my experience of LED conversion. I replaced the
incandescent
bulbs on the A/C panel and in some of the switches on the panel to LEDs. The
LEDs I
used are not the ones from Jamstrait. They were not available when I did the
conversion two year ago. It would have been much easier with those.

I did this conversion because I was worried about the significant heat that
is produced
by those bulbs. I thought it might even distort the panel in a long run.
LEDs draw less
current so it is good for the car. I estimated the current consumed in the
A/C panel to
be about 1.5A. By replacing them to LEDs it is reduced by a factor of 20.
Another
advantage is that once you replace the bulbs to LEDs you won't need to open
it again
for replacing the bulbs. LEDs will last almost forever.

I am pleased with the results. It gives much crisper and clearer impression
to the
panel than the original. It is literally cool.

One thing that might be unique to my modification is the use of current
limiting
diodes. They regulate the current to 15mA regardless of the supplied
voltage. This
gives a constant brightness regardless of the condition of the electrical
system in the
car. The drawback is that the rheostat does not have much effect. It does
not bother
me, though since I do not need to worry about the heat any more.

I used 6 hyper-intensity LEDs (2 White, One Blue, One red, Two green) and 2
diodes
for the A/C panel, One red and one diode for the Hazard switch. In some
part, I used
two or three LED in series with this diode. The voltage drop is different
for different
color of LED, so you need to take it into account when planning the
combination.

I had to cut off the tops of each LEDs a bit for the A/C panel, but I did
not need to
modify the panel at all. Replacing the bulb in a switch is a little tricky.
First, you take
out the switch and open it carefully. You then solder a LED and a diode
together, and
tailor its legs to fit the contacts where the original incandescent bulbs
have been.

I posted the pictures on the web.
http://homepage.mac.com/hokam/PhotoAlbum1.html

I am sorry for the poor quality of the pictures. They are out of focus. At
that time I
had a very old digital camera which had a fixed focus and it was extremely
difficult to
take such kind of pictures.

Regarding the choice of the color of LED, Mike is right. I should have used
a white
LED for the temperature control part of the A/C panel instead of blue.
Experiments
showed white LEDs give much pleasing color to our eyes. I think this can be
explained
by the fact that the wavelength of color LED is almost monochromatic,
whereas the
coloring of the panel is not. By using a monochromatic light source only a
small part
of the light can transmit. Also the intended color cannot be reproduced.

Specs of the LEDs I used. The cost of each LED is about 500 yen (= $4) here
in Japan.

White LED --- NSPW500BS
4000 mcd (TYP) 20mA, VF = 4V

Blue LED --- E1L51-3BC02
1800 mcd (TYP) 30mA, Wavelength - 465-475 nm, VF = 5V

Bluish Green --- E1L51-KC0A2-1
3200 mcd (TYP) 10mA, Wavelength - 493-498 mn, VF = 3.2V
(This LED is used for green traffic lights)

Current limiting diode - CRD-153 (15mA)

I hope this will be of some use to you.

Best regards,
Hideki Okamura
Tokyo, Japan


--- In dmcnews@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, "Mike" <mquinto@xxxx> wrote:
> The reason why I'm going with white for the greens and blue is, it
seems to show
up the lens color better than using blue, amber or red led behind it.
I have these
individual colored led's to play with, but I didn't have green so I
could tell you how it
might look.



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