The real importance is that we can actually offer our customers

These heat sinks, which are offered with different diameters and contours, are available in different sections of different lengths to suit specific heat dissipation applications.The LEDs are fastened onto the heat sink using thermally conductive, double sided adhesive tape, 2-component thermally conductive adhesive or screws. In the standard version, the surface is black anodised or of natural colour.

‘LEDs are a fascinating new technology,’ said Michael P. Simonis, president, Unilux, ‘but they are not for every printing or labeling application. Their softer light makes them best suited for inspecting labels and packaging with highly reflective coatings, foils or metalized substrates or on high-speed lines. Pulsed LED lights can replace strobe lights with Xenon lamps, where inspectors sometimes need to dial down the intensity or use frosted glass to avoid harsh reflections. When combining the light with our unique reflector designs, Unilux can provide even illumination across the entire surface.’The Unilux LED family of inspection lights carries a higher initial cost than the strobe lights with Xenon lamps, but the LED lamps do not have the same replacement costs.

‘The selection of pulsed LED or stroboscopic inspection lighting really comes down to the application,’ Simonis said. ‘The pulsed LED is better for high-speed, highly reflective printing, and the strobe for most other printing applications. LEDs can have a better light output than Xenon lamps when you have a flash rate greater than 15,000 flashes per second. The costs are about the same over a 3-5 year operating period, with the cost savings on the LED units being better after that. The real importance is that we can actually offer our customers the best lighting solution to meet their exact needs. It is not about developing an LED light or a Xenon lamp; it’s about being able to guide the customer to which light is best for them and to help produce the best final product. Only Unilux can do both.’