LED driver reference design touts 90% efficiency

Power Integrations Inc. has released a reference design showing a 30W LED tube replacement ballast power supply that the company said delivers more than 90 percent efficiency. The DER-286 LED meets worldwide requirements for power factor (PF) and total harmonic distortion (THD), added the company.

The DER-286 LED driver reference design is based on the LNK419EG, a member of Power Integrations' LinkSwitch-PH family of ICs. The devices combine a controller and 725V MOSFET to reduce the complexity and component count of the design, making it ideal for LED-based fluorescent-tube replacements, stated Power Integrations. The LinkSwitch-PH device performs both PFC and constant-current functions in an advanced single-stage topology—eliminating the need for large, temperature-sensitive electrolytic bulk capacitors—that cuts the size and increases the lifetime of the power supply, added the company.

"Many end users prefer the convenience of a single inventory item that can support installations operating from the U.S. residential supply of 90VAC to 120VAC and also the high nominal voltage 277VAC services of industrial applications, noted Andrew Smith, product marketing manager at Power Integrations. "EISA regulations due to be implemented in 2012 advance the minimum luminous efficacy of fluorescent tubes, severely challenging the large T12 type and serving notice on T8 and T5 tubes with inefficient older ballasts. LED luminaires based on our LinkSwitch-PH ICs, such as DER-286, are an efficient, cost-effective and reliable replacement technology. "