DefinePK

Abstract

LED (light emitting diode) converts over 80 percent of the input power into heat. This heat increases the junction temperature, which could result in reduced lifetime of the LED due to an excessive thermal load. This study aims to optimize the shape of a heatsink in order to develop a LED signal bulb that can replace the conventional halogen bulb equipped in vehicles. To this end, the thermal performance is predicted through a numerical analysis and verified with a prototype of the LED signal bulb for vehicles. A numerical analysis shows that Case 3 provides the most efficient thermal performance; it is also verified through experiments that the input power for the LED can be increased up to 6W without problems.