Prototype off-road/boating spotlight - King COB!

I need to find a dark parking lot or field or something to try this thing on. It does throw some light but the light hitting the ground right in front of you is almost like daylight. This is one reason why I think the… spot?… Angelina would be better as it would throw more of the light into the distance.

Yes, because even a “spot” optic with a COB will still produce a relatively wide beam…

Here’s the outdoor floodlight I got from my friend. Installed the MeanWell LDH driver, running it with a 3s LiPo…

Control pic of back yard, some ambient street light in the back:

And with the battery plugged in!

Just have to make a yoke to fit my tripod. Worked great as a work light when I had to do some repairs on my car the other night.

I think I’m going to switch the Battle Lantern to a Bridgelux Vero18 as the smaller LES is closer to the size that I think the Angelina reflectors were designed for. I’m also going to order the sublens and a few more reflectors in the Angelina series to play with. Basically, CDI has really good prices on LEDiL stuff so I might as well get a bunch of items to play with to make the most of their expensive shipping.

I also really want to find a driver that can push the CXB3590 to full output to play with.

You must have read my mind because I ordered a couple Vero29s in 5000K 70 CRI, 12k lumens at a more manageable 2.1A. They have solderless connectors and are cheaper to boot. Plus they are rated at max 4.2A so I’m thinking they’ll work better with the Stratus LED drivers. Going to save the CREE CMA COBs for some indoor lighting, and use the Bridgelux with the TIRs…

I really want to use the 72v Vero29 but I need an optic or reflector for it… and a driver. LOL. I could use the Hyperboost but I know I’ll want to build a triple or quad and 4x $40 for drivers is not something I’m exactly keen on.

The 70v version of the COBs you just bought will do 19.5klm at 120w and 32klm at 250w. :smiling_imp:

I’m still skeptical of what that StratusLED driver can do since StratusLEDs said it wouldn’t output over 25-26v.

The input limit is 28V. I’ve measured over 42V at the LED but don’t have an ammeter to measure the current. It won’t do more than that, and it won’t power the CMA3090 which needs 48V. I’m thinking the Stratus driver puts out more than 3.5A because it trips when I try to crank the dimmer pot all the way with the CXB3590.

I have 2 TaskLED drivers right now, but have to figure out how to power them for the CMA3090s. I need 168W to get them to max, so assuming 90% driver efficiency I’ll need close to 190W at input. I believe I read the TaskLED had only been tested to 130W so maybe I shouldn’t be so greedy. But I’m not because the 36V Vero I got will do over 12k lumens at about 76W (2.1A). Reason I picked them was specifically so I could use the Stratus LED drivers, and specifically because they are the cheapest solution currently.

I forgot to say that I found the control chip the StratusLED driver uses. It’s some made in China part with no english datasheet. I don’t think that board was developed here. I think it was a contract job so who knows what it’s true ratings and such are.

Have you tried running the StratusLED driver off 6s?

We went for another walk tonight with the ghetto rig and had clear skies and nearly a new moon. This thing definitely needs a tighter reflector to limit the spill on the ground close to you. I’m probably going to switch to a Vero29 and an Angelette-S as I think I can just barely fit it inside the battle lantern. It is deeper and wider than the Angelina series so hopefully it will work better. I really wish they had something in the Angelette series inbetween the S (10deg) and the M (50deg).

I asked LEDiL about using the CXB3590 with the Angelette series because it isn’t listed in the datasheet but I can’t see a reason why it wouldn’t work.

That’s Kunrui, right? Does it work well?

Yes… Link on page 3.

Don’t know yet! Waiting for the Bridgelux LEDs to … Don’t feel like taking apart the CREE rig as removing the reflector is a great pain.

Do you have any ideas for large diameter tubing to use for something like a triple? I may need something ~7” ID. Long ago, I made a mini wind tunnel to take to trade shows using a large PVC pipe coupling…

You can get PVC pipe coupling up to 14” diameter. They get MEGA expensive after about 8-10” or so. A way cheaper solution is to buy drum shells - 5, 7, 10 or more plies so they’re very stiff… You can buy them wrapped with metal or wood veneer. You an even get clear or opaque acrylic.

… like… musical drums? I didn’t know that was a thing you could buy.

There are quite a few folks out there that make bespoke drums, and very, very few of them laminate or bend their own shells! Or have the convenience of 5-axis CNC to do secondary operations like milling the edges or drilling and pocketing. Many manufacturers also outsource the shells. And different numbers of plies can affect the sound of the drums as well, so they are tuned to a player’s preferences.

So, a 3-up COB cannon… nice! I think you may have to start building a trailer to haul that thing…

Looking at 36v Vero29se, LEDiL Lenina-S reflectors, StratusLED drivers, 6s lipo, server/workstation heatsinks and a single fan.

What would be nice for the Stratus LED drivers is to find a 10kOhm slider pot that is panel-mountable. I’ve found a few but they’re board (pin) mount and I don’t feel like jury-rigging one, though I suppose I could make two L-brackets out of scrap copper sheet and solder them on to the ends. But yes, I think a combination of Vero29SE 36V and Stratus LED driver is about the simplest solution around. I really need to procure a clamp meter to check the current going to the LED.

I do like the Lenina-S and the efficiency with the VeroSE is really good; thing is I’d need to figure out a clear lens solution; which would mean building a housing, These housings I bought with the TIRs - still can’t believe I got them for $5 each. There has to be about $5 of aluminum - and that’s before it’s extruded, cut, ground, machined, and anodized. Just amazing. It’s like buying a $20 housing and getting a glass TIR for free.

Yeah. ~50k lumens from something ~7” in diameter ought to be fun. I’ll probably use the 6s16k lipo packs I have so the c/g is pretty far to the rear so you’re less likely to accidentally flash yourself. The hilarious thing will be that it can do 36k lm without really even trying.

LEDiL makes a lens that fits into the Lenina reflectors.

I ordered one of the StratusLED drivers to play with and also to see where its limits are.

One thing I may do is basically put a momentary switch in parallel with the pot so you have instant access to “turbo”. I was also thinking about doing something similar to allow for temperature regulation/protection.

There a re a lot of possibilities… I’d like build an array myself and control it remotely and program different configs with raspberry pi… But I have to get them running first LOLOL

So in regards to the Meanwell LDH-45-1050 boost drives, I cross-referenced COBs at DigiKey that operate between 35-42V and max 1.05A, and got some interesting result… CREE CXB1820, which tests at 2690lm @ 550mA, and up to 160-180% rated output at max current. And just over $10 each!

Some more at Mouser… a Lumileds L2C5 that does 4900lm @ 900mA, and CREE CXB2540 rated at 4860lm @ 1.1A.

The only downside to the smaller LES COBs is they’re not as efficient but you may not care about that if you have other driving factors.