Behind the scenes at our testing facilities.
We make lights that last, and part of the process is our in-house laboratory facilities. Read along and find out just how we maximize the tools we have to ensure the lifetime and robustness of the work light. Let’s go!
We’re not superheroes, yet we possess some of the same traits! Our CT (Computed Topography) scanner makes it possible for us to see through objects with X-Ray vision.
The system produces an image with 3 dimensions, meaning that we can not only see the external dimensions of components but also what is inside, and what is not.
With the help of the 3D imaging system, we can look through every dimension and detail of our components, to make sure that they are made exactly to the intended specification. The accuracy of the system, including the fact that it takes over 2000 high resolution pictures to build the rendition, means we can instantly see any areas which need to be adjusted or otherwise modified. Even those that are hidden to the human eye.
Our consistent quality checks of components make sure that the end result (the work light) will be exactly as intended.
The CT scanner is also utilized to support the testing and validation processes, by doing non-destructive analysis of the work light during development and testing. When we do not have to take the light apart, we save both time and resources.
What is the best way to make sure that a work light will last through extreme conditions? You simply test it! In our environmental lab, we put our lights through the harshest possible conditions. We test their functionality through freezing cold all the way up to blazing heat. We submerge them in water, we spray them with salt mist, and lock them up in humid chambers for days at a time.
The operating temperature for our lights is specified at -40 to +85 degrees Celsius. In our temperature cycle test, we start out with the light at room temp in our environmental chamber. Then we cool the light down to a nice -40 degrees Celsius. When the light is cold through and through, we power up the light briefly, a sudden cold start. Then, we turn up the heat to reach +85 C. While the temperature in the chamber is climbing to +85 C we power up the light and leave it powered on through the whole high temperature phase. The point is to stress the light as much as possible during this extreme change in temperature. This process is repeated 30 times, and the light needs to last through all of them.
In our environmental chamber, we ensure that the light lasts for 7 days at around 90% humidity, cycling between +22 and +55 degrees Celsius.
The salt spray test puts the light through 240 agonizing hours in a chamber constantly spraying it with 5% salt (NaCl) and 95% water at 35 degrees Celsius. When the 10 days have passed, the light cannot have any significant rust or corrosion on it.
Of course, a work light also gets dirty. That’s why we put our lights through our high-pressure washer test, where we spray 80 degrees Celsius hot water at 10 000 Kpa pressure straight on our lights. The test is performed to ensure that our lights can be cleaned with confidence.
When making a work light, it’s important that it can ride out the vibrations it will be put through in the field. Since different environments call for different vibration resistance, our lights end up in our vibration lab multiple times to verify their robustness. The goal of the vibration tests is to make sure that the light will last when attached to a vibrating vehicle.
The most demanding situations can be found in segments like construction and mining, for example a mining dozer working in a quarry. For these use cases and similar, it pays off to choose a light with high vibration resistance and even built-in damping.
On a basic level, the vibration lab equipment functions as a large speaker, vibrating and creating resonance within the light at different wavelengths. The vibration is measured in Grms, which stands for G (gravitational acceleration – 9,81 m/s²) root mean square. Depending on the needed specifications, the lights are tested at different Grms levels, for example 4, 8, or 20Grms.
Additionally, you need to include a frequency spectrum across which the force is distributed. This is measured in Hz, which stands for cycles per second. 1 Hz is equal to one cycle per second. 24 Hz means that the work light moves to a specific position, back to the starting point, and repeats the same movement in the opposite direction until it is back at the starting point once more. This cycle is repeated 24 times in one second.
For our specification of 8Grms 24-2000 Hz, we run the test for three hours in each direction X (side to side), Y (up and down) and Z (back and forth). The test goes on for a total of 9 hours. So, the specification tells you that a light will endure an average of 8Grms of vibration, distributed across the frequency spectrum of 24-2000 Hz, for 9 hours.
We’re used to testing according to manufacturer specifications, but our engineers also like to push our lights to their limits, just to know exactly how much they can endure. It is with confidence we say “yes, the lights will last!”
Compared to vibration, a shock is one single and instant shake of the light occurring for a couple of milliseconds. We test most of our lights for 600 times at 60G of force. Thats 100 times each up, down, left, right, forward & backward.
Since our work lights adhere to strict standards and specifications (like ISO and ECE, to name a few), it is important that the final optical design looks the same in the field as well as on paper. The light laboratory is an essential ace up our sleeve to make sure that customers can trust our lights
In the light lab, we check that the work light in question corresponds to the intended design. We can measure e.g. lumen, lux, and candela, as well as color temperature. We use several photometers (light sensors) and colorimeters (color sensors) to get measurements that you can trust. For quick tests, we use the integrating sphere you can also see in the video above.
Lux, candela, and lumen all describe what one may call “brightness” in different ways. It’s still important to understand the difference between them.
Lumen defines the total amount of light that is emitted from the light source to the environment. It’s easiest to think of as the overall brightness of the light.
Lux is used when defining how bright a surface gets. In our case, we use lux for our light patterns to show how bright the work area gets. 1 lux = 1 lumen per square meter.
Candela also measures brightness, but takes into account at which direction the amount of light is emitted. That’s why the highest candela values are found in lights that have very narrow light patterns. A classic flash light is an example of a high candela light pattern. An even more extreme example would be a laser pointer, where all emitted light is directed in one specific angle.
Interested in playing around in our lab? Find an open position
Want to know more? Read about CRI and Color temperature.