Strobe lights are well-known products. A number of technologies are possible for use in strobe lights. Gas discharge strobe lights find particular application for emergency vehicles, radio towers, photography, and entertainment venues. Such conventional strobe lights utilize incandescent or gas light sources. Incandescent and gas source strobe lights have relatively high energy consumption and short lifetimes, which result in higher maintenance costs. Gas discharge strobe lights may be more susceptible to breaking, may produce ozone due to high voltage requirements, and may produce ultraviolet light that breaks down many materials. Further, such strobe lights have complicated electronics used to maintain the flashing operation.
Another type of strobe light uses high intensity discharge (HID) lamps. Light is produced by high intensity discharge lamps when an electric current arced between two closely spaced electrodes in a sealed quartz-glass or ceramic capsule, known as a discharge tube, arc tube, or burner, containing a vapor of metal and gas. Free electrons in the arc collide with the metal atoms in the vapor exciting electrons of the metal atoms to a higher energy state. When the excited electrons return to their original, lower energy level, electromagnetic radiation is emitted having a wavelength determined by the energy level of the electrons and the constituency of the vapor into the capsule. Compared to filament-type halogen lamps, HID lighting typically produces light more efficiently and with a color temperature more closely approximating that of sunlight. Unlike an incandescent lamp, an HID lamp does not immediately illuminate when power is supplied to the lamp. While initiating operation of an HID lamp takes considerable time, the time required to re-strike (restart) an extinguished lamp is typically longer, and commonly twice as long as the cold startup interval. For these and other reasons, strobe lights that use HID lamps are less desirable in many applications.
It is common for strobe lights to generate large amounts of heat due to the high levels of energy required generate the bright, flashing light outputs. Heat can have detrimental effects on many types of light generating devices. Since most strobe lights include a cover or lens within which the light generating devices are housed, the heat is trapped in proximity to the light generating members, which further increases the operating temperatures of the strobe light.
Opportunities exist for improving strobe light technologies that address these and other issues.