Eden Park Illumination has officially entered the efficient lighting fray, scoring $2 million in new venture capital, and a $750,000 grant from the U.S. Air Force, according to Dow Jones Clean Technology Insight. It is pitching a microplasma lighting fixture that could save more energy than incandescent bulbs, while remaining less expensive than light-emitting diodes.
Based in Champaign, Ill., the company plans to use the new money to commercialize its flagship product: a 36 square-inch panel (just a quarter inch thick) that generates 15 to 20 lumens of cool white light per watt. It consists of two pieces of glass, a phosphor, wire mesh and an emitter. It is expected to sell for $30, but distribution is still being arranged. Interestingly, the Air Force is testing it for various applications, and may sign a contract with the company pending results.
In its current form, Eden's panel is for indoor use only. Company president Philip Warner tells VentureBeat their initial focus will be office lighting, followed by cabinet lighting and then illuminating wall tiles. Due to their longevity, these first lights are well-suited to hard-to-reach places. Their light outputs range between 40 and 60 watts, but they have a 50,000 hour life span. So if access for replacement or maintenance is a problem, Eden Park's panels might be a good fit.
For now, $30 sounds like a lot for a product that isn't as efficient as compact fluorescent bulbs, which are priced between $5 and $10 on average. Still, in that race, its long lifespan distinguishes it. Compact fluorescents typically last somewhere between 6,000 and 15,000 hours. This makes Eden's fixture more economically advantageous in the long haul. On top of that, the company expects to up the efficiency of its panels significantly by 2012. If it succeeds, microplasma could be the clear winner in the market until LEDs come way down in price.
If, in two years, Eden can hit 100 lumens per watt in real-world conditions, it could even be a strong competitors for LEDs and their organic peers. Not only could its panel be used in places where LEDs wouldn't necessarily fit, but it would exceed their real-world performance of 46 lumens per watt.
Eden's recent round of funding came from Illinois Ventures, PM Ventures and Yellowstone Venture Capital.
Here's a video offering further information (and a lot of flashy PR talk) about Eden's panel: