Installation Guide

LED Lighting Surge Protection Modules

Design and Installation Guide

The DOE test waveform used to evaluate surge immunity of luminaires used in outdoor

lighting (Figure 4) is a combination 1.2x50μs open circuit voltage and 8x20μs short circuit

current waveform. To perform this test, the speciﬁed peak current is calibrated on the surge

generator by shorting the output to ground prior to connection to the luminaire.

Figure 4. Open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current waveforms to represent transient surges

on an AC power line. Vp and Ip represent the peak voltage and current, respectively.

Regional Differences in Lightning Frequency

Lightning frequency may refer to the number of lightning strikes in a region during a particular

period or to the probability quotient of lightning strike frequency.

Satellite-based Lightning Imaging Sensor (LIS) observations are used to study lightning

activity in different regions of the world. This research has shown clear differences in both

ﬂash frequency and optical radiance in different regions. The ﬂash activity in different regions

shows a clear difference, corresponding to the local climate, topography, and environment

conditions.

IEEE studied the effect of indirect lightning on outdoor lighting and recommended transient

surge testing levels (3kA and 10kA) for the United States. For other regions for which lighting

survey data and regional regulations aren’t available, NASA’s research on worldwide lightning

strike frequency (Figure 5) may be useful as a reference for comparison. Central and South

America, Africa, Southern and Southeastern Asia have lightning strike frequencies similar

to Florida in the United States, so an equivalent surge immunity level (10kA) is suggested.

For regions with fewer lightning strikes, such as Europe, Eastern Asia, and Australia, a lower

surge immunity level could be considered at 3kA.

1.0

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0 20 40 60

Time (µs)

V(t)/Vp

80 100

Duration - 50 µs

Front Time - 1.2 µs

1.0

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0 10 20 30

Time (µs)

I(t)/Ip

40 50

Duration - 20 µs

Front Time - 8 µs

Regional Differences in Lightning Frequency