LED Driver

[Dexter12353]

Hello everyone, Dex here.  I am a motorcycle enthusiast, and have recently purchased a 1983 V45 Honda Magna.  The one thing that I truly hate about it is the fact that I can't see worth a rats ass at night, because the old headlight is extremely dim (Halogen).  To this point all of the LED or HID conversion kits cost a fortune, and I don't want to dump $500 into a motorcycle I paid $2300 for.

I have purchased a few of these bulbs, got them for a super good deal, However, I failed to realise that they call for 30 volts input.  I only have 12 volts available.

http://www.eachbuyer.com/30w-warm-white-led-ic-high-power-outdoor-flood-light-lamp-bulb-beads-chip-diy-p179287.html?utm_source=System_Own&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=got-payment&utm_nooverride=1

I have a am familiar with the principals of electricity, but have not yet created my own board.  Here's what I am looking to build:

Must be able to handle 10-14 volts input.
Must output 30 volts, Constant voltage.
Must be able to switch between a lower power setting and a higher power setting (Low and hi beams type thing)
Must be able to be on for many hours (Long rides)

Other than that I don't really have any restrictions.  I am rebuilding the entire headlamp assembly, so space is not quite an issue. I realise that I am going to need a pretty substantial heatsink for the bulb.


Please help me out with any relevant videos, I know dave has talked about LED constant current drivers on the channel, but I have no idea how to make it work on 12 volts!

[georges80]

If this is for use on the street, then a properly designed headlamp (optics/reflector) should be what you are thinking about 1st. The LED you bought is a wide flood source and will be very difficult to focus due to the large area of the LED array.

If you use that LED as is and drive towards an on-coming car you are likely to blind the driver who will then have a high likelihood of driving into you.

Powering the LED at high and low current will NOT emulate high/low beam. Both will put out light everywhere and blind anyone coming towards you.


And, you do want a current regulated boost driver (DC : DC converter), not constant voltage...

cheers,
george.

[Dexter12353]

I was talking to some people today at work (Fabrication shop), and they suggested replacing the whole headlight assembly with an H4 headlight setup.  I can get a really bright HID kit for it for under $100...Thanks for stopping me before I invested any more money in the LED setup!

[BradC]

I can get a really bright HID kit for it for under $100...Thanks for stopping me before I invested any more money in the LED setup!

Just be aware the HID lamp generates light in a different orientation and position to a H4 bulb. This means the focus and diffraction points in the reflector and headlight lens are not built for the HID lamp and won't work in the same way. The end result is you spray glare all over the place that you don't get with the H4 lamp.

This is the reason that in most countries HID retrofits into incandescent fixtures are illegal for on-road use. Just be aware.