EZ-Color LED Controller and PSoC Express for High-Brightness LED Design - Cypress

Cypress introduced new EZ-Color High-Brightness (HB) LED Controller family, a complete design solution of high-brightness LED intelligent lighting systems. The new EZ-Color family is supported by PSoC Express embedded visual design tool. With PSoC Express, designers simply select a color from a gamut presented on-screen. Pre-loaded bin specifications and temperature feedback algorithms are automatically applied to the selected design and programmed into the EZ-Color Controller. The combination of EZ-Color architecture and PSoC Express software delivers a design solution for applications such as architectural lighting, rechargeable flashlights, general signage, emergency vehicle lighting, entertainment lighting, and more.

Cypress EZ-Color High-Brightness LED Controllers

EZ-Color Controllers is able to support up to 16 LED channels, savings lot of controllers in very large designs, saving on design complexity, board space and power consumption. The EZ-Color controllers are also powered by Cypress patent pending PrISM (Precise Illumination Signal Modulation) technology. The PrISM modulation technology significantly reduces low-frequency flicker and radiated electro-magnetic interference (EMI).

For evaluation and development of EZ-Color family, Cypress offer a US$149 CY3261A-RGB Evaluation Kit. The development kit showcases EZ-Color's flexibility and ease of use for high-brightness LED color mixing applications and employs temperature compensation for consistent color. The evaluation kit also includes interactive graphical interface for quick color mixing. Designer can freely download of PSoC Express 3.0 software

The EZ-Color family:

• CY8CLED04: 4 LEDs
• CY8CLED08:  8 LEDs
• CY8CLED16: 16 LEDs

Price for the CY8CLED04 is under US$4.00 (in high volumes).

You can download the available application notes for Cypress EZ-Color and PSoC Express:

• AN15733
  The solid state lighting industry is in the midst of rapid change and advancement. New developments appear almost daily. Because of these advancements and changes in solid state lighting, many lighting applications are moving away from fluorescent, halogen and incandescent lighting.
  Solid state lighting includes high brightness LEDs, high power LEDs, and organic LEDs (OLEDs). For each new technology, LED driver requirements change and present designers with unique challenges. This application note is organized to help designers overcome these challenges by using EZ-Color devices. The appendix at the end of this application note describes some of the terms and units associated with the mathematics of light and color.
  This application note describes methods for driving multiple high power LEDs with EZ-Color [PDF, 450KB]. Example projects using the CY8CLED16 EZ-Color device are included to demonstrate LED dimming and color mixing using the CY3261A-RGB demonstration board.
• AN16035
  The Cypress EZ-Color device is well suited for high brightness LED (HBLED) color mixing applications. However, the firmware in these applications is quite complex. This application note details firmware that implements an RGB LED color mixing [PDF, 127KB].

More info: Cypress EZ-Color High-Brightness LED Controller and PSoC Express

Free Seminar: Designing High-Brightness LED with EZ-Color  (July 18, 2007)

Cypress will host a free online seminar that show how its Cypress’s new EZ-Color High Brightness LED controllers simplified the design of High Brightness LED. The seminar, entitled Breakthrough, Code-Free High Brightness LED Designs will be presented on Wednesday, July 18 at 9:00 a.m. PDT in conjunction with CMP Media’s Electronic Engineering Times.

High brightness LEDs have become a popular alternative in architectural and entertainment lighting, LCD backlighting and other applications. Manufacturer binning, heat-related changes over time and other issues present designers of LED solutions with a range of unique problems. The online seminar explores these problems and looks at how Cypress’s EZ-Color solution enables designers to address these challenges without C or Assembly programming. Interested parties can find additional information and register for the seminar online.

About the EZ-Color Family
Cypress’s new EZ-Color family of high brightness (HB) LED controllers pairs with PSoC Express software to deliver a complete design solution for growing applications such as architectural lighting, general signage, rechargeable flashlights, entertainment lighting, emergency vehicle lighting and more. The two biggest problems that HB LED engineers face today are having to account for differing LED performance specifications based on manufacturing bins and the LEDs’ degradation (such as output flux, wavelength etc.) over different temperatures. With PSoC Express, designers simply select a color from a gamut presented on-screen. Pre-loaded manufacturers’ bin specifications and temperature feedback algorithms are automatically applied to the selected design and programmed into the EZ-Color controller. This can save anywhere from weeks to months of design time for a complex design.

The EZ-Color controllers are also powered by Cypress patent pending PrISM (Precise Illumination Signal Modulation) technology. The PrISM modulation technology significantly reduces low-frequency flicker and radiated electro-magnetic interference (EMI) — common problems with HB LED designs. In addition to technological and ease-of-design advantages, EZ-Color controllers can support up to 16 LED channels, compared to four or five channels for competitive devices. The additional channels can mean a savings of dozens or even hundreds of controllers in very large designs, saving on design complexity, power consumption and board space. Designers also have the flexibility to add additional functionality to the EZ-Color controllers, including battery charging, motor control and other features.

More info: Cypress EZ-Color High-Brightness LED Controller and PSoC Express