Difference between revisions of "Philips HPL-N"

374 bytes removed ,  20:57, 25 September 2021
m
 
(13 intermediate revisions by the same user not shown)
Line 3: Line 3:
|style="vertical-align:top" |
|style="vertical-align:top" |
<div style="margin: 0; margin-right:10px; border: 1px solid #dfdfdf; padding: 0em 1em 1em 1em; background-color:#F8F8FF; align:right;">
<div style="margin: 0; margin-right:10px; border: 1px solid #dfdfdf; padding: 0em 1em 1em 1em; background-color:#F8F8FF; align:right;">
Standard High Pressure Mercury Lamp with 50W, 80W, 125W (E27 base) and 125W, 250W, 400W, 700W, 1000W (E40 base)
Standard High Pressure Mercury Lamp for general lighting with 50W, 80W, 125W (E27 base) and 125W, 250W, 400W, 700W, 1000W (E40 base)


== Features ==
== Features ==
Line 12: Line 12:
*Color rendering index Ra of 49 to 36 (lowest on highest wattage lamps)
*Color rendering index Ra of 49 to 36 (lowest on highest wattage lamps)
*Typical lifetime of 16.000 to 12.000 hours (lowest on highest wattage lamps)
*Typical lifetime of 16.000 to 12.000 hours (lowest on highest wattage lamps)
*Luminous efficacy of 36 to 59 (highest on highest wattage lamps)
*Luminous efficacy of 36 to 59 lumens/watt (highest on highest wattage lamps)
*Cool white colour designation (4200 to 3900K colour temperature)
*Cool white colour designation (4200 to 3900K colour temperature)
*Universal operating position
*Universal operating position
Line 18: Line 18:
== Lamp control gear ==
== Lamp control gear ==
*Requires external reactive inductive ballast (230V standard on Europe):
*Requires external reactive inductive ballast (230V standard on Europe):
**BHL 50, 80, 125, 250, 400, 700, 1000W
**Philips BHL 50, 80, 125, 250, 400, 700, 1000 types
**May require power factor correction capacitor for balancing line load
**May require power factor correction capacitor for balancing line load
</div>
</div>
Line 44: Line 44:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=2
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=2
|- style="background:#efefef;"
|- style="background:#efefef;"
! Designation !! Base (Edison Screw) !! Lamp wattage !! Luminous flux !! Colour appearance !! Colour Temperature !! Colour Rendering Index (Ra8) !! Operating Position
! Designation !! Base !! Lamp wattage !! Luminous flux !! Colour appearance !! Colour Temperature !! Colour Rendering Index (Ra8) !! Life (to 50% failures)
|-
|-
| HPL-N 50W/542 E27 SG SLV || E27 || 50W || 1800lm || Cool White ||  4200 K || 49 || any
| HPL-N 50W/542 E27 SG SLV || E27 || 50 W || 1800 lm || Cool White ||  4200 K || 49 || 16000 hours
|-
|-
| HPL-N 80W/542 E27 SG SLV || E27 || 80W || 3700lm || Cool White ||  4200 K || 48 || any
| HPL-N 80W/542 E27 SG SLV || E27 || 80 W || 3700 lm || Cool White ||  4200 K || 48 || 16000 hours
|-
|-
| HPL-N 125W/542 E27 HG SLV || E27 || 125W || 6200lm || Cool White || 4100 K || 46 || any
| HPL-N 125W/542 E27 HG SLV || E27 || 125 W || 6200 lm || Cool White || 4100 K || 46 || 16000 hours
|-
|-
| HPL-N 125W/542 E40 HG SLV || E40 || 125W || 6200lm || Cool White || 4100 K || 46 || any
| HPL-N 125W/542 E40 HG SLV || E40 || 125 W || 6200 lm || Cool White || 4100 K || 46 || 20000 hours
|-
|-
| HPL-N 250W/542 E40 HG CRP || E40 || 250W || 12700lm || Cool White || 4200 K || 45 || any
| HPL-N 250W/542 E40 HG CRP || E40 || 250 W || 12700 lm || Cool White || 4200 K || 45 || 16000 hours
|-
|-
| HPL-N 400W/542 E40 HG CRP || E40 || 400W || 22000lm || Cool White || 3900 K || 45 || any
| HPL-N 400W/542 E40 HG CRP || E40 || 400 W || 22000 lm || Cool White || 3900 K || 45 || 16000 hours
|-
|-
| HPL-N 700W/542 E40 HG CRP || E40 || 700W || 38500lm || Cool White || 3900 K || 45 || any
| HPL-N 700W/542 E40 HG CRP || E40 || 700 W || 38500 lm || Cool White || 3900 K || 45 || 12000 hours
|-
|-
| HPL-N 1000W/542 E40 HG CRP || E40 || 1000W || 58500lm || Cool White || 3900 K || 36 || any
| HPL-N 1000W/542 E40 HG CRP || E40 || 1000 W || 58500 lm || Cool White || 3900 K || 36 || 12000 hours
|-
|-
|}
|}


Note: there are other bases such as, for instance, the British B22D or the American E26 and E39; HG means hard glass, SG means soft glass;
Note: there are other bases such as, for instance, the British B22D or the American E26 and E39; HG means hard glass, SG means soft glass; The 125W E40 lamp is designed differently to achieve a longer life, by using a longer internal quartz arc tube which degrades less in time.


== Durability and Repair-ability ==
== Durability and Repair-ability ==
Line 87: Line 87:
== Review ==
== Review ==
These high pressure mercury vapour lamps are compact light sources that are viable for wide area lighting. Their average colour reproduction and large output means that they are better suited to outdoor lighting. Compared with flourescent lamps they were very compact, having better performance at low temperatures. A longer lifetime, that was around 10 to 15 times higher than tungsten lamps, meant that these lamps are well suited for use in places where lamp replacement was costly, as in high bay lighting and street lighting. They had similar useful life as fluorescent lamps. High pressure sodium lamps had higher light output, almost double, of mercury vapour lamps while having low quality colour reproduction. This means that mercury vapour lamps were still suited for areas where colour reproduction was moderately important and there was still an advantage from compact light sources, which means industrial and workshop lighting, sometime even commercial premises.
These high pressure mercury vapour lamps are compact light sources that are viable for wide area lighting. Their average colour reproduction and large output means that they are better suited to outdoor lighting. Compared with flourescent lamps they were very compact, having better performance at low temperatures. A longer lifetime, that was around 10 to 15 times higher than tungsten lamps, meant that these lamps are well suited for use in places where lamp replacement was costly, as in high bay lighting and street lighting. They had similar useful life as fluorescent lamps. High pressure sodium lamps had higher light output, almost double, of mercury vapour lamps while having low quality colour reproduction. This means that mercury vapour lamps were still suited for areas where colour reproduction was moderately important and there was still an advantage from compact light sources, which means industrial and workshop lighting, sometime even commercial premises.
While it is true that lamps have an inherent flicker due to mains operation and slight changes in light output due to operation in this circumstances with mains powered conventional gear, this effect is not as pronounced. Note that also flourescent lamps that use electro-magnetic gear exhibit the same issues, although they are less pronounced as the lamp is not operating at higher pressure and being more susceptible to a certain voltage uniformity. There was no electronic high frequency gear as used on fluorescent lamps or metal hallide lamps, even if, they could be adapted. Of course, the biggest issue is that the lamp can be damaged if attempts to operate with this gear are underway such as melting of internal components when the lamp does not strike, after a sudden interruption, and a discharge occurs in the outer bulb with no way to stop it automatically.


Fixtures are generally compact, considering the light output made available, but are generally heavy due to the bulky electromagnetic gear being used. There are directional and omni-directional fixtures that are suited to various purposes. In street lighting, the well known cobra-head style lamppost was used, and they may still be available for purchase. They were only moderately effective as light covered a large area but a considerable amount of light was lost due to the fixture directing some of it upwards, with no control. Omni-directional fixtures were used in residential areas and parks, where ambience was more important than efficiency. Indoor fixtures were centered on the typical high-bay or low-bay purposes, having a metal parabolic reflector and directing most or the entire light output downwards. Other fixtures were compact, having a boxy design, with a symmetrical or asymmetrical lamp placement that was suited for flood lighting. These type of lamps were used indoor as well as outdoor, for floodlighting. There were no home designed fixtures as these lamps were not popular in home environments and were mostly used as porch lighting with a fixture design similar to street or area lighting.
Fixtures are generally compact, considering the light output made available, but are generally heavy due to the bulky electromagnetic gear being used. There are directional and omni-directional fixtures that are suited to various purposes. In street lighting, the well known cobra-head style lamppost was used, and they may still be available for purchase. They were only moderately effective as light covered a large area but a considerable amount of light was lost due to the fixture directing some of it upwards, with no control. Omni-directional fixtures were used in residential areas and parks, where ambience was more important than efficiency. Indoor fixtures were centered on the typical high-bay or low-bay purposes, having a metal parabolic reflector and directing most or the entire light output downwards. Other fixtures were compact, having a boxy design, with a symmetrical or asymmetrical lamp placement that was suited for flood lighting. These type of lamps were used indoor as well as outdoor, for floodlighting. There were no home designed fixtures as these lamps were not popular in home environments and were mostly used as porch lighting with a fixture design similar to street or area lighting.


Nowadays, mercury vapour lamps are very well suited for outdoor lighting. As the number of available fixtures diminishes and only second-hand or used products are available, they may not be economically effective to purchase except when you can readily use them rather than collect them. Free standing lamps are quite capable on their own so if you need a compact light source that is highly durable and colour output is appreciated as is, then high pressure mercury vapour lamps are well suited. They are especially well suited for lighting in areas that are undergoing renewal work, workshops, gardens. Of special interest is renewals, since no modern LED lamp can output the same light spectra that dulls old painted areas and brightens newly painted ones.
Nowadays, mercury vapour lamps are still very well suited for outdoor lighting. As the number of available fixtures diminishes and only second-hand or used products are available, they may not be economically effective to purchase except when you can readily use them rather than collect them. Free standing lamps are quite capable on their own so if you need a compact light source that is highly durable and colour output is appreciated as is, then high pressure mercury vapour lamps are well suited. They are especially well suited for lighting in areas that are undergoing renewal work, workshops, gardens. Of special interest is renewals, since no modern LED lamp can output the same light spectra that dulls old painted areas and brightens newly painted ones.
 
Operation


== Operation ==
These lamps are not well suited for frequent switching. They need a couple of minutes to reach maximum light output and they require a couple of minutes to restart after being turned off. The light colour and output changes from start-up to normal operation from a pink to white. A good lamp should have a strong pink light at startup, suggesting good internal coating performance. As the lamp ages, the coating degrades and light turns greenish.
These lamps are not well suited for frequent switching. They need a couple of minutes to reach maximum light output and they require a couple of minutes to restart after being turned off. The light colour and output changes from start-up to normal operation from a pink to white. A good lamp should have a strong pink light at startup, suggesting good internal coating performance. As the lamp ages, the coating degrades and light turns greenish.


The lamp requires a conventional or electro-magnetic gear of the same power output as the lamp, connected in series with a lamp. Connecting the lamp directly to mains damages it instantly as there is no current limitation. A power factor capacitor that has a specific value might be used to correct the power factor and current requirements on the circuit. The lamp itself is not influence by the presence or absence of this capacitor. When used sparingly in homes or some premises where not a lot of these lamps are located, power factor correction is not important but large industrial or commercial clients were required to maintain a specific power factor due to electricity distribution contracting.  
The lamp requires a conventional or electro-magnetic gear of the same power output as the lamp, connected in series with a lamp. Connecting the lamp directly to mains damages it instantly as there is no current limitation. A power factor capacitor that has a specific value might be used to correct the power factor and current requirements on the circuit. The lamp itself is not influence by the presence or absence of this capacitor. When used sparingly in homes or some premises where not a lot of these lamps are located, power factor correction is not important but large industrial or commercial clients were required to maintain a specific power factor due to electricity distribution contracting.  


Suitability
== Suitability ==
The best lamps in terms of useful lifetime, colour reproduction, light output, are the equivalent OSRAM HQL branded lamps, not Philips HPL-N lamps even if Philips lamps were very popular. Chinese branded lamps are much worse in all performance and quality metrics with a greener light output and poor reproduction of oranges and reds. Reflector lamps are generally less versatile than the classic one for most purposes but they do not require any fixtures in most instances.
The best lamps in terms of useful lifetime, colour reproduction, light output, are the equivalent OSRAM HQL branded lamps, not Philips HPL-N lamps even if Philips lamps were very popular. Chinese branded lamps are much worse in all performance and quality metrics with a greener light output and poor reproduction of oranges and reds. Reflector lamps are generally less versatile than the classic one for most purposes but they do not require any fixtures in most instances.


Line 104: Line 105:


Used lamp gears might work but old lamps are not as desirable. Rusted ballast may still operate but are a potential hazard while old, used lamps, may not have much useful life left and they may already exhibit some colour light emission issues. New old-stock lamps are the best choice, if available.
Used lamp gears might work but old lamps are not as desirable. Rusted ballast may still operate but are a potential hazard while old, used lamps, may not have much useful life left and they may already exhibit some colour light emission issues. New old-stock lamps are the best choice, if available.


== History ==
== History ==
HPL-N lamps are high pressure mercury vapour lamps that have been produced, with somewhat similar properties, since the 1950s. The lamp's fluorescent coating technology dates back to around the end of 1930s while modern lamps were essentially manufactured as early as 1970s and are a result of subsequent improvements up until that time. The market for these lamps grew as industry and commercial activity recovered after the Second World War, meaning that research was justified by large sales. The energy crisis meant that clients demanded improvements and they were focused on improving these lamps, giving rise to derivatives such as metal-hallide lamps, with much better colour reproduction and lower energy consumption. Sodium lamps were improved, culminating in the high-pressure sodium lamps that, with their yellow-orange or golden glow, dominated exterior lighting. By late 1980s mercury vapour lamps where on a market share decline that laster
HPL-N lamps are high pressure mercury vapour lamps that have been produced, with somewhat similar properties, since the 1950s. The lamp's fluorescent coating technology dates back to around the end of 1930s while modern lamps were essentially manufactured as early as 1970s and are a result of subsequent improvements up until that time. The market for these lamps grew as industry and commercial activity recovered after the Second World War, meaning that research was justified by large sales.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
These lamps were not intended for home or office use and they were seldomly used as such. Tungsten lamps had perfect colour reproduction and electric energy costs were very low. Even after the oil crisis of the early 1970s, tungsten lamps were still cheap enough and convenient to be used for general lighting. Also, these lamps did no require any gear. As mercury vapour lamps were heavily used in street lighting and industry. This means that development focused on colour reproduction but energy efficiency and reliability increases were most successful.
 
In the p
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
A midrange, quite slim, business laptop, released in 1998. It had an average mix of parts. Perhaps the single biggest issue is that the whole Dell CP and CPi range is very complex and difficult to understand. Differences between CP and CPi models is minimal in terms of aesthetics while most configuration options are difficult to spot. The major performance jumps are shown in the CPi lineup that has a Pentium II CPU model with major performance improvements, although the Pentium I option is still decent. The graphics chipset is quite fast, actually the best among Pentium I laptops, with good Windows acceleration and compatibility. Another rare feature is the presence of USB ports on a Pentium I era laptop, which is very nice and useful.
 
However, the typical mix of features of these laptop models mean that it also was obsolete by late 1998, just as most of the mid and high end IBM laptops, due to a lack of 3D acceleration. Windows 98 SE is a typical choice, especially if you have at least 32MB of RAM available. The Neomagic graphics is the top performer on 2D graphics both for compatibility as far back as Windows 3.1 and DOS as well as competitive with Chips&Technology or S3 Trio 64 videocards.
 
The LCD TFT screen is somewhat alright but far from being the best in terms of contrast and colour reproduction. However, the screen's brightness can be quite pleasantly set using keyboard shortcuts, as the laptop has somewhat more levels to choose from. As usual, DSTN or passive matrix screens should be definitely avoided due to their poor contrast, response, colour reproduction and brightness levels, no matter how lightly they were used.
 
The keyboard is not as pleasant to use as some IBM models, feeling somewhat light on keypresses. The palmrest is comfortable although the trackpad is somewhat bad in terms of sensitivity and response, being quite dependent on ambient humidity, as is also mentioned in the operating manual. The choice of a trackpoint system would have been much better. Also, due to the laptop's design, the lower area near the mid part of the laptop's case, between bays, is a common failure point due to the simple screw mounting point with no additional stiffening brackets.


The removable drive tray is a nice feature, offering both CD-ROM and Floppy drive support, which was a staple of period DELL laptops . The rechargeable battery has an unique self test feature that also shows the charging level by a simple button press. The BIOS and suspend battery uses a set of non-standard NiMh cells that can be quite messy if worn enough.
The lamp technology was an improvement of previous lamps that used a clear envelope and had an alumino-silicate glass where the mercury discharge was constrained. Colour reproduction was nonexistent, being so low as to render people and everything natural around them as being dead. Increasing the pressure and temperature of the mercury vapour gas discharge to emit more useful light and operation in any position was possible only with the advent of quartz discharge tubes. Colour reproduction was only slightly improved but lower wattage lamps were much more efficient. Up until late in production, the clear lamp was avoided except for street lighting and some industrial applications. Subsequently, mercury vapour lamps were heavily used in street lighting and industry. Colour rendering was the highest barrier to market success. Improvements focused on colour reproduction but energy efficiency and reliability increases were areas with best results.


The lid closing latch is quite badly designed as it compounds the issue with cracks midway on the palmrest and cases's edge. The display's case is quite flimsy although the frame itself is reasonably well engineered. The integrated speakers are somewhat poor despite their positioning and size, being quite prone to failures due to water ingress.
Development of fluorescent coatings that emit red light made the lamp more desirable although good flourescent powders were mass produced and cheap only in late 1970s. The lamps itself were running hot so fluorescent powders had to withstand temperature and UV-C exposure stress for many years while also emitting more light than the coating powder absorbed. The first generation powders had mild colour improvements but Yttrium Vanadate ones were highly successful and durable, making the lamp suited even for some indoor illumination, especially for deluxe lamps. Near the end of production deluxe lamps were very common and standard lamps such as the HPL-N were incorporating most developments specific to these top-of-the-line lamps. These improvements made high pressure mercury vapour lamps suited for industrial, commercial, street-lighting and even some occasional residential use.


The standard HDDs are quite competent in terms of size and performance, being well accustomed to the rest of the laptop's configuration.
The energy crisis meant that clients demanded improvements and they were focused on improving these lamps, giving rise to derivatives such as metal-hallide lamps, with much better colour reproduction and lower energy consumption. Sodium lamps were improved, culminating in the high-pressure sodium lamps that, with their yellow-orange or golden glow, dominated exterior lighting. By late 1980s mercury vapour lamps where on a market share decline that lasted more than 25 years. This can be attributed mostly to inertia in replacing fixtures that had a lifetime of around 15 years because new installations were not done after mid 1990s due to availability of compact or linear fluorescent lamps.


Software support is great for reasonably modern (for its time) operating systems. Due to the video chipset, Windows 98 is the best operating system choice. Good DOS sound support is present due to the CrystalWare audio chipset that is Sound Blaster compatible, offering good MIDI and software support in MS-DOS.
These lamps were not intended for home or office use and they were seldomly used as such. Tungsten lamps had perfect colour reproduction and electric energy costs were very low. Even after the oil crisis of the early 1970s, tungsten lamps were still cheap enough and convenient to be used for general lighting. Also, these lamps did no require any gear.


== Manufacturing specificities ==
== Manufacturing specificities ==