At a time when the world is actively practicing the concept of environmental protection and vigorously promoting energy saving and emission reduction, solar street lights have ushered in a golden period of rapid development. It cleverly uses the inexhaustible solar energy, converted into stable electricity for lighting, greatly reducing the dependence on the traditional power grid, and the operating costs have been cut significantly. According to authoritative market research organisations, in recent years, the market size of solar street lamps has been expanding rapidly at an annual growth rate of more than 50%, and has become the core development trend in the field of road lighting. An in-depth understanding of the various types of solar streetlights and their application scenarios is the key to accurate selection and efficient implementation of lighting projects for municipal project planners, decision makers of neighbourhood properties, and even builders in remote areas.
Light source characteristics: LED light source is called the ‘star’ component in the field of solar street light. Its energy-saving advantage is significant, compared with traditional high-pressure sodium lamps and other light sources, energy consumption can be reduced by 75%. This means that for the same lighting needs, LED solar street lights can illuminate for longer periods of time with less power consumption. At the same time, the LED light source has an extremely long lifespan, generally up to 72 hours or more, which is several times the lifespan of traditional light sources. Such a long service life greatly reduces the trouble and cost of replacing the light source frequently. In addition, its luminous efficiency is very high, the light is bright and concentrated, effectively improving the lighting effect.
Circuit system: LED solar street light is equipped with advanced intelligent driving circuit. This circuit is like the ‘intelligent brain’ of the street light, which is able to keenly sense the changes in battery power and the strength of ambient light. When the battery power is sufficient and the ambient light is dark, the lamps and lanterns are automatically adjusted to full-power illumination; and with the gradual decrease of the battery power or a slight enhancement of the ambient light, the brightness of the lamps and lanterns will be intelligently adjusted to ensure that the energy is most reasonably utilised, and at the same time prolongs the service life of the batteries, so that the street lamps can continuously and stably work.
Application Scenario: On urban roads, LED solar street lights, with their high brightness and directional light emitting properties, project light accurately onto the road surface, clearly outline the road contour and lane demarcation line, which greatly enhances the traffic safety coefficient. In industrial parks, large areas need to be adequately illuminated to ensure the smooth progress of production activities, and the large-area illumination capability of LED solar street lights fits this need perfectly. On campus, whether it is the main road or the playground around the bright light of the LED solar street light for teachers and students travelling at night to provide security, while its energy-saving and environmentally friendly features are also in line with the concept of green development of the campus.
Working Principle: The working principle of induction lamp is quite unique. It excites the gas inside the lamp to emit light through electromagnetic induction. Unlike traditional lamps that rely on electrodes to emit light, induction lamps do not have electrodes, which avoids the loss of electrodes in the process of use. This makes the induction lamp extremely stable, will not be due to electrode aging and other problems and lighting failure, and can provide stable lighting for a long time.
Lighting effect: The light emitted by the induction lamp is even and soft, with no obvious strobe and glare in the lighting area. This comfortable light environment is very friendly to human eyes. This advantage of induction lamps is especially prominent in places that require prolonged illumination and have high requirements for light quality. For example, in the corridors and ward areas of hospitals, the soft light of induction lamps will not disturb the rest of patients; in libraries, its strobe-free light allows readers to read and study in a comfortable environment.
Applicable fields: Hospitals, libraries, squares and other places have strict requirements on light quality. Hospitals need a quiet and comfortable lighting environment for patients‘ recovery; libraries need strobe-free and glare-free light to protect readers’ eyesight; plazas, as an area where people gather for activities, need even and soft light to create a good atmosphere. Induction lamp solar street light just meets the special needs of these places, avoiding light interference and guaranteeing the lighting effect.
Classification according to installation method
Structural design: Vertical street lamps are made of various materials, such as durable steel and lightweight corrosion-resistant aluminium alloy. The height of the pole is generally within the range of 5-10 metres according to different lighting requirements. The mounting structure of the lamps and solar panels is carefully designed at the top of the pole to ensure that both are securely mounted while the solar panels maximise sunlight reception and increase solar energy conversion efficiency. For example, the angle-adjustable bracket enables the solar panel to be adjusted to the optimal light-gathering angle according to the local light conditions.
Installation process: Installation of vertical solar street lights needs to follow a rigorous process. The first step is foundation construction. A pit of suitable size should be dug at the selected location, and then a concrete foundation should be poured to provide a solid support for the light pole. After the foundation is solidified, the assembly and installation of the light pole is carried out, with each component precisely spliced and firmly fixed to the foundation. Finally, the wiring is connected to ensure that the circuit between the solar panels, batteries and lamps is smooth, so as to realise the stable transmission and conversion of electric energy. During the whole installation process, safety norms should be strictly observed to ensure the safety of construction workers.
Application Scenario: On the main road in the city, the standing solar street light is tall and upright, providing clear lighting for the busy traffic and guiding the vehicles to travel in an orderly manner with its powerful lighting ability. On the rural highway, the standing solar street light illuminates the road for the villagers travelling at night, and promotes the night time economic activities in the countryside. In large car parks, the large area illumination of vertical solar street light facilitates car owners to look for parking spaces and ensures the safety and order of the car park.
Product features: Wall-mounted street light is favoured for its lightweight and portability, easy installation. It usually adopts a combination of small and delicate lamps and high-efficiency solar panels, with a small overall size and light weight. This makes the installation process easy and fast, without the need for large construction equipment, ordinary people can complete the installation operation.
Installation location: wall-mounted solar street lights are mostly installed on the outside walls of buildings, such as the entrance to the community building, providing lighting for residents to go up and down the stairs at night, and enhancing travel safety; villa courtyard wall installation, not only to illuminate the courtyard surrounding, but also to add a beautiful. In addition, retaining walls and other locations are also common installation points, in order to save space at the same time, to provide local areas with just the right lighting.
Application examples: In the renovation projects of old neighbourhoods, wall-mounted solar street lights have become a powerful assistant in improving lighting conditions. Due to the limited space in old districts, it is inconvenient to install vertical street lamps, wall-mounted street lamps just solve this problem, bringing bright light to the district without taking up too much space. In scenic spots, wall-mounted solar street lights are used as auxiliary lighting facilities to illuminate trails, steps and other areas to enhance the tourists' experience, while integrating with the natural landscape of the scenic area without destroying the overall aesthetics.
Classification by Functional Characteristics
Basic function: ordinary solar street light has the most basic and practical function. During the daytime, the solar panel works actively to convert solar energy into electricity and store it in the battery; at night, the battery releases electricity to drive the lamps and lanterns to provide lighting for the surrounding environment. It is equipped with conventional solar panels, batteries and lamps, simple structure, stable performance, can meet the general lighting needs.
Performance Parameters: The lighting duration of ordinary solar street lamps can generally reach 72 hours of continuous lighting, which is sufficient to meet the time requirements of night lighting in most places. Its brightness range is [X] lux, which can provide clear and visible light for common scenes. In terms of ambient temperature, it can normally operate in the range of-20°C -80°C, which is suitable for most regular climatic environments.
Applications: On countryside paths, ordinary solar street lights illuminate the way home for villagers at a lower cost, improving the conditions for travelling at night in the countryside. Next to park trails, its soft light creates a comfortable atmosphere for walking. In remote areas, ordinary solar street lights play an important role in enhancing the convenience of life in remote areas with reliable lighting, so that you can enjoy the light despite the remoteness.
Intelligent Technology Integration: Intelligent solar street light integrates a variety of advanced intelligent technologies. The light-sensing technology enables it to switch on and off the light automatically according to the ambient light without manual intervention, which is convenient and energy-saving. The human body sensing technology makes the street light more intelligent, when someone is near, it will automatically light up and adjust to the appropriate brightness; after the person leaves, it will automatically reduce the brightness or turn off, further enhancing the energy-saving effect. Remote monitoring technology is even more powerful, through the network connection, managers can grasp the working status of the street light in real time, such as battery power, solar panel power generation.
Technical Advantage: The application of intelligent control technology significantly improves the energy-saving effect of the intelligent solar street light, and the energy-saving can reach more than [X]% compared with the ordinary solar street light. The remote monitoring function greatly facilitates the management and maintenance work, the management personnel do not need to visit the scene, they can timely find and solve the street lamp faults, greatly reducing the manpower cost, and at the same time improves the reliability of the lighting system, to ensure that the street lamps are always in the best working condition.
Application Scenario: In the core area of the city, with high traffic flow and frequent personnel activities, the intelligent control and efficient lighting of the intelligent solar street light meets the lighting needs under the complex environment and improves the intelligent level of the city. In commercial streets, intelligent street lights automatically adjust the brightness according to the flow of people, which saves energy and creates a lively commercial atmosphere. Important traffic hubs, such as railway stations, bus stations around the intelligent solar street lights remote monitoring and stable lighting, to protect the traffic order and passenger safety.
Classification by Battery Type
Battery Characteristics: Lead-acid batteries are widely used in the field of solar street lights, mainly due to their low cost and mature technology. However, it also has some obvious shortcomings, such as large weight, which will increase the difficulty in the installation and transport process. And its life span is relatively short, the number of times of charging and discharging is about [X] times, and the performance of the battery will gradually decline after using for a period of time.
System matching: In the solar street light system, the matching of lead-acid batteries with solar panels and lamps is crucial. The capacity of the lead-acid battery should be reasonably selected according to the actual lighting demand and local light conditions to ensure that it can store enough power to meet the night lighting hours. At the same time, it is necessary to ensure that the power of the solar panel can effectively charge the battery during the day to achieve stable operation of the whole system, and to reasonably control the cost on the basis of meeting the lighting demand.
Application Scenario: For temporary construction site lighting, due to the short use time, the battery life requirements are not high, the advantages of low cost of lead-acid battery solar street light can be highlighted. Seasonal scenic lighting is also one of the applicable scenes, providing lighting in the scenic area during the open season, and maintenance or replacement can be carried out in the off-season, which can effectively control the cost investment.
Battery Advantage: Lithium battery shows many advantages in the application of solar street light. Its high energy density, the same volume or weight, can store more power, which makes the endurance of the street light greatly enhanced. And lithium batteries are lightweight, easy to install and transport, reducing the difficulty of construction. In terms of life, lithium batteries can be charged and discharged more than [X] times, compared with lead-acid batteries greatly improved, reducing the cost of battery replacement later. In addition, lithium batteries have good low-temperature performance, and can work normally in cold environments, maintaining stable discharge performance.
System optimisation: In the solar street light system, the application of lithium battery can significantly improve the overall performance. Due to its light weight and small size, it can adapt to more diversified installation environments, whether it is a narrow space or a place with restrictions on installation weight, it can be easily dealt with. The efficient charging and discharging performance of lithium batteries enables the electricity generated by the solar panels to be stored and utilised more efficiently, which improves the energy conversion efficiency of the whole system.
Application Scenario: In cold area roads, the good low temperature performance of lithium battery solar street light ensures stable lighting and traffic safety even in extremely cold weather. For long-distance roads with high endurance requirements, the strong energy storage capacity of lithium batteries provides long-time power support for the streetlights, reducing the lighting interruption caused by power shortage. High-end small areas, lithium battery solar street lamps of high performance, long life characteristics, and community high-quality environment and services to match, enhance the overall quality of the community.
With the continuous progress of science and technology, solar street light technology will certainly continue to innovate, new types will continue to emerge, and application scenarios will be further expanded, injecting a steady stream of power for the sustainable development of the global lighting field, illuminating a wider area and creating a better living environment.
