Custom Headlamps, Lighting Systems & Battery Packs

[Therrin]

If I were just piecing together stuff to use for myself and/or friends then I wouldn't mind so much using other already created parts.

I'm trying to put it all together into an actual product line at this point, I've had some folks show interest in the idea and have somewhat secured possibilities for marketing it through larger gear dealers.
I'm designing the heads from scratch, with improved concentric fin design to better bleed off heat in still and warm environments, otherwise, they're roughly similar to the L2 style heads, in relative size and function.

However, the heads will be interchangeable between my handheld bodies and my headlamp systems.


The dropins I intend to use run in the 2.7-4.2V range, and as such wouldn't need to run Li-ion cells in series, though possibly in parallel for extended run times.
The actual XML dropin that I got a couple weeks ago is a 3-9V, and prefers the higher voltage levels for increased output and efficiency. I was glad to see that they also offer it in the 2.7-4.2V range; as that makes the battery options considerably simpler.

It IS fun isn't it? I've been SolidWorks'ing away for hours at night. Now that I'm getting fairly better at using the program I'm only spending half of my time trying to figure out how to use it, lol.

[Joanne]

I realize that your goal is to creating a commercially viable product in the arena of Sten and Scurion lights. It will be very interesting to see what you come up with and even more interesting to hear about the development effort to get there. Depending on my finances, I may be one of your first customers.

It sounds like the low voltage drop-in would be a great match for the battery you called out. If you can get the light output you want with a solid run time, you will have a very attractive package.

Last night I was reading about expedition cavers wanting to develop a water powered generator that they could put into a stream while they are underground to recharge their light and computer batteries. That sounds like another interesting project, but talk about a "niche market"!

Take care!
Joanne

[Norman Johnson]

maybe I'm just stoopid, ...but...I've seen nothing about the value of the type (LED, red, white, incandescent, UV, etc.) of light you intend to employ. I would start there. The mountain bike market has a lot of quite expensive lights designed for the demands of the sport---ie. riding in rough terrain at night with all-speed distance illumination requirements.

I have used headlamps for the last four or five years for all my camping and mine exploration requirements. The basic construction workers' headlamp (actually very hard to find a good one but cheap when you do) is my tool of choice. I no longer take a lantern on my trips and only have a Maglight 3-cell for that special moment where I need to illuminate distance with good light.

My $10 headlamp has three settings with three 3A batteries. The settings are, in order, red LED, white LED, and white incandescent. The reason this is important is because the red LED is the ONLY setting I normally use. Why? Because, if I need to glance up to see something around me in an emergency or whatever, my night vision is still completely intact. This is an old sailor trick. At night, all lights on the boat are red. And red light is very workable---I read by it, cook by it, everything by it. Red light uses a small percentage of the voltage of white light---even LED white light. When all the other lights go dead on my headlamp--the red has another hour left.

Another heads up. For mine exploration, a few users may be mineralogists. It would be total fantastic to have a UV option on a headlamp. "Look, dude, scheelite."

NJ

[Therrin]

I no longer take a lantern on my trips and only have a Maglight 3-cell for that special moment where I need to illuminate distance with good light.

My $10 headlamp has three settings with three 3A batteries. The settings are, in order, red LED, white LED, and white incandescent. The reason this is important is because the red LED is the ONLY setting I normally use. Why? Because, if I need to glance up to see something around me in an emergency or whatever, my night vision is still completely intact. This is an old sailor trick. At night, all lights on the boat are red. And red light is very workable---I read by it, cook by it, everything by it. Red light uses a small percentage of the voltage of white light---even LED white light. When all the other lights go dead on my headlamp--the red has another hour left.

The thing is... using dropins even in a handheld platform... that 3cell maglite you carry to "see far up ahead" you can see 3 times as far, for 3 times as long, at 1/6th the weight.

For the other part... if you like red LED's and that's your thing, that's great...but you'll find the vast majority of the underground crowd prefers to see whats in front of and around them in much brighter clarity.

The uniqueness of the dropin headlamp platform is that if you only wanted red LED's, you could use only those kinds of dropins and still achieve that. But if one day you decided you wanted a UV light, you pop a UV dropin in one of the 2, 3, or 4 slots, and then you've got that too.

Then one day you decide you dont like the red LED anymore and you want a floodlit high power LED and a powerful throwy LED, drop those in and you've got that. Then you decide you want a IR dropin for using with NV goggles, but you also want a halogen light (for whatever reason), you just pop in those dropins and you're all set.

It's whatever you want.... you've got it. An extremely versatile platform. For the cost of $5 to $35 per high performance dropin (halogen, low output LED, high output LED, colored LED's, combo LED's, UV, IR, etc etc etc etc...) Instead of having to change to a different light or headlamp system every time.

[Norman Johnson]

Oh, I understand the light bar concept with different attachments for different needs, I just like the switchability with all the lights I need already in place and just a switch on the lamp base choosing my need. Or maybe you are already saying that is what you propose to produce. I would buy that.

NJ