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gentex mirror led swap


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dragon2u 
Member - Posts: 6
Member spacespace
Joined: April 14, 2009
Posted: August 14, 2011 at 7:21 PM / IP Logged  
Hi,
I have a factory Gentex mirror that uses LEDs for the map reading function and also change color to a lower output yellow (warm white?) for mood lighting while driving at night.
I've taken the mirror completely apart and tried to verify voltages but haven't had much luck so far. I've heard that the Gentex LEDs are Orca brand and made by Cree, or so I've read on the web.
Anyway, I am wondering if anyone has had luck swapping out the factory LEDs for other colors. Specifically I am looking for blue and would like to keep the high and low output functions.
Thanks in advance for an assistance
i am an idiot 
Platinum - Posts: 13,670
Platinum spaceThis member consistently provides reliable informationspace
Joined: September 21, 2006
Location: Louisiana, United States
Posted: August 14, 2011 at 7:53 PM / IP Logged  
I am not familiar with that mirror, but is there some kind of lens over the LED that you could somehow die it blue?  
oldspark 
Gold - Posts: 4,913
Gold spacespace
Joined: November 03, 2008
Location: Australia
Posted: August 14, 2011 at 7:54 PM / IP Logged  
Crees are high output LEDs, usually ~3.4V but often with constant-current drivers.
They are AFAIK the brightest on the commercial market and I doubt you'll find brighter - unless they are old.   
You'd need more output from blue LEDs for the same intensity due to our lower blue sensitivity. Note too the charge of colors as a result (ie, dash color changes; and you may not see certain colors).
If Crees, it is likely that the dimming is by pulse-width modulation (PWM) rather than resistors etc.
PWM is the (general) method used for LED dimming as it works for any number of connected LEDs (unlike resistors), and its duty-cycle is proportional to LED brightness (unlike resistors and voltage).
dragon2u 
Member - Posts: 6
Member spacespace
Joined: April 14, 2009
Posted: August 14, 2011 at 8:06 PM / IP Logged  
i am an idiot wrote:
I am not familiar with that mirror, but is there some kind of lens over the LED that you could somehow die it blue?  
I've tried using blue tinted camera lighting gels over the lens and while it tints the white map light portion somewhat blue, the yellow mood lighting, which is what I really want changed, still shows yellow through the plastic gels.
If there was a way to change the mood lighting output from yellow to white it would work as well as then I could use the blue gel covers.
Since I cannot get a good simple voltage reading it may be powered by the pulse width modulation as stated above. The main mirror control board has a large number of IC components on it. The LED display board has 3 wires going to it, each of the 3 LEDs has 3 inputs and there are a few resistors on the board. Looks simple but in reality I think it's much more complicated than I can play with at home.
oldspark 
Gold - Posts: 4,913
Gold spacespace
Joined: November 03, 2008
Location: Australia
Posted: August 14, 2011 at 8:43 PM / IP Logged  
You'd have to use white LEDs for filters.
A filter removes all the non-filter colors, hence if yellow had no blue, there will be no blue passed. (Yellow shouldn't either, but that depends in relative strengths and if yellow is a component of blue. Geez - are lights & filters color addition or subtraction? My long gone Mamaries!)

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