October 06, 2009 10:00 ET

New Flexible Light Pipe System From Bivar Enhances Indication for Rugged Applications

LED Innovator Introduces Cost-Effective Alternative to Rigid Light Pipes; New Solution Features Greater Brightness and Light Transfer Capability

IRVINE, CA--(Marketwire - October 6, 2009) - Bivar, a leading specialty provider of LED indication products and solutions, today announced the first offering in the new Bivar plastic optical fiber (POF) Light Pipe System series, a 2mm core flexible light pipe solution. The new flexible light pipe system offers a variety of lens cap indicators and LED adaptors that provide exceptional viewing angles, light diffusion and intensity. The new light pipe system from Bivar is an ideal LED indication upgrade solution for outdoor and rugged applications, which require greater brightness and light transfer capacity, sturdy design and more flexibility.

Custom shaped rigid light pipes have traditionally been used for a range of end-products including rugged, outdoor applications. However, rigid light pipes can be restrictive in their design and implementation and often lead to expensive tooling costs, lead times and annual unit volumes. Flexible light pipes offer a cost-effective, efficient alternative for applications that include field instrumentation, heavy equipment and transportation with difficult designs where the LED light source is positioned far from the viewing surface or is obstructed by other components. These applications are ideally suited for Bivar's highly efficient, flexible light pipe solutions that are not restricted by component placement.

Bivar's new product is an upgrade to its 1mm core flexible light pipe series and provides significantly more light output, yet offers design engineers with greater product design freedom. "Design engineers love the concept of this product," said Mike Finn, Bivar's vice president of sales and marketing. "We're enabling them to place their printed circuit board assembly a significant distance away from the required light output while empowering them to be creative in their designs. With our new series, design engineers are not confined by the limitations of a rigid light pipe solution; they can easily redesign a product and adjust the light source accordingly by simply changing the length to meet the new specifications of their product."

The new flexible light pipe system is the first in a series of proprietary light pipe systems from Bivar. The new product includes an optimized LED/adapter, flexible light pipe and lens with up to four times the light path of Bivar's 1mm POF series. The product has no light leakage through optical fiber, as compared to clear flexible light pipes, and is covered with a tough, flexible RoHS compliant PVC alloy outer jacket that maximizes light transmission (by "trapping" it in the core) and protects the core and cladding during installation and operation. The optical grade core optimizes light transmission while the lens cap diffuses the light for brilliant indication output and minimal loss in intensity.

Bivar provides LED indication products and solutions that make moving light from point-to-point practical, easy, efficient and affordable. Bivar works closely with its customers to understand their needs and provide them with a conceptual range of choices that help them to design innovative products and solutions. The new 2mm flexible light pipe series from Bivar is immediately available and contains a choice of lens shapes and style configurations with a variety of adapter configurations.

For more information please visit www.bivar.com. For application assistance and samples, please contact Bivar Sales at sales@bivar.com.

About Bivar

Bivar is a leading specialty provider of LED indication products and solutions with a long-standing history of more than 40 years of innovation in the optoelectronics industry. With a global base of customers in 35 countries, Bivar's products are designed to meet the increased demand for point-to-point indication and address a growing range of industrial markets and applications. Bivar's focus is on moving and positioning light. An employee-owned company, Bivar's corporate headquarters are located in Southern California, with manufacturing in California, China and Taiwan. Bivar's Asia Pacific production and logistics centers offer scalable capacity, execution, control and movement of product around the world. Bivar is widely supported by a highly qualified network of authorized representatives and distributors. For more information, please visit www.bivar.com.