A Brief Introduction to the Innovation of

Mobile Light Tower

1. Introduction

With the development of global industrialization, flood lights are widely used in various industries and scenarios. They have the characteristics of strong intensity and easy to cooperate. In this article, the author will compare two different forms of flood lights to help readers choose the lighting equipment that suits them: traditional flood lights(stadium flood lights and high bay flood lights) and mobile light tower.

1.1 Traditional Flood lights

Scenes where flood lights are commonly used include airports, highways, stadiums, streets, billboards, parking lots and other outdoor places, as well as studios, shopping malls, indoor stadiums and other indoor places. The most popularly used flood lights usually have the following conditions: CRI & TLCI > 90; wide color temperature from 5000 to 7000K high purity lights; stable DC-output power supply to secure <0.3% flickering rate; persistent high temperature; long life span and many other advantages.

But ordinary flood lights also have certain limitations. The first thing we can see is that its installation process is relatively complicated and requires relatively professional operations to ensure the smooth completion of the entire installation process. In order to ensure that every corner of the site can be illuminated, we usually need to assemble more LED chips in the flood lights, so the volume of ordinary flood lights is generally huge. And in order to obtain a larger lighting range, they are usually installed at high places, which also increases the risk of the installation process.

Of course, the advantages of flood lights are obvious, so they are still the first choice when people looking for lighting equipment in various public facilities and venues.

1.2 Mobile light towers

Mobile light towers are suitable for highways, railways, electric power and other enterprises and institutions, as well as various large-scale construction operations, mining operations, maintenance and repairs, accident handling and disaster relief and other work sites for large-area, high-brightness lighting needs. At present, mobile light towers are mainly divided into 2 types: manual and automatic, so as to be suitable for applications in different scenarios. The rated power of mobile light towers ranges from 300W-10Kw. The mobile light towers adopt high power LED lights; the lamp head can change the projection angle in the direction of 15°, 25°, 45°, 70°, 90°, 120°; the light pole can rises 3.5, 6, 9 and 12 meters; the light coverage radius can be up to 120 meters -150 meters.

It is not difficult to see the many advantages of the mobile light tower, it can be transported easily and can be used in different scenes, the lighting effect is well, and no installation is required. However, it also has some deficiencies that are worth making up for. For example, the large footprint, the inconvenience and danger in the use of electrical wires, and the limitations of the lighting range.

But on the whole, mobile light towers are still a good helper for construction sites, railways, mining operations and other work sites.

2. Feature Comparison

After learning about the characteristics of traditional flood lights and mobile light towers, we can also compare those two to find the equipment that can meet our final needs. Next, we will compare through 3 aspects, which are the comparison of specifications, the comparison of its own functions, and the comparison of application scenarios.

2.1 Equipment specifications

Take the most common stadium flood lights as an example, the shape of a traditional flood light usually looks like a rectangular box with a giant handle, and its main components include but are not limited to: LED package chips; LED Power supply; high transmittance lens; cold forged heat sink; mounting bracket. The color rendering index (CRI) UP to 95, high light efficiency up to 150lm/w and wide input voltage( AC90-295V,50-60Hz).

The installation method is that after the professional workers transport the flood light to a high place, use the instrument to fix it on the column through the holes on the bracket, and then adjust the irradiation angle, turn the wrench to loosen the two adjusting bolts to adjust the illumination of the product. Be adjusted to the appropriate angle. In turn tighten the bolts and ensure that the bracket is locked with the lamp body. The last step, connect the power cables. In the end, people can control the use of the flood light through the switch or operation device. The color rendering index (CRI) UP to 95, .IP67 grade widely used in outdoor installation. Wide input voltage (AC90-295V,50-60Hz), multiple dimming modes are available (DMX512 ,dali, 0-10V).

The structure of the mobile light tower looks more complicated than flood light, it is more like a machine supported by scaffolding, and its main components include but are not limited to: high power LED lights(also assembled from LED package chips); retractable mask; powerful generator; pneumatic wheels; sturdy outriggers. And the bottom of the generator set is equipped with universal wheels and rail wheels, which can run on uneven roads and rails.

In contrast, the installation process of mobile light towers is much simpler. When we need to use it, just drag it to the designated spot, then fix it on the ground and raise the light to the desired position. The entire operation process does not require any professional workers, nor does it use any equipment, which is very convenient and fast.

From the overall size, the height of traditional flood lights is generally 290mm to 960mm, and the width is about 90mm to 550mm. The width of the mobile light tower is adapted to different conditions, and the height is usually more than 3m.

In the first round of comparison, although the volume of traditional flood lights is smaller, the functions of mobile light towers for easy installation and freely adjustable height are obviously better.

2.2 Functions

Similarly, let’s first look at what functions are equipped with traditional flood lights. This time, we will take the most commonly used high bay flood lights as an example.

For the traditional flood lights, they have many functions include but are not limited to: high light efficiency (up to 150lm/w); stable color temperature (CRI up to 95); power efficiency up to 95; professional waterproof power supply; IP rating IP66; multiple dimming options such as dmx 512;dali:0-10V.

These functions can make sure the flood lights suitable for outdoor installation, work in harsh environment, and perform steady.

For the mobile light towers, they have many functions include but are not limited to: 3000W – 10000W high power LED system offers 360,000 – 1,200,000 lumen of total light; a variety of 3.5m/6m/9m/12m pole system; foldable pole of smaller size and lighter in overall weight; professional optic system applied and wide choices of angle ()15° /25°/45°/70°/ 90°/120°available); the whole system is designed to use inbuild generator or outer AC electric to empower the system.

These functions can make sure the mobile light towers suitable for almost any of the occasion from home use to commercial, industrial use, even capable for professional sports use. And they are designed to be setup friendly and good efficiency, mobile use, rental use friendly and low cost.

In the second round of comparison, we can see that the advantages of mobile light towers are still relatively obvious. Mainly because it has been designed with functions that are more suitable for a variety of usage scenarios on the premise of ensuring the use effect.

2.3 Applicable scenes

As mentioned above, mobile light towers can be used in more scenarios than traditional flood lights, so is this really the case? Let’s compare the results in this round.

Let’s compare the mobile light towers with both stadium flood lights and high bay flood lights and see their differences.

Traditional flood lights is the most widely used light source in rendering production, and standard flood light is used to illuminate the entire scene. They are been used in parking lots, billboards, sports fields (football fields, tennis courts, etc.), exterior lighting of buildings, amusement parks, airports, bridges, tunnels, etc. Because flood lights generally have many characteristics such as long life, energy saving, good color rendering, high proportion of visible light, and excellent electrical performance, they have been recognized by more and more people as a replacement product for electric light sources. It is used in billboards, highways, railway tunnels, bridges and culverts, squares, buildings and other places and fields.

The mobile light tower is more suitable for large-area, high-brightness lighting on various large-scale construction operations, mining operations, etc. The specific effects of these scenarios are:

1. Construction lighting:used in engineering construction, urban construction pipelines, road paving, road maintenance, and road rescue;
2. Emergency lighting:used in emergency rescue, earthquake disaster preparedness, armed police firefighting, earthquake disaster relief, flood control and rescue;
3. Combat readiness lighting:used in combat readiness emergency, various rescues, field training, camping and distribution;
4. Mine lighting:used in open-pit mine lighting, mine tunnel lighting, distribution storage and transportation, and mine camping;
5. Mobile lighting:used in sports events, film and television shooting, airport backup, railway power;
6. Emergency lighting:used in transportation, electricity, water pipes, gas, and telecommunication construction.

However, with the development and innovation of technology, there are more and more choices in the form and specification of mobile light towers, and some certain types of mobile light towers can also be applied to common scenes in life, such as home, studio and sport fields.

Then in this last round of comparison, it can be seen that due to the different design intentions and concepts of traditional flood lights and mobile light towers, their applicable scenarios are also different. Users need to consider their own factors when choosing, so in this comparison, the winner cannot be determined.

3. Conclusion

After the previous elaboration and the comparison of the three aspects, which lighting equipment do you prefer now? Is it a traditional flood light or a new mobile light tower? The author’s suggestion is to choose according to the scene where you need to use them. If you want to choose lighting equipment for a football field or a warehouse, traditional flood lights may become your first choice, because you only need to install them At heights, you don’t have to worry about them anymore. But if you want to choose a freely movable lighting device for the studio or even at home, the mobile light tower must be the most suitable choice! And it can also be used as emergency equipment for traditional flood lights, which can also be said to serve multiple purposes with one stone.