Philips HPV 16W demo

Although the only induction lamp ever released on the market by Philips was the QL (1991), this company was very active in the development of the technology. Engineers and scientist in Eindhoven studied and pushed the boundaries in electrodeless fluorescent lamp designs from the 1970s till the late 1990s. This particular light source platform was seen as a good solution to the bulky SL compact fluorescent lamp, a solution that would enable the introduction of proper GLS lamp retrofits for residential lighting applications. One of the many different prototypes that were developed during this prolific period was the HPV (High Positive Value) lamp with a discharge vessel based on the Softone lamp.

The HPV demonstrator shown here was built in the early 1990s and has the RF driver (2.57 MHz) separate from the lamp itself. While different lamps could be tested with this driver box, this demo also shows that inductive lamps could be made in the same format as that of 75 W incandescent lamps. Also, making the inductive antenna (inside the bulb) part of the oscillating circuit prevents the latter from being killed off when the socket is left empty and power is switched on (see green indicator).