Issue link: https://te.mouser.com/i/1410851
From an interconnect standpoint, each level may have unique interconnect needs or, it may have a common need when compared to other adjacent levels. Certainly, if a common interconnect can be used in multiple levels, there are certain manufacturing and procurement benefits that can be realized, but this must always be balanced against technical and practical requirements for each level. There are, however, some generalities that can be drawn for connector types used at each level. Below we will investigate Levels L1–L6 since these are levels most closely related to lighting systems we're commonly familiar with. Levels L7 and L8 will therefore be ignored for the most part. At the most basic level, a Level L1 connection is the first connection that is made to a lighting element. As shown in a standard incandescent light bulb, this is a wire weld where the tungsten filament connects to support wires. In a fluorescent fixture, it is similarly a welded connection between the element and the electrode. Finally, in an LED, it is the wire bond between the die and a lead-frame. L1 Fig. 11 Incandescent Fig. 12 Fluorescent Fig. 13 LED Moving up a level to Level L2, this level is the first where a separable connector might be first implemented. The most common, recognizable termination at this level is the ubiquitous solder joint. As one might expect, the soldered LED termination to a PCB is a very common example found in SSL implementations. In traditional lighting, the socket used to connect to a lamp is an ideal example of an L2 termination. In incandescent implementations, the Edison-base screw base is the most recognizable. In fluorescent fixtures, the bi-pin "tombstone" connector readily identified in fluorescent fixtures is yet another example of an L2 termination. Of course, given the wide range of lamp styles available, there are an equal number of sockets too numerous to list that can also be similarly classified as L2 terminations. 13