3M LED lightbulb wins 'Edison' award
A high-tech lightbulb from 3M has won a national Edison award, which recognizes innovation.
The company says its LED lightbulb lasts three times longer than CFL bulbs and achieves full power within a second or two after it is turned on. 3M says the bulb is more efficient than CFL bulbs.
"A typical compact fluorescent that puts out 800 to 900 lumens would typically consume about 15 watts of power. Our product would consume somewhere around 13," said 3M scientist Ray Johnston.
Johnston said it offers other features consumers may like.
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"They're very dimmable. With the right dimmer, you can dim it way down to like 5 or 10 percent of brightness. You can get an extremely nice range of dimming," Johnston said.
The bulbs sell for about $25 but are are projected to last 25 years. They contain no mercury. One version emits yellow light; another blue.
3M's food safety business also won an Edison for a system that lets food processors use DNA sampling and bioluminescence to detect dangerous foodborne pathogens.
The Edison Awards are sponsored by Nielsen, USA Today, the Science Channel and Discovery Communications. The awards are named after inventor Thomas Edison.