1. The influence of the performance of components used as the light source
2. The Influence of supporting components
3. The influence of manufacturing technique
4. The influence of working environment
5. The influence of the temperature of components
6. The influence of dust in the working environment
8. The influence of corrosive gases
LED displays have limited service lives and will not last long without proper maintenance. So, what determines the service life of LED displays? It is important to suit the remedy to the case. Let's take a look at the factors that determine the life of LED displays.
LED bulbs are essential and life-related components of LED displays. The life of LED bulbs determines, not equals, the life of LED displays. Under the condition that the LED display can play video programs normally, the service life is supposed to be about eight times that of LED bulbs. It will be longer if LED bulbs work with small currents. Functions LED bulbs should have included: attenuation character, moisture-proof and ultraviolet-light-resistant abilities. If LED bulbs are applied to displays without proper evaluation of the performance of these functions from LED display manufacturers, a large number of quality accidents will be caused. It will seriously affect the service life of LED displays.
In addition to LED bulbs, LED displays have many other supporting components, such as circuit boards, plastic shells, switching power sources, connectors and housings. The quality problem of any component may reduce the service life of displays. Therefore, the service life of displays is determined by the service life of the component with the shortest service life. For example, if the LED, switching power source and metal shell of a display all have a service life of 8 years, and the protective technique of the circuit board can only sustain for 3 years, the display's service life will be seven years, for the circuit board will be damaged three years later due to corrosion.
The manufacturing technique of LED displays determines its fatigue resistance. It is difficult to guarantee the fatigue resistance of modules produced by an inferior three-proofing technique. As the temperature and humidity change, the surface of the circuit board may crack, resulting in the deterioration of the protective performance.
Therefore, the manufacturing technique is also the key factor that determines the service life of LED displays. The manufacturing technique involved in the production of displays includes: the storage and pretreatment technique of components, welding technique, three-proofing technique, waterproof and sealing technique, etc. The effectiveness of the technique is related to the selection and proportioning of materials, parameter control and the ability of workers. For most LED display manufacturers, the accumulation of experience is very important. The control of the manufacturing technique of a factory with years of experience, such as Unilumin, will be more effective.
Due to the difference among purposes, working conditions of displays vary greatly. In terms of the environment, the indoor temperature difference is small, without the influence of rain, snow or ultraviolet light; the outdoor temperature difference can reach seventy degrees, with extra influence from wind, rain and sunlight. The working environment is an important factor affecting the service life of displays, for a harsh environment will aggravate the aging of displays.
To fully reach the length of the service life, any component must keep a minimum consumption. As integrated electronic products, LED displays are mainly composed of the control boards of electronic components, switching power sources and bulbs. The service life of all these components is related to the working temperature. If the actual working temperature exceeds the specified working temperature, the service life of display components will be greatly shortened. Displays will be seriously damaged too.
To better prolong the service life of LED displays, the threat from dust should not be overlooked. If displays work in an environment with thick dust, the printed board will absorb much dust. The deposition of dust will affect the heat dissipation of electronic components, leading to a rapid rise of temperature, which will decrease the thermal stability or cause electric leakage. The components may burn in serious cases.
In addition, dust can absorb moisture and corrode electronic circuits, causing short circuits. The volume of dust is small, but its harm to displays should not be underestimated. Therefore, regular cleaning must be carried out to reduce the possibility of breakdowns. Remember to disconnect the power source when cleaning the dust inside displays. Be careful and put safety at first.
Many LED displays can work normally in damp environments, but moisture will still affect the service life of displays. Moisture will permeate IC devices through the junction of encapsulation materials and components, causing the oxidation and corrosion of internal circuits, which will lead to broken circuits. High temperature in the assembly and welding process will heat the moisture in IC devices. The latter will expand and generate pressure, separating (delaminating) plastic from inside of chips or lead frames, damaging chips and bound wires, make the internal part and the surface of components crack.
Components may even swell up and burst, which is also known as "popcorn". The assembly will then be scrapped or need repair. More importantly, invisible and potential defects will be incorporated into products, harming the reliability of the latter. Ways to improve the reliability in the damp environment include the use of moisture-proof materials, dehumidifiers, protective coating and covers, etc.
Damp and saline-air environments can degrade the system performance, for they can accelerate the corrosion of metal parts and facilitate the generation of primary batteries, especially when different metals contact each other. Another harmful effect of moisture and saline air is forming films on surfaces of nonmetallic components that can degrade the insulation and the medium character of the latter, thus forming leakage paths.
The absorption of moisture of insulating materials can also increase their volume conductivity and dissipation coefficient. Ways to improve the reliability in the damp and saline-air environments include the use of air-tight sealing, moisture-proof materials, dehumidifiers, protective coating and covers and avoid using different metals, etc.
Electronic equipment is often subjected to environmental impact and vibration under using and testing. When the mechanical stress, caused by the deflection from vibration, exceeds the allowable working stress, components and structural parts will be damaged.
Summary: in a certain sense, the life of LEDs determines the life of LED displays. The life of LEDs is usually the time when the luminous intensity is attenuated to 50% of the initial value. LED, as a semiconductor, is said to have a life of 100,000 hours. But that is an evaluation under ideal conditions, which cannot be achieved in actual cases. However, if we can obey the several points above, we will prolong the life of LED displays to the greatest extent.
