LED Power Calculator
Care must be taken when using large numbers of LEDs, both in terms of the power source, and the thickness of cable. Where large numbers, and/or long runs of LEDs are used, there is the potential for voltage drop to occur, and also for the current to exceed safe levels for the cable being used. In both cases, it is advantageous to 'branch' power from a central source (using thicker cabling from the power source), and send power to each section separately. Whilst the data connection must be in a daisy chain, power need not be.
LED Power Requirements
Each LED unit contains a Red, Blue, Green and White micro LED, which allows over 16.5 million color combinations. At maximum brightness each LED can theoretically draw 60mA (20mA max for a single color eg red or dedicated white). The LED chips require 5V DC, and are connected in a daisy chain - with a Data In and Data Out connection:
Enter Values:
LED Parameters
Wire thickness
The interconnecting cables supplied with Inner Light are 26 AWG, and can safely carry 1A of current, which is sufficient for most small / medium models| AWG Wire Gauge | Maximum Amps |
|---|---|
| 26 | 1.0 |
| 24 | 2.0 |
| 22 | 3.0 |
| 20 | 5.0 |
| 18 | 7.0 |
| 16 | 10.0 |
Wiring Examples
