I took apart one of two LED light pods from an Aurum motion sensing light fixture (AEC-326KA2-AC14W) and found it was a big heat sink and waterproof enclosure for a small LED COB (chip on board) module. While the motion sensing brain has gone mad, turning the lights on and off at unpredictable times, the two light pods seem OK and are now available for another project. I don't know what I'll do with them yet, but I will jot down some initial notes here.

120V AC Power On/Off

Given that the LED COB takes 120V AC directly and turns it into light, portable battery-powered project ideas are out. Sure, I can probably rig up a battery-powered AC inverter, but that seems like an overly complicated and roundabout approach when I have many other LED modules already happy to work on DC power. It makes more sense to use these light pods for projects powered by household AC.

Another power related constraint is the fact a motion sensing light was only an on/off switch. The light was not designed to be modulated so I doubt it would cooperate with a dimmer module. Like the original usage scenario, the light is all or nothing.

I connected one pod to a power cord and plugged it in. A Kill-a-Watt power meter indicates a single light pod consumes roughly 14 watts of power as it shone brightly.

Concentrated Light

Not only is it bright, all that light energy is concentrated. The entire array of 42 LEDs are packed within a little less than one square centimeter of area. Very different from LED display backlights which distribute light evenly over a large area. Where might a concentrated light source be advantageous?

Thermal Management

I found the small LED COB attached to the large metal enclosure/heat sink via a big square thermally conductive pad of tenacious adhesive. I think it makes the most sense to leave it attached because trying to peel it off the pad risks damaging the circuit board. If I ever need active cooling, I might be tempted to peel it off so I could transfer it to something like a salvaged heat sink + fan module, but a better idea is to rig up a fan to blow over the already-attached heat sink enclosure.

The passive heat sink is probably fine. After running it for a few minutes, I can feel the metal starting to get warm but not uncomfortable. A motion sensing light fixture is designed to light up for a few minutes at a stretch. I probably wouldn't have to worry about active cooling unless I use these light pods in an application that shines continuously for much longer.

Waterproof

The pod was built to be waterproof. Unlike the sensor pod, I saw no evidence of failure on any of its water barriers. They should still be good to survive outdoors, so I could conceivably use it in a project that is exposed to the elements, powered by 120V AC, and need a source of concentrated light. What might that be?

Mounting Provisions Front and Back

But if I don't care about weatherproofing, the front and back of the pod are both held by easily accessible fasteners. I can replace one or both of those pieces while still leaving the large center heat sink + LED COB assembly intact. For the back, I could bolt it to my own mounting mechanism tailored for the needs of the project. For the front, I could put something in front of the LED instead of the current piece of weathered and yellowed clear plastic. Perhaps a lens assembly to focus the beam?

I know there's a project idea for this capability floating somewhere within these constraints, but nothing is coming immediately to mind. I'll add these two LED light pods into the archive of salvaged parts and move on to understand how a light switch has failed.