The U.S. Department of Energy is certainly not the first hand to dangle the metaphorical carrot when it comes to research, construction, or innovative technology. And it certainly won't be the last. . .

This week, the Energy Department followed in the footsteps of predecessors like The X Prize Foundation by announcing its L Prize competition. The competition subscribes to the idea that competition, especially one with a hefty cash prize, inspires creative and innovative thinking. X Prize has successfully held competitions for technology in auto, space, genomics, and lunar exploration.

Revolution through competition is the slogan of X Prize, and this latest announcement by the DoE adheres quite nicely with this idea.

The goal of the L Prize? To create a better light bulb. The carrot being dangled in front of participants? $10 million in prize money.

Thomas Edison may have just rolled over in his grave. . . and he hasn't even heard the best part. . . 

The winner of the contest will receive consideration for government purchasing agreements, as well a spot as the frontrunner in the consumer market. . . arguably a more lucrative award than the $10 million cash prize.

The competition seeks to recreate the first model of the light bulb, whose 60-watt cousin has been used (rather inefficiently) for decades. These 60-watt incandescent bulbs currently make up half of all the lighting in the United States. Over 400 million of these bulbs are sold annually.

With new energy standards going into effect in the U.S. (some already in effect worldwide) in 2012, the 60-watt bulb and equivalent models will not only be obsolete, but actually deemed 'illegal' in terms of energy efficiency as outlined by these standards.

Consider this: if all the lamps in America currently using 60-watt bulbs were using LED bulbs, the power saved in one year's time would be enough to light 17.4 million American homes. And in that same year's time, carbon emissions would be cut by 5.6 million metric tons.

And while there have been attempts in the last few years to reform ye olde bulb, with the compact fluorescent bulb, the L Prize competition is looking to make an energy- and cost-efficient bulb that adheres with the general consumer pocketbook.

Philips announced on Thursday of this week that it had submitted the first entry in the competition.  Because the Dutch company boasts the first submission, they will win the prize if its bulb proves to do what it claims to  and a year's worth of testing the Philips lamp will ensue as the Energy Department decides how the bulb measures up.

The contest criteria specifies bulb submissions that reproduce the same amount and color of light made by a 60-watt incandescent bulb, while using only 10 watts of power. The bulb must also last for more than 25,000 hours (25 times longer than a standard light bulb). And in the interest of domestic economic concerns, at least 75% the bulb must be made or assembled in the United States.

A separate award of $5 million will be given to the winning submission of an LED reflector lamp and a new, "21st-century lamp," for which there are no entries yet. The criteria for these bulbs have not yet been released.

The criteria set the stage for a bulb that will outshine what is considered today the latest and greatest in green light technology, the compact fluorescent. When these bulbs were introduced to the consumer marketplace, however, the DoE had not set standards for the companies producing them. The result was consumer backlash; many found the bulbs' light output "cold" and "unpleasant," as well as not lasting as long as they claimed to. Many models would not work in cold environments and even contained pollutants.

So while the criterion for L Prize entrants seems tough, the Energy Department believes setting such stringent guidelines at the get-go will help offset inferior products. Inferior submissions could potentially become inferior bulbs for sale on the shelves of your local hardware store. 

"We've probably eliminated almost 25 products that were horrible," said James R. Brodrick, manager of the Solid State Lighting Program of the Energy Department. "We test LED bulbs today that claim on the package that they're equivalent to 40 watts, but are really like 20-watt bulbs. . . This will be the most publicly tested bulb ever."

One consumer complaint lurks in the future of efficient light bulb buying: the new LED bulbs won't be cheap. The LED-equivalent bulbs on the market today cost up to $100 each and these models have limited output. It will be hard to convince consumers to spring a hundred bucks for something that, for so long, has shared a shelf in the garage with other less-than-twenty-dollar basic household items.

Brodrick is doing what he can to help lower LED-based bulb cost. He has enlisted over 25 utility companies nationwide as partners in the L Prize competition. 

Cost-cutting with utility subsidies and mass production will make LED bulbs more affordable and thus justifiable in today's economy to consumers. Southern California Edison, a west coast utility, will even offer rebates to consumers.  Says Gregg Ander, Southern California Edison's chief architect: "There's a potential for LED lamps to be much more acceptable to the consumer than compact fluorescents."  

Eventually, LED bulbs may be on price par with compact fluorescent equivalents, factoring in its longer life. Experts in the industry are confident that the long-term outlook for LED bulbs is good, and the cost per bulb could see the $20-$25 range. The ultimate goal of the lighting industry is to produce and make available to the consumer an inexpensive and energy efficient bulb that gives an incandescent bulb's light.

Next month, the biggest names in lighting — including General Electric, Philips, and Osram Sylvania — have plans to introduce a new LED module that would make it easier to replace traditional light sources with LEDs.

In a world where roadmaps have been replaced by GPS systems; phonographs with MP3 players; and the rotary phone with the iPhone. . . isn't it time we made Edison proud and upgraded the light bulb?

Brigid