Technology Associates Inc.(remembered)
The EternaLight assets of Technology Associates, Inc.
have been transfered to EternaLights, LLC. All orders and services issues will be handled by them.

History:
In 1992, Thomas Hoops and Derone Bryson founded Technology Associates. In 1994, their partnership incorporated under the name of Technology Associates, Inc. Between 1993 and 2000, Technology Associates successfully operated a small chain of computer stores in the Reno/Sparks area which sold and serviced computers.
Technology Associates was also one of the founding investors in Great Basin Internet Services (GBIS), Northern Nevada's Largest Independent internet service provider. In 1998, TA divested itself of GBIS. In 2000, TA divested itself of it's retail stores to pursue manufacturing of the EternaLight flashlight and other related and unrelated products developed by Thomas Hoops and Derone Bryson. In 2007, the organization formerly known as Technology Associates, Inc., founded by Thomas Hoops and Derone Bryson in 1992 ceased to exist.

This site is still a functioning sales platform for the EternaLight products manufactured and sold by EternaLights, LLC. However, the remainder of the site remains as it was in it's finality before the closing of Technology Associates, Inc.

Today Mr. Bryson is privately employed as a Software Engineer. Mr. Hoops is privately employed in a manufacturing company as it's CTO. After working together since 1990, through their various projects and partnerships, Mr. Hoops and Mr. Bryson are still best friends and continue to explore new opportunities together.

EMAIL FOUNDER

eternaLight Statement of Water Tightness

(last updated 1/21/02)

The statements and test results below are only for informational purposes and not to imply any sort of warranty or standard of performance.

The eternaLight Model 2 - "Classic" is only said to be "splash resistant". Meaning that if water is randomly splashed on the unit it will likely continue to function without fault. It will most likely fail or need service if it is fully immersed.
*These units have been accidentally immersed by customers in the past and have functioned after being opened and dryed out.

The eternaLight Model L1 - "Derringer" is only said to be "splash resistant". Meaning that if water is randomly splashed on the unit it will likely continue to function without fault. It will most likely fail or need service if it is fully immersed.
*These units have been accidentally immersed by customers in the past and have functioned after being opened and dryed out.

The eternaLight Model 3 - "Ergo" is only said to be "water resistant". Meaning that if the unit is accidentally immersed in water for a short period of time, the unit will likely continue to function without fault. This being said, below are the results of actual tests which far exceed the statement above, keep in mind that the eternaLight is not meant to be a diving light. Additionally, there is no test performed on each individual light at the factory, so inspection, adjustment and testing by the user is recommended prior to any immersion.

On July 19th, 1999, five randomly selected production model 3s were taken to Quest Sports (Ameriquest, Inc.) for depth pressure testing. Ameriquest Inc. is a leading manufacturer of under-water enclosures for video cameras. Dale Peronteau, president of Ameriquest, conducted the following tests himself in a wet pressure chamber which simulates the pressures of water at depth.

The first unit was taken to a depth of between 8 to 12 feet. At that depth, there was enough pressure to activate the switches on the eternaLight, causing it to come on or behave strangely since all buttons are being depressed simultaneously. However, there is no appearent lasting ill side effect from this and after disassembly, the unit did not show any evidense of leaking.
*Note: Depressing all switches at once will not harm eternaLight or shorten its life.
Another unit was taken to a depth of 60 feet for one minute. After removal and disassembly, it showed no evidense of damage or leaking but had been activated as mentioned in the first unit test.
Another unit was taken to a depth of 100 feet for a period of one minute. After removal and disassembly, it showed no evidense of leaking or damage but had been activated as mentioned in the first unit test.
Another unit was taken to a depth of 150 feet, the front lamp gasket blew in and the unit was completely flooded. It appearently suffered some permanent damage for it did not function correctly after being dried out.
No tests were devised or performed on the fifth unit.

Prior to the testing at Ameriquest, we had performed the following test here at Technology Associates:

Three Model 3's styrene prototypes with Alkaline batteries we set to the flasher setting and immersed in 1 and 1/2 feet of water.
After 24 hours, all three units were still functioning. One of the units was removed and inspected for leakage.
It had acquired about 3 to 4 drops of water in lowest part of the compartment. Not enough to even touch the first battery. The units are somewhat bouyant and always tend to point their lights towards the sky so this is most likely where water will accumulate.
48 hours later, the second unit was removed but still functioning. It also showed leakage but still only 3 to 4 drops of water in the same region.
The third unit was immersed for 20 days and was still operating when removed! There was no evidense of water leakage on the inside, only a slight condensation.

The styrene prototypes used for this test are more brittle than the ABS production units we are currently shipping and small cracks were discovered around the screw holes, this may have accounted for the few drops of leakage seen in the first two units. We would not excpect this to be a problem in the production units.

As further testing occurs, this page will be updated.

The eternaLight Model 3M - "Ergo Marine" is physically identical to the Model 3 unit above but is yellow and is equipped with Lithium batteries instead of alkaline for a longer life. The difference in battery weight from alkaline to lithium also makes the unit completely bouyant (it floats) in fresh water and salt water.

The eternaLight Model 3X - "ErgoXRay" is physically identical to the Model 3 unit above but is in translucent blue plastic.

The eternaLight Model 4M - "EliteMarine" -
Click here for information.

The eternaLight Model 4X/4Z - "EliteXRay, EliteMax" -
Click here for information.

Use the contacts in the left column to contact the webmaster.

Unless specifically noted, all pictures and graphics may be visually enhanced for marketing purposes and should not be used as a basis for determination of performance.
Copyright © 1998-2004 Technology Associates, Inc. All Rights Reserved. All trademarks and copyrights on this page are owned by their respective owners.

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