The sensors of the future should be designed to harmonise light with people. In response to this, iLumTech has developed a new series of sensors capable of measuring light intensity, light type, and the presence of people, according to which lighting is switched, dimmed, or altered in some way in order to make light truly match the needs of the user.
The most effective and efficient lighting systems use sensors. This is because sensors allow lighting to adapt to real-time needs such as occupancy of a space, movement and the amount of ambient light. Sensors can be used alone to control an installation, as well as combined with other controls such as programmable interfaces to provide the very best system autonomy. iLumTech sensors are affordable and high-effective devices developed to improve energy efficiency, cut cost, and make life more convenient.
Various studies have been made into the influence of CCT on the visual acuity and performance of people. In general, study participants preferred 4000 K to other CCTs and agreed that this light was the most visually comfortable. Participants also stated that they felt they would be comfortable working under light of 4000 K for more than 6 hours; longer than under both warmer light and even daylight. Therefore, scientists now recommend that educational institutions install new lighting with a cooler CCT in order to positively influence student performance and comfort. In addition, there should ideally be provided the option for users to select the most appropriate CCT for a given task, such as a higher CCT for performance of intricate or difficult tasks like microscope work or the solving of complex equations, or a more neutral CCT for tasks to be performed for a longer duration like writing. As CCT values are always influenced by outside sources of light, whether that be light from other luminaries or from daylight entering windows, it is of great advantage to employ devices that can measure ambient CCT parameters and control the lighting system accordingly to maintain a desired value. The DALI Ambient Sensor is just such a device, and can be used to not only maintain a desired CCT at a given time, but also to compensate for the colour shifting of LED light sources over time.
The DALI Ambient Sensor can be as well used in another capacity: to facilitate the provision of daylight conditions indoors. The importance of daylight is becoming more and more apparent in all interior environments, especially in such places as hospitals where there is a strong correlation between access to daylight and health, comfort, wellbeing, and diagnostic effectiveness. Daylight in hospital rooms has been shown to support doctors and nurses to do their work more easily, and patients to feel more comfortable and relaxed. What’s more, studies show that daylight also improves recovery times and reduced patients’ length of stay. Yet, we all know that in a building on the scale of a hospital, many rooms do not have access to daylight, in which case it is beneficial for the supplied artificial lighting to provide daylight-like conditions that bring many of the same benefits of real daylight. The DALI Ambient Sensor can be used here to measure and control the lighting to mimic natural changes in daylight.
