Fundamental Electrical Quantities: Understanding the Relationship between Electrical Energy and Light Emission From Ohm's Law to LENI: How Current, Voltage, Resistance and Power Influence the Performance of a Lighting System To fully understand the criteria for assessing the energy performance of lighting systems, as in the case of the LENI indicator defined by the EN 15193-1:2017+A1:2021 standard, it is necessary to dwell on the physical and electrical bases that regulate the production of artificial light. In fact, each lighting system…
LENI and Energy Efficiency in Lighting Design From EPBD to EN 15193-1, integration with LEED, WELL and BREEAM To complete the framework outlined by the LEED, WELL and BREEAM protocols – voluntary tools aimed at promoting well-being, sustainability and internal environmental quality – it is necessary to consider the evolution of the mandatory legislation on the energy efficiency of buildings, which directly affects the design of lighting systems. The regulatory evolution on energy efficiency is in fact constantly changing. Following…
BREEAM: Standards, Credit Structure and Lighting Requirements How to set up a compliant lighting project: daylighting, controls, efficiency and reduction of light pollution. The BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method), developed in the United Kingdom by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) and introduced in 1990, represents the world's first system for assessing the sustainability of buildings. It is now internationally recognized as a reference standard and is applied in millions of projects around the world, with a particular diffusion…
WELL Building Standard v2: The Role of Light in Health, Comfort and Performance From the compulsory prerequisites L01–L02 to the L03–L09 credits, lighting design becomes a central tool for well-being in WELL certified spaces The WELL Building Standard v2 is an international certification protocol that assesses the quality of built environments based on their impact on people's health and well-being. Structured in ten key concepts – including air, water, nutrition, movement and materials – the protocol dedicates a central role…
LEED Protocol: Energy and Environmental Efficiency of Buildings Analysis of LEED Categories and Regulations to Reduce Light Pollution through Lighting Design LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the leading international environmental certification system for buildings, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). It applies to a wide range of projects, from new buildings to renovations, from interiors to existing buildings and neighborhoods (via BD+C, ID+C, O+M, ND, Homes). Each system assesses the environmental impact of the project…
LEED, WELL and BREEAM: Standards, Protocols and Certifications for Light Design Guidelines and design requirements for integrating natural light, visual comfort and biological effects into environmental sustainability protocols Human-Centered Lighting (HCL) represents an advanced design paradigm that integrates the classic criteria of lighting technology (visibility, energy efficiency, aesthetics) with the most recent knowledge on the non-visual effects of light, in particular on the human circadian system. The growing attention to psychophysical well-being in built environments has led to the development…
Designing with circadian light: the potential of Tunable White in HCL Technology, intelligent control and perceptual layout for adaptive lighting that follows biological rhythms The regulatory evolution on energy efficiency in buildings is constantly evolving. The practical implementation of an HCL project requires the use of advanced lighting technologies and adherence to specific design strategies dictated by regulations and guidelines. Tunable White technology represents one of the fundamental innovations in dynamic lighting, allowing the continuous and flexible adjustment of the…
Human-Centric Lighting (HCL): The Three Pillars, Visual, Emotional, and Biological Visual Comfort, Emotional Impact and Biological Synchronization: The New Frontier of Man-Centered Light From the understanding of the circadian effects of light, the need to overcome a reductive and functionalist vision of lighting emerges strongly. Scientific evidence, clinical data and regulatory developments clearly show how light, in addition to shaping space and influencing visual perception, is an active physiological agent, capable of modulating metabolism, mood, sleep and cognitive functions. In…
Lighting and Circadian Rhythm: Scientific Discoveries and Advanced Technologies Health-oriented lighting design between science, norm and perception After analyzing the color rendering as a key element for the perceptive and sensory quality of light, it is evident that contemporary lighting design can no longer be limited to the visual representation of objects alone. Light, in fact, is not only a vehicle of visual information, but acts in depth on human biology, modulating fundamental physiological processes. In this context, a new…
Beyond the CRI: The New Era of Colour Rendering in Architectural Light How Rf and Rg redefine color rendering for a light designed on the visual experience Continuing the analysis of the perceptive quality of light, it is evident that colour rendering, understood in the broadest and most up-to-date sense of the term, represents an essential dimension for conscious lighting design. If the color temperature establishes the emotional and biological tone of the light, it is the color rendering that…
From Perception to Function: The Influence of Color Temperature on Illuminated Space Color temperature as a perceptual language: designing atmospheres, guiding vision and shaping space After exploring the scientific bases, regulatory references and advanced tools to describe light – from the electromagnetic spectrum to melanopic parameters, from CIE diagrams to IES Technical Memoranda, up to solid-state lighting (SSL) – we focused on both the comparative analysis between traditional LEDs and μPLS as new digital light engine, and on the emerging…
The Light That Informs: Revolution or Risk for the Future of Lighting? μPLS and microLED between innovation and danger of visual excess Historically, we are used to thinking of artificial light as something that just illuminates. A street lamp allows us to see, a car headlight illuminates the way, but does not convey messages or information in itself. This is changing: with the advent of digitally controllable LEDs, lighting can also become an optical means of communication. A simple everyday…
Differences Between Traditional LEDs and μPLS by Nichia: From the Car to the City, the Path of the Digital Light Engine From road safety to smart city: μPLS and high-resolution microLEDs In recent decades, lighting technology has progressed very rapidly, moving from incandescent and halogen lamps to the more efficient and long-lived LED (Light Emitting Diodes) lights. Traditional LEDs, based on semiconductor diodes, have revolutionized lighting thanks to their high luminous efficiency and reliability, gradually supplanting conventional sources in many…
The Silent Revolution of LEDs: The Crisis of Seeing in the Age of Solid-State Lighting From Daylight to Electrical Simulation, Digital Lighting Redefines Perception, Dissolving the Link Between Visual Experience and Real Understanding In our imagination, lighting is often a banal, automatic gesture, devoid of complexity: a switch, a light that turns on, a room that reveals itself. But this apparently simple gesture conceals one of the most profound and least perceived transformations of modernity: the progressive digitization of the…
Technical Regulations for Electrical Systems and Lighting in Yachts Electrical safety, visual comfort and ship compliance according to IEC, ISO, CEI, RINA and DNV standards. Electrical Safety and Wiring in On-Board Systems The electrical systems on board yachts must meet strict international regulations to ensure safety against electrocution, fire and breakdowns. The IEC 60092 series (adopted in Italy as **CEI 18-**xx) is the main reference for naval installations, providing general design requirements and protection criteria in line with international conventions…
Main Regulatory Bodies and Guidelines in Lighting Technology A comprehensive framework on technical standards, international collaborations and key documents for designing light according to scientific and performance criteria. CIE (International Commission on Enlightenment) Regulatory role and authority - The CIE (Commission Internationale de l'Éclairage) is recognized as the leading international scientific authority in the field of light, color and lighting. Founded in 1913, it is an independent, non-governmental, non-profit organization that operates as a global reference body for the definition…
IES Standard Lighting Measurements (LM): Codes, Structure, and Design Implications Technical guide to LM standards for measuring the photometric, chromatic, and electrical performance of LEDs, modules, and luminaires. After having illustrated the function of the Technical Memoranda (TM) of the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) as technical support tools oriented towards innovation and the definition of emerging guidelines, it is essential to introduce another central regulatory category into the IES system: the documents marked with the acronym LM (Lighting Measurements). These…
IES Standard Technical Memoranda (TM): Codes, Structure, and Design Implications A technical guide to the use and interpretation of TM documents in lighting design The following insight is dedicated to the Technical Memoranda (TM) published by Illuminating Engineering Society (IES), a collection of technical documents that define methodologies, evaluation criteria and operational guidelines on specific and emerging issues in the field of lighting technology each document is identified by a unique code in the format ANSI/IES TM-##-YY, in which the…
Authoritative Standards and Guidelines in Lighting Technology: Multilevel Structure and Design Applications A complex regulatory system for designing light with technical rigor and application coherence The evolution of light sources – in particular the capillary diffusion of composite spectrum LEDs – has brought about a radical transformation in the way of design, evaluate and regulate the light. As highlighted in the discussion on CIE diagram 1931, the traditional chromatic instruments, while retaining a role historical and regulatory, are revealed today…
With the advent of LED sources, can we define the 1931 CIE diagram as obsolete? Formally no, but practically yes, in many application contexts. Now that we have understood how the spectral distribution of light influences the color rendering, visual perception and biological effects of light radiation, it is necessary to introduce a fundamental tool to represent and quantify the color of light: the chromaticity diagram. To fully understand the color perception in lighting design, it is of fundamental importance…
Digital Lighting and Visual Perception: the Dissolution of the See/Understand Relationship How electric light is changing the relationship between seeing, experiencing, and understanding the world In today's era of digital enlightenment, characterized by bright screens, sensors and omnipresent LED sources, a crisis is emerging in the traditional paradigm according to which seeing is equivalent to understanding. For centuries, the light It has been a privileged metaphor for truth and knowledge (the "lights" of reason, spiritual enlightenment): "light presents itself as…
How LEDs Work: Electroluminescence, Materials, and the Light Spectrum From semiconductor structure to color rendering: how LED light takes shape Visible light, although perceived as a continuous and unified phenomenon, is actually composed of a multiplicity of wavelengths, each corresponding to a specific stimulation of the visual system. The ability of a light source to ensure natural vision and accurate color rendering depends on its spectral distribution, namely on how luminous energy is distributed within the visible spectrum, ranging approximately…
Visible Light and the Electromagnetic Spectrum: Physical Principles for Lighting Design How wavelengths influence perception, color, and light design After examining how the human eye adapts to different illumination levels through photopic, scotopic, and mesopic visual modes, and after exploring the non-visual effects of light on the melanopic system and circadian balance, it is now necessary to take a step back in order to understand the physical nature of light. To design light correctly, in fact, it is not enough…
Photopic vs Melanopic Illuminance: Definition and Spectral Sensitivity MEDI, EML, and CS. Three essential indicators for measuring the circadian impact of artificial light The perception of light varies according to illumination levels and activates different visual mechanisms. Depending on ambient luminance, the human eye enters a state of photopic, scotopic, or mesopic vision, each mediated by specific photoreceptors and characterized by different perceptual responses. Understanding which visual dominance prevails within a given context is essential for designing coherent lighting scenarios,…
Light Perception: Capabilities and Limits of the Human Eye Understanding how the human eye works is the first step toward designing light with awareness The human eye is a highly evolved organ, capable of adapting to extreme lighting conditions, distinguishing details with remarkable precision, perceiving a wide chromatic range, and detecting movement with great sensitivity. However, it also presents physiological limitations, such as slow adaptation to darkness, loss of color perception under low-light conditions, sensitivity to glare, and reduced sharpness…
Lighting Design and Light Theory Complexity in the relationship between light, perception, and design How does a lighting designer develop a lighting project? Which disciplines should a rigorous lighting design study rely upon? How can lighting design improve visual comfort, reduce energy consumption, and enhance the value of a space? Why is it essential for light to be designed in relation to the different activities and functions taking place within an environment? To address these questions, understanding only the…