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What is human centric lighting?
Nowadays there is an increasing amount of
evidence that lighting has a very large effect on
people. It doesn’t just help us see, it also stimulates
us and impacts how we feel and behave. Human
centric lighting (also known as HCL) refers to
lighting that’s centered around the human user and
is a part of human centric design. It focuses on
the influence lighthing has on the human circadian
rhythm or biological clock.
This 24 hour cycle of the sun influences who we
are, what we do and how we feel. HCL has the
power to adjust our circadian rhythm and influence
our motivation, well-being and productivity. Our
physical response to light depends on the different
characteristics of this light including color, intensity
and timing.
Since we are spending more and more time
indoors, artificial lighting is becoming of increasing
importance. HCL solutions can support our human
biological rhythm, improve concentration, prevent
sleeping disorders and improve our overall well-
being. Lighting doesn’t only help us ‘see’, it also
serves as a time reference for our internal biological
clock.
What are the possibilities?
Having the right lighting in the morning, with
adequate intensity and cyan enhanced light, can
help you get ready for the day ahead. In educational
and office spaces an active mind is of the utmost
importance for the best focus and concentration.
Brighter light can be used to regulate and influence
the circadian rhythm of employees and students
and to increase focus and alertness during
important meetings and tests with brighter light.
During relaxing times, events and meetings the
lights can be dimmed and have a warm color to
create a calm and relaxing environment. A semi-
automatic control system where parts of the daily
cycle are automated is the best option in these
fields. For example in the morning when you start
up your day with warm light that during the day
gets colder and and brighter to keep the attention.
The system is also able to adjust its own settings
depending on the weather forecast to facilitate
the best possible conditions for the optimal work
environment.
What’s the future?
With the fast growing interest in HCL, it’s clear
that we are heading into a future where we simply
expect tunable light to be present in the spaces
where we spend most of our time. Especially for
business and institutional spaces, tunable lighting
will be incorporated at the start and designed
carefully around the organizational goals and the
needs of its participants.
Something that will add even more value to HCL,
is the ability to personalize the lighting so it suits
our different visual and task-specific needs. This
will be made as easy as possible with the use of a
smartphone app that is connected to the Sensor
Ready lighting infrastructure. Organizations can
automate the lighting cycle to achieve human and
energy advantages, as well as providing the users
more choice and flexibility. And that is exactly what
makes the HCL system really human-centric.
Smart lighting is rapidly becoming one of the large pilars in
modern buildings, cities and the Internet of Things. Human
centric lighting (HCL), a market estimated to reach $3.91 billion
by 2024, is one of the fastest growing parts of the smart lighting
industry. Now that tunable white light is defined as part of the
Sensor Ready (SR) standard, it won’t take long before HCL is
ready to go mainstream.
