Architectural lighting design is a field of work or study that is concerned with the design of lighting systems within the built environment, both interior and exterior. It can include manipulation and design of both daylight and electric light or both, to serve human needs.
Lighting design is based in both science and the visual arts. The basic aim of lighting within the built environment is to enable occupants to see clearly and without discomfort. The objective of architectural lighting design is to balance the art and the science of lighting to create mood, visual interest and enhance the experience of a space or place whilst still meeting the technical and safety requirements.
The purpose of architectural lighting design is to balance the characteristics of light within a space to optimize the technical, the visual and, most recently, the non-visual components of ergonomics with respect to illumination of buildings or spaces.
The technical requirements include the amount of light needed to perform a task, the energy consumed by the lighting within the space and the relative distribution and direction of travel for the light so as not to cause unnecessary glare and discomfort. The visual aspects of the light are those that are concerned with the aesthetics and the narrative of the space (e.g. the mood of a restaurant, the experience of an exhibition within a museum, the promotion of goods within a retail space, the reinforcement of corporate brand) and the non-visual aspects are those concerned with human health and well-being.
As part of the lighting design process both cultural and contextual factors also need to be considered. For example, bright lighting was a mark of wealth through much of Chinese history, but if uncontrolled bright lights are known to be detrimental to insects, birds, and the view of stars.
The history of electric light is well documented, and with the developments in lighting technology the profession of lighting developed alongside it.
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A light fixture (US English), light fitting (UK English), or luminaire is an electrical device containing an electric lamp that provides illumination. All light fixtures have a fixture body and one or more lamps. The lamps may be in sockets for easy replacement—or, in the case of some LED fixtures, hard-wired in place. Fixtures may also have a switch to control the light, either attached to the lamp body or attached to the power cable. Permanent light fixtures, such as dining room chandeliers, may have no switch on the fixture itself, but rely on a wall switch.
A lighting control system incorporates communication between various system inputs and outputs related to lighting control with the use of one or more central computing devices. Lighting control systems are widely used on both indoor and outdoor lighting of commercial, industrial, and residential spaces. Lighting control systems are sometimes referred to under the term smart lighting. Lighting control systems serve to provide the right amount of light where and when it is needed.
An LED lamp or LED light is an electric light that produces light using light-emitting diodes (LEDs). LED lamps are significantly more energy-efficient than equivalent incandescent lamps and can be significantly more than most fluorescent lamps. The most efficient commercially available LED lamps have efficiencies exceeding 200 lumens per watt (lm/W) and convert more than half the input power into light. Commercial LED lamps have a lifespan several times longer than both incandescent and fluorescent lamps.
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