Lighting application efficacy: A framework for holistically measuring lighting use in buildings

Dorukalp Durmus, Wenye Hu, Wendy Davis

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

8 Scopus citations

Abstract

Lighting consumes significant energy in buildings, but current measurements of lighting efficiency are inadequate in capturing the spatial and temporal effectiveness of light. The most widely used lighting energy efficiency measure, luminous efficacy, quantifies the amount of light generated by individual light sources. While luminous efficacy provides manufacturers and designers with a useful metric for quantifying the energy efficiency of individual lighting devices, it does not fully address the use of lighting in architectural spaces. Instead, application efficacy, the relationship between the electrical power consumed by lighting hardware and the amount of light that contributes to the visual perception of building occupants, must be measured. Here, we propose a framework for calculating lighting application efficacy (LAE) based on the primary pathway of light in architectural settings: the generation and emission of light from a luminaire, the travel of the light throughout the space and into occupants’ eyes, and the process of visual perception. The LAE framework will include the development of computational methods for estimating the proportion of emitted light that is directed to task areas and areas corresponding to occupants’ visual fields using ray-tracing lighting design software. Future modeling and validation work will quantify energy efficiency of buildings.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number986961
JournalFrontiers in Built Environment
Volume8
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 26 2022

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Geography, Planning and Development
  • Building and Construction
  • Urban Studies

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