LIGHTING
According to the International Electrotechnical
Commission (IEC),
“…buildings make up 40% of global energy
demand. They use electricity and include
electronics in nearly everything.”
Source:
http://www.iec.ch/smartcities/smart_buildings.htm
The current technology used in some parts of the
world for street lighting allows for real-time data and
communication with traffic management, safety and
emergency systems. These smart systems provide
opportunities for more tailored energy management
inevitably leading to greater energy efficiencies. Several
large Chinese cities are already monitoring smog through
advanced street lighting grid management systems.
In a large venue or public area smart lighting can be
used to manage and direct crowds, particularly during
an emergency evacuation. Smart street lighting offers
opportunities to not only modify the lighting in an area
but also to offer other capabilities such as public Wi-
Fi and charging points for electric vehicles as well as
environmental sensors on light poles.
In smart buildings, offices, meeting rooms and
collaborative areas can be better managed to get the
most out of these spaces using data to optimise all the
appropriate conditions, including lighting. This may be
enhanced by using an app to determine the office use,
manage colour, lighting intensity or adjust for daylight
through windows. Control systems can collect information
on energy use and light levels or occupancy via sensor
devices and send the data and analysis to an app.
CONVERGENCE BETWEEN LIGHTING AND IT
Already partnerships are developing between the
lighting and IT industries. Lighting companies are
partnering to create a new value proposition using the
specialist knowledge of an IT company with the specialist
knowledge of a lighting company. The IT infrastructure
can ensure the security and the speed of data generated
through lighting applications will be secure. The lighting
industry will provide the lighting knowledge to enhance
these new applications. An example already exists with
the partnership between Philips and Cisco. Software
platforms such as Organic Response, an Australian
company, http://organicresponse.com/ and Gooee,
https://gooee.com/ are also providing integrated
platforms with lighting companies to provide lighting
systems which utilise the IoT.
GOVLINK » ISSUE 2 2017
47