International Lighting News

How the EU’s Many Sustainability Initiatives Will Impact the Lighting Industry

If you think the lighting industry is subject to a lot of regulation now, to paraphrase a classic rock song, ‘you ain’t seen nothing yet’. In March of this year, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a comprehensive new legislative package called the Sustainable Products Initiative (SPI). Part of the Commission’s flagship Green Deal, the SPI essentially aims to ensure that only the most sustainable products are sold in Europe.

To do this, the proposals included in the SPI look to empower consumers to save energy, repair products, and make smart environmental choices when shopping for new products. Of particular interest to the lighting industry is the SPI’s proposal for an Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). This would repeal and replace the current Ecodesign Directive that our industry is by now very much familiar with. Like the Ecodesign Directive, details as to what is and is not sustainable will be decided at the product level.

The ESPR will, without a doubt, require even more from the lighting industry. In addition to the energy efficiency requirements of the current regulation, the ESPR will include specific requirements relating to life cycle, durability, use of recycled content, repairability, and raw material usage. All these new sustainability requirements will be evaluated and introduced in product specific rules, also for lighting. Thanks to our industry’s wealth of experience with the Ecodesign Directive, and LightingEurope’s leadership on the file, we are well-positioned to shape the next generation of lighting requirements.

A Crowded Landscape:

But the ESPR is just the tip of the iceberg. There’s a whole slew of sustainability initiatives on the horizon, each of which will have a direct impact on the lighting industry. Take, for example, the initiatives designed to empower consumers by preventing so-called ‘greenwashing’. Under these proposals, companies will not only be required to substantiate any claims relating to a product’s sustainability, they’ll have to do so using the methods set out in the Substantiating Green Claims initiative. Any claim that does not follow such methods will be deemed misleading and be subject to sanctions.

Other key initiatives include:

• Right to Repair: a series of measures that aim to foster a circular economy by ensuring that products can be repaired and not simply replaced. • Construction Products Regulation:

establishes harmonized rules on sustainability for construction products. • EU Green Taxonomy: provide companies, investors, and policymakers with definitions for which economic activities can be considered environmentally sustainable and should be prioritized for financial investment and public contracts. • EU Green Public Procurement (GPP): introduces green requirements in public tenders. • Corporate Governance Sustainability

Reporting: establishes requirements for how companies report on their

Environmental – Social – Governance (ESG) performance.

On top of these new initiatives, the European Commission is also expected to review and update such regulations as the Waste Framework Directive (WFD); Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive; Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive; and Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) Regulation.

What the Lighting Industry Can Expect:

What does all this mean for the lighting industry? To start, companies will need to rethink how they design their products. In addition to being energy efficient and complying with the recently introduced quality parameters and labelling requirements, products will also need to be designed so that they are repairable and offer increased durability – both of which will require that necessary spare parts are available for several years. While the latter could open new revenue streams for OEMs, they must also be prepared to compete against other companies producing and selling these spare parts.

Recruiting and holding on to qualified staff experienced in sustainable product design and manufacturing will also become increasingly challenging. The EU regulatory drive on sustainability is directly impacting all sectors, from textile to electronics or cement, and all these companies are quickly trying to build up capacity internally to stay ahead of the regulatory trends and the market. Sales may decrease, not only because products are more durable but also because their cost is very likely to increase. Customers will ultimately have to cover the cost of the additional investment needed to redesign products and processes, and regulators acknowledge this.

The amount of information that companies will be obliged to collect and make available will increase exponentially. LightingEurope expects that today’s Energy Label will evolve into a Sustainability Label that could also include a repairability score and a lifecycle assessment. Furthermore, as previously mentioned, companies must ensure that any and all sustainability claims can be fully substantiated with evidence. Last but not least, we expect to see Digital Product Passports (DPP) used to report information for each single product – including every substance found in a product. Considering that many electronic products contain up to 4,000 different substances, DPP reporting requirements could end up being extremely cumbersome.

LightingEurope Can Help:

Not only is the regulatory landscape extremely complex, it is also moving fast. While the review of ecodesign rules for light sources is set to begin in 2025, the taxonomy reporting obligations have already started this year. More so, all the obligations we’ve mentioned are expected to apply by 2026 and 2027 –less than four – five years from today. LightingEurope is an established credible voice in the EU sustainability debate, regularly talking with regulators, NGOs and other trade associations to explain the specificities of lighting and voice our members’ recommendations. LightingEurope members receive regular updates on regulatory trends and latest developments, giving them the information they need to be proactive – not reactive – and to translate sustainability requirements into business opportunities. To learn more about LightingEurope’s work, please visit https://www.lightingeurope.org. ■

Lumileds Announces Agreement with Requisite Lenders on the Terms of a Comprehensive Financial Restructuring to Accelerate Long-Term Growth

Lumileds Holding B.V. (“Lumileds” or the “Company”), a global leader in innovative lighting solutions, announced that it has entered into a restructuring support agreement (the “RSA” or the “Agreement”) with its lenders holding a significant majority of the loans outstanding under its prepetition first lien debt facility on the terms of a comprehensive financial restructuring that would significantly de-leverage and strengthen its balance sheet by over $1.3 billion, accelerate Lumileds’ growth, and enable further investment in innovation to pursue additional strategic opportunities through the injection of up to $275 million of liquidity.

To efficiently implement the de-leveraging, a narrowly focused prepackaged Chapter 11 plan (the “Plan”) involving only Lumileds’ U.S. and Dutch entities has commenced in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York (the “Court”). Lumileds’ European, Asian, and other foreign subsidiaries and affiliates are not included in the filing and are unaffected by the Chapter 11 process. The Company has obtained the

necessary support from its lenders to confirm the Plan prior to commencing its proceedings and expects to meet the requirements to confirm the Plan and emerge from Chapter 11 within approximately sixty days.

“Over the past few years, we have been hard at work transforming our cost structure and innovation pipeline, which has allowed us to capitalize more effectively on future market trends as a leader in the lighting industry,” said Matt Roney, CEO of Lumileds.

“We have proactively taken steps to de-leverage our balance sheet given the ongoing challenges presented by global supply constraints, COVID-related issues, and the crisis in Ukraine. This recapitalization will enable us to further accelerate our efforts as a market-leading innovator within the specialty lighting industry. We believe that the most effective and efficient way to accomplish this is through a prepackaged Chapter 11 process that will be accompanied by a significant increase in our liquidity position. We appreciate the support of our lenders, who recognize the long-term value and enhanced potential Lumileds will create with a strengthened balance sheet.”

BUSINESS AS USUAL

None of the Company’s business operations outside of the United States and the Netherlands are part of the Chapter 11 proceeding. The Company has filed ”first day” motions to obtain the requisite court authority for the Company to continue operating its businesses and facilities in the ordinary course without disruption to its customers, vendors, suppliers, or employees.

As part of these first day motions, the Company has sought court approval to continue to pay all valid amounts owed to vendors and suppliers as they come due. In addition, the Company expects that employees will continue to receive their usual wages and benefits without interruption.

“Our number one priority is to deliver never before possible solutions for lighting, safety, and well-being,” added Mr. Roney. “This comprehensive liquidity and de-leveraging solution will enable us to be an even more attractive and stronger partner as we continue to drive innovation in LED technology and offer new products and solutions to our customers. I would like to thank all of our valued employees, customers, vendors, suppliers, and sponsors for their ongoing support.”

TERMS OF THE RESTRUCTURING SUPPORT AGREEMENT

Under the terms of the RSA, the existing secured lenders are expected to commit to support, and vote in favor of, a transaction that, when executed, will reduce the Company’s funded debt by approximately $1.3 billion, from approximately $1.7 billion to $400 million comprised of takeback debt and post-petition loans, which will be combined into a 5-year exit facility.

The RSA also contemplates a commitment from certain of its lenders of up to $275 million in debtor-in-possession (“DIP”) financing, available as part of the Chapter 11 process. Subject to the Court’s approval, the DIP financing, together with the Company’s available cash reserves and cash provided by operations, is expected to provide sufficient liquidity for Lumileds to continue meeting its ongoing obligations, including all obligations to customers, vendors, and suppliers, as well as employee wages, salaries, and benefits programs.

More information about Lumileds’ restructuring, including access to Court documents, will be available at https://dm.epiq11.com/Lumileds or by contacting Epiq Corporate Restructuring, LLC, the Company’s noticing and claims agent at +1 800-497-9116 (for toll-free domestic calls) and +1 503-520-4495 (for tolled international calls) or emailing Lumiledsinfo@epiqglobal.com.

Evercore is acting as investment banker for the Company; Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, LLP, and Latham & Watkins LLP are acting as corporate and restructuring counsel to Lumileds, and AlixPartners, LLP, as financial advisor. PJT Partners is acting as financial advisor for an ad hoc group of Lumileds’ lenders, and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is acting as the group’s legal counsel. ■

LED Technology Innovations from Nichia

At Light + Building 2022 in Frankfurt, Nichia, the world’s largest LED manufacturer and inventor of the high-brightness blue and white LEDs will shine the spotlight on a number of ground-breaking LED technologies that are setting the pace in the global lighting industry. As Nichia continues developing for a brighter world, visitors to the exhibition will see the latest fruits of its cutting-edge R&D.

Taking center stage will be Dynasolis™, a new LED tuning solution that regulates circadian rhythms by simultaneously adjusting melanopic illuminance and color temperature while maintaining high CRI and high efficacy. The building industry is increasingly encouraging designs that bring more natural light indoors, with human centric lighting (HCL) and circadian lighting gaining attention. Most existing HCL systems work by changing CCT (correlated color temperature), the visual element. However, Nichia also focuses on the non-visual element that truly addresses human circadian rhythms, from waking up to going to sleep. Dynasolis™ achieves this effect by offering both color and spectrum tuning, ranging from energizing azure to a peaceful, calming warm-white hue. By combining two separate LED spectra, building markets such as healthcare, education and office at last have a solution that provides independent control of this critical functionality, allowing biologically effective light to enhance mood and wellbeing on a sustainable level.

Elsewhere on the booth, will be Nichia’s H6 LED Series, which heralds a new era of LED adoption by delivering the industry’s highest joint-boost in color quality and efficacy. By combining the company’s accumulated phosphor technology with KSF narrow-band red phosphor and TriGain® technology, Nichia has optimized the light spectrum and overcome the trade-off between efficacy and CRI. The portfolio extends from mid-power to chip-on-board (COB) products, presenting ideal solutions for applications that include retail, hospitality, and offices.

Show visitors interested in solutions for street lighting, as well as area and landscape lighting, will find a product of great interest in

LUXEONHL1ZOutperformsSeeminglyBrighterCompetitors, andtheProofisintheApplication

Toooften,factorsnotaccountedforinthedatasheetsignificantlyaffectthe LED’sperformanceintheapplication.Insomecases,relyingondata sheetspecificationsalonewillleadtothewrongconclusion.Acustomer developinga25-degreespotapplicationevaluatedLUXEONHL1Z againstacompetitor’soffering.Theresultshowsthatintheapplication, LUXEONHL1Zoutperformsthecompetitor.Readourpressreleasehere. lumileds.com

the form of Nichia’s HPS color LED series. This product faithfully reproduces the emission color of a high-pressure sodium lamp (HPS), which finds common use in road and outdoor lighting. Unlike existing market solutions, the key feature of Nichia’s HPS color LED is that it maintains the nostalgic atmosphere of the landscape with the same emission color as HPS while improving color visibility through its higher CRI (Ra≥70). Lighting fixtures equipped with this LED not only offer a lifespan 2.5 times longer than that of HPS, but also provide higher luminous efficiency, lower energy consumption, and less impact on the ecosystem. Further Nichia innovations at Light + Building 2022 will include Optisolis™ LEDs and COB solutions that accurately mimic natural light without producing any harmful UV light. Optisolis delivers a natural color rendering performance through the exceptional CRI value of over 98 and an R9 of over 94. Optisolis™ not only shows objects in a more vivid way, it also preserves them at their best, helping prevent the degradation of artworks, printed materials, and textiles, while simultaneously delivering significant energy savings.

Vitasolis™ emits a natural white color with a high content of blue-green energy proven to stimulate awakening and supports a vibrant life. This product can be used in offices, schools, hospitals, and many others for the purpose of improving productivity and learning.

Nichia will also showcase its 2-in-1 tunable white, single light-emitting surface (LES), mid-power 3030 LED. This innovative product allows for higher color quality of up to Ra≥90. It delivers elegant color tuning and mixing within a single LES to provide easier integration into edge-lit waveguides. It also enables creative design potential such as thinner, sleeker optical luminaire designs, eliminating the need for bulky color mixing chambers.

“Whether it’s bringing vitality and wellbeing to healthcare, work, and leisure spaces, or ensuring valuable objects are appreciated and preserved, the offer from Nichia empowers fixture manufacturers to enhance the world with “Light so Good”, lighting solutions focused on the quality of light,” says Dr Ulf Meiners, Managing Director at Nichia Germany. “Whatever your project or application, we have a solution that will bring notable benefits, including lower power consumption, wider color gamut, higher resolution, and even the ability to encourage comfort and regeneration in healthcare settings. We look forward to discussing your specific requirements at the show.” Nichia will exhibit at Light + Building 2022 in Hall 8, Booth D60. ■

6G LiFi Technology

Light-based technology, for making telecommunications more accessible in remote and rural areas, is to be developed in a collaboration between the University of Strathclyde and Friedrich- AlexanderUniversität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) in Germany.

Professor Harald Haas, Director of Strathclyde’s LiFi Research and Development Centre, has received a Humboldt Research Award for his research achievements to date. This award enables him to collaborate on a topic of choice with Professor Robert Schober at FAU. The collaboration will investigate the use of point-to-point free space optical (FSO) communications to provide an effective solution to the ‘digital divide’ through 6G communications. The project will also explore THz (terahertz) communications, on frequencies between 300 GHz (gigahertz) and 10 THz, as well as optical wireless communications, between 10 THz and 1 PHz (petahertz).

In addition, the research will examine the use of reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS) for all potential 6G frequency bands. RIS are electromagnetic devices with electronically controllable characteristics, which can manipulate the impact of an incoming signal.

Professor Haas is an Alexander von Humboldt Professor and a recognized pioneer in the field of LiFi, or light-based communications technology. In a 2015 TEDTalk, he publicly demonstrated, for the first time, new technology for receiving data with ordinary solar cells. His research offers a means of overcoming problems of access to technology, particularly in remote, rural or desert regions. According to the International Telecommunication Union, 2.9 billion people –more than a third of the world’s population –have never used the internet.

Professor Haas said: “It is generally accepted that, to achieve step-change improvements in net-zero, data rates, latency, user experience and coverage, radically new solutions are required for 6G and overcoming the digital divide is particularly important post-COVID-19.”

“People in data-deprived areas can really fall behind in the modern world and what is really transformational about this is the move away from radio spectrum to optical spectrum. We are aiming to use the optical communications spectrum in the infrared region to beam wireless data signals over hundreds of meters to tens of kilometers, using solar panels as both data receivers and energy harvesters. We have been running a trial in Orkney in which ordinary solar cells and laser transmitters have been used to quadruple the data rates of residents on Graemsay.”

“Our goal is to have affordable free-space optical communications for 6G, in a framework which enables mesh and multihop networking to get around hills and obstacles. Our system is designed to be self-powered because we use solar panels simultaneously for power and data harvesting so that it could be installed anywhere, even on trees or any other mast where there is no access to the power grid. The operational carbon footprint of these communication systems is, therefore, zero. We are also aiming to redirect signals when something, an object or an individual, is in the way and blocking the signal. We will be advancing optical RIS, which is something like a smart billboard or wallpaper that reflects and concentrates light towards a LiFi receiver. I have chosen to work with FAU because, like Strathclyde, it has a national and international reputation as a research-intensive and leading university.” “It is an absolute privilege to collaborate with Professor Schober, who is among the top researchers in wireless communications in the world,” said Professor Haas. Humboldt research awards are presented by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation to senior researchers who have predominantly lived and worked outside Germany for at least five years; are recognized internationally as outstanding researchers in their field; have had a significant impact on their own discipline and beyond, and are expected to continue producing cutting-edge research. ■

New CIE Report on Spectroradiometry

Under the scientific direction of Instrument Systems, the Technical Committee TC2-80 of the CIE has prepared a new technical report on the spectroradiometric measurement of optical radiation sources.

The document, published as CIE 250:2022, supersedes the almost 40-year-old report CIE 063- 1984. Practically oriented, it explains the basic measurement principles and provides practical instructions for the measurement of irradiance, radiation density, radiation intensity and radiant flux, including instrument calibration. In addition, the report describes in detail the physical effects relevant to spectroradiometric measurements, and in particular the estimation of measurement uncertainties. The measurement uncertainties occurring in every measurement quantitatively determine the accuracy of the calibration chain for traceable measured values.

At Light+Building in Frankfurt from 2–6 October 2022, visitors to the Instrument Systems booth will learn more about high-precision and traceably calibrated light measurement systems (Hall 8.0 H38). Technical Report CIE 250:2022 can be purchased in the CIE online shop: www.techstreet.com/cie.

The new technical CIE Report 250:2022 contains basic measurement principles and practical instructions for the spectroradiometry of optical radiation sources in the wavelength range 200–2500 nm. It is primarily concerned with the measurands irradiance, radiation density, radiation intensity and radiant flux, together with the quantities derived therefrom. In addition, it provides a detailed overview of the physical effects relevant to the estimation of measurement uncertainties.

The report, prepared under the aegis of Dr. Tobias Schneider, Chief Scientist at Instrument Systems, offers a comprehensive insight into the relevant terminology and the fundamentals of calibration of spectroradiometric measuring instruments. It is a practical guide to the identification, understanding and quantification of the relevant components of measurement uncertainty and can be purchased in the CIE online shop: www.techstreet.com/cie.

As a leading manufacturer of light measurement technology, Instrument Systems has always attached particular importance to the metrological traceability of measurement results, and offers calibrated instruments with high absolute measurement accuracy. Traceable measurement results are usually stated in SI units. The SI units are disseminated by calibration of the measuring instruments based on a chain of measurements. If this measurement chain can be unequivocally traced to a primary representation of SI units, this is referred to as the metrological traceability of a measurement. It constitutes a quantitative description of the accuracy of the calibration chain and metrological traceability.

A traceable value is thus referenced to a recognized standard through an unbroken chain of comparative measurements with known measurement uncertainty. That is why we also speak of NIST or PTB traceability. Instrument Systems will be presenting its high-precision, traceably calibrated measurement systems at Light+Building in Frankfurt from 2–6 October 2022.

Instrument Systems is involved in numerous professional associations and organizations, that ensure internationally uniform implementation of metrological traceability to the SI unit system and create a practically usable realization.

These include the International Lighting Commission (CIE), to whose technical working groups Instrument Systems has been committed for many years. For example, as early as 2007 Instrument Systems was instrumental in creating the CIE 127 document that defines recommendations for the measurement of LEDs. Instrument Systems maintains close contact with the world’s leading national laboratories such as PTB (Germany), NIST (USA), KRISS (Korea), ITRI (Taiwan) and NIM (China). ■

DOE Reports Examine the State of Current Commercial UV LEDs

The COVID-19 pandemic has put a spotlight on germicidal ultraviolet (GUV) radiation for air and surface disinfection. This technology area represents a growing opportunity to improve indoor air quality while saving energy over high-ventilation approaches.

However, light-emitting diode (LED) GUV sources and fixtures available today have low efficiencies relative to visible LEDs or other UV sources (such as mercury lamps). Driven by demand for pandemic preparedness measures in buildings and good indoor air quality, many emerging GUV R&D activities target application effectiveness through increased source efficiency, improved fixture design, and enhanced reliability.

The U.S. Department of Energy has released two reports aimed at understanding the current state and viability of commercial ultraviolet (UV) LED products. RTI International conducted these studies through a contract with KeyLogic Systems, working with the LED Systems Reliability Consortium (LSRC).

• Initial Benchmarks of UV LEDs and

Comparisons with White LEDs focuses on the construction and initial performance of commercially available UV LED components in radiometric and current-voltage tests. A test matrix containing 13 different UV LEDs was created in association with the LSRC.

Testing involved at least 22 samples of each commercially available product (as of

June 2021). In addition, two common, commercial white LEDs were tested to provide a benchmark against blue-pumped white LEDs. Read the report. • Operating Lifetime Study of UV LED

Products focuses on the long-term performance and reliability of the same set of commercially available UV LEDs.

Understanding the failure modes and failure rates of UV LEDs is important in understanding GUV product effectiveness over time and improving UV product reliability at the LED, lamp, and luminaire level. This information is critical to

developing products with higher efficiency, lower carbon footprint, and significantly reduced environmental impact than the lighting technologies they replace. The study employed three stress tests to examine the reliability of each product. Results from stress testing, along with an extensive literature review, identified specific failure mechanisms across these UV LEDs.

”This critical work moves our industry’s knowledge forward in an emerging area,” said Kevin Benner, Lead Research Engineer for Current, who was not involved in the RTI studies. ”As was true in the early days of white-light LEDs, it is important for LED manufacturers, equipment engineers, and end users to have access to this information in order for them to aid in proper deployment as the technology evolves.”

DLC: First Products Qualified Under New LUNA Technical Requirements

The DLC announced the first products added to its LUNA Qualified Products List (QPL) after being tested and determined to meet the new LUNA Version 1.0 Technical Requirements for outdoor LED luminaires. The DLC released LUNA V1.0 in December and began accepting applications from solid-state lighting (SSL) manufacturers interested in qualifying their products in April. Eighteen specific 3000K models of the XSPW Version B Wall Mount Luminaire, manufactured by Cree Lighting, are the first outdoor LED products published on the DLC’s LUNA QPL following testing of product performance and attributes by an accredited lab and rigorous review by DLC staff. “The DLC congratulates Cree Lighting for its leadership and commitment to quality outdoor lighting that works for people and our natural environment,” DLC Executive Director and CEO Christina Halfpenny said, “We are very proud to have the LUNA program as a resource for the energy efficiency industry and we look forward to working with the lighting community to populate the LUNA QPL with products that are energy efficient, ensure appropriate nighttime visibility for people, and work to mitigate the growing problems associated with light pollution.”

“Cree Lighting has always been a leader in LED lighting, delivering industry leading energy performance, while providing solutions designed to reduce the negative effects of light pollution. The addition of DLC’s LUNA program allows us to demonstrate to our customers and industry stakeholders that energy savings and reducing light pollution are not mutually exclusive,” Jonathan Vollers, Cree Lighting Director of Engineering Services, said. “We believe LUNA provides the industry with a complementary tool, along with good lighting design, to help achieve the IES and IDA’s Five Principles for Responsible Outdoor Lighting. We are proud to do our part with solutions that meet the economic and energy goals of our customers, while positively influencing the night sky we all share. We look forward to more Cree Lighting products achieving LUNA qualification.” Searchable on the SSL Qualified Products List (QPL), LUNA-qualified products are eligible for energy efficiency rebates and incentives designed for SSL V5.1 products. LUNA sets performance requirements for specific categories of outdoor LED fixtures, so that municipalities, energy efficiency programs and other outdoor lighting decision-makers can better support their energy reduction goals and abide by dark sky policies and ordinances. LUNA also helps specifiers fulfill the light pollution and trespass requirements of LEED and WELL building programs, and helps projects follow application guidance in the joint International Dark Sky Association-Illuminating Engineering Society Model Lighting Ordinance.

In addition to meeting the DLC’s SSL V5.1 efficacy thresholds, LUNA-qualified products must comply with additional dimming, control and shielding requirements to ensure efficient use of lighting energy. The LUNA program also introduces requirements for light distribution, correlated color temperature and dimming controls to reduce light trespass and sky glow, while supporting light installations that both provide appropriate visibility for people and meet recommended methods and voluntary guidelines for dark-sky best practices. The DLC notes, however, that the technical requirements apply only to

white-light LED outdoor products, which do not include some types of outdoor lighting. For example, non-white (amber) luminaires, which may be appropriate for settings such as environmentally sensitive areas, are excluded from LUNA. This is because of inconsistencies in terminology and performance due to the lack of standardized metrics, which are still in development for non-white light. For more information on this, please see the DLC’s recent “Non-white Light Sources for Nighttime Environments” whitepaper, and a related FAQ. ■

New Zhaga Specifications Solve the Smart Luminaire Data Management Problem

If you’ve ever paid for something by hovering your debit card or phone above a card reader, then you’ve used Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. While mobile payments may be the best-known use of this technology, it is by no means the only. In fact, this extremely short-range wireless communication standard can be found in everything from tablets to speakers, wearables, and gaming consoles. NFC is also regularly used for quickly pairing devices, managing access to public transportation, and to support a number of home automation devices. “While the lighting industry has long leveraged the benefits of wireless connectivity, NFC could further reduce its reliance on coded mains and wiring,” says Dee Denteneer, Secretary General of the Zhaga Consortium. Zhaga is the global lighting-industry consortium with the mission of standardizing the interfaces of components of LED luminaires. As Arnulf Rupp, Chair of Zhaga’s Module Driver Interface Working Group explains, NFC allows manufacturers to configure such lighting components as LED drivers to their specifications both before and after installation. “This ability to change settings in-the-field means you can configure fixtures faster, reduce inventory, and perform on-the-spot troubleshooting,” he says.

NFC can also play an important role in making lighting more sustainable. “NFC lets you manage data over the luminaire’s entire lifecycle, from production to installation, maintenance, replacement and repair,” adds Rupp. “Having such lifecycle data not only helps increase efficiency, it also promotes products that use a modular design and that can be easily repaired and upgraded – what Zhaga calls ‘Circularity Lighting’.”

One tool for all field-maintenance applications

Of course, reaping these benefits depends not only on all smart luminaires and relevant components being NFC enabled, but that they be compatible with interoperable maintenance tools (i.e., NFC readers). This is where Zhaga comes into play. “An increasing number of lighting applications require reading out parameters and changing the settings of LED drivers in the field,” says Rupp. “But because LED luminaire manufacturers currently use a variety of methods for configuring LED drivers and reading parameters throughout the product lifecycle, doing so can be complex, cumbersome, and inefficient.” For example, in addition to NFC, other common methods used by LED luminaire manufacturers include setting output current with plug-in resistors and programming LED drivers through the DALI interface. “The result is that maintenance staff must manage all these different methods, each of which requires the use of different tools,” adds Rupp. Zhaga solves this problem through specifications, which it calls Books. “Luminaire manufacturers, installers, system integrators, and utility companies now have the option to select only one programming tool that will work with all field-maintenance applications from all vendors implementing Book 25 and all NFC-programable devices implementing Book 24,” says Rupp. Whereas Book 24 is geared towards luminaire manufactures, Book 25 defines a Bluetooth Low Energy communication protocol for the communication between the field-maintenance application on a smart device and the NFC reader. In doing so, it enables maintenance and replaceability with a cross vendor harmonized method of NFC programming for in-field use.

Specifically, Book 25 defines a Bluetooth Low Energy GATT-Service that NFC Reader manufacturers can implement for the communication between the field-maintenance application on a smart device (cell phone, tablet, etc.) and the NFC reader. This allows the field-maintenance application to read and write parameters on NFC-enabled LED drivers without the need for a cable-based connection. Field maintenance with Book 25 may also be used for other components that require programming, such as sensors or connectivity nodes.

Building trust through certification

Zhaga has also developed the Zhaga-NFC certification program for Books 24 and 25, which is available for Regular and Associate Zhaga members and is provided by Zhaga accredited test centers. Recently, NFC readers produced by FEIG ELECTRONIC and TERTIUM Technology became the first NFC readers to be Zhaga certified. “To have a device fully compliant with ZHAGA Book 25 certification is a guarantee of perfect integration and functionality of our readers with our customer LED Drivers. Furthermore, it qualifies our readers and our presence in the LED lighting market,” states Axel Penzo, TERTIUM Technology. “The certification process according to ZHAGA Book 25, performed by an independent test house, gives users the confidence of getting a compatible and proven product. In complement to the proven “Qualified Reader” according to ZHAGA Book 24, the two new mobile readers according to Book 25 are a further step to a complete product family from FEIG ELECTRONIC for the LED lighting market”, says Wolfgang Meißner, FEIG ELECTRONIC. To build trust in the interoperability of components, only certified NFC readers and NFC-programmable devices can carry the Zhaga-NFC logo. However, beyond building trust, the use of Zhaga-certified products also provides an array of business advantages, including:

• Certified NFC readers available from multiple suppliers • Consistent NFC reader supply for luminaires with NFC programmable components • Certified NFC programmable components available from multiple suppliers • Easy to identify (trademark) if NFC reader works with vendor software written for

Zhaga NFC capable components • Certification logos provide an established brand for product marketing

“Together, these two specifications solve the data management problems of smart luminaires by enabling interoperable maintenance tools that ensure configurable luminaires are easy to service over their entire lifecycle,” concludes Dee Denteneer. ■

How Scientists Tested the Effect of Multicolor Lighting on Improving People’s Psychological State

As missions for deep space exploration and space habitats are put on the agenda, astronauts need to withstand being tested by multiple stressors in confined and isolated conditions during such long flights, especially because in deep space exploration, problems such as signal delays make astronauts feel the anxiety of being far away from Earth and the psychological fear of deep space.

According to a series of experiments conducted recently on Earth and during current space missions aboard the International Space Station (ISS), NASA believes that monotony of vision, in particular, aggravates the crew’s anxiety, irritability, depression. Moreover, a large number of studies have also found that crew members on long-term missions on the Antarctic Space Simulation Station are extremely susceptible to psychological problems caused by visual monotony and monochromatic colors. In a research paper recently published in Space: Science & Technology, Ao Jiang from European Space Agency conducted a study to test whether multicolor lighting can improve people’s psychological state in an isolated and confined environment over a period of seven days.

The author first prepared the necessary materials and methods. Twenty healthy participants (10 males and 10 females, all of Chinese nationality and mostly 21 to 27 years old) from Xiangtan University were selected. Twenty isolation wards of the Xiangtan Central Hospital were used, which were all 3.5 meters long, 3 meters wide, and 2.2 meters high. Each room was furnished with a chair and a table, a bed, and a bedside table. The walls and the ceiling were painted white and the floor dark grey These were the two main colors, apart from the door, chair, table, and dresser, which were a light wood color. Neutral colors were used to reduce any effects of the room on the colors to be used in the experiment. Moreover, Philips Hue Bluetooth wireless 16 million color dynamic light bulbs were chosen to project the colored light in the multicolor lighting rooms. The multicolor lamp was placed in the middle area between the desk and the bed in the isolated room to ensure that the participants were affected by the multicolor lighting in most daily activities.

Besides, the PANAS questionnaire, a self-report measure, were used to assess the specific states that emerge from general dimensions of positive and negative emotional experiences, and the GAD-7 questionnaire, a one-dimensional scale, were designed to assess the presence of the symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). As for statistical analysis, a chi-square general linear model repeated measures (GLM-RM) was used to measure the effect of isolation on emotion, anxiety, and self-rated health scores.

Afterwards, the experiment got started. Twenty participants were randomly divided into two groups: one group that was exposed to multicolor lighting and a control group, which was exposed to a static, monotonous white interior. In the multicolor lighting group, from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day, the color of the multicolor light was randomly changed every three hours. Each participant entered a separate isolation room. During the isolation, the participants were not allowed to use any carriers such as mobile phones, computers, TVs, or iPads. But they could read paper books and do yoga and other activities. The participants’ psychological state was recorded on the first day, the fourth day, and the seventh day. At 4:00-5:00 p.m. on the test day, the experimenters asked the participants to start filling out the paper questionnaire. After the questionnaires were completed, semi-structured interviews were conducted to record the participants’ self-evaluation and subjective feelings. Each interview lasted about 5-10 minutes and was recorded for subsequent transcription and qualitative analysis. The results of the control group showed that the participants’ negative emotions and anxiety continued to increase over time, whereas the group randomly exposed to multicolor lighting that changed every three hours did not show any significant increase in negative emotions and anxiety. The most significant effect was observed on the fourth day, GLM-RM analysis indicated that the anxiety level on the fourth day was significantly higher than that on the first day in both groups.

On the seventh day of the experiment, the anxiety level was also significantly higher than that on the first day, but there was no significant difference between the level of anxiety on the fourth day and on the seventh day. In conclusion, multicolor lighting was found to alleviate the increase in anxiety and negative emotions caused by isolation and confinement. Moreover, the random change of light color in the isolated environment appeared to help the participants get an increased sense of surprise to counteract the monotony of the isolation, with an effect similar to that of circadian lights. In future space exploration, colored lighting or other sensory adjustment interventions could be used in addition to teamwork and collective life to reduce negative emotions and anxiety feelings. ■