Portable, Durable Instruments for Sky Luminance Distribution Field Measurements

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Portable, Durable Instruments for Sky Luminance Distribution Field Measurements FIELD LUMINANCE MAPPING OF THE SKY PORTABLE, DURABLE INSTRUMENTS FOR SKY LUMINANCE DISTRIBUTION FIELD MEASUREMENTS ANOTHAI THANACHAREONKIT, PH.D When sky luminance distributions are measured far from a laboratory Post-Doctoral Researcher facility, portable and inexpensive instruments are useful. High dynamic California Lighting Technology Center range (HDR) photography has become a practical method for sky LUÍS LOMELINO FERNANDES, PH.D luminance mapping. However, long exposure photography directed at Research Engineer the sun can cause severe damage to digital camera sensors. To avoid California Lighting Technology Center this problem, a system was designed that integrates an adjustable KONSTANTINOS PAPAMICHAEL, PH.D shading disk with an HDR camera. Simultaneous global horizontal Co-Director, Professor illuminance measurements indirectly provide luminance data for the California Lighting Technology Center area of the sky that is occluded by the shading disk. In tests, the system presented here has achieved relative errors for the zenith luminance of approximately 10%. An integrated shading disk for an illuminance meter also is presented that allows diffuse horizontal illuminance measurements to be easily performed. HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE (HDR) BACKGROUND High Dynamic Range Imaging is a technique employed for sky Sky luminance mapping using high dynamic range (HDR) digital photography has become luminance mapping, particularly useful when measurements need to be taken away from a laboratory facility. a practical method for measuring the luminance distribution of the sky. However, the HDR technique requires a sequence of multiple exposure images, and when frequent long exposures of the sky are taken, the sun can damage the camera sensor. This poster presents an HDR-based system for measuring the sky luminance that protects the digital camera’s sensor from direct exposure to the sun. Besides a digital camera, it comprises an adjustable shading device that attaches to the cylindrical section of a fisheye lens and an auxiliary illuminance meter for measuring global horizontal illuminance. The luminance value at the region covered by the disk can later be computed using data from simultaneous global horizontal illuminance measurements. In addition to the sky luminance distribution and global horizontal illuminance, measuring diffuse horizontal illuminance often is required in a daylighting study. For this purpose, the system presented here also includes an adjustable shading disk attached to the illuminance meter. SENSOR DAMAGE INSTRUMENT SETUP Long exposure images are necessary with HDR imaging; however, The instrument setup for field measurements includes a digital camera with a fisheye lens, the camera sensor can be damaged when directly exposed to the sun. together with an illuminance meter and a luminance meter, for reference. Image courtesy of Axis Communications This image shows a photograph taken with a camera where the image sensor filters have been damaged by the sun. SHADING DISKS INSTRUMENTS The holding bracket of the camera shading disk is provided by a milling machine universal indicator holder, to which a custom adjustable stem and SHADING DISK shading disk is attached. This device attaches to the fisheye lens of the HDR camera and allows the disk to shield any region of the field of view of the fisheye FISHEYE LENS lens. The holding bracket of the illuminance meter shading device is an aluminum holder, attached to the illuminance meter using the camera tripod screw. For LENS CONVERTER each of these devices, the arms can be positioned to shade the sun in any direction. Three interchangeable shading disks, of three different sizes (2.2 cm, 3.2 cm, DIGITAL CAMERA and 3.8 cm), can be mounted on the arms. DIGITAL CAMERA & FISHEYE LENS SHADING DISK A Nikon Coolpix 5400 digital camera with a fisheye lens was used to capture the digital images of the sky. To obtain the HDR images and sky luminance distribution, a sequence of 16 exposures, from 1 / 4000 to 8 seconds, was taken, with the aperture set to f / 7.9. Each set of TRIPOD ILLUMINANCE images was merged using the Photosphere image builder METER program to create an HDR image. Before sky luminance measurements, the HDR imaging system was calibrated under controlled lighting conditions. OTHER PHOTOMETRIC INSTRUMENTS A Konica Minolta CL-200 Chroma Meter was used to measure horizontal illuminance, and a Konica Minolta LS 110 spot luminance meter was used to measure zenith luminance. TRIPOD TESTING PROCEDURE Instruments were tested under clear sky conditions. The angular height of surrounding obstructions was less than 10 degrees. 1. Instruments placed on tripods and leveled. 2. Global and diffuse horizontal illuminance measurement taken. 3. Sixteen digital camera exposures taken, each simultaneously with a zenith luminance measurement. Global and diffuse horizontal illuminance measurements repeated every four camera exposures. RESULTS In this example, the luminance values obtained with the luminance meter are relatively stable around an average of 2,560 cd / m2. After processing the 16 digital images, the luminance mapping gives a zenith luminance of 2,383 cd / m2. Average global horizontal illuminance was 7,020 footcandles, and average diffuse horizontal illuminance was 1,125 footcandles. STARTED 4:15 P.M. ENDED 4:18 P.M. MEASUREMENT TIME 3700 N cd / m2 3300 W E Average luminance using meter 2700 S Luminance using meter 3300 N HDR luminance 2700 W E 1300 S NUMBER OF LUMINANCE MEASUREMENT: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 HDR CAMERA SHUTTER SPEED: 1 / 4000 1 / 2000 1 / 1000 1 / 500 1 / 250 1 / 125 1 / 60 1 / 30 1 / 15 1 / 8 1 / 4 1 / 2 1 2 4 8 LM SHUTTER SPEED: NUMBER OF ILLUMINANCE MEASUREMENT: 1 2 3 4 5 7250 fc 7150 Global horizontal N illuminance 7050 W E Average global 6950 horizontal illuminance S 6850 6750 NUMBER OF ILLUMINANCE MEASUREMENT: 1 2 3 4 5 1500 fc 1400 Diffuse horizontal 1300 N illuminance W E Average diffuse 1200 horizontal illuminance S 1100 1000 NUMBER OF ILLUMINANCE MEASUREMENT: 1 2 3 4 5 THIS PROJECT WAS FUNDED IN PART BY THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION’S CALIFORNIA LIGHTING TECHNOLOGY CENTER PUBLIC INTEREST ENERGY RESEARCH (PIER) PROGRAM The California Lighting Technology Center’s (CLTC) mission is to stimulate, facilitate, and accelerate the development and commercialization of energy-efficient lighting and daylighting technologies. This is accomplished through technology development and demonstrations, as well as offering outreach and education activities in partnership with utilities, lighting manufacturers, end users, builders, designers, researchers, academics, and government agencies. CLTC’s 16,000-square-foot research facility functions as a living laboratory for the development and demonstration of emerging lighting and daylighting technologies, providing luminary leadership for the future of energy-efficient lighting. CLTC.UCDAVIS.EDU.
Recommended publications
  • Luminance Requirements for Lighted Signage
    Luminance Requirements for Lighted Signage Jean Paul Freyssinier, Nadarajah Narendran, John D. Bullough Lighting Research Center Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY 12180 www.lrc.rpi.edu Freyssinier, J.P., N. Narendran, and J.D. Bullough. 2006. Luminance requirements for lighted signage. Sixth International Conference on Solid State Lighting, Proceedings of SPIE 6337, 63371M. Copyright 2006 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers. This paper was published in the Sixth International Conference on Solid State Lighting, Proceedings of SPIE and is made available as an electronic preprint with permission of SPIE. One print or electronic copy may be made for personal use only. Systematic or multiple reproduction, distribution to multiple locations via electronic or other means, duplication of any material in this paper for a fee or for commercial purposes, or modification of the content of the paper are prohibited. Luminance Requirements for Lighted Signage Jean Paul Freyssinier*, Nadarajah Narendran, John D. Bullough Lighting Research Center, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 21 Union Street, Troy, NY 12180 USA ABSTRACT Light-emitting diode (LED) technology is presently targeted to displace traditional light sources in backlighted signage. The literature shows that brightness and contrast are perhaps the two most important elements of a sign that determine its attention-getting capabilities and its legibility. Presently, there are no luminance standards for signage, and the practice of developing brighter signs to compete with signs in adjacent businesses is becoming more commonplace. Sign luminances in such cases may far exceed what people usually need for identifying and reading a sign. Furthermore, the practice of higher sign luminance than needed has many negative consequences, including higher energy use and light pollution.
    [Show full text]
  • Report on Digital Sign Brightness
    REPORT ON DIGITAL SIGN BRIGHTNESS Prepared for the Nevada State Department of Transportation, Washoe County, City of Reno and City of Sparks By Jerry Wachtel, President, The Veridian Group, Inc., Berkeley, CA November 2014 1 Table of Contents PART 1 ......................................................................................................................... 3 Introduction. ................................................................................................................ 3 Background. ................................................................................................................. 3 Key Terms and Definitions. .......................................................................................... 4 Luminance. .................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Illuminance. .................................................................................................................................................................. 5 Reflected Light vs. Emitted Light (Traditional Signs vs. Electronic Signs). ...................................... 5 Measuring Luminance and Illuminance ........................................................................ 6 Measuring Luminance. ............................................................................................................................................. 6 Measuring Illuminance. ..........................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Lecture 3: the Sensor
    4.430 Daylighting Human Eye ‘HDR the old fashioned way’ (Niemasz) Massachusetts Institute of Technology ChriChristoph RstophReeiinhartnhart Department of Architecture 4.4.430 The430The SeSensnsoror Building Technology Program Happy Valentine’s Day Sun Shining on a Praline Box on February 14th at 9.30 AM in Boston. 1 Happy Valentine’s Day Falsecolor luminance map Light and Human Vision 2 Human Eye Outside view of a human eye Ophtalmogram of a human retina Retina has three types of photoreceptors: Cones, Rods and Ganglion Cells Day and Night Vision Photopic (DaytimeVision): The cones of the eye are of three different types representing the three primary colors, red, green and blue (>3 cd/m2). Scotopic (Night Vision): The rods are repsonsible for night and peripheral vision (< 0.001 cd/m2). Mesopic (Dim Light Vision): occurs when the light levels are low but one can still see color (between 0.001 and 3 cd/m2). 3 VisibleRange Daylighting Hanbook (Reinhart) The human eye can see across twelve orders of magnitude. We can adapt to about 10 orders of magnitude at a time via the iris. Larger ranges take time and require ‘neural adaptation’. Transition Spaces Outside Atrium Circulation Area Final destination 4 Luminous Response Curve of the Human Eye What is daylight? Daylight is the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum that lies between 380 and 780 nm. UV blue green yellow orange red IR 380 450 500 550 600 650 700 750 wave length (nm) 5 Photometric Quantities Characterize how a space is perceived. Illuminance Luminous Flux Luminance Luminous Intensity Luminous Intensity [Candela] ~ 1 candela Courtesy of Matthew Bowden at www.digitallyrefreshing.com.
    [Show full text]
  • Exposure Metering and Zone System Calibration
    Exposure Metering Relating Subject Lighting to Film Exposure By Jeff Conrad A photographic exposure meter measures subject lighting and indicates camera settings that nominally result in the best exposure of the film. The meter calibration establishes the relationship between subject lighting and those camera settings; the photographer’s skill and metering technique determine whether the camera settings ultimately produce a satisfactory image. Historically, the “best” exposure was determined subjectively by examining many photographs of different types of scenes with different lighting levels. Common practice was to use wide-angle averaging reflected-light meters, and it was found that setting the calibration to render the average of scene luminance as a medium tone resulted in the “best” exposure for many situations. Current calibration standards continue that practice, although wide-angle average metering largely has given way to other metering tech- niques. In most cases, an incident-light meter will cause a medium tone to be rendered as a medium tone, and a reflected-light meter will cause whatever is metered to be rendered as a medium tone. What constitutes a “medium tone” depends on many factors, including film processing, image postprocessing, and, when appropriate, the printing process. More often than not, a “medium tone” will not exactly match the original medium tone in the subject. In many cases, an exact match isn’t necessary—unless the original subject is available for direct comparison, the viewer of the image will be none the wiser. It’s often stated that meters are “calibrated to an 18% reflectance,” usually without much thought given to what the statement means.
    [Show full text]
  • Recommended Light Levels
    Recommended Light Levels Recommended Light Levels (Illuminance) for Outdoor and Indoor Venues This is an instructor resource with information to be provided to students as the instructor sees fit. Light Level or Illuminance, is the amount of light measured in a plane surface (or the total luminous flux incident on a surface, per unit area). The work plane is where the most important tasks in the room or space are performed. Measuring Units of Light Level - Illuminance Illuminance is measured in foot candles (ftcd, fc, fcd) or lux (in the metric SI system). A foot candle is actually one lumen of light density per square foot; one lux is one lumen per square meter. • 1 lux = 1 lumen / sq meter = 0.0001 phot = 0.0929 foot candle (ftcd, fcd) • 1 phot = 1 lumen / sq centimeter = 10000 lumens / sq meter = 10000 lux • 1 foot candle (ftcd, fcd) = 1 lumen / sq ft = 10.752 lux Common Light Levels Outdoors from Natural Sources Common light levels outdoor at day and night can be found in the table below: Illumination Condition (ftcd) (lux) Sunlight 10,000 107,527 Full Daylight 1,000 10,752 Overcast Day 100 1,075 Very Dark Day 10 107 Twilight 1 10.8 Deep Twilight .1 1.08 Full Moon .01 .108 Quarter Moon .001 .0108 Starlight .0001 .0011 Overcast Night .00001 .0001 Common Light Levels Outdoors from Manufactured Sources The nomenclature for most of the types of areas listed in the table below can be found in the City of Los Angeles, Department of Public Works, Bureau of Street Lighting’s “DESIGN STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES” at the URL address under References at the end of this document.
    [Show full text]
  • Spectral Light Measuring
    Spectral Light Measuring 1 Precision GOSSEN Foto- und Lichtmesstechnik – Your Guarantee for Precision and Quality GOSSEN Foto- und Lichtmesstechnik is specialized in the measurement of light, and has decades of experience in its chosen field. Continuous innovation is the answer to rapidly changing technologies, regulations and markets. Outstanding product quality is assured by means of a certified quality management system in accordance with ISO 9001. LED – Light of the Future The GOSSEN Light Lab LED technology has experience rapid growth in recent years thanks to the offers calibration services, for our own products, as well as for products from development of LEDs with very high light efficiency. This is being pushed by other manufacturers, and issues factory calibration certificates. The optical the ban on conventional light bulbs with low energy efficiency, as well as an table used for this purpose is subject to strict test equipment monitoring, and ever increasing energy-saving mentality and environmental awareness. LEDs is traced back to the PTB in Braunschweig, Germany (German Federal Institute have long since gone beyond their previous status as effects lighting and are of Physics and Metrology). Aside from the PTB, our lab is the first in Germany being used for display illumination, LED displays and lamps. Modern means to be accredited for illuminance by DAkkS (German accreditation authority), of transportation, signal systems and street lights, as well as indoor and and is thus authorized to issue internationally recognized DAkkS calibration outdoor lighting, are no longer conceivable without them. The brightness and certificates. This assures that acquired measured values comply with official color of LEDs vary due to manufacturing processes, for which reason they regulations and, as a rule, stand up to legal argumentation.
    [Show full text]
  • Photometric Calibrations —————————————————————————
    NIST Special Publication 250-37 NIST MEASUREMENT SERVICES: PHOTOMETRIC CALIBRATIONS ————————————————————————— Yoshihiro Ohno Optical Technology Division Physics Laboratory National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, MD 20899 Supersedes SP250-15 Reprint with changes July 1997 ————————————————————————— U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE William M. Daley, Secretary Technology Administration Gary R. Bachula, Acting Under Secretary for Technology National Institute of Standards and Technology Robert E. Hebner, Acting Director PREFACE The calibration and related measurement services of the National Institute of Standards and Technology are intended to assist the makers and users of precision measuring instruments in achieving the highest possible levels of accuracy, quality, and productivity. NIST offers over 300 different calibrations, special tests, and measurement assurance services. These services allow customers to directly link their measurement systems to measurement systems and standards maintained by NIST. These services are offered to the public and private organizations alike. They are described in NIST Special Publication (SP) 250, NIST Calibration Services Users Guide. The Users Guide is supplemented by a number of Special Publications (designated as the “SP250 Series”) that provide detailed descriptions of the important features of specific NIST calibration services. These documents provide a description of the: (1) specifications for the services; (2) design philosophy and theory; (3) NIST measurement system; (4) NIST operational procedures; (5) assessment of the measurement uncertainty including random and systematic errors and an error budget; and (6) internal quality control procedures used by NIST. These documents will present more detail than can be given in NIST calibration reports, or than is generally allowed in articles in scientific journals. In the past, NIST has published such information in a variety of ways.
    [Show full text]
  • Sunlight Readability and Luminance Characteristics of Light
    SUNLIGHT READABILITY AND LUMINANCE CHARACTERISTICS OF LIGHT- EMITTING DIODE PUSH BUTTON SWITCHES Robert J. Fitch, B.S.E.E., M.B.A. Thesis Prepared for the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS May 2004 APPROVED: Albert B. Grubbs, Jr., Major Professor and Chair of the Department of Engineering Technology Don W. Guthrie, Committee Member Michael R. Kozak, Committee Member Roman Stemprok, Committee Member Vijay Vaidyanathan, Committee Member Oscar N. Garcia, Dean of the College of Engineering Sandra L. Terrell, Interim Dean of the Robert B. Toulouse School of Graduate Studies Fitch, Robert J., Sunlight readability and luminance characteristics of light- emitting diode push button switches. Master of Science (Engineering Technology), May 2004, 69 pp., 7 tables, 9 illustrations, references, 22 titles. Lighted push button switches and indicators serve many purposes in cockpits, shipboard applications and military ground vehicles. The quality of lighting produced by switches is vital to operators’ understanding of the information displayed. Utilizing LED technology in lighted switches has challenges that can adversely affect lighting quality. Incomplete data exists to educate consumers about potential differences in LED switch performance between different manufacturers. LED switches from four different manufacturers were tested for six attributes of lighting quality: average luminance and power consumption at full voltage, sunlight readable contrast, luminance contrast under ambient sunlight, legend uniformity, and dual-color uniformity. Three of the four manufacturers have not developed LED push button switches that meet lighting quality standards established with incandescent technology. Copyright 2004 by Robert J. Fitch ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I thank Don Guthrie and John Dillow at Aerospace Optics, Fort Worth, Texas, for providing the test samples, lending the use of their laboratories, and providing tremendous support for this research.
    [Show full text]
  • Light Measurement Handbook from an Oblique Angle, It Should Look As Bright As It Did When Held Perpendicular to Your Line of Vision
    Alex Ryer RED Boxes - LINKS to Current Info on Web Site Peabody, MA (USA) To receive International Light's latest Light Measurement Instruments Catalog, contact: InternationalInternational Light Technologies Light 10 Technology Drive Peabody,10 Te11 MA17 01960 Graf Road Tel:New (978) 818-6180 / buryport,Fax: (978) 818-8161 MA 01950 [email protected] / www.intl-lighttech.com Tel: (978) 465-5923 • Fax: (978) 462-0759 [email protected] • http://www.intl-light.com Copyright © 1997 by Alexander D. Ryer All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner. Requests should be made through the publisher. Technical Publications Dept. International Light Technologies 10 Technology Drive Peabody, MA 01960 ISBN 0-9658356-9-3 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 97-93677 Second Printing Printed in the United States of America. 2 Contents 1 What is Light? ........................................................... 5 Electromagnetic Wave Theory........................................... 5 Ultraviolet Light ................................................................. 6 Visible Light ........................................................................ 7 Color Models ....................................................................... 7 Infrared Light .....................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • The International System of Units (SI)
    NAT'L INST. OF STAND & TECH NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology Technology Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce NIST Special Publication 330 2001 Edition The International System of Units (SI) 4. Barry N. Taylor, Editor r A o o L57 330 2oOI rhe National Institute of Standards and Technology was established in 1988 by Congress to "assist industry in the development of technology . needed to improve product quality, to modernize manufacturing processes, to ensure product reliability . and to facilitate rapid commercialization ... of products based on new scientific discoveries." NIST, originally founded as the National Bureau of Standards in 1901, works to strengthen U.S. industry's competitiveness; advance science and engineering; and improve public health, safety, and the environment. One of the agency's basic functions is to develop, maintain, and retain custody of the national standards of measurement, and provide the means and methods for comparing standards used in science, engineering, manufacturing, commerce, industry, and education with the standards adopted or recognized by the Federal Government. As an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department's Technology Administration, NIST conducts basic and applied research in the physical sciences and engineering, and develops measurement techniques, test methods, standards, and related services. The Institute does generic and precompetitive work on new and advanced technologies. NIST's research facilities are located at Gaithersburg, MD 20899, and at Boulder, CO 80303.
    [Show full text]
  • How to Use the Look-Up Chart
    How to Use the Look-up Chart This look-up chart provides a quick and easy way to estimate the potential average circadian stimulus (CS) value in a space using conventional lighting metrics. The following briefly describes the basic principles of the CS metric, the methodological assumptions underlying the calculations presented in the chart, and the way to determine the best estimate of CS that will be delivered to your designed space. Methodology When specifying lighting for the circadian system, more specifically, for circadian entrainment, it is important to consider light level, spectrum (color), timing and duration of exposure, and photic history (i.e., previous light exposures). The Lighting Research Center (LRC) uses circadian stimulus (CS) to estimate whether a lighting system can provide the levels of light necessary for affecting the circadian system. To calculate CS, it is important to know the spectral irradiance distribution of the light incident at the cornea. From this spectral irradiance distribution, it is then possible to calculate circadian light (CLA), which is irradiance at the cornea weighted to reflect the spectral sensitivity of the human circadian system as measured by acute melatonin suppression after a 1-hour exposure. CS, in turn, is the calculated effectiveness of the spectrally weighted irradiance at the cornea from threshold (CS = 0.1) to saturation (CS = 0.7). It is important to keep in mind that the CS metric assumes a fixed duration of exposure (1 hour) and is agnostic with respect to timing and photic history. However, it is recommended that high circadian stimulus be provided during the day, especially in the morning hours.
    [Show full text]
  • Radiometric and Photometric Measurements with TAOS Photosensors Contributed by Todd Bishop March 12, 2007 Valid
    TAOS Inc. is now ams AG The technical content of this TAOS application note is still valid. Contact information: Headquarters: ams AG Tobelbaderstrasse 30 8141 Unterpremstaetten, Austria Tel: +43 (0) 3136 500 0 e-Mail: [email protected] Please visit our website at www.ams.com NUMBER 21 INTELLIGENT OPTO SENSOR DESIGNER’S NOTEBOOK Radiometric and Photometric Measurements with TAOS PhotoSensors contributed by Todd Bishop March 12, 2007 valid ABSTRACT Light Sensing applications use two measurement systems; Radiometric and Photometric. Radiometric measurements deal with light as a power level, while Photometric measurements deal with light as it is interpreted by the human eye. Both systems of measurement have units that are parallel to each other, but are useful for different applications. This paper will discuss the differencesstill and how they can be measured. AG RADIOMETRIC QUANTITIES Radiometry is the measurement of electromagnetic energy in the range of wavelengths between ~10nm and ~1mm. These regions are commonly called the ultraviolet, the visible and the infrared. Radiometry deals with light (radiant energy) in terms of optical power. Key quantities from a light detection point of view are radiant energy, radiant flux and irradiance. SI Radiometryams Units Quantity Symbol SI unit Abbr. Notes Radiant energy Q joule contentJ energy radiant energy per Radiant flux Φ watt W unit time watt per power incident on a Irradiance E square meter W·m−2 surface Energy is an SI derived unit measured in joules (J). The recommended symbol for energy is Q. Power (radiant flux) is another SI derived unit. It is the derivative of energy with respect to time, dQ/dt, and the unit is the watt (W).
    [Show full text]