Surveillance Technology Behind Beautiful and Energy Efficient Street Lighting · 15. February 2012
Danish lighting companies and a multidisciplinary research group at Aalborg University have used the winter darkness to experiment with new technology that can make the lighting of streets and squares more intelligent, interesting and energy efficient.
The first test with heat-sensitive cameras, adjustable LED lamps and specially developed software was in late January and early February, in the centrally located John F. Kennedy Square in front of the railway station in Aalborg. The square thus came to serve as a showcase and test laboratory, and the experience in Aalborg will be followed up with similar experiments elsewhere in the country.
Companies like Riegens, Teamtronic and Alfred Priess provide equipment and know-how to the project, while a multidisciplinary group of urban space architects, programmers, electronics and computer vision experts have worked together to develop the necessary tools for controlling the intelligent lighting.
- We cover an entire section of a city, and in that way, interested municipalities and other investors can experience the qualities of dynamic lighting before investing in large systems. At the same time, we at the university are studying how the different effect lighting scenarios are experienced, explains architect Esben Skouboe Poulsen. He directs the experiments as part of his PhD research at Aalborg University's Department of Architecture, Design and Media Technology.
Esben Skouboe Poulsen also used some of the cold evenings in the square in Aalborg to survey the curious passersby about their experiences with the unusual street lights, and the feedback will be included in further work on the project.
Heat-sensitive Cameras
The alternating light from 16 lamps comprises the visible part of the setup, but the researchers’ focus is largely on everything behind it feeding the system with input about users' movements and translating that information into appropriate lighting. In conjunction with the lighting company Teamtronic, the researchers have developed new control technology that can control larger, outdoor lighting via the power grid. The technology is usually only used in indoor lighting.
- Analyses of recordings from the heat-sensitive cameras show us how the square is being used, while weather conditions and energy consumption are monitored. We cannot see who is moving, but we can see staying times, speed and groupings in the square. We can use all of that as input for the design of the light, so for example, it’s made stronger in the area around the users. We can also create cold, strong lighting on footpaths and warmer lighting in the places where people are staying longer. It makes for more differentiated lighting of urban space that is changeable over time and it will make it more exciting to be in the square, says Esben Skouboe Poulsen.
The project is backed by the nationwide innovation network Danish Lighting that, with support from the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation, is dedicated to making Danish lighting companies global leaders. Conclusions from the project will also help to inspire urban planners and architects who can, for example, gain a better understanding of the use of city squares.
Further information:
• Partners in the project are Danish Lighting Innovation Network, Riegens, Teamtronic, Alfred Priess and Aalborg University’s Dept of Architecture, Design and Media Technology. Learn more at the project’s website.
• Esben Skouboe Poulsen, Architect, PhD student, mobile +45 4047 7374, mail: espo@create.aau.dk.
