Chapter Ten

Visual Work

The design of the visual working environment and the visual tasks which an
individual is required to perform are important because:
• the visual elements of the task effectively determine the posture of the head
and neck;
• visually demanding work and/or adverse viewing conditions may result in
visual fatigue and eyestrain;
• the visibility, conspicuousness, legibility and intelligibility of visual displays
may be critical both to working efficiency and to safety;
• the aesthetics of the visual environment are important for the quality of
working life.

Light and Vision

Units
The principal units now used in the measurement oflight are the candela (cd) and
the lux (lx). The energy output of a light source is known as its luminous intensity.
The unit of luminous intensity is the candela-which, for the sake of simplicity,
you could think of as the output of a standard candle.
The quantity of light energy whichfal/s on a surface, like a wall or a table top, is
called the illumination or illuminance. The unit of illuminance is the lux. One lux is
the illumination you get from one standard candle at a distance of I metre. Some
typical illuminance levels for different situations are given in Table 10.1.
The quantity of light energy which is reflected back from a surface is called its

Table 10. I Typical Illuminance Levels (lux)

Illuminance (lux)
Outdoors, noonday summer sunlight 160,000
Outdoors, average clear day 50,000
Outdoors, average overcast day 5,000
Brightly lit office 1,000
Well lit office 500
Domestic living room 50
Candlelight/good street lighting 10
Moonlight 0.5

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© S. T. Pheasant 1991
 Visual Work 197

luminance. This is the physical quality which corresponds to what we would

ordinarily call the brightness of the surface. But the apparent brightness of an
object depends upon physiological factors, such as the dark-adaptation of the eye,
as well as on its luminance. The unit of luminance is the candela/square metre
(cd/m 2).
The light falling on a surface, and the light reflected back from it, are related by
a constant for that surface, called the reflectance. Hence:
.
Iummance ( d/ 2) illuminance (lx) x reflectance
c m =
1T

(1t only appears in the equation because of the units we are using; if we measured
luminance in a non-standard unit called the apostilb (ash), the 1T would not be
necessary: thus 1 cd/m 2 = 1tasb.) Typical values for the reflectance of some
common materials are given in Table 10.2.
It obviously makes sense to measure the physical brightness of lamps or
windows in the same units that we use for reflective surfaces. An unshielded
Table 10.2 Approximate R¢/eaance Values for Some Common Materials
Reflectance (%)
Fresh white plaster 95
White paint or good-quality white paper 85
Light grey or cream paint 75
Newsprint, concrete 55
Plain white wood 45
Dark grey paint 30
Good-quality printers' ink IS
Matt black paper 5
After Pheasant (1987).

Table 10.3 Illumination Levels and Luminances

Environment Illuminance Object Reflectance Luminance
(lux) (%) (cd/m2)
Outdoors
Clear day, 150,000 Newspaper 55 26,000
noon summer Grass 6 2,900
Well-lit 500 Fluorescent lamp 10,000
office Window 2,500
(average day)
White paper 75 120
Desk top 30 so
(dark colour)
Outdoors at
night
Good street 10 Parked car 45 1.5
lighting Asphalt road 6 0.2