PRINCIPLES OF

ILLUMINATION

Illumination
-defined as the intensity of light per unit
area
-simply lighting, that is, man made
lighting
-Daylight being excellent is not included
-Assuming a night time condition
Electric Illumination
-The production of light by means of
electricity and its applications to provide
efficient, comfortable and safe vision
Lighting Design refers to
2
-The quantity of light
-The quality of light

Quantity of Light
-Refers to the amount of illumination or
luminous flux per unit area
-Can be measured and handled because it
deals with the number of light fixtures
required for a certain area
Quality of Light
-Refers to the distribution of brightness in
the lighting installation
-Deals with the essential nature or
characteristics of light
-Mixture of all the items related to
illumination other that quantity of light which 3
includes several elements

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Brightness
Glare
Color
Psychological reaction to
fixtures
Brightness ratio or contrast
Diffuseness
Aesthetics
Economics

color

Four factors that affect illumination

1. brightness
2. Contrast
3. Glare
4. diffuseness

and

Brightness
-Is the light that seems to radiate from
an object being viewed
-Brightness or luminance is the luminous
flux (light) emitted, transmitted or reflected
from a surface
Contrast
-Difference
in
brightness
or
the
brightness ratio between an object and its
background
-The recommended brightness ratio
between an object being viewed and its 5
background is normally 3:1

If a print on a white paper can

be clearly seen on a light
background, it is due to effect
called contrast. Likewise, if a light
object
is
placed
on
dark
background,
the
light
object
reflects more light and look
brighter although both have equal
illumination. It is for this reason
that office furniture is generally
light colored, tan or light green for
eye comfort.

Glare
-Is a strong, steady, dazzling light or
reflection
-Excessive luminance and or excessive
luminance ratio in the field of vision
There are two types of glare
1. Direct glare annoying brightness of
light in a persons normal field of vision
2. Indirect or Reflected glare is
much more serious and difficult to control; 7
glossy object

Classification of Lighting
System
Lighting system is classified into
four types, namely:
1. Direct lighting
2. Semi-direct lighting
3. Semi-indirect-lighting
4. Indirect Lighting
8

Direct Lighting
- when the light on an
illuminated area is focused
downward coming directly from
the lighting fixtures.
- when luminaries direct 90
to 100% of their output
downward, they form a direct
lighting system. The distribution
may vary from widespread to
highly concentrated, depending
on the reflector material, finish
and contour, and on the
shielding or control media
employed.
Troffers
and
downlights are two forms of

Semi-Direct Lighting
When the predominant light on the
illuminated area is fed directly from
the lighting units wherein the
greater amount of light is obtained
from the ceiling through the
reflection.
The distribution from semidirect
units is predominantly downward (60
to 90%) but with a small upward
component to illuminate the ceiling
and upper walls. The characteristics
are essentially the same as for direct
lighting except that the upward
component will tend to soften
shadows
and
improve
room

10

Semi-Indirect Lighting
Lighting systems that emit 60 to
90% of their output upward are
defined as semi-indirect. The
characteristics of semi-indirect
lighting are similar to those of
indirect systems except that the
downward component usually
produces a luminaire luminance
that closely matches that of the
ceiling.
However,
if
the
downward component becomes
too great and is not properly
controlled, direct or reflected
glare may result.

11

Indirect
Lighting.
Lighting
systems classified as indirect are
those which direct 90 to 100% of
the light upward to the ceiling
and upper sidewalls. In a welldesigned installation the entire
ceiling becomes the primary
source
of
illumination,
and
shadows
will
be
virtually
eliminated.
Also,
since
the
luminaries direct very little light
downward,
both
direct
and
reflected glare will be minimized
if the installation is well planned.
Luminaires
whose
luminance
approximates that of the ceiling

12

General
Diffuse
Lighting. When downward
and upward components of
light from luminaries are
about equal (each 40 to
60% of total luminaire
output) the system is
classified
as
general
diffuse. Direct-indirect is a
special category within this
classification for luminaries
that emit very little light at
angles near the horizontal.

13

Since this characteristics results in

lower luminances in the direct-glare
zone, direct-indirect luminaires are
usually more suitable than generaldiffuse luminaries that distribute the
light about equally in all directions.
General-diffuse units combine the
characteristics of direct lighting
described and those of indirect lighting
described below.
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Table 7: LIGHT DISTRIBUTION OF

VARIOUS TYPES OF LIGHTING
SYSTEMS
Percent of Distribution
Type of
Illumination

Upward

Downward

1 10

90 100

Semi-direct

10 40

60 90

General diffuse

40 60

40 60

Semi-indirect

60 90

10 - 40

Indirect

90 - 100

1 - 10

Direct

15