Smart Lighting Sensor Data

Smart lighting has revolutionised lighting experiences. Over the past few years, it has moved from an analogue state, fixed and old-fashioned, to becoming part of the digital realm. This is a journey that most other media has already followed, e.g. the creation, distribution, sharing and streaming of music and films - the potential lighting holds has been late to be fully discovered by the masses. Our SmartCore platform has been designed to drive forward the future of smart lighting and, ultimately, smart buildings within various environments, including Offices, Schools, and Healthcare facilities.

The ability to integrate with sensors, connect to the internet, link together building systems, connect, respond and react to devices and voice control gives building managers insight that has never been available until now. The main benefit of smart lighting sensor data is the vast improvement of building occupant health and wellbeing, improving their experience for the better, supporting their circadian health, and monitoring various aspects of their environment to ensure they have the very best working/living environment.

Any data that can be captured by a sensor can be built into or communicate with our smart lighting platform, and users can interact with the data via our smart interface. Users can then control variables and view data captured via a tablet, laptop, smartphone, or for a more simplistic level of control via a smart switch (depending on the end-users needs).

Below is a break down of some core sectors we work with and the potential presented with the kind of data that can be captured in each environment. This is not limited to just smart lighting; it also takes into account other sensor data that can be captured and integrated with the SmartCore platform.

Office

An example of data collected could be presence detection within the office - this would save money and make your building more environmentally friendly. Lighting would dim down when there is no one present to save energy, but you would also be able to tell what time employees are entering and leaving the office. This could allow you to recognise and reward workers who go the extra mile and also automatically put the building into ‘night time’ mode when everyone has left - saving even more energy. Furthermore, it can allow building managers to see what areas of a workplace aren’t being utilised and therefore could be used for other purposes such as a breakout area or a wellbeing space. Temperature data can also be tracked, again saving energy by not putting heating or air conditioning on when it isn’t needed. Air quality can be tracked to ensure that it is good quality for employees and improve their health. Daylight harvesting sensors can be used to gather data about the light in the environment; if there is a lot of natural light entering a space, the artificial light can dim down again, making a building more energy-efficient. Voice commands can be used to create a presentation experience quickly, e.g. ‘presentation mode’ could cause the blinds to close, lights to dim and TV to turn on, saving time and increasing productivity and concentration.

Education

Within Education, sensors can be used to improve safety, efficiency, and learning. For example, students could track bus routes to avoid waiting in unsafe areas, and parents too can keep their minds at ease by keeping an eye on their children’s whereabouts. A school in Eastern China has gone so far as to install facial recognition technology, improving the security and safety of everyone within the school whilst also allowing teachers to monitor how attentive students are in class. If a student seems confused or distracted, the teacher can intervene sooner (Rajput 2019). Sensors can detect concentration levels of the class or individuals by monitoring interaction, audio, movement etc. Performance can also be tracked by storing data based on classroom performance at the start vs the end of a term, this can then aid with teacher reports. Wearable devices or student access cards can be detected by sensors automatically taking the classes register, negating the need to manually take attendance, thus saving precious time. Resources and equipment can also be tracked for quick access to schedules, both students and teachers can save valuable time and money. The lighting can respond to sensor data, for example if a class is getting rowdy the lighting can have a calming affect, helping the teacher regain their attention. Simple voice commands or a smart switch can be used to create an exam mode setting to creativity setting. This could involve the lighting changing, the temperature of the room and even audio (music could help to spark creativity).

Healthcare

Smart lighting data in hospitals can be used to improve conditions, healthcare, save money and time and aid with a speedier recovery. Some hospitals have begun implementing “smart beds” that can detect when they are occupied, when a patient is attempting to get up, sending this information over the network to nurses. The beds can also self-adjust to ensure that appropriate pressure and support is applied to the patient without having to be manually adjusted by the nurses (Borelli E, Paolini G, Antoniazzi F, et al. 2019).

System generated images can send an alert email to nurses if there is irregular motion detected. This information could help nurses assess functional decline, provide treatment, and prevent falls (Srikanth RP 2018).

Equipment can be tracked in Healthcare; nurses can see exactly where the equipment is needed, whether it is due to any maintenance and whether it is currently in use. This simple solution can drastically improve efficiency.

Sensors can also detect respiratory problems, looking for patterns and signs and sending alerts to nurses/carers so that the patient/resident can receive treatment sooner. Sensors can also detect keywords and commands which improve the patients experience and safety, e.g. ‘turn the lights off’, ‘help’ - emergency commands can then send an alert to the relevant person.

Wearable devices such as a medical wrist band can also communicate with SmartCore, allowing it to store your preferences, e.g. if you have an eyesight condition and require a higher level of illumination, the system can remember that and set the lighting back to the right level when you re-enter the room.

The possibilities are endless, challenge us.

References:
Rajput 2019. Use of IoT in the Education Sector and Why It’s a Good Idea. https://www.iotforall.com/smart-classroom-technology/, accessed 01/05/20.

Borelli E, Paolini G, Antoniazzi F, et al. HABITAT: An IoT Solution for Independent Elderly. Sensors (Basel). 2019;19(5):1258. Published 2019 Mar 12. doi:10.3390/s19051258

Srikanth RP 2018, How IoT can help in preventing falls for senior citizens. https://www.expresscomputer.in/news/how-iot-can-help-in-preventing-falls-for-senior-citizens/18926/, accessed 11/05/20