Matthew Harrison / RCA Industrial Design Engineering
working light: office lighting for an ageing workforce
This design study investigates how office lighting can make the workplace healthier and more productive for an ageing workforce. The office environment currently has significant shortcomings for people remaining in employment for longer. Lighting is a special cause for concern. As eyes age, they become less sensitive to light. After the age of 45, visual ability to do difficult tasks reduces rapidly but suitable lighting for this is rarely provided today.
Office lighting is normally static and has no connection to the day or season. But natural light does more for us than simply provide vision. Its transient nature is linked to our body clocks. New scientific research is pointing to a physiological connection between natural light spectrums and melatonin (sleep hormone) levels. In the initial phase of the project, analysis of new light technologies and expert interviews informed a series of hypotheses about varying light according to time and location within the office. These ideas were then explored through interactive research ‘probes’ with users and observations of ‘a day in the life’ at contemporary offices belonging to Orange and EMI.
The research identified key aspects of human behaviour and ergonomic need and led to the design of three lighting concepts and a control interface as exemplars of emerging trends. The concepts use a combination of algorithmic lighting programs that change the light to suit the time of day, and direct user control, allowing office workers to adapt the working environment to their specific needs. A short film and a web-based resource were produced to share ideas about the project within Thorn and the wider lighting community.
more on the second year of the project
