Visual comfort and legibility are not the same thing. Visual comfort is the light brightness range between glare and insufficient light. Eye adjustment to changing light levels is described. (Author/STS)

Discusses educational facility lighting management, and examines how light quantity, distribution, and quality-enhancement strategies can improve the indoor environment while reducing lighting costs. Informational tables provide lighting pattern, color, and illuminance data. (GR)

The results of all basic measurements and calculations of reflected glare for different lighting materials and conditions are presented in a series of tables and charts. All basic concepts of a quantitative method for evaluating the visual significance of reflected glare are identified in relationship to different types of visual performance. The…

Using Keene "Director" fixtures, a Rotterdam, New York, school will save over $16,000 annually and have improved classroom light. These fixtures will pay for themselves in 3-4 years, halving the wattage used per square foot; they direct 40 percent of their light upward to provide uniform, glare-free lighting. (MCG)

Relighting classrooms with peripheral lighting fixture layouts increases the room's illumination level, reduces glare, and increases the uniformity of desktop illumination. (Author/MLF)

In order to judge or design the lighting of an interior a person must be able to understand and take into account many aspects of seeing and illumination. Important areas of consideration are--(1) factors that contribute to the visibility of an object: size, brightness, contrast, and time, (2) radiant energy with regard to the visible spectrums of…

Eighteen significantly different classroom lighting systems were measured and analyzed in order to determine how contrasts from different light sources affect the ability to see visual tasks in the school room. Using criteria and techniques established from previous lighting research, the lighting systems are evaluated according to their…

An application method for evaluating the visual significance of reflected glare is described, based upon a number of decisions with respect to the relative importance of various aspects of visual performance. A standardized procedure for evaluating the overall effectiveness of lighting from photometric data on materials or installations is needed…

This interim report informs the eventual user of the direction of the long-term program; specific criteria are not provided. Five current guidelines in lighting practice were disavowed as follows--(1) that low levels of illumination cause organic harm to the eyes, (2) that the footcandle is the best criterion for determining the proper…

Discusses research undertaken to determine recommended levels of lighting for effective seeing. Factors considered include age, veiling reflections, brightness differences, glare, and pleasantness. Also points out some common lighting practices that are wasteful and inefficient and suggests alternatives. (DN)

The role of reflected glare and visual viewing angles in near task performance is discussed, and following statements are reported--(1) a worker at a desk normally assumes a position in which his eyes traverse an area of work extending from a point approximately vertically below his eyes to a point not more than 40 degrees from the vertical, (2) a…

The same form of lighting will not be effective in all areas of a school facility. Factors to be considered include physical and psychological effects, visual requirements, and cost. A chart illustrates type of lamp, output/energy ratio, light "quality," and applications. (MLF)

Provides information to identify and implement the key characteristics which contribute to an efficient and comfortable visual display unit (VDU) lighting installation. Areas addressed include VDU lighting requirements, glare, lighting controls, VDU environment, lighting retrofit, optical filters, and lighting recommendations. A checklist to…

Successful approaches employed by a principal of a school for blind students in supporting regular class teachers of mainstreamed visually handicapped students are reported. Four factors of importance in evaluating the environment are described: (1) appropriate work space (height of chairs); (2) color contrast problems (work surfaces of adjacent…

An experiment was conducted to determine the influence of three variables on the perception of the psychophysical phenomenon of flicker in wide angle cathode ray tube (CRT) displays. The three independent variables treated in the experiment were: 3, 6, and 9 foot-lambers (FL) illumination levels; four images, three static and one dynamic; and 26…