Huge thanks to Nic Paton, editor of the Lighting Journal from the Institution of Lighting Professionals for including a piece I wrote urging lighting specifiers to rethink what “sustainability” in architectural lighting really means. Check out “Cleaning Up Our Act” in … Continue reading cleaning up our act
Check out this incredible future-visioning video from Bee’ah, a large UAE-based environmental services company. Bee’ah is building a stunning new corporate headquarters with Zaha Hadid Architects, with ambitious goals of being a net-zero energy site, powered fully through sustainable energy … Continue reading bee’ah’s office of the future
Looking through my old project folders, I ran across an interesting unrealized design concept: An interactive retail display for Virgin Mobile. It was a display stand for cell phones that used proximity sensors to trigger an illuminated product shelf and … Continue reading from my archives: interactive display concept for virgin mobile
SharpEnd is a rather unique London-based firm that calls itself The Agency of Things. Focusing on connecting brands and consumers via the Internet of Things, SharpEnd implements a variety of technologies – like NFC tagging, QR codes, camera vision systems, … Continue reading sharpEnd
The future is dim for preset-scene lighting controls We are entering a future where architectural design and its associated technology systems are increasingly focused on experience management as the primary end-goal of many projects. New technology systems, such as digital … Continue reading media-driven vs data-driven environments
Wiliot is a spin-out tech startup based in San Diego and Israel that has developed a small Bluetooth chip that can power itself by harvesting energy from common wireless signals. The chip can be connected directly to certain types of … Continue reading wiliot
Willow is a Sydney-based startup that provides comprehensive digital data management services for buildings. Willow’s primary offering takes a page from GE’s concept of “digital twins” for industrial equipment: The “Willow Twin” takes in all the operating data of a … Continue reading willow
bGrid is an Amsterdam-based startup developing a “smart building” sensing platform based around the Bluetooth Low Energy standard. According to their site: bGrid develops, markets and sells smart building products and services that use state-of-the-art communications technology, with focus on … Continue reading bGrid
Energie IP is a Paris-based startup that is developing a building management system (BMS) based on Power-over-Ethernet technology (PoE). PoE holds promise in architectural projects to accomplish three key objectives: Distribute DC power with inherent IP-connectivity to the thousands of … Continue reading energie IP
Skandal Technologies have updated their website with their new “Poet” system for controlling ambient information in architectural environments. The Poet system unifies sensors, online data harvesting, generative content engines, servers, lighting solutions, and content management into one solution. According to … Continue reading skandal technologies: update
There is a growing opportunity for design firms that fuse marketing and brand experience, systems technology/integration, and architectural design to develop location-based digital experiences. Put these together and it might look like this: Such an integrated agency would be very … Continue reading brand, tech and place
I’m unimpressed by the current hype-bubble surrounding IoT (Internet of Things) as applied to lighting systems. Anyone who has specified lighting controls, or has crossed over from the theatrical world, knows that all of the super-hyped technologies have existed for … Continue reading networked lighting control from the 1970’s: epcot center
In the past two decades, the lighting industry has undergone two major technology-driven disruptions: The introduction of LEDs and the introduction of digital, IP-based networking. Their impact has been profound: LED’s have become the dominate light source and nearly every … Continue reading the disruption to come: finding the next opple lighting
Nexmosphere is an Eindhoven-based startup/spinoff that is developing a technology platform for interactive experiences in “bricks’n’morter” retail environments. To quote their site: Nexmosphere develops products that enable a rich and intuitive shopping experience that will change the way we shop. … Continue reading nexmosphere
Silvair is a San Francisco-based startup focusing on creating a lighting controls platform around Bluetooth Low Energy technology. The three year old startup just received $12m in Series A funding. Seems competitive to Casambi in many ways. I’m hoping all these … Continue reading silvair
Naked Approach is a Finnish research consortium that is focused on exploring a “Nordic perspective to gadget‐free hyperconnected environments.” To quote their site: In our vision, the digital surroundings will form an “omnipotential” environment around the user, providing all the … Continue reading naked approach
Computer peripherals maker Logitech launched a battery operated, wireless smart home switch called “POP”. They’re labeling it a “home” switch instead of “light” switch because they’re promoting it as both a light and music controller, compatible with a wide variety … Continue reading POP home switch by logitech
Interesting post from The Verge on a new chip set from Intel called Joule that is intended to bring powerful computer vision capabilities to low cost, IoT types of devices. The application for using vision systems in architectural lighting control, interactive lighting installations, retail tracking/interaction systems, etc. continues to hold great promise – and as tech like this from Intel continues to drop the price/complexity of such hardware and IP networking becomes pervasive in lighting, there will be a tipping point when camera vision becomes the de-facto sensing standard. Despite the fear of “big bother” always watching, the system capabilities and advantages of … Continue reading intel joule
Xenio is a San Francisco spin-off from Bridgelux lighting that is positioning itself as a “smart” lighting system — firmly in the trendy IoT field. Their beginning product line is pushing a DC-based system, basically adding intelligence to Bridgelux modules. Curious … Continue reading xenio
An interesting development in applying the Internet of Things to an urban scale: A low-cost, low-power, low-bandwidth but wide-range network that is so cheap, volunteer groups are setting up city-wide test networks. And even right here in my home city of Amsterdam! Via the LoRa Alliance: LoRaWAN™ is a Low Power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) specification intended for wireless battery operated Things in regional, national or global network. LoRaWAN target key requirements of internet of things such as secure bi-directional communication, mobility and localization services. This standard will provide seamless interoperability among smart Things without the need of complex local … Continue reading LoRaWAN
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