Systems and methods for controlling outdoor lighting to reduce light pollution
AssigneeRensselaer Polytechnic Institute
InventorsMark S. Rea, Andrew Bierman, John D. Bullough
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method of adjusting lighting to reduce sky glow. The method includes the steps of detecting, by a plurality of sensors, an amount of cloud coverage in a region of the troposphere; determining, by a sky glow reduction circuitry, whether the amount of clouds is greater than, less than, or equal to a predetermined cloud coverage threshold; and adjusting, by a light output controller circuitry, a light output of a plurality of light sources to reduce sky glow if the amount of clouds is less than or equal to the predetermined cloud coverage threshold. The adjusting step is at least partially based on a predetermined policy.
Claims11
A method of adjusting lighting to reduce sky glow, the method comprising the steps of:
- detecting, by a plurality of sensors, an amount of cloud coverage in a region of the troposphere;
- determining, by a sky glow reduction circuitry, whether the amount of clouds is greater than, less than, or equal to a predetermined cloud coverage threshold;
- and
- adjusting, by a light output controller circuitry, a visible light output of each of a plurality of light sources configured to illuminate an area below the light source to reduce sky glow if the amount of clouds is less than or equal to the predetermined cloud coverage threshold, the adjusting of the light output of each of the plurality of light sources comprises:
- reducing an intensity of the light output of the light source;
- and
- increasing a wavelength of the light output of the light source;
- wherein the adjusting step is at least partially based on a predetermined policy, wherein the plurality of light sources are streetlights.
A sky glow reduction system, comprising:
- a plurality of light sources configured to illuminate an area below the plurality of light sources and to output a variable intensity and variable wavelength illumination of visible light;
- the plurality of light sources are streetlights;
- at least one sensor configured to determine cloud coverage data in a region of the troposphere;
- and
- a control unit in communication with the plurality of light sources and the at least one sensor, the control unit comprising:
- a sky glow reduction circuitry configured to receive the cloud coverage data from the at least one sensor and determine whether the cloud coverage in the region is greater than, less than, or equal to a predetermined cloud coverage threshold;
- and
- a light output controller circuitry configured to adjust the illumination output from each of the plurality of light sources by decreasing the intensity of the illumination output and increasing the wavelength of the illumination output of visible light of each of the plurality of light sources to reduce sky glow if the sky glow reduction circuitry determines that the cloud coverage is less than or equal to the predetermined cloud coverage threshold.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.