Make a light guide for a dark room yourself. Solar home lighting via optical fibers. Light tunnel marking

They can turn a gloomy, dark attic into a well-lit room. The use of skylights is an excellent solution for reducing the cost of electric lighting in the attic. However, there are rooms in the house where it is impossible to install any windows. In this case, the problem is solved by tubular light guides.

Tubular light guide system was invented in Australia in 1991. It consists of three parts: a transparent dome-concentrator of sunlight, a light guide, and a diffuser. Sunlight passes through a transparent dome made of impact-resistant polycarbonate installed on the roof of the building and is directed into the room through a pipe, which is a light guide. With the help of a diffuser installed on the ceiling, the room is illuminated with a surprisingly soft diffused natural light. It has been proven that daylighting has a positive effect on human health and increases productivity.

The dome is a light concentrator and allows you to collect light even when the sun is low in the morning or evening hours. Light guides, the length of which ranges from 1.5 to 3 m, are installed in the gaps truss structures And ceiling beams. Two types of light guides have been developed: a flexible light guide and a rigid tube with reflectivity up to 98%. Through a diffuse diffuser, natural light is directed to problem areas: hallway, bathroom, kitchen, closets. System Solatube blocks up to 99% of ultraviolet radiation, which adversely affects human health.

The manufacturer recommends using flexible light guides up to 3 m long, and rigid light guides up to 6 m. However, you should be aware that as the length of the pipe increases, the light transmittance decreases, regardless of the materials used.

A diffuser with a diameter of 25 cm, installed in a room of 14 sq.m., provides illumination equivalent to three 100-watt incandescent lamps, model with a diameter of 36 cm can provide sufficient lighting of the room twice bigger size. The diffuser looks like a regular ceiling light.

Models with remote control remote control allow you to change the lighting, for example, in rooms such as a bedroom. There are systems equipped with additional electric lamp, which turns on at night.

Some models are equipped with a fan installed in the light guide branch.

System efficiency Solatube depends on the time of year, time of day, diameter and length of the optical fiber, and the orientation of the location of the concentrator dome on the roof.

The system can be easily installed in literally 2 hours on any roof. The cost of installing one archway is about 15 thousand rubles.

This is a unique energy-saving lighting equipment that is a full-fledged green technology and conducts natural sunlight through a light pipe through the roof into interior spaces where windows are not possible or there is insufficient daylight. Solatube® systems are the new generation of skylights and roof windows.

Traditional ways of organization natural light often it is not possible to fill rooms with comfortable and uniform lighting without glare, as well as without violating the thermophysical properties of enclosing structures. Windows are always tied to the cardinal directions: for example, a window with north side will not allow you to get enough sunlight, and with south side– we will get blinding brightness and high heat gain.

On the contrary, Solatube® light guides provide energy-efficient, uniform and comfortable illumination of rooms with natural sunlight throughout the day. Especially when the diffuser is located in the center of the ceiling. Solatube® systems do not conduct heat or cold into the room, there are no leaks or condensation.

In addition, providing more natural light indoors has a beneficial effect on the well-being and health of the people in the room. After all, we receive 90% of information through the organs of vision, and sunlight plays a huge role in this process. Therefore, improving the organization of natural lighting helps to increase efficiency even in cases where the labor process is practically independent of visual perception.

Moreover, sanitary standards(SanPiN 2.2.1/2.1.1.1278-03) provides for the presence of full natural lighting in workplaces where a person is present for more than 4 hours a day. Evaluations of the effectiveness of the use of Solatube® CSS carried out abroad showed an increase in personnel productivity by 16%. Workers exposed to natural light are 20% less likely to experience symptoms various diseases and your well-being improves. That is, in addition to energy saving, the use of this lighting technology makes it possible to ensure such characteristics of green construction as comfort and environmental friendliness (since this equipment does not have a negative impact on the environment).

System elements

The system is a light-receiving dome with lenses that capture and redirect the rays down into a light guide that passes through the under-roof space. Repeatedly reflected, the light enters the room through a ceiling lamp diffuser and evenly illuminates the room.

Efficiency

The system's dome is capable of capturing not only direct sunlight, but also collecting light across the entire hemisphere, providing exceptional room illumination even on cloudy days, winter months, early morning and late afternoon, when the sun is low on the horizon, which traditional light openings are not capable of. Installation of systems is possible at any stage of construction and operation of the building.

Light transmission

Solatube® lighting systems transmit light over a distance of more than 20 meters without spectral shift in the range of 400 nm ÷ 830 nm with energy losses of no more than 17%. This is currently the highest figure in the world.

Energy saving

Solatube® systems have energy-saving properties, do not conduct heat and cold into the room and are elements capital construction. Thanks to your technical properties, Solatube® systems reduce energy costs for lighting and air conditioning of the buildings in which they are installed by up to 70%.

Thermal conductivity

The Solatube® system provides good thermal insulation. Her unique characteristics, such as the Dual Dome System, Raybender® 3000 Beam Refraction Technology and Spectralight® Infinity Light Guide Coating combine to provide the most energy efficient daylighting system on the market today, with a U-value of less than 0.2 W/m*C.

Warranty and service life

Solatube® systems, thanks to the use of modern high technology during their manufacture, they have a 10-year warranty period and an unlimited service life. When installed in any structure, they become elements of capital construction and cannot be replaced during the entire life of the building.

Application

The system can be installed on any type of roof in premises of any purpose (from private to industrial and commercial). Solatube® systems have been successfully operating for more than ten years in many Russian cities in buildings for various purposes. The most significant pilot projects using Solatube® systems include:
* Kindergartens (Krasnodar, Slavyansk-on-Kuban, Izhevsk, Sredneuralsk);
* high school No. 35 (Krasnodar);
* Nizhny Novgorod Law Academy (Nizhny Novgorod);
* Ural House of Science and Technology (Ekaterinburg);
* Medical and health complex “Vityaz” (Anapa);
* SKZD Hospital (Rostov-on-Don);
* Sochi Infectious Diseases Hospital (Sochi);
* Station complex "Anapa" (Anapa);
* Marine Station building (St. Petersburg);
* Scientific Adaptation Building and Oceanarium (Vladivostok, Russky Island);
* Administrative building and workshops of the Mars plant (Moscow, Ulyanovsk);
* IKEA offices in the MEGA shopping center (Krasnodar, Moscow);
* Danone offices (Moscow region);
* Offices of “FASION HOUSE Outlet Center” (Moscow region);
as well as other objects in different regions Russia.

The Swedish company Parans has developed close cooperation with scientists from the University of Technology, a system of natural lighting of any buildings using sunlight transmitted through optical fiber.

The device, operating on the sunflower principle, is a light receiver that consists of 36 Fresnel lenses, uniformly rotating around its axis inside a block that follows the sun during the day. Dynamic tracking of light activity is carried out thanks to a built-in photosensor, microprocessor and motors, the total power consumption of which does not exceed 10 W.

The sunlight collected during the day is carried through fiber optic light guides into the building, where it is distributed into different rooms. The light receiver is capable of collecting up to 6000 lumens, however, the amount of light flux entering the building depends on the length of the cables - so after 10 m, due to light loss, the luminous flux will be 3700 lumens. One device is enough to illuminate a room of 30-40 m², external unit weighs 30 kg and is mounted on the roof, facade or mast. Domestic lighting transmit sunlight with all its morning, afternoon and evening variations in color and intensity, but the invisible spectrum, including infrared and ultraviolet radiation, is filtered, thus eliminating both the fading of things and the possibility of a person getting tanned.

The scope of application of natural lighting via optical fiber is wider than when using solar wells, which is limited by low-rise buildings, trajectory and the presence of internal free space for a pipe that is more bulky than thin and discreet optical fiber cables. Additionally, fiber optic solar illumination can be turned on or off with a simple switch that allows the lens to be rotated away from the light. sun rays. Sunlight via optical fiber creates better illumination, allows for more efficient use of darkened rooms, and has been proven to improve people’s well-being, normalize their biological clock, and increase their performance.

In addition, 20% of all electricity consumed in the world is spent on artificial lighting, including during the daytime. Thanks to the solar light system over optical fiber, the use of artificial lighting can be halved, which at the regional and international level means reducing CO2 emissions and combating global warming. This year, the Swedish company Parans released a new comprehensive lighting system that combines daytime sunlight via optical fiber with energy-saving lighting in one device. LED lighting in the dark.

How to reduce the amount of electricity consumed for lighting by up to 90%.

Perhaps my article will be useful to someone, and necessary for someone! There is no production company like ours in the Russian Federation and the CIS, as well as the most developed lighting technology.

Can our activity be called Satrap or innovation, I think so. We have been working in the field of solar lighting since 2011. And only in 2016 they received the status of an innovative company. The research itself began in 2010, and in 2015 we finally released a completely original, proprietary light guide with our own patent.

After six years of research in the field of energy saving, we can say with confidence that the main costs of an enterprise are related to light; they can be both direct and indirect. I’ll explain why: any type of human activity is associated only with light, any... in order to produce something, you need to “provide” yourself with a certain level of light. This can be done for free (but not always comfortable) or for a fee (then you have to pay for comfort). Few people will be able to do their work in the workplace without light, while without heat (not comfortable, but you can work), without water (you can wipe your hands with napkins), without ventilation (work in a respirator), without air conditioning - in the absence of all these systems you can work. All this is part of a comfortable stay for people in the workplace. It is the creation of comfort that makes up the majority of the costs of a building, but in the absence of light, creating a comfortable stay for people in the workplace makes no sense at all.

The number of companies providing this service in Russia can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

Light guides...

There is always a solution. In order to reduce heating, air conditioning and ventilation costs, you need to make windows smaller.

It is important to understand that windows are only a means of communication with outside world. As soon as you neglect this understanding, problems immediately begin, because direct dependence, as mentioned earlier, does not go anywhere. And this situation is typical for architecture.

Light guides will help get rid of the dependence on natural light through windows.

A light guide (or light well) is a ring mirror (a hollow mirror tube) that transmits sunlight and natural light with minimal loss to the target room. The prototype of a light well is a hole in the ceiling.

Light guides are used to illuminate any buildings during the daytime.

Many incorrectly compare light guides with electric light lamps or LEDs. I want to cut this moment off right away. Light guides, of course, can be compared with sources of artificial light, but no one would think of comparing a window with a light bulb, and here there is no point in comparing a light guide with a lamp, but you can confidently compare a light guide with a window.

For example, a window installed in the roof (dormer window) is less safe than a fiber optic.

IN summer time it is impossible to be under the attic window, it passes through a large number of solar radiation. The room heats up and in such rooms they often install an air conditioner, or simply curtain the window and turn on the lamp. This is the whole paradox - people install a window to make the room light and cozy and then immediately refuse this lighting.

Light guide, unlike dormer window is not able to heat the room, but the dynamics of natural light, i.e. what is happening on the street can be tracked.

The window cannot be installed in rooms remote from external enclosing structures (walls, roof). Using a light guide, you can illuminate the most remote corners of your home or office.

A lamp or LEDs can be installed in the light guide and illuminated by the light guide at night. It is possible to make the light guide completely independent of the weather, the street, and electricity.

As V.V. Mayakovsky said

Always shine

shine everywhere

until the last days of the Donetsk,

shine -

and no nails!

This is my slogan -

and sun!

The light well resembles a periscope, the only difference is that the periscope transmits an image, and the light guide only transmits light. The light guide consists of three main parts: a light-collecting dome, a mirror tube (shaft) and a light diffuser.

From a regulatory point of view construction documents- A light guide is a point skylight with a light guide shaft with an end or side diffuser. Unlike skylights, the light guide does not heat the room, does not allow moisture and heat to pass through, and it does not have a heating zone underneath it.

The light guide is like a thermos, completely sealed.

I'll go straight to practice.

The facility was commissioned in 2014.

Below are the main specifications and indicators.

Lighting area 250 m2

Number of light guides 8

Name of light guides SW700 (Ф700mm)

Diffuser installation height from floor 5.5 m

Illumination on the working surface

in cloudy weather 240 lux

in sunny weather 550 lux

Average operating time of light guides

March-September = 12 hours (2376 hours)

September - November = 7 hours (434)

November - January = 5 hours (310 hours)

January - March = 6 hours (354 hours)

The average duration of illumination with natural light in a room in accordance with lighting standards for the year is ~3474 hours.

Working hours for 2017 (in hours)

with a 40-hour week - 1,973.00 hours

Number of installed electric lamps

Fluorescent lamps - 18 pcs.

Lamp power 92 W.

The cost of stopping one hour of production to replace lamps.

approximately 150,000 rub.

Increasing the operating time of artificial light sources by more than 3 times.

General economic feasibility.

Light guides help save more than 30,000 thousand rubles per year on direct costs of power consumption and replacement of lamps

Light guides help save on indirect costs (stopping production to replace lamps) - more than 150,000 rubles per year

Total Light guides will help save more than 180,000 rubles per year

The payback for the light guides will occur in the third year.

The conclusion is up to you!

If the article was interesting for you, I am ready to release a number of such articles with a more in-depth review on this topic.

What made by hand costs about $200, but looks much better! In addition, the chandelier is controlled by a remote control and can be successfully used for information notification.

Note : Sometimes the photos don't exactly match what is described in the step.

Step 1: Equipment and Tools

Sheets of black plexiglass sizes 50*50 cm and thickness 4-6 mm.
200 glass beads diameter 1.7cm;

3 W RGB LEDs with remote control;
Plastic container;

Heat shrink tubes;
IR receiver;
Epoxy adhesive;

Chain;
Transition pipe;
120 m fiber optic cable;

Wires;
Adhesive tape;
Black paint;

Screws;
Three-pin electrical plug/socket;
Lamp socket.

Tools:

Sanding disc;
Drill and drill bits;
Hot glue gun;
Engraver with nozzle;
Saw;
Jigsaw;
Varnish and paint brushes;
Hacksaw;
Plane;
Compass;
Vise;
Plasticine;

Step 2: Wooden Base Top - Part 1

Using a compass, draw a circle with a radius 225 mm. Then use a hacksaw to cut it out.

Sand the edges of the circle with a disc sander.

To complete the decoration, paint the top side black (in three layers).

Electronics :

Let's cut the hole enough large diameter to accommodate a three-pin socket.

Then we secure it with self-tapping screws.

Place the plastic box on a wooden circle. Drill holes for four short 7 mm screws

Let's connect the wires from the power supply to the lamp base.

The photo does not take into account the fact that the lamp lamp is in a plastic box. Because these photos were taken after the project was completed.

Step 3: Wooden Base Top - Part 2

Let's take the chain and cut it into three sections, each of them in length 25 cm.

IN wooden base, drill three holes in 20 cm from the center. These holes, if drilled correctly, will form an equilateral triangle.

Insert a pin with an eye (with a washer on the top and bottom) into drilled hole and tighten it with a nut.

Place the ends of the chains in each loop.

We will install the opposite ends into carabiners.

The hanging mechanism is ready.

The support posts will support the plexiglass plates.

We use a plane and sandpaper to make the surface of the bar smooth.

We will apply varnish to the supporting parts to further protect them from moisture.

Let's make marks on the block every 7 cm(a total of 42 cm), and then cut the workpiece into 6 parts.

Now we will place six hexagon-shaped blocks along the lines on the plexiglass plates between the 3rd and 4th rings.

The last photo is the only picture that shows exactly how all the supports should look at the end of all the operations performed.

Step 4: Perspex Plate - Part 1

Using a compass, draw a circle with a radius 225 mm.

Use a jigsaw to cut out the circle and grinding machine for cleaning edges.

Now you need to divide the workpiece into five rings. They will divide the chandelier, creating multi-level transitions.

Workpiece marking:

Let's draw the first circle with a diameter 205 mm, lightly scratch the circle, then draw the outline with a pencil;
Second circle - radius 160 mm;
Third circle - radius 115 mm;
Fourth circle - radius 70 mm;
Fifth circle - diameter 50 mm.

The width between the marks on the circles is 20 mm.

Step 5: Perspex Plate - Part 2

Circumference of the fifth ring = diameter (5 cm) x π = 15.7 cm. (We round the number to avoid any errors when working with tools).

Diameter of each glass ball 1.7 cm. Therefore: 15.0 / 1.7 = 8 pcs. The ring used 7 balls to create a small gap between each element.

We repeat a similar procedure for each ring, making sure to leave the required gap between the balls.

Now is the time to make marks on the rings where the balls will be located.

To do this (we take the fifth ring as an example), take 7 glass balls, plasticine and attach the balls to the workpiece. After that, outline their outline with a pencil.

Make sure that the pencil is perpendicular to the base. After this, mark the centers of future holes.

We repeat this procedure for the remaining four rings.

After all places are marked, use a drill 0.5 mm Let's drill a hole.

Step 6: Light Box

The light source and receiver are inside the box.

Mark the center at the end of the plastic box. Let's drill a hole of the same cross-section as the diameter of the base. Install the pipe adapter on the opposite end of the box.

Now let's install the IR sensor on the pre-existing terminal. (Sorry, no photos).

Let's cut three wires of length 20 cm every.

Let's strip the ends of the wires.

Let's connect one wire to the lead on the existing IR sensor

Cover the connection with heat shrink tubing and then tighten it with wire (no soldering required).

Let's attach the corresponding wires to the IR sensor and apply heat shrink tubing.

Place the lamp in the light box and close it. Now we can screw the light box onto the wooden base using the screws and pilot holes that were made earlier.

Step 7: Mounting the Balls

In this step we will use an engraver with a ball-shaped nozzle.

Let's make a conductor that will hold the balls (two clamps are attached to the wood). The entire structure is very stable and also allows you to work freely with tools.

Let's repeat the procedure 180 times!!! Yes, I know this will take the most time, but be patient even when some of them break...

Step 8: Cutting the fiber

Exists 5 levels fiber optics

Using a centimeter and scissors, cut the fiber in accordance with the table:

7x - 75 cm threads + 10 cm = 85 cm each;
21x - 60cm thread + 15cm = 75cm;
35x - 45cm thread + 20cm = 65cm;
50x - 30cm thread + 25cm = 55cm;
64x - 15cm thread + 30cm = 45cm.

ATTENTION!: This is the length of each fiber including the ball. In order for each layer to connect to the light box you must add additional length to the fiber to mount it into the system.

Step 9: Install the threads

Let's collect the bunches. For example, 7x 85cm or 50x 55cm will be connected using heat shrink tubing to hold them together. We repeat these steps for all other groups.

Take 7x 85cm thread and pass each strand through a hole on inner ring bottom plate.

You must pull all the threads through one hole! This will allow light to pass through much better and the threads to be mounted in a closed housing.

To make a uniform cut of the end, heat the spatula blowtorch until it is hot enough to melt the fibers.

Step 10: Installing the Balls

For fastening it is necessary to use epoxy resin, not super glue.

Place the fibers in the hole and press everything with tape to make a small cradle for the ball. The cradle should “hug” the ball and take on the weight of the glass, thus allowing the glue to dry. I recommend wrapping it with a second layer of tape to avoid the chance of loss of rigidity.