The Open Source Energy Network/Pure Energy Systems News has an article about the developments of a company called Sunlight-Direct who are in the process of creating a lighting system that uses a solar collector to intensify the sunlight gathered from an exterior location such as a room and then feed it down a fibre optic cable to a lamp fixture indoors, replacing or reducing the need for incandescent and fluourescent illumination.
The advantages of the system are numerous; people react more naturally to the feel and colour temperature of the sun, so can more organically wake up in the morning as the sun shifts from red to white and then wind down in the evening from white to red, the system reduces the electrical load of businesses and homes so reducing costs and it lowers heat output by only bringing in the light of the sun and not the heat and so reducing air conditioning cost unlike traditional flourescent and incandescent bulbs.
The system is based on a four foot wide solar collector dish that is mounted on a roof or other such clear standing, and a GPS style tracking device that, itself run on a solar cell, aligns the mirror with the optimum angle of the sun. The system can be made to integrate with traditional flourescent lighting panels by feeding into an overhead rectangle diffuser shape or a spotlight directional style, and can be hybridized to mix flourescent light with the natural sunlight to augment the system for when light levels are low in the morning and evening. Because of the hybrid nature of this, the company can even shift the colour temperature of the light through supplementing the natural output and so changing the feel of the illuminated space.
On a residential building solar collector units might be mounted at a south-west corner to take advantage of noon to evening light. Or in a condominium building, early-rising residents might choose to have either first half of the day from a SE placement, and late risers might choose the afternoon sunlight feed. Though windows are normally provided for living-rooms, in very few buildings have the architects provided a window for the kitchen, where natural light would be appreciated for breakfast or supper preparation.
In the future, we might even see buildings designed specifically with more un-shaded roof areas at different heights to make the best use of fiber-optic indoor lighting. The area served by a single HSL 3000 is about 1000 square feet. Though many small and mid-sized homes would get by with a single collector, more units would be needed on large buildings. At current pricing [of about $8,000 USD per unit], this combined cost might cause many buyers to hesitate. However, as more capability, greater carrying distance, more options (see part C) and lower costs come together, the benefits may outweigh the costs.
Some homeowners may not like the utilitarian look of the mirror on the roof, though most people don’t worry about the appearance of satellite TV receivers. Dr. Duncan Earl, CEO of Sunlight Direct, says that about 50% of people are very worried about how something looks, and the other half of the population doesn’t care at all. Sunlight Direct is considering various sculptural modifications of their product to appeal to the esthetes in the market. Presumably, solar collectors could be created with decorative themes like those used for weathervanes, or in abstract shapes. Designer solar collectors could even be licensed to third-party companies, and marketed to high-end consumers and social climbers.
Cool Light on Hot Days: Fiber Optics Bring the Sun Indoors
Sunlight-Direct.com
via Slashdot.org
Where’s that ex-cheerleader, Bush (and his ventriloquist, Cheney), when all the really good ideas come down the pike? Out gassing up the old SUVs, I guess….