Thinkable Studio

LEDs have a number of advantages over traditional lighting technology, but are not without it's own set of design requirements to work in a commercial setting.

LED lights unlike the traditional incandescent bulb, doesn't radiate out any infrared light, so requires alternate methods to dissipate the heat generated (through convection/conduction). The cooler the LEDs run, the longer the life (to a point) and the greater the lumen output. Bulbs are often oriented upside down (and recessed), with limited air circulation. Most importantly, if the LED exceeds 90°C (194°F), it cannot be approved for the UL 8750 safety standard!

Prototype LED layouts

Pattern and light distribution testing - finding a balance between aesthetically pleasing light spread, compact layout and a optimally heat distributed design.

Early exploration to leverage the existing U.S. junction box installation standard.

Works with the existing standard US junction box and allows for an easy "2 minute install". Many of the components can be pre-assembled off-site, leaving a lean process of only the power supply wiring and mounting bracket installation for the engineer.

Sketch showing the early genesis for trying something a little less utilitarian and more classy - using coloured glass surrounds.

One thing they don't teach at university: 'Sometimes convenience and speed trumps fidelity'. Project schedules don't always allow room for producing high quality visualisations; the focus is often towards creating the actual product. These renders were made in Autodesk's (now discontinued) Imagestudio software. At the time, it was a fast and lean piece of rendering software that produced some good quality renders with little effort. Of course, technology has come a long way since then, we now have hoverboards and personal jetpacks...

The flexibility to angle the light for more illumination options was seen as an appealing feature as well as improving air flow around the heatsink.