Lights Leading the Way to Energy Conservation
Remember when picking out a light bulb took ten seconds? You could look the other way and just grab a box off the shelf. Chances are you’d end up with something that worked. Now we have hundreds of makes and models to choose from.
After spending most of my lunch hour in front of a home lighting store display the other day, I finally settled on a lovely little three way compact fluorescent bulb. I was delighted to find that it did indeed fit into my favorite lamp. It’s curly and cool in more ways than one. I figured I had the best that money could buy. Then my friend told me that I should really look into LED lighting. It reminded me that I hadn’t talked about smart lights in a while.
Intelligent Traffic Lights
Researchers in Texas are developing a system which will ease traffic congestion by linking sensors in the road to computer controlled traffic lights. When a wave of traffic approaches a clear intersection, the computer turns the light green. The vehicles all cruise through without stopping unnecessarily. The system saves energy, reduces CO2 emissions and soothes busy motorists.
Road sensors are now also used to continually monitor freeway chokepoints and warn officials of abnormally slow traffic. Transportation authorities can then react immediately to accidents and road hazards. Quicker response times keep delays to a minimum.
Street Light Dimmer Switches
Authorities in Scotland recently installed manual dimmer switches on overhead street lights. They allow operators to dim the lamps when the moon is full. The community saves money because transportation officials now have the flexibility to reduce power consumption by turning down artificial outside lights as conditions warrant.
August 7th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
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