Lighting Requirements for Parks

Parks are places of entertainment and recreation. People go for a walk or exercise to relax. Lighting for parks is important to increase visibility and aid safety at night.

Trees, flowers, lawns, small water ponds and bridges in the parks are decorated with light strips to create a more beautiful and attractive view. However, more light does not necessarily mean a better lighting experience. It is known that excessive light will paradoxically reduce visibility. In addition, excessive light can cause lighting pollution. Besides the amount of light, the duration of illumination should also be taken into account. Parks should be illuminated with minimum lighting fixtures and lighting levels to prevent lighting pollution and energy waste.

Lighting for parks should be limited and lighting fixtures should be placed only in areas that really need lighting. The main purpose of the installation of lighting fixtures is to provide wayfinding capacity. Too many lighting fixtures will cause both increased cost and more energy consumption. Lighting fixtures should be placed in areas where activities are intense and where there is a high probability of accident when it gets dark.

Parks are places where the ambient light level is extremely low. The lighting requirements of parks are lower than most commercial lighting. The main purpose of lighting the parks is to guide the residents and those who want to spend time in the park. A high level of lighting will spoil the relaxing atmosphere. Glare causes visual disturbance. Lighting pollution is harmful not only to human health, but also to plants and animals. The biological rhythm of humans, plants and animals is affected by lighting.

Artificial luminaires prolong the duration of night lighting, but excess lighting reduces melatonin, which helps sleep cycles, which is harmful to human health. Prolonged exposure to artificial lighting can alter plants' resistance to disease and bad weather.

   

Since the parks are located outdoors, the lighting fixture must be able to withstand harsh environments such as heavy rain, snow, hail and dust. Heavy rain can affect the fixtures and water can seep into the fixtures and damage the electrical grid. During and after snowfall, snow may accumulate on the luminaires and damage the luminaires. Factors such as rain, snow and dust are critical for lighting fixtures to cope with the external environment. The protections of lighting fixtures against external environment include waterproof, dustproof, anti-corrosion and mechanical effects.

The lighting system basically consists of a light source and controls.

Source of light

The light source should be energy efficient, long-lasting and low-maintenance. It should be noted that LEDs have a long lifespan of up to 50,000 hours on average and have high efficiency without hazardous chemical content. Therefore, LED lighting fixtures are an ideal option for parking lighting systems.

Lighting control

The purpose of using lighting control is to save energy consumption and electricity bill. Lighting fixtures should be turned off when not needed. Lighting controls are divided into timer control and motion control.

timer control
Time control means that the lighting fixtures are turned on and off at the designated times in the parks. Normally the lights turn on automatically when it gets dark and turn off automatically at daylight. The timer can be adjusted according to the lighting needs of the parks.
motion control
Motion control works with the help of motion detectors. When people approach the luminaires, the luminaires turn on automatically and turn off after a few minutes. Motion control is used at entrances or on trails with lower activity. As a disadvantage, the light may turn off when people do not move away from the detected areas of illumination. For this, seconds or minutes should be determined on average and the time should be adjusted accordingly.
Both the timer and motion control free you from manually controlling parks lighting fixtures. In order to ensure the safety of people, reduce crime rates and provide good lighting, even if the parks are closed, the lights will increase the safety of the environment.