Luminaire Templates - Concepts
Iso-illuminance templates are composed of lines of equal illuminance surrounding a single luminaire, luminaire arrangement, or group. Templates are used to predict the shape and coverage of the light distribution on any horizontal plane below the luminaires from individual luminaires, arrangements or groups. (At least one luminaire must be above the plane of the template.)
When Templates are enabled:
- Any Design Isolines that are present are disabled to prevent conflicts.
- Templates are created for luminaires located above the Template Workplane Height, according to the selections in the Template Settings dialog.
- Templates are automatically created when luminaires are placed or modified, provided template values have been specified and visibility is enabled.
Luminaire Templates may be enabled for all luminaire Labels or for only certain luminaire Labels. Different luminaire Labels may have different Template settings. In addition, the settings for individual luminaire labels (select By Luminaire Label) may differ from the settings specified by selecting All Luminaire Labels.
When Luminaire Templates are enabled, they are applied to all luminaires for which Templates have been specified, and that are present and above the Template Workplane Height. To change Template visibility, globally or individually, see Changing the Visibility of Templates.
Templates can provide valuable assistance in determining the minimum coverage for a particular luminaire or luminaire arrangement. Traditionally, templates have been used to determine luminaire spacing to meet a specific minimum light level in outdoor area lighting applications. However, the Design Isolines command should be considered as an alternative, as it has numerous advantages over the use of Luminaire Templates.
Template settings are saved with the job file and to the registry:
- New File: The last used template settings (if any) are restored from the registry IF dialog defaults are NOT reset. (See System Settings - Defaults.)
- Existing File: Template settings (if any) used in the file are restored.
Mode
All Luminaire Labels mode (default) – Template specification is applied to all luminaires (same specification for all luminaire labels).
By Luminaire Label mode– Allows you to specify templates by luminaire label.
Settings for each mode are maintained separately, allowing you to switch between modes. For example: You could use All Luminaire Labels mode for design purposes and By Luminaire Label mode for presentation purposes (perhaps different isolines and/or templates for selected labels).
Isoline Values
The values assigned to the luminaire templates are important when using templates for layout purposes. The minimum Illuminance level required is your starting point. If only the average level is given, then the Average/Minimum uniformity ratio can be used to determine the necessary minimum requirement. Once the minimum requirement is known, the following contours are typically used: 1/4 minimum, 1/2 minimum, and minimum. You can then see the interaction of four luminaires (at 1/4 minimum), two luminaires (at 1/2 minimum) and where a single luminaire performs to meet the minimum on its own.
Color Type
Variable: When this option is selected, The isolines will be the color(s) selected. Alternative colors may be selected by clicking in one or more of the color fields shown and selecting a different hue. (Variable must be selected in order to change the colors.)
Same As Luminaire Symbol: All of the template's isolines will be the color of the luminaire symbol.
Line Width
The default line width for templates is 0 (one pixel wide). You may specify an alternate width using the current units (ft. or meters). Wider template lines may increase a template’s clarity against the background when printing or when using light template colors against a light screen background.
Template Extents
The Template Extents setting allows you to vary the grid size used for the template based on a multiplier against the current distance from the luminaire to the template. The extents of the grid = -{extents} X {Distance from Luminaire to Template} to +{Extents} X {Distance from Luminaire to Template} in both the Left-to-right and top-to-bottom directions. For example; if Distance = 30 and Extents = 6, Grid lower left-hand corner = -180, -180, upper right-hand corner = 180, 180. By default, the Template Extents setting is equal to 6 or the last used setting. If the Template Isolines appear to be cut off, as may occur with tilted luminaires, increasing the Templates Extents setting may be necessary.
The maximum Template Extents is 100.
Template Workplane Height
This is the height, in feet or meters (depending on Units setting), at which luminaire templates are created. The default is Z=0.
Templates are always created on a horizontal plane at Z = Template Workplane Height.
Additional Details
Isoline values specified in Template Settings, Isolines Settings, or Design Isolines Settings will be synced with the other dialogs the first time any of them is opened. The exception to this is if dialog settings are NOT reset during start up or with new files, as set in System Settings - Defaults.
If a template is created with many Isolines and/or Isoline labels, it may appear dashed when it is being located or moved. If this effect is unacceptable, you can reduce the number of Isolines and/or labels, or you can increase the Ghost 2D Image - # of Entities Cutoff limit. For more information, please see the System Parameters.
To optimize redrawing times, use templates without Isoline labels and use the same color as the luminaire.
The Isoline labels are drawn using the current Default System Font, and associated font style, located in the System Settings dialog.
Templates are affected by luminous color when luminous color is specified as a color filter (using either Color Filters or Color Mixer).
For specifics on applying and modifying templates, click on the Procedures tab at the top of this Help topic.