A fantastic Chilean goal or a bases-loaded home run is useless if the spectator is unable to properly see the game action for lack of good lighting, a vital aspect in a sports scenario.
By: Héctor Gómez Pérez
Sport plays a fundamental aspect among Latinos as a socializing activity, recreation and as a mechanism to release stress either from practice or from live observation or in the comfort of home, thanks to television.
Sports such as baseball and soccer have many followers in the region: the first of them in Venezuela and Caribbean countries and the second throughout the continent with high-level leagues such as Mexico and Argentina, just to mention two cases. However, other sports have gradually opened up such as tennis, basketball, athletics or cycling, which have imposing scenarios for their practice.
But what good is a court, a track or a coliseum with large stands or an excellent grass if it does not have a good lighting system? To talk about this important industry topic, AVI LATINOAMÉRICA invited Luisa Vargas, manager of the Lighting Application and Design Center of Philips Mexicana S.A de C.V.
Basics
In a project of these characteristics the first thing that must be considered are the requirements of the sports scenario: if the sport is going to be witnessed directly or on television, the capacity of the stage, the distance between the spectators and the playing field and if the level of competition is recreational, training, amateur or professional. In addition to these aspects, Vargas draws attention to something very important within the projects and that is the subsequent use of the stage. "It should also be thought of maximizing the use of the enclosure since these spaces begin to work for other purposes such as concerts, exhibitions of various types, theater functions, among others."
After this analysis, the location of the equipment is defined, which goes hand in hand with the architecture of the stage to determine if poles, roofs, structures and cat steps, among others, should be used.
Vargas also said that these luminaires, regardless of the application that is given to them, must have: energy efficiency, optical control, long lamp life, compact and light body, protection against weathering, easy maintenance and a versatile installation.
A priority aspect in this issue is the height of the assembly, in which depending on the dimensions of the space a minimum height must be respected to avoid that the athletes do not decrease their performance when receiving glare from the luminaires. "There are areas where the use of equipment is avoided, for example in a baseball field you should not put lights behind the home as they would dazzle the pitcher directly, or in football a certain strip behind the corner kick is avoided to prevent the player when running through the band from suffering glare when looking for a partner, "- Vargas said.
What a coup!
Currently, the research topics of these technologies are very much directed towards the quality of the television transmission of sporting events, in the face of the birth of high-definition television. In addition, developments in the designs of special lamps for sports venues tend to the creation of more compact equipment, which facilitates optical control and is more energy efficient from the premise (the less equipment, the lower the energy consumption).
Although the lighting systems vary depending on the sports discipline that is practiced in the enclosure, in most sports scenarios high intensity discharge lamps with projector-type luminaires are used "and more when we talk about outdoor spaces or medium to large dimensions. In indoor or small spaces, some systems with fluorescent lamps are also used," said the guest.
The expert of Philips Mexicana S.A de C.V considered that the main errors and challenges within a lighting project of this type are: the control of glare to the players, the obtaining of uniformity in the lighting and the fact of giving greater importance to the horizontal illuminance than to the vertical one. In that sense he said of the first that when directing the equipment you can easily fall into the situation of directing a luminaire to a very distant point and with this leave it at an angle greater than 60º or 70º, which could cause glare in certain points; on uniformity, he pointed out that in the event that the equipment has a very concentrated beam of light or is very close to the surface to be illuminated, they can generate "spots" or more intense points of light in certain areas; Regarding the fact of giving more importance to horizontal lighting than to vertical lighting, he said that it is an aspect that can affect television broadcasts by lacking the appropriate level and uniformity.
Not to lose play
In general terms, luminaires for sports scenarios must be designed to prevent the entry of dust particles and low-pressure water jets. In turn, they must have designs as aerodynamic and compact as possible so that the wind does not exert much force on them and there are no problems with the poles or structures.
As noted above, the issue of energy saving is now vital in the lighting industry. That is why the equipment is being developed with artificial light technologies that offer the highest amount of luminous flux, but consuming the least amount of watts. The economic benefits of these developments mean that less equipment is required, reducing energy consumption and maintenance costs for lamp replacement.
"The maintenance required by these systems is minimal, only replacement of lamps at the end of their useful life, which is recommended to be programmed and not wait for the lamps to melt," said Vargas and added about some products of his company that "due to its fixing and shoring system, the Arena Vision does not require steering adjustments during the replacement of the lamp. In luminaires such as the Arena Vision or the Power Vision, no tool is required to make the replacement of the lamps. The approximate lifespan of luminaires is 20 years."
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Box
Illuminating venues around the world
Luisa Vargas, manager of the Lighting Application and Design Center of Philips Mexicana S.A de C.V, said that one of the most used systems around the world for the lighting of sports venues is the Philips Arena Vision, which is a technology developed for metal additive lamps from 1000 to 2000 watts. According to Vargas, it has been used in more than 70% of the sports complexes destined for international events such as: FIFA World Cups, Olympic Games, European Championships, Friendship Games, Asian Games, among others.
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