As an industrial or commercial user when owning a factory, warehouse, gymnasium or an auto showroom, you may at times find it difficult to choose the correct kind of light fixture that can be used for illuminating the high bays in your workspace area. You might invest a lot of time and energy into arriving at a decision on what could be the perfect luminaire for you i.e. linear LED high bay lights or UFO LED high bay lights, and if it has to be UFO LED high bays, what wattage or beam angle must you consider. But, what if you were told that keeping all other things aside, if you just focus on light distribution pattern, half of your confusion will wane off and you will have enough guideline, to begin with when moving towards a great industrial or commercial lighting project?
In this blog, we will first deal with the most intriguing question as to why light distribution is of key concern for any lighting project and then move on to discussing the types of light distribution pattern under the following headings.
UFO LED High Bay Lights: What It Means To Have An Accurate Light Distribution Pattern?
Even before you understand what light distribution is and why you should consider it, let’s also understand why UFO LED high bay lights must be chosen from this perspective.
As the name implies, UFO LED high bay lights are lighting fixtures that are usually available in the market in the shape of a flying saucer, but often also in a square shape, are used for ceiling heights that range in height from 20ft onwards to extend up to 45 or 50ft. Since UFO LED high bay is used in spaces with tall ceilings, this means it’s an intensely powerful light and often termed as ‘overhead light fixture’ to illuminate the task area appropriately and which is beyond comparison when compared with any of the conventional lights such as HIDs or metal-halides.
Now keeping the above in mind, UFO LED high bay lights must be studied from a light distribution perspective. And, so what is light distribution? For all purposes, it’s the projected pattern of a light beam that would be dispersed over a particular area. And, having the right kind of light distribution for any indoor warehouse or an outdoor parking lot means how accurately the light beam can travel from the light source or luminaire (that’s mounted at a certain height) to the area that is to be illuminated.
Let’s move on to the second aspect now.
UFO LED High Bay Lights: The Main Types of Light Distribution Pattern You Should Know.
Type I Light Distribution
Type I is defined by the long and yet narrow light beam that can illuminate both sides of the lighting fixture and that’s best suited for walkways, sidewalks, pathways, bike paths, and aisles. This kind of pattern is great for aisles in retail stores or warehouses. The lighting fixture having Type I lighting is placed parallel to aisles for maximum light output.
Type II Light Distribution
The Type II pattern is less than 1.75 times (or more simply that’s 1.5 times wider than) the mounting height of the lighting fixture and so that would mean if the mounting height is 12ft, the light will spread over an area of 18ft wide. This kind of pattern is most suitable for side streets, walking or jogging paths and wide pathways.
Type III Light Distribution
This type is spread over an area in a manner that’s more of a forward-throw kind and which is 2.75 times wider than the mounting height. This type is generally used for lighting along the edges of an open area such as a parking lot or a roadway.
Type IV Light Distribution
This is the widest forward throw kind of light distribution and the light beam spreads in a semi-circular fashion than the first three types. Mostly used in lighting fixtures that are installed along the sides of a building or perimeter, say wall mounted fixtures. This type is utilized in security lighting or outdoor sports lighting fixtures.
Type V Light Distribution
This type is of the most circular kind or square pattern when the light is distributed over very large open spaces. This pattern is mostly of use in lighting fixtures that are mounted on traffic intersections, roadways or very large parking lots. The light here is evenly spread in all directions.
Conclusion
The above-mentioned points should be enough to get you a perspective into the right kind of UFO LED high bay lights. UFO LED high bay lights are those that usually have a beam angle of 120 degrees for wide area lighting but you must also look for fixtures that have the right kind of light distribution for getting best results in any industrial or commercial workspace.
