Survey of Design: Making a Lighting Engine for Reading in Bed

Holly Liu
Holly Liu
Nov 7 · 10 min read

November 6, 2019: Exploration

Prompt: Design a lighting engine that supports reading a book while in bed.

My initial reaction was a downward angled overhead light since an upward angled light would not reach the pages of the book. I went out and looked around campus of interesting lighting fixtures for inspiration.

Since the majority of the lighting structure would be constructed out of paper, I experimented with different types of paper with varying layers of paper.

Testing with printer paper.
Testing with tracing paper.
Testing with rice paper.
Testing with three different kinds of sketchbook paper.

November 11th: Alternatives

In exploring the idea of making a light specifically for reading in bed, I knew that I should have considered three major factors(color, unobtrusiveness, intensity of light), but I decided to forgo those parameters and create based on instinct.

I made a few models based on plant forms but decided that they were unnecessarily complex for my context.

Plant inspired forms, illuminated.

I also created two geometric forms because I wanted to explore modular designs that would simplify the making process, especially if I ended up making a geometric form.

Geometric modular forms.

I do recognize that the craft is extremely rough in all of these alternatives. In the end, I think that the geometric forms are the right general direction for me to go in for reading in bed. They distribute light more evenly and are far less distracting of a form to the user. The point of the light is not to be the star of the show — the book is what this context revolves around. Even distribution of light is necessary to easy reading and the form being as unobtrusive as possible is critical for the user to be able to properly read.

November 13th: Variations

Going off the geometric idea, I started to experiment with variations of the triangle based form and different kinds of construction. One of the key things I played with was paper type and made sure to make note of the color of the illuminated paper.

Variation 1:

Variation 1 of the triangle modular form.

This first variation was basically the same as one of the first geometric iterations, but I was more focused on the construction/assembly of the light. In the iteration from the 11th, the construction was completely depended on the slits on the bottom module; in this second iteration, both parts have slits, which strengthens the points of assembly and emphasizes the connection between the two pieces, Unfortunately, the construction of this created an odd optical illusion at certain angles where the form looked offset/unbalanced because the form looked like it was missing majority of its faces. This bristol also has a fairly neutral tone when illuminated, although it does photograph warm at certain angles and situations.

Variation 2:

Variation 2, aka the accordion light.

In variation 2, I focused on a form with a surface with form and working with rice paper. The texture I created would become warped if I tried to make the units too long, so I was forced to create three separate rows of the units and attach them together. The rice paper I used was also a fairly neutral-toned paper. I think that it is appropriate to consider using both the bristol and rice paper together.

This was also my first serious attempt at creating a form that considered the base/screw-in of the bulb. It was extremely crude and not something that I would repeat in constructing other forms.

Variation 3:

Variation 3, framework construction.

The third variation, constructed of bristol framework and rice paper faces. I glued the rice paper faces onto the bristol framework. I think if I ever decide to use liquid glue on rice paper, it would have to be in hidden locations because of the level of warping, which is particularly noticeable on the bottom edge of the paper, which occurs when the rice paper comes in contact with moisture. I think that this form is a testament to how the bristol and rice paper can be used well together because of opposing structural properties and similar illumination tones.

November 18th: Iterations

I decided to go with the first variation(modular triangles) because it showed the greatest potential in terms of successful construction as well as satisfying my three biggest concerns the best. The form is minimally obtrusive but has a pleasing visual presentation. The light would be diffused well by this form because it has the space to allow for the light to bounce around inside the form before exiting, thus making it so that there is no obvious point of illumination form the light bulb.

Points I focused on:

  1. height — 4 in., 6in., 8 in. forms
  2. illumination — rice paper panels on bristol framework vs. completely bristol form
  3. fixing the weird optical illusion

Iterations 1–3:

Playing with height and paper options.

I played with the size of the form to find what was the most appropriate size for something is intimate as reading in bed. Something too large would be overwhelming and out of place, whereas something too small would struggle to fulfill the basic functions of illuminating enough to let the user read. I was unable to come to a conclusion at this point because I knew that the little four inches tall light was far too small, but I was still apprehensive of creating a light too large out of fear that it would become a distraction to the reader or seem imposing once it eas put in the intended space.

I decided that I would forgo the rice paper panels. Although they did let out more light, the tones of the light got drastically different when the panels were larger, as exhibited by the third iteration. I didn’t like this difference in tone because the un-uniformity drew too much attention to the light.

Iterations 4 & 5:

Iteration 4, addressing the optical illusion issue
Iteration 5, also addressing the optical illusion problem.

My next steps were to address the optical illusion issue. Because the triangle-based form created an awkward optical illusion at certain angles, I tried a pentagon-based form and a square-based form to counter the issue with the disappearing faces. It was dramatically improved, although there were still certain angles where a similar problem was displayed where the proportions of the new form seemed to be warped because of the illusion.

From this round of practice, I decided that I would construct wholly out of bristol and use a pentagon as the base for the form of the lighting engine.

November 20th: Design Freeze

As the final deadline approached, It was time to lock in on what I wanted to create and hammer out the final details. Following the previous iterations, I knew I wanted to make a bristol and pentagon based form.

Frozen Design:

I decided that this form would be more appropriate as a standing light than a hanging light and figured out an interior support structure to support the blub and cord.

Following this form, I knew that I wanted to make the base wider to balance the proportions because it constantly felt like this iteration would topple over at any moment.

November 22nd: Craft and Details

Following class, where Steve and Stacie focused on craft and final details.

I played with multiple suggested forms of attaching pieces to minimize light leakage at seams and focus on final details.

Stacie’s fabric-based join; various experiments on final coverings.

I also found it necessary to figure out a way to cover the corners of the forms because there was too much light coming out of the open corners and it showed all of the interior infrastructure which I found distracting and, quite frankly, ugly(see rightmost form of second image).

I was frustrated with the open corners because using flimsy rice paper would get easily damaged and the previously crisp cut edges would become fuzzy and soft, but using bristol in place created too much bulk and dimmed the leaking light too much. At this point, I was considering to just double layer the rice paper corners and dim the light a bit more for the structural integrity.

November 23rd and 24th: Design Thaw

I brought my project back to my dorm to see it in context, and that entirely changed what I thought of the form. The form suddenly seemed far too angular and obtrusive for the given situation. In conjunction with thinking about the corner issue, I decided to change to a new geometric form that echoed the previous design.

New prototypes, 24th on the left and 23rd on the right.

It retained the pentagon based geometric form and was far easier to assemble seams in the previously decided style, although it was far more labor-intensive to create all ten pieces per each form.

November 25th: Final Light Engine

Based on the patterns I created for the two previous forms, I created my final lighting engine using these steps.

Patterning and forming of an individual piece.

My final lighting engine:

Unlit and lit specimen shots.
Lit detail shots.
Unlit and lit context shots.

Reflection:

Right after I finished my lighting engine, I realized that if I added half-inch tabs onto the pieces, it would have been infinitely easier to attach the top pentagonal piece and would have made my craft infinitely better. I’m happy with my form in design, but I’m not happy with the craft. I think I will remake the form for the showcase with the improved pattern.

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