Light shaping for illumination

Abstract

The ever-increasing use of LED as a solid-state light source in general and specialized lighting has pushed the field of optics further for illumination towards sophistication and high precision. In this paper, we provide an overview of this domain, starting with a formulation of the underlying, fundamental mathematical problem, which in itself is not easily and directly solvable. We then describe various algorithms that have been developed as approximations for specialized cases, providing references to the relevant publications. Finally, two examples show the new possibilities in light shaping that have been made possible through the use of nonimaging freeform optics

Designing illumination lenses and mirrors by the numerical solution of Monge–Ampère equations

“…Focusing on the inverse refractor problem, in the paper by Wester an Bäuerle [37] there is a list of approaches, a discussion on practical problems, e.g. extended sources and Fresnel losses, and examples with LED lighting, e.g.…”

Irradiance tailoring for extended sources in 3D by implicit integral equation solution

“…In other words, the point-source (or perfectly-collimated-beam) approximation is employed. However, the performance of such surfaces typically fails when the point-source is replaced by a source with significant spatial extent [10][11][12] as seen by the target. For example, each point on a road surface is illuminated through a large active area on the lens surface by an extended streetlight source, yielding large distortions of the resulting distribution [13].…”