Colored Lighting

Colored lighting has assumed a very important position in illuminating engineering in recent years. However, many people are uninformed as to the methods of obtaining color in lighting, and the media which are available. In this paper the spectral limits of the various colors are given, also the relative luminosity of the various portions of the spectrum from a 150 or 200-watt gas-filled lamp. The characteristics, advantages and disadvantages of various colored media are discussed. These media include colored glass lamps, colored glass accessories, gelatine filters, and colored lacquers and spray coating for lamp bulbs. The transmission factors of many samples of such media have been measured, and are given in this paper. The data show that many of these colored media are much less efficient than they could be in order to produce satisfactory colors. The need for standardization of such media is very evident from the data given. Two examples of recent large installations of colored lighting are described, with connected-load data. A bibliography of colored lighting is also included.