Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - 60

SPINOFF
N
ASA-funded research to understand
how light affects humans and plants
has had benefits far beyond space. It has
helped develop biologically oriented LED
technology for everyday life on Earth.
When the fluorescent lighting fixtures
on the space station needed to be
replaced in 2011, NASA looked to the
growing field of solid-state light-emitting
diodes (LEDs). Solid-state means
that there's no physical reaction creating
light, unlike an incandescent bulb or fluorescent
plasma.
Researchers at National Space Biomedical
Research Institute and engineers
at NASA's Kennedy Space Center
in Florida worked together on the Solid-State
Lighting Assembly (SSLA) for
the International Space Station. The
lamp module was primarily built by Bionetics
Corporation, which also had labs
and manufacturing facilities on-site at
Kennedy. The new lighting modules, installed
in 2016, consumed far less energy
and emitted far less heat than previous
fluorescent lighting on the station.
The change paid off, as astronauts
reported feeling better-rested. LED
modules also helped in plant-growth experiments
on the space station, with the
lights providing the right wavelengths
for photosynthesis.
Lessons learned from the space station
lighting modules soon made their
way onto the market. After completing
the initial system, several members of the
Bionetics team moved to another company
called Lighting Science to keep
working on solid-state lighting.
The company developed a wide
range of bulbs that reflected the NASA
research for human health and plant
growth. In 2018, Lighting Science spun
off several companies, each developing
technologies based on the original circadian
LEDs.
Healthe Inc. of Orlando, FL, was one
of the first. The company's primary market
is in LED bulbs designed for keeping
circadian rhythms in check.
60
Spinoff is NASA's annual publication featuring
successfully commercialized NASA technology. This
commercialization has contributed to the development
of products and services in the fields of health and
medicine, consumer goods, transportation, public safety,
computer technology, and environmental resources.
LED Lighting Beyond Space
NASA's lighting research gives people on Earth better rest and helps plants grow.
Designed to replace existing fluorescent fixtures,
the Solid-State Lighting Assembly (SSLA) was installed
on the International Space Station in 2016
and helped astronauts maintain their circadian
rhythms. (Photo: NASA)
One product line, the GoodDay
and GoodNight bulbs, is based off older
designs originally made by Lighting
Science, specifically tuned to emit
wavelengths to induce wakefulness and
sleepiness. Another line, called SunTrac,
can be paired to an app or an outside
light meter that automatically adjusts the
light throughout the day.
More recently, Healthe began using its
technology to assist in decontamination
and air filtration. Designed to fit into a
standard ceiling lighting grid, these systems
use ultraviolet light, which inactivates
pathogens, paired with a fan and
filter. Instead of bathing a room in UV
light, the units suck in air through an intake
and into an internal chamber, where
it's blasted with rays in the shortest, most
potent range of ultraviolet wavelengths,
known as UVC. The air is then filtered
before it comes out into the room. Healthe
has installed its UV systems in buildings
that, since the COVID-19 pandemic
started, have been looking to expand
their santization protocols.
Another Lighting Science spinoff that
has capitalized on that company's experience
working with NASA is VividGro
of Chicago, IL, which primarily sells to
industrial cultivators.
This technology also has its origins in
the LED lighting designed for the space
station. Like the space station lighting
array they're derived from, VividGro's
lamps use specific wavelengths to inwww.techbriefs.com
Engineers
who worked on the SSLA went on to
work for Lighting Science, which spun off several
firms. Healthe continues to make adjustable
LED circadian rhythm lights. (Photo: Healthe)
Plants flourish under certain kinds of light, so
LED systems made by VividGro provide the
right kind of lighting for industrial cultivators
of plants and vegetables. (Photo: GroAdvisor)
duce biological reactions in living organisms.
Instead of managing human biorhythms,
however, they're tuned exactly
to the right frequencies to power plant
metabolism.
The company's FlowerMax line is intended
to provide for flowering plants,
while the VegMax lights are designed
for growing vegetables like lettuce. In
2021, the company was acquired by
AgTech Holdings, and its products are
exclusively distributed by the controlled
environment agriculture company
GroAdvisor.
Visit https://spinoff.nasa.gov/lighting-ina-bottle.
Tech
Briefs, March 2022
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2/15/22 2:54 PM
https://spinoff.nasa.gov/lighting-in-a-bottle https://spinoff.nasa.gov/lighting-in-a-bottle http://www.techbriefs.com http://info.hotims.com/82319-780

Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022

Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Intro
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sponsor
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Cov1
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Cov2
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - 1
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Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Cov3
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Cov4
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-Cov1
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-Cov2
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-1
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-2
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-3
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-4
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Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-24
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Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-27
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-28
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-Cov3
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - PIT-Cov4
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-Cov1
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-Cov2
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-1
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-2
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-3
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-4
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Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-7
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-8
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Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-11
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Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-18
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-19
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-20
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-21
Tech Briefs Magazine - March 2022 - Sensor-Cov4
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