The Live-In Lab at KTH, with its advanced sensing and digital twin infrastructure, provides a unique opportunity to study the perceptual, behavioural, and physiological effects of lighting, and how these effects can be enhanced to emphasize their positive impact in a real-world setting.

The project PLEXE (Platform for Lighting Effects Experimentation Environments) identifies, designs, implements, and validates new infrastructure components to be added to the residential spaces at KTH Live-In Lab to support advanced lighting-related studies, detect, and adjust lighting qualities in living environments. The Live-In Lab’s flexible environment with daylight access and different exposures lends itself to advanced lighting-related studies with its resident participants.

The spectral composition, intensity, distribution, and the time of exposure of light in the spaces we occupy can have profound effects upon our physiology and behaviour. These effects have rarely been studied in real-world living situations. The objective of the project is to design and test a platform/environment, validated by pilot studies, for the ongoing real-world study of the perceptual, behavioural and physiological effects of light in residential spaces.

The results from PLEXE are aimed at supporting future work on guiding and improving lighting design and housing infrastructure, with the ambition of creating more healthy and flexible living environments. The project combines practical applications with research to contribute to increased understanding of the role of lighting in everyday life.