Chroma Lighting
Ulster University

The circadian rhythm governs many daily functions of living organisms, including sleep-wake cycles, mood, rest-activity patterns, metabolism and hormone balance. Supporting the circadian rhythm is especially important for individuals with dementia as they experience more circadian disruptions, and circadian lighting is understood to hold strong potential of benefiting their wellbeing.

Kate’s project involves the development of a personalised indoor lighting system, informed by data-driven insights on daily activity, to help align the circadian rhythm and body clock of individuals with dementia. The luminaire, the light fitting used in the project, can change colour and intensity to best replicate the sunlight-cycle, and the accompanying sensors – which are privacy-friendly – can track activity levels, sleep-wake cycles, and locations in real time. The information garnered from the sensors will help to build a tailored lighting and wellbeing support system.

Kate’s project could provide a huge benefit to wellbeing, both to individuals with dementia and care givers. It could also provide valuable data on how the response differs for individuals depending on demographical factors, owing to the data that the novel architecture will be able to collect. This will only further enhance ability to provide individual tailored support.

Biography

Kate graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Geophysics from the University of Edinburgh, and after a brief break to travel, undertook a PgCert in Software Development at Queen’s University. She is now applying her software development skills as a KTP associate, employed by Chroma Lighting, where she has developed the lighting software and human activity algorithms that her circadian lighting system are built upon during her PhD research at Ulster University.