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Taking into account the income-weighted population
d
istributions in the U.S., the darker rooms would be
much more prevalent than the very bright rooms.
However, to be conservative, the studies defining
120 lux as the typical home display condition
considered neither of these extremes.
A very recent multi-year study covering homes in
cities around the world has again verified the 120
lux light level as typical, if not conservative.
Findings of this study indicated that the 90th
percentile of light levels studied was 137 lux. That
is, fully 90% of the homes would have light levels
below 137 lux. This study was done over a two-year
time period, covering homes in North and South
America, Asia, Europe, and Asutralia, and included
well over 100,000 discrete measurements.
1
6
In commercial applications, the light intensity of
typical display conditions covers a range much
wider than that of t
ypical home display conditions.
Typical home conditions are clustered over a
relatively narrow range of intensities. Commercial
conditions are not clustered at all, and the
difference between the lower and higher light levels
can be a factor of 1000 or more. The range would
cover museum conditions at 50 to 100 lux to
outdoor displays at 50,000 to 100,000 lux. This
wide range makes it impossible to pick one light
intensity level to represent all commercial
conditions. Using a single light intensity for
predicting commercial print life would be extremely
misleading.
In de
v
eloping the new KODAK PROFESSIONAL
ENDURA Papers for commercial applications, Kodak
acknowledged the extremely wide range of
c
ommer
cial c
onditions. It is r
ar
e when any two
commercial applications, even in relatively similar
display environments, have the same ambient light,
temperature, and humidity conditions. Nevertheless,
various studies have been done to quantify
commercial conditions and several broad categories
ha
ve been recognized.
17
T
hese are summarized in
T
able 2
. B
y establishing t
ypical light levels in the
broad categories, it is possible to provide a broad
e
stimate of print life. A more accurate estimate
would require quantifying ambient conditions of
light intensity and temperature at a minimum.
T
able 2
C
ommercial Display Categories and Approximate
Light Levels
As a guide for estimating print life in the
commercial environment,
Table 3 adds an average
estimate for ULTRA ENDURA Paper in commercial
reflection display situations.
Table 3
Approximate Print Lifetimes for KODAK
PROFESSIONAL ULTRA ENDURA Paper in
Commercial Applications
Not
e:
All light c
onditions assume illumination for 12 hours on and
12 hours off. Thermal conditions, used for the low-intensity levels,
assume 24°C and 50% RH.
16
D. Bugner, J. LaBarca, et. Al., “A Survey of Environmental Conditions Relative
to the Storage and Display of Photographs in Consumer homes”, Journal of
Imaging Science and Technology, 50 (4), 2006, PP. 309-319.
17
D.F. Kopperl, unpublished results.
Approximate
Display Category Light level
(Lux)
Museum 150
Offic
e 450
Moderate-Intensity
1000
Commercial Reflection Display
High-Intensity
5000
Commercial Reflection Display
9
Approximate
Display Category Light level
Approximate
(Lux)
Print Life
Museum 150
Over 100
years
Office 450 35 years
Moder
at
e-Int
ensity
C
ommercial
1000
8.5 y
ear
s
Reflection Display
High-Intensity
Commercial 5000 20 months
R
eflection Display