Effect of Circadian Interior Automobile Lighting on Commuters

Chronobiological studies elaborate the working of a biological clock, “the built-in timing device” in an organism and similarly define the creation of circadian rhythm of a human being. The Suprachiasmatic Nucleus (SCN) in the hypothalamus of a human brain detects changes in the surrounding environment through the eyes and tends to affect this circadian rhythm which in turn affects human behavior, hormonal cycles, sleep deprivation and even driving or daily commute. Melatonin released due to the photopic and scotopic signals received by the brain controls the amount of “alertness” or “sleepiness” in commuters which can assist in improved efficiency and prevent accidents while driving. Since inadequate lighting scenarios can not only affect the optical activity and visual orientations it does also affect the non-visual sensory activities by inadvertently disorienting the circadian rhythm. Advanced research in melatonin induced driving suggests increased sleepiness and low concentration during driving leading to a larger risk of accidents. Thus circadian lighting which is already ‘a thing’ in the general lighting scheme can be used in automotive interiors to control the secretion of excessive melatonin thus in turn re-orienting the circadian rhythm. Blue LEDs represented by certain cove design formation at various wavelengths are used inside the automobile where commuters get to expose themselves to assist their sleepiness readings. To measure sleepiness two standard scales namely “Stanford Sleepiness Scale” (SSS) and “Karolinska Sleepiness Scale” (KSS) is used and cross verified. Exposure to blue light even before the drive activity using ‘Intensity Tuning’, ‘Color Tuning’ and ‘Stimulus Tuning’ is used to analyze and study the outcomes and thus discuss the effects which suggests refined efficiency in commute at low risks.