Lighting design method and apparatus

Abstract

Disclosed is a method for lighting design, comprising: receiving a lighting scene definition specifying illumination requirements, receiving a set of light points, each specifying a position for placing a luminaire that fulfills a portion of the illumination requirements, receiving a set of luminaire product definitions, each specifying a luminaire product and light characteristics, determining a set of luminaire settings, each associated with a light point and a luminaire product definition, each luminaire setting specifying the impact of a luminaire and located at the respective light point, receiving an optimization objective for selecting a subset of luminaire settings, receiving illumination constraints that the luminaires associated with the subset of luminaire settings need to fulfill when illuminating the lighting scene, and selecting the subset of luminaire settings that matches the optimization objective under the received illumination constraints. The disclosure further relates to an apparatus and to a computer-readable storage medium.

Description

[0001]ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025LIGHTING DESIGN METHOD AND APPARATUS CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority of European Patent Application No.24180069.7, filed 4 June 2024. FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates to lighting design, particularly to software that supportsthe process of modelling the selection and placement of luminaires to realize a given lighting scenery. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION US 11,657,190 B2 discloses a conventional approach of designing a lighting installation. A platform with a lighting design environment provides a visualrepresentation of a lighting space. A graphical user interface allows the user to selectand place lighting space objects and lighting objects. The platform renders the resulting lighting scenery.There are several lighting design software application, e.g. Dialux, Relux or AGI32,on the market. All of them share the same conventional approach, where the usersets up a specific three-dimensional lighting scene. The scene is typically comprisedby two-dimensional or three-dimensional geometries, calculation areas andcalculation points, and one or more light sources defined by a position, anorientation, and a specific emission characteristic. The software then calculates theresulting photometric quantities and provides renderings.Some of the software applications have a simplified optimization functionality forstreets where one or more parameters, e.g. pole distance and light point height, are scanned and the results are saved for each parameter set. ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025CN 115438399 A discloses a lamp distribution method. The method comprises the following steps: constructing or obtaining a site three-dimensional model; constructing a virtual lamp; automatically arranging the virtual lamps in the site three- dimensional model, and generating a plurality of virtual lamp layouts; performing automatic lamp supplementing on the plurality of virtual lamp layouts; and automatically selecting one virtual lamp layout from the plurality of virtual lamp layouts after lamp supplement. According to the automatic lamp arrangement method, manual participation is not needed, light arrangement is based on a physical simulation engine. The lamp distribution method according to CN 115438399 A is limited to lamps ofone particular lamp type that are placed with a particular spacing from a givenstarting point of a fixed lamp layout. In order to obtain a lamp distribution fulfilling given illumination constraints, the lamp distribution method according to CN 115438399 A requires multiple runs in the sense of a brute force approach. CN115438399 A fails to teach the use of a generic algorithm for lighting design wherepotential lamp types and placement layout parameters form part of equations to be solved. US 2022 / 0027532 A1 discloses a computer implemented method for illumination planning that includes providing a floorplan having at least one lighting space; and assigning functions to the at least one lighting space. The lighting space and functions assigned to the lighting space of the floorplan are matched to a historical lighting schema. A lighting layout is extracted from the historical lighting schema and matched to the lighting space. A light package is extracted from the historical lighting schema and matched to the lighting space. A calculation of lighting performance for the lighting layout and the light package that has been matched to the lighting space is conducted to determine whether the lighting performance meets a lighting standard or whether the lighting performance does not meet the lighting standard. The method for illumination planning according to US 2022 / 0027532 A1 is based ona heuristic approach. It relies on historical data and tries to match the requestedlighting scene to a lighting scene that is in the historical data. ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025Schwarz, Michael et al.: "Procedural Design of Exterior Lighting for Building with Complex Constraints", ACM TRANSACTIONS ON GRAPHICS, ACM, NY, US, vol. 33, no.5, 23 September 2014, pages 1-16, XP058054291, discloses a system for the lighting design of procedurally modeled buildings. The design is procedurally specified as part of the ordinary modeling workflow by defining goals for the illumination that should be attained and locations where luminaires may be installed to realize these goals. Additionally, constraints can be modeled that make thearrangement of the installed luminaires respect certain aesthetic and structuralconsiderations. From there, the system automatically generates a lighting solution for any concrete model instance. The underlying, intricate joint optimization and constraint satisfaction problem is approached with a stochastic scheme that operates directly in the complex subspace where all constraints are observed. To navigate this subspace efficaciously, the actual lighting situation is taken into account.Schwarz et al. uses a stochastic approach. This approach is inefficient as it does notuse the knowledge of the functions that provide illumination constraints and objective. OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIt would be desirable to provide an efficient method for lighting design were thelighting designer defines illumination constraints to be fulfilled and the lighting design environment automatically provides an optimized selection and placement ofluminaires that fulfils the illumination constraints in an analytic manner.In other words, the present disclosure suggests to reverse the conventional processof lighting design where the designer selects and places luminaires until the renderedlighting scenery matches the expectations of the designer by efficiently optimizing thelighting scene according to given illumination requirements without relying on bruteforce calculations or stochastic selections. It is the gist of the present disclosure tostart from defining illumination requirements for a lighting scene and illumination constraints by using illumination response functions to provide an mathematical translation of the lighting design problem to be optimized into analytic objective and ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025constraint functions such that the selection and placement of luminaires is the output of the claimed method. The invention is defined by the independent claims. The dependent claims concern optional features of some embodiments of the invention. According to a first aspect of the disclosure, a method for lighting design is provided, comprising: receiving a lighting scene definition, the lighting scene definition specifying illumination requirements of a lighting scene, receiving a set of light points, each light point of the set of light points specifying a position for placing a luminaire that fulfills at least a portion of the illumination requirements of the lighting scene, receiving a set of luminaire product definitions, each luminaire product definition of the set of luminaire product definitions specifying a luminaire product and corresponding light characteristics, determining a set of luminaire settings, each luminaire setting associated with a particular light point from the set of light points and a particular luminaire product definition from the set of luminaire product definitions, each luminaire setting specifying the impact of a luminaire according to the respective luminaire product definition and located at the respective light point on illuminating the lighting scene, receiving an optimization objective for selecting a subset of luminaire settings from the set of luminaire settings, receiving one or more illumination constraints that the luminaires associated with the subset of luminaire settings need to fulfill when illuminating the lighting scene, and selecting the subset of luminaire settings that matches the optimization objective under the received one or more illumination constraints. Once the subset of luminaire settings is selected, the method causes a lighting scene to be set up according to the selected subset of luminaire settings, thereby making use of the identified solution that fulfils the illumination requirements.In some embodiments, the optimization objective is twice continuously differentiable.In preferred embodiments of the present disclosure, the optimization objective islinear. This enables the use of efficient nonlinear solvers. A special case of twicecontinuously differentiable problems is a linear problem, i.e., the second derivative of ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025involved functions are all zero. If the function representing the optimization objective and the functions representing constraints are linear, the second derivative of all these functions is zero. In this case, a found optimum is known to be the global optimum as such a scenario represents a convex problem. The lighting scene definition specifies an area to be illuminated according to theillumination requirements of the lighting scene. As used herein, an area is referred toas calculation area to indicate that a lighting design is calculated for the area. Furthermore, when referring to an area throughout the embodiments, the area may also be understood as a plurality of areas to be illuminated, i.e. the area does not necessarily need to be contiguous. In other words, a lighting scene definition mayspecify one or more areas to be illuminated.As used herein throughout all embodiments, the term “illumination” and “illuminatingthe lighting scene” is not limited to a particular way of quantizing the illumination. These terms include all kinds of photometric measurements and constraints, including luminous flux, light intensity, illuminance, and luminance. When specifying the impact of a luminaire or specifying illumination constraints, the associatedillumination values may be defined, for example, in Lumen, Candela, Lux, Candelaper square meter, and the like.In some embodiments, where the lighting scene definition specifies an area to beilluminated according to the illumination requirements of the lighting scene, the position of a light point represents a location in space where a luminaire can beplaced for illuminating at least a portion of the area. In some embodiments, thespecified light point represents a position in space where a luminaire can be mounted. In other words, the specified light point may imply a particular mounting height of the luminaire relative to the area. In some embodiments, the specified light point indicates an axis along which a luminaire may be positioned such that the actual position of a luminaire in space is defined by the position of the light point plus an offset relative to a particular levelalong a particular axis, for example a height relative to a ground level measured ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025along an axis perpendicular to the area. Preferably, the height is indicative of thedistance of the respective light point to its projection onto the area (=ground) along avertical axis. In such embodiments, each different height may be considered bydefining an individual luminaire setting in which the respective height of the luminaire to be mounted is reflected.Preferably, the area is a planar area. In some embodiments, the planar area isarranged perpendicular to the vertical axis along which luminaires are to be arrangedat a respective height relative to the planar area.In some embodiments, each luminaire setting further specifies an orientation of therespective luminaire, the orientation having an impact on the luminaire as how to illuminate the area of the lighting scene. In these embodiments, determining the set of luminaire settings comprises determining, for one or more combinations of (i) a light point from the set of light points and (ii) a luminaire product definition from the set of luminaire product definitions, luminaire settings of different orientations. In some embodiments, the orientation of a luminaire includes at least one of a horizontal orientation, referred to as rotation, and a vertical orientation, referred to astilt, wherein the orientation may indicate the main direction of light emission.As used throughout the entire specification, a luminaire setting defines one way for aluminaire, mounted at an associated light point, to illuminate the area. The luminairesetting may include mounting attributes like rotation and tilt. The luminaire setting may also include a particular height if the light point is defined as excluding heightinformation. These mounting attributes of a luminaire setting are associated with theluminaire product definition that reflects the light characteristics of the chosenluminaire. In some embodiments, particular mounting attributes may also be incorporated into the luminaire product definition, for example, a particular tilt, especially when the luminaire is considered to be mounted with a fixed tilt. The present disclosure is not limited to a particular split of parameters to be included in the luminaire product definition or in the mounting attributes of a luminaire setting. At the end, the luminaire setting represents a particular parameter set leading to a ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025particular lighting condition irrespective whether a parameter is considered as product relevant and therefore primarily associated with a luminaire product definition which in turn is incorporated into a luminaire setting or whether a parameter isdirectly part of a luminaire setting, for example because of being mounting relevant.The area to be illuminated in the lighting scene is defined by a set of calculation points located within the area, each of the calculation points specifying a location in the area of the lighting scene for which the impact on illuminating the area is determined. In some embodiments, the geometry of the lighting scene is provided as a two- dimensional map, for example, in DXF or DWG format. The map file preferably has one layer for defining one or more areas to be illuminated and one layer for light points. Each of these two layers needs to have at least one object. The one or more areas are defined each by a closed polygon. The one or more light points may be defined by a point, a circle, or a rectangle. If the light point is defined by a circle or a rectangle, the center point is assumed to be the light point. Additional geometries likebuilding plans, streets, parking lots and sports field lines can be loaded in abackground layer for visualization improvements. Receiving one or more illumination constraints comprises determining, for each luminaire setting of the set of luminaire settings and for each calculation point of the set of calculation points, an illumination response function dependent on the number of luminaires associated with the respective luminaire setting at the respective calculation point, and determining, for each calculation point of the set of calculation points, a total response function by combining the illumination response functions over all luminaire settings of the set of luminaire settings at the respective calculation point. Due to the usage of illumination response functions, the constraints can be defined in an analytic manner. In some embodiments, one or more of the constraints, preferably all constraints, are twice continuously differentiable. In preferred embodiments of the present disclosure, not only the optimization objective but also all of the constraints ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025are twice continuously differentiable. In some embodiments, one or more constraints, preferably all constraints, are linear. In preferred embodiments of the present disclosure, not only the optimization objective but also all of the constraints are linear.In the latter case, standard linear or nonlinear solvers can be used for theoptimization. In this way, the optimization problem can be solved in a time efficient manner as compared to following a stochastic approach, let alone brute force calculations of target lighting scenes.A further effect of the analytical modeling is that the constraints are handled directlyby the solver and are not just part of the function representing the optimization objective as it is the case for stochastic approaches. Therefore all found solutions will fulfill the illumination requirements.The analytic approach to define a lighting scene by solving an optimization problemis typically described as a mixed-integer optimization problem and can be addressed using both linear (MILP) and nonlinear (MINLP) solvers. MILP solvers apply branch- and-bound or branch-and-cut algorithms to efficiently explore combinations of integer variables under linear constraints, while MINLP solvers like Bonmin and Couenne extend these techniques by solving nonlinear subproblems using methods such as interior-point algorithms and convex relaxations; allowing them to handle more complex, nonconvex models and, in the case of Couenne, to search for globally optimal solutions. As used herein, the one or more illumination constraints may comprise constraints determined separately for horizontal and vertical illuminances. In some embodiments, receiving one or more illumination constraints further comprises defining a constraint of minimum illumination by specifying a minimum illumination for the total response function at each calculation point of the set ofcalculation points. Preferably, the constraint of minimum illumination is a lower boundto be fulfilled. In some embodiments, receiving one or more illumination constraints further comprises defining a constraint of average illumination by specifying an average ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025illumination for the total response function over all calculation points of the set ofcalculation points. Preferably, the constraint of average illumination is a lower boundto be fulfilled. In some embodiments, receiving one or more illumination constraints further comprises defining a constraint of a first uniformity for the total response function at each calculation point of the set of calculation points, the first uniformity specifying a ratio of minimum illumination to average illumination, each of the minimumillumination and the average illumination determined over all calculation points of theset of calculation points. Preferably, the constraint of first uniformity is a lower boundto be fulfilled. In some embodiments, receiving one or more illumination constraints further comprises defining a constraint of maximum illumination by specifying a maximum illumination for the total response function at each calculation point of the set ofcalculation points. Preferably, the constraint of maximum illumination is an upperbound to be fulfilled. In some embodiments, receiving one or more illumination constraints further comprises defining a constraint of a second uniformity for the total response function at each calculation point of the set of calculation points, the second uniformity specifying a ratio of minimum illumination to maximum illumination, each of theminimum illumination and the maximum illumination determined over all calculationpoints of the set of calculation points. Preferably, the constraint of second uniformityis a lower bound to be fulfilled. In some embodiments, one or more of the aforementioned constraints are combined, i.e. that a plurality of the aforementioned constraints need to be fulfilled. In one embodiment, two constraints need to be fulfilled, for example the minimum illumination constraint and the average illumination constraint. In another embodiment, three constraints need to be fulfilled, for example, the minimum illumination constraint, the average illumination constraint, and one of the uniformity illumination constraints. ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025Receiving an optimization objective for selecting a subset of luminaire settings from the set of luminaire settings comprises determining, for each luminaire setting of the set of luminaire settings, a cost function that represents the optimization objective, the cost function being dependent on the number of luminaires associated with each luminaire setting. Selecting the subset of luminaire settings that matches the optimization objective comprises minimizing a combination over all determined cost functions, and determining, for each cost function in the minimized combination over all determined cost functions, the numbers of luminaires associated with the luminaire setting that corresponds to the respective cost function. In some embodiments, the optimization objective is linear. In preferred embodiments, both the optimization objective and the constraints are linear. Consequently, the optimization problem will be convex. As a result, the optimum determined for the convex optimization problem is the global optimum. This is a major advantage as compared to stochastic approaches where the identified optimum is not necessarily the global optimum.According to a second aspect of the disclosure, there is provided an apparatuscomprising a processor configured to perform a method according to the first aspectof the disclosure. The apparatus may be a general-purpose computer including theprocessor.According to a third aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a computer-readablestorage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor, causethe processor to perform a method according to the first aspect of the invention. Thecomputer-readable storage medium may be a non-transitory medium.According to a fourth aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a computer programor a computer program product, namely a lighting design software, comprising ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method according to the first aspect of the invention. LIGHTING DESIGN MODELThe information provided in this section concerns the technical model used forreversing the conventional lighting design process described in the backgroundsection. Instead of placing luminaires and calculating the resulting impact onillumination of the lighting scene, the present disclosure is directed to match anoptimization objective under one or more illumination constraints so that an optimizedarrangement of luminaires is determined.The input parameters of this optimization problem represent a lighting scene with aset of one or more calculation areas, a set of light points and luminaires havingparticular emission characteristics. As used throughout this specification, a light pointis a position in space where a luminaire having a particular emission characteristicscan be placed (or can be left free).A set Π of ^ light points is given as input parameter to the optimization processaccording to the present disclosure: Π= ^Π^, Π^, … , Π^, … , Π^^ (1)Each light point Π^is defined by a position in space relative to the calculation area. A luminaire is potentially placed at a light point has associated a luminaire setting ^ ^ ^ to define the placement of the luminaire and its impact on illuminating the lighting scene. Each luminaire setting ^ ^ ^ is associated with a corresponding light point Π^, an orientation and a light characteristic. During the optimization process, either one or no luminaire setting ^ ^ ^ is associated with each light point Π^.A set ^^ of ^^ luminaire settings ^^ ^ represents all different (not necessarily at thesame time available) emission options for a particular light point Π^: , , … , , … , ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025In this embodiment of the present disclosure, each light point Π^can at most hold one luminaire. Therefore, at most one associated luminaire setting ^ ^ ^ is to beselected in the optimization process for each light point Π^. The variables of theoptimization problem are binary setters ^ ^ ^ ^ of the luminaire setting ^^with: ^ ^ ^∈ {0,1} (3)Given the constraint of having at most one luminaire at a particular light point, thefollowing constraint needs to be considered in the The present disclosure is not limited to the constraint of holding at most oneluminaire at a particular light point. In other embodiments of the present disclosure, aplurality of luminaires are treated as being placed at the same light point, while theyare in fact placed close to each and / or having different illumination orientations.When setting the maximum number of luminaires to be placed at a light point to avalue greater than 1, a light point is to be understood as having a particularexpansion resulting in a simplification of the optimization process as the actuallocation of such luminaires differs slightly from each other although the calculationassumes a spatial overlay of luminaires at the same light point at its center. If theactual distance between the luminaires mounted at a particular light point is small ascompared to the distance to the area to be illuminated, the calculation error resultingfrom the approximation of overlaying the multiple luminaires at the same light point is small and can be neglected.The luminaire settings ^^ can be unified into one large set of luminaire settingscovering all light points: ^ ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025Note that the constraint from equation (4) is still applicable but then referring to asubset of ^. Accordingly, the binary setters are defined as:^^ ∈ {0,1} (6)In addition to the binary setters ^ ^, diming factors luminaire setting ^^ areintroduced: 0≤ ^^ ≤ 1 and ^^ ∈ ℝ. (7)The diming factor limits the amount of illumination of the respective luminaire to thelevel specified by the diming factor and are to be determined in the optimizationprocess. As used throughout this specification, a reference to “illumination” has to be understood as a placeholder for any type of photometric measurement. In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the impact of illumination is determined basedon luminous flux. However, any embodiment of the present disclosure describedherein can be adapted to determine the impact of illumination based on differentphotometric measurements. Other embodiments of the present disclosure may bebased on light intensity, illuminance, luminance or any other type of measuringillumination. Other embodiments of the present disclosure make use of the sameformulas stated below but instead of referring to luminous flux, the reference toluminous flux is to be replaced by light intensity, illuminance, luminance or other types of illumination.The luminous flux of a luminaire Φ^ associated with luminaire setting ^^ is: where Φ^maxis the maximum available luminous flux of the luminaire Φ^associated with luminaire setting ^^which is dimmed by dim factor ^^.The resulting number of variables in an optimization process according to the presentdisclosure is two times the number of luminaire settings ^. The set of calculation areas is defined by: ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025^ = ^^^, ^^, … , ^^, … , ^^^. Each calculation area a set of ^^calculation ^^: Note that the number of calculation points ^^can differ from area to area. The optimization objective, i.e. the objective function to be solved by the optimization process according to the present disclosure is defined by the sum of cost functions ^^over all binary setters and dim factors: ^ The sum of cost functions is to be minimized while considering given constraints reflecting illumination requirements.Depending on the user specific objectives, the cost functions ^^ can have verydifferent forms and dependencies.In some embodiments of the optimization process, the cost functions are linear anddescribe different kind of constant costs depending on associated luminaire setting ^^.In some embodiments, the cost functions concern minimizing the number ofluminaires to be placed: ^^(^^, ^^) = ^^ (12)In some embodiments, the cost functions concern minimizing the total product priceof the luminaires to be In some embodiments, the cost functions are non-linear. ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025In some embodiments, the non-linear cost functions minimize the maximum electricalpower consumption Ρ^ per luminaire which is defined as:Ρ ^ where Ρmax^ is the maximum electrical power consumption of luminaire setting ^^. Thepower diming function ^(^^) is not linear and depends on the illumination, e.g. theprovided luminous flux. The power diming function ^(^^) may depend on the efficacyof the light source and on temperature. To simplify the complex dependencies, it is a good approximation to model that dependence as a third order function: where ^^^are given parameters and are defined by properties of the luminaire setting^^ defined in a luminaire product definition associated with the respective luminairesetting.In some embodiments, the cost functions concern the luminous flux; ,In some the cost functions concern the cost: In some embodiments, the cost functions concern minimizing the lifecycle CO2footprint, by defining the CO2emission during production of each product and CO2emission during operation for a specific lifecycle cost: ,(^production emissionmalifecycle power emission ^+ ^(^^) ∗ Ρ x^ ∗ ^^ ) ∗ ^^ (18)In some embodiments, the cost functions concern minimizing the maintenance costthat depends on the number of products ^. The cost per product may decrease withthe number of products: ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025^ = ^const + ^ luminaire ^discount^^ (19) ^^^where ^const is a constant cost, as for example the service call charge, ^ luminaire is themaintenance cost per luminaire and ^discountis the discount per additional luminaireand is a number between 0 and 1.The present disclosure is not limited to the aforementioned cost functions. Some embodiments of the present disclosure represent a combination of one or more of the aforementioned cost functions. Solving the optimization problem by minimizing the aforementioned cost functions requires considering constraints that may, for example, reflect illuminationrequirements. The present disclosure is not limited to a particular set of constraints tofind the optimum solution under the given constraints. Constraints are selected based on user-specific needs. In preferred embodiments, these constraints are illumination constraints that can be any function of the luminaire settings ^^. In preferred embodiments, the constraints are twice continuously differentiable. The constraints introduced below are twice continuously differentiable. In some embodiments, the illuminance ^ ^ ^ ^ of each calculation point ^^within each area ^ is calculated. The illuminance at a ^ ^ point ^^is calculated as: ^ where ^ ^ ^^ (^^ , ^^) is the general form of the response function at point ^^ ^ . Neglecting non-linear the function can be written as: , .The response ^ ^ ^^defines the illuminance that is received from luminaire setting ^^and is linear with respect to its total luminous flux. However, it is not linear with respect to the variables of the optimization problem. It includes the illuminance that is ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025generated from direct and indirect light. The direct light is light that is directly received at point ^ ^ ^ . The indirect light is light that is received via reflection from any object in the lighting scene, i.e., from the concrete of the ground or a wall. Φ^is the luminous flux of the luminaire setting and ^ ^ ^ is a constant offset that results from light sources that are not optimized. Some embodiments of the present disclosure include the constraint of fulfilling aparticular average illuminance for each area ^^:^ where ^ ^ is the fraction of the area that corresponds to the calculation ^ ^ point ^^.Inserting equations (20) and (21) for ^^ ^ we get: ^ We introduce the average response function as: ^ and the average offset as: ^ Hence, the average illuminance is written in to (20) and (21) as:^ ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025Some embodiments of the present disclosure include the constraint of fulfilling aparticular minimum illuminance for each area ^^:^ Some embodiments of the present disclosure include the constraint of fulfilling aparticular maximum illuminance for each area ^^:^ Some embodiments of the present disclosure include the constraint of fulfilling aparticular uniform illuminance for each area on a first uniformity ^^:^ ^ ^ ^ =min^^ ^ avgSome embodiments of the present disclosure include the constraint of fulfilling aparticular uniform illuminance for each area ^^ based on a second uniformity ^^:^ maxThe aforementioned constraints may be combined. In most circumstances, considering only one constraint would not result in a desirable lighting scene. For example, when considering only maximum illuminance without giving constraints for a particular minimum illuminance, solving the cost functions would result in zero luminaires to be placed. Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure make use of the constraint of minimum illuminance. In some embodiments, one or two or three further constraints are added to the constraint of minimum illuminance. ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025Correspondingly, the illumination constraints are defined as: ^ ^^ targetavg ≥ ^avg(32) ^ ^targetin ≥ ^^mmin(33) ^ ^≤ ^^target(34) ^^ ,^ target ^ target target target targetwhere ^avg, ^min, ^^max, ^^^and ^^^are given target values to befulfilled in area ^^. Embodiments of the present disclosure include one or more of theaforementioned constraints. ^ ^ min in equation (33) has the meaning of any member of (^^ ^ ^ ^ ^, ^^ , … , ^^ , … , ^^^) is^ targetgreater than or equal to ^min: ^max equation (34) has the meaning of any member of lesstargetthan or equal to ^^max: ^ ^ ^in equation (35) has the meaning of any ratio of the member of(^ ^ ^, ^^ ^, … , ^^ ^, … , ^^ ^^) and the average illuminance ^^ avg has to be greater than or^ targetequal to ^^: ^ ^ ^in equation (36) has the meaning of any ratio of the member of(^ ^ ^, ^^ ^, … , ^^ ^, … , ^^ ^^) and the member of (^^ ^, ^^ ^, … , ^^ ^, … , ^^ ^^) has to be greater^ targetthan or equal to ^^: ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025 In some embodiments, the optimization process according to the present disclosure makes use of glare rating (GR) constraints. To provide a measure for glare of anobserver that is standing at a specific position in the lighting scene, the glare ratingvalue is introduced which is a common requirement in outdoor illumination. A point ^^is defined by the position of the observer’s eyes. In addition, the line of sight ^ needsto be defined for the evaluation. The glare rating value (GR value) ^^^^at point ^^anddirection ^ is calculated as: vewhere ^ and ^ are constants that result from the definition of the GR valuecalculation. In some embodiments, the constants are determined according to German Standard DIN EN 12464-2 (Chapter 4.4). Furthermore: ^ ^ where ^v^^^and ^ve^are two independent responses and Φ^is the luminous flux of the luminaire setting. Note that point ^^is not related to any area ^. The constraints for the GR values GR^^ are defined as: ^ta GR^ ≤ GR^rgetwhere GRt^argetis a given target value for point ^^. The constraint at point ^^must be met for all directions ^. ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Further features, objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying schematic drawings, in which:Fig. 1 shows a flowchart that illustrates a method for lighting design according to anembodiment of the invention,Fig. 2 shows a lighting scene definition according to an embodiment of the invention,Fig. 3A shows an area arrangement of a lighting scene definition according to anembodiment of the invention, Fig.3B shows an area of a lighting scene definition according to another embodiment of the invention, Fig.4A shows a luminaire setting according to an embodiment of the invention,Fig. 4B shows the impact of a luminaire configured according to a particular luminairesetting and positioned at a particular light point,Fig.4C shows the impact of a selected sub-set of luminaire settings applied to a lighting scene definition according to an embodiment of the invention,Fig. 5A shows a first sample of a two-dimensional map of a lighting scene accordingto an embodiment of the invention, Fig.5B shows a second sample of a two-dimensional map of a lighting scene according to an embodiment of the invention,Fig. 6 shows an illustration of the feature "list projects" of a lighting design softwareaccording to an embodiment of the invention, ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025Fig. 7A shows an illustration of the feature "create a new project" of the lightingdesign software according to an embodiment of the invention,Fig. 7B shows an illustration of the feature "association of layers" of the lightingdesign software according to an embodiment of the invention,Fig. 7C shows an illustration of the feature "list projects" of the lighting designsoftware according to an embodiment of the invention,Fig. 8 shows an illustration of the feature "area definition" of the lighting designsoftware according to an embodiment of the invention,Fig.9A shows an illustration of the first tab of the feature "luminaire productdefinition" of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of theinvention, Fig.9B shows an illustration of the second tab of the feature "luminaire productdefinition" of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of theinvention, Fig.9C shows an illustration of the third tab of the feature "luminaire productdefinition" of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of theinvention,Fig. 9D shows an illustration of the feature "settings" of the lighting design softwareaccording to an embodiment of the invention, Fig.10A shows an illustration of the tasks tab feature "lighting design results” of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of the invention, Fig.10B shows an illustration of the summary tab of the feature "lighting designresults" of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of the invention, ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025Fig. 10C shows an illustration of the luminaires tab of the feature "lighting designresults" of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of the invention,and Fig.10D shows an illustration of the areas tab of the feature "lighting design results"of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of the invention.DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION Fig.1 shows a flowchart that illustrates a method 100 for lighting design according to an embodiment of the invention. In method step 110, the lighting scene is defined in terms of the area to be illuminated. Method step 110 may include defining a grid of calculation points within the area where the impact of illumination is calculated. This method step may include defining one or more light points where luminaires can be placed for fulfilling illumination requirements. This method step may further include defining one or more illumination constraints that the selected set of luminaires need to fulfil when illuminating the area. In method step 120, the pool of luminaire products is defined from which the method may select luminaires to be positioned at one or more light points. In method step 130, an optimization objective is defined upon which the optimizationproblem is solved. The optimization objective may be the cost of the luminaires,either initial costs or energy costs or any combination derived therefrom, the number of products, or a weighted combination of various attributes. In method step 140, the method determines, based on the provided pool of luminaireproducts and the provided one or more light points, a set of luminaire settings. Eachluminaire setting is associated with a particular light point from the set of light points and a particular luminaire product definition from the set of luminaire product ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025definitions. Each luminaire setting specifies the impact of a luminaire according to therespective luminaire product definition and located at the respective light point on illuminating the lighting scene. The impact of a luminaire includes product-inherent attributes, for example a particular light characteristics, as well as mounting specific aspects, for example an orientation of the luminaire. As such, multiple luminaire settings may be defined for a luminaire at a particular light point to provide different ways of illuminating the area, for example by specifying different orientations. The set of luminaire settings represents an aggregation over different illumination scenarios. The optimum lighting scene represents a particular sub-set of the set of luminaire settings. The optimization problem is solved based on determining, for each luminaire setting, the value of an associated binary setter that either activates or deactivates the respective luminaire setting. In method step 140, different sets of binary setters are identified that represent associated sub-sets of luminaire settingsfulfilling the illumination constraints. Illumination constraints define the goal that theentire lighting scene needs to fulfil, for example, a particular minimum and / or average illuminance at calculation points. In method step 150 a sub-set of luminaire settings is selected from those determined in method step 140 that fulfils the optimization objective in the best way. Fig.2 shows a lighting scene definition 200 according to an embodiment of theinvention. The lighting scene definition 200 comprises a calculation area 210 to beilluminated by luminaires that may be positioned at light points 220a-e. The light points denote a location in space where a luminaire can be positioned. Whether a luminaire is positioned or what kind of luminaire is positioned at a particular light point220a-e depends on the illumination constraints to be fulfilled. For this purpose, theimpact of the positioned luminaires is calculated at a plurality of calculation points 211 within the calculation area 210. In one embodiment, as shown in Fig.2, the calculation points 211 form a grid repeating a square pattern. As used herein, a calculation area is also referred to as area. Fig.3A shows an area arrangement 310 of a lighting scene definition 300 accordingto an embodiment of the invention. The area arrangement 310 includes one or more ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025contiguous areas, for example a first contiguous area 320 and a second contiguousarea 330 that are separated from each other. The first contiguous area 320 consistsof one or more non-overlapping areas 321, 322, 323, 324, 325, 326, 327, each incontact with another one. The second contiguous area 330 consists, for example, ofa single area. Applicable to all embodiments, a lighting scene definition may comprise one or more area arrangements, while each area arrangement representsa contiguous area that may be divided into one or more non-overlapping areas. Lightpoints 340a-e are placed around the contiguous area 320, 330. Each area within acontiguous area may have individual grid definitions to determine the calculation points as well as individual illumination constraints. Fig.3B shows an area 360 of a lighting scene definition 350 according to anotherembodiment of the invention. Area 360 comprises of a plurality of calculation points361 that are arranged according to an irregular pattern in order to calculateillumination on particular points of interest within the area. Light points 370a, 370b,370c and 370d are placed around the area 360. Fig.4A shows a luminaire setting 400 according to an embodiment of the invention. A luminaire setting 400 is associated with a luminaire 410 positioned at a particular light point and includes a particular luminaire setup representing a unique way of emitting light. In some embodiments, the luminaire setup includes an offset height 421 specifying the height of the luminaire positioned along a vertical axis relative to a ground level, an orientation 422 of the luminaire corresponding to the maximum emission direction of the luminaire in the plane perpendicular to the vertical axis, and a tilt 423 of the luminaire. Fig.4B shows the impact of a luminaire 410 configured according to a particularluminaire setting 400 and positioned at a particular light point 220a. The luminaire410 illuminates calculation area 210. The values shown besides the calculation points 211 in Fig.4B quantify the illumination impact caused by emitting light fromluminaire 410 at the respective calculation point 211 in calculation area 210. ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025Fig.4C shows the impact of a selected sub-set of luminaire settings 400a-e applied to a lighting scene definition 200 according to an embodiment of the invention. Lighting scene definition 200 includes calculation area 210 and light points 220a-e at which luminaires according to luminaire settings 400a-e are located. The values shown besides the calculation points 211 in Fig.4C quantify the illumination impact caused by emitting light from luminaires 410a-e at the respective calculation point211. In other embodiments, not all defined light points are equipped with luminaires.The decision whether a sub-set of the light points is equipped with luminaires depends on the illumination constraints. Fig.5A shows a first sample of a two-dimensional map 500 of a lighting sceneaccording to an embodiment of the invention. The map 550 may be generated byusing a graphic design or computer aided design software supporting at least two graphical layers 510, 520. The map 500 corresponds to the lighting scene definition 200 shown in Fig.2 and includes a first layer 510 for defining one or more areas 210 to be illuminated and a second layer 520 for defining one or more light points 220a-e. Each of these two layers needs to have at least one object, for example calculationarea 210 and light point 220a. The map 500 may be exported as map file in DWG orDXF format. Fig.5B shows a second sample of a two-dimensional map 550 of a lighting sceneaccording to an embodiment of the invention. The map 550 may be generated byusing a graphic design or computer aided design software supporting at least two graphical layers 560, 570. The map 550 corresponds to the lighting scene definition 300 shown in Fig.3A and includes a first layer 560 for defining an area arrangement300 including one or more areas 310, 320 to be illuminated and a second layer 570for defining one or more light points 330a-e. Each of these two layers needs to haveat least one object, for example area 320 and light point 330a. The map 550 may beexported as map file, for example, in DXF or DWG format.Fig.6, Fig.7A-7C, Fig.8, Fig.9A-9C and Fig, 10A-10C show illustrations of agraphical user interface of a lighting design software implementing the method of thepresent disclosure. ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025In some embodiments, a map of the lighting scene is to be prepared prior to usingthe graphical user interface, for example, by making use of graphic design or computer aided design software in which a layered representation of graphical information is stored. In embodiments supporting only planar areas, the map is a two- dimensional map, for example as shown in Fig.5A or Fig.5B. The map includes at least one calculation area in one layer and at least one light point in another layer.Preferably, the map is exported as a file, for example, in DXF or DWG format whichis referred to as map file.Other embodiments of the lighting design software include a map generator in whichthe aforementioned tasks of drawing one or more calculation areas and one or more light points are processed.Fig. 6 shows an illustration of the feature "list projects" of the lighting design softwareaccording to an embodiment of the invention. The feature "list projects" representsthe entry point for accessing the lighting design software. This entry point can bepassed by creating a new lighting design project in which settings of a desired lighting scene are stored. A new lighting design project is created by invoking the feature "create a new project" (see fig.7A). In some embodiments, the lighting design project is stored in a database associated with the lighting design software. Alternatively, the entry point is passed by selecting a lighting design project from alist of lighting design projects that are already stored in the database. Fig. 6 shows anempty list of projects, whereas Fig.7C shows the feature "list projects" after having created two projects.Fig. 7A shows an illustration of the feature "create a new project" of the lightingdesign software according to an embodiment of the invention. The lighting designsoftware requests the user to define the project type of the lighting design project, forexample a sports field, the project identifier like, for example, a project number and / or a project name, the project description, and an identification of the map file to be uploaded. After having uploaded the map file, the map file is analyzed to identify thegraphical layers that are contained in the map file. ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025Fig. 7B shows an illustration of the feature "association of layers" of the lightingdesign software according to an embodiment of the invention. The user has to assign the layer containing the one or more light points as potential locations for luminairesand to assign the layer containing the one or more areas. In some embodiments, theuser may select one or more layers that represent background. The lighting designsoftware may use the graphical information stored in layers representing the background when visualizing the map file.Fig. 7C shows an illustration of the feature "list projects" of the lighting designsoftware according to an embodiment of the invention. This illustration correspondsto Fig. 6 after having created two projects. The list of lighting design projects maycontain at least one of a project identifier, a project description, and a project type. The project identifier may be a numerical value like a project number and / or an alphanumerical text like a project name or a project title. As used herein and applicable to all embodiments of the present invention, a project type assigned to a lighting scene definition may result in selecting a selected sub-set of settings that matches specific requirements of a particular project type. A project type may limit the selection of luminaires fulfilling luminaire product definitions, i.e. having particular light characteristics. A project type may specify particular illumination constraints or a particular optimization objective. A project type can beused to identify rules suitable for a particular lighting scene that reduces the amountof luminaire settings to be taken into account when solving the optimization objective under given illumination constraints.Fig. 8 shows an illustration of the feature "area definition" of the lighting designsoftware according to an embodiment of the invention. The one or more areasassociated with the selected project are presented to the user. The user may specifythe illumination constraints. Applicable to all embodiments of the present invention,illumination constraints may be defined individually for a horizontal component of the illumination ("horizontal illuminance") and for a vertical component of the illumination ("vertical illumination") received at the calculation points. In some embodiments, the ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025graphical user interface may provide means for inputting constraints for horizontalilluminance and for vertical illuminance. The constraints, for any type of illuminationlike horizontal and vertical illumination, may be one of an average illuminance and aminimum illuminance. Optionally, the user may define at least one of a maximumilluminance and one or more types of uniformities, for example a minimum / averageuniformity or a minimum / maximum uniformity. In some embodiments, the userdefines a grid within the area that specifies the calculation points of the area. Thegrid may be selected from pre-defined grids or by setting a step size in the two maindirections and a rotation of the grid around the vertical axis perpendicular to the area.Fig.9A shows an illustration of the first tab of the feature "luminaire productdefinition" of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of theinvention. After selecting at least one light point, the user may specify the steps ofrotation (orientation in the horizontal plane) and tilt of the main light emissiondirection that will be used to generate the different luminaire settings from which thelighting design software will select those matching the optimization objective undergiven illumination constraints. In one embodiment, the user may specify the height ofeach of the luminaires above ground (light point height, lph) and product specificsettings like maximum driving current which will limit the maximum power supplied tothe luminaire and a color temperature of the emitted light. The user may define theminimum and maximum number of luminaires that the lighting design software mayassign to each light point. In some embodiments, the multiple different heights maybe defined for a luminaire to be placed at a particular light point, either individually per light point or the same value for a set of light points. Fig.9B shows an illustration of the second tab of the feature "luminaire productdefinition" of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of theinvention. The user may select at least one luminaire product type from a list ofavailable luminaire product types. The chosen luminaire product type is indicative of a particular emission characteristics. Fig.9C shows an illustration of the third tab of the feature "luminaire productdefinition" of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of the ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025invention. The user may select at least one lens type from the list of available lenstypes. The lens type is indicative of the emission characteristics of the respectiveluminaire product.Fig. 9D shows an illustration of the feature "settings" of the lighting design softwareaccording to an embodiment of the invention. The user may select the optimization objective which defines the cost function for the optimization as defined in equation(11). In one embodiment of the invention, the user may select from three differentoptimization objectives: number of products, initial cost, and lifetime cost. The lifetimecost assumes costs for electricity over the given period of time.Fig.10A shows an illustration of the tasks tab of the feature "lighting design results”of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of the invention. The tasktab indicates the individual steps to be performed in the optimization process. Theuser may start the optimization, for example, by pressing the “start calculation”button. The lighting design software causes presentation of the currently executedstep, for example, by a change in the color to highlight the currently executed step.The user may interrupt the optimization process, for example, by pressing the ”resetcalculation” button.Fig. 10B shows an illustration of the summary tab of the feature "lighting designresults" of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of the invention.The summary tab provides an overview of the luminaire products that were selectedafter having performed the optimization process. The lighting design software maypresent the one or more calculation areas in a color indicative of fulfilling all illumination constraints, for example by using green color. The lighting designsoftware may present arrows originating from the light points that indicate theorientation of the respective luminaire in the chosen sub-set of the luminaire settingsthat are optimal for the given illumination constraints.Fig. 10C shows an illustration of the luminaires tab of the feature "lighting designresults" of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of the invention.The luminaires tab may indicate the chosen lens type, the chosen orientation ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025(rotation and tilt), the flux and the wattage of the respective luminaire in the chosen sub-set of the luminaire settings.Fig. 10D shows an illustration of the areas tab of the feature "lighting design results"of the lighting design software according to an embodiment of the invention. Theareas tab may indicate the impact of illumination, for example, by presentingilluminance values as well as the target illumination values according to the givenillumination constraints of each area. ENUMERATED EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention may relate to one or more of the example embodiments, which are enumerated below. Accordingly, the invention may be embodied in any of the forms described herein, including, but not limited to thefollowing Enumerated Example Embodiments (EEEs) which describe structure,features, and functionality of some portions of the present invention:EEE 1. A method for lighting design, comprising:receiving a lighting scene definition, the lighting scene definition specifying illumination requirements of a lighting scene; receiving a set of light points, each light point of the set of light points specifying a position for placing a luminaire that fulfills at least a portion of the illumination requirements of the lighting scene; receiving a set of luminaire product definitions, each luminaire product definition of the set of luminaire product definitions specifying a luminaire product and corresponding light characteristics; determining a set of luminaire settings, each luminaire setting associated with a particular light point from the set of light points and a particular luminaire product definition from the set of luminaire product definitions, each luminaire setting specifying the impact of a luminaire according to the respective luminaire product definition and located at the respective light point on illuminating the lighting scene; receiving an optimization objective for selecting a subset of luminaire settings from the set of luminaire settings; ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025receiving one or more illumination constraints that the luminaires associated with the subset of luminaire settings need to fulfill when illuminating the lighting scene; and selecting the subset of luminaire settings that matches the optimization objective under the received one or more illumination constraints.EEE 2. The method of EEE 1, wherein the lighting scene definition specifies anarea to be illuminated according to the illumination requirements of the lighting scene.EEE 3. The method of EEE 2, wherein the position of a light point represents alocation in the area and an offset height indicative of a distance of the light point to the location in the area.EEE 4. The method of EEE 2 or EEE 3, wherein each luminaire setting furtherspecifies an orientation of the respective luminaire, the orientation having an impact on the luminaire as how to illuminate the area of the lighting scene; and wherein determining the set of luminaire settings comprises determining, for one or more combinations of (i) a light point from the set of light points and (ii) a luminaire product definition from the set of luminaire product definitions, luminaire settings of different orientations.EEE 5. The method of any of EEEs 2-4, wherein the area of the lighting scene isdefined by a set of calculation points located within the area, each of the calculation points specifying a location in the area of the lighting scene for which the impact on illuminating the area is determined.EEE 6. The method of EEE 5, wherein receiving one or more illuminationconstraints comprises: determining, for each luminaire setting of the set of luminaire settings and for each calculation point of the set of calculation points, an illumination response function dependent on the number of luminaires associated with the respective luminaire setting at the respective calculation point; and ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025determining, for each calculation point of the set of calculation points, a total response function by combining the illumination response functions over all luminaire settings of the set of luminaire settings at the respective calculation point.EEE 7. The method of EEE 6, wherein receiving one or more illuminationconstraints further comprises: defining a constraint of minimum illumination by specifying a minimum illumination for the total response function at each calculation point of the set of calculation points.EEE 8. The method of EEE 6 or EEE 7, wherein receiving one or more illuminationconstraints further comprises: defining a constraint of average illumination by specifying an average illumination for the total response function over all calculation points of the set of calculation points.EEE 9. The method of any of EEEs 6-8, wherein receiving one or more illuminationconstraints further comprises: defining a constraint of a first uniformity for the total response function at each calculation point of the set of calculation points, the first uniformity specifying a ratio of minimum illumination to average illumination over all calculation points of the set of calculation points.EEE 10. The method of any of EEE 6-9, wherein receiving one or more illuminationconstraints further comprises: defining a constraint of maximum illumination by specifying a maximum illumination for the total response function at each calculation point of the set of calculation points.EEE 11. The method of any of EEEs 6-10, wherein receiving one or moreillumination constraints further comprises: defining a constraint of a second uniformity for the total response function at each calculation point of the set of calculation points, the second uniformity ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025specifying a ratio of minimum illumination to maximum illumination over all calculation points of the set of calculation points.EEE 12. The method of any of EEEs 1-11, wherein receiving an optimizationobjective for selecting a subset of luminaire settings from the set of luminaire settings comprises: determining, for each luminaire setting of the set of luminaire settings, a cost function that represents the optimization objective, the cost function being dependent on the number of luminaires associated with each luminaire setting.EEE 13. The method of EEE 12, wherein selecting the subset of luminaire settingsthat matches the optimization objective comprises: minimizing a combination over all determined cost functions; and determining, for each cost function in the minimized combination over all determined cost functions, the numbers of luminaires associated with the luminaire setting that corresponds to the respective cost function.EEE 14. An apparatus comprising a processor configured to perform the method ofany of EEEs 1-13.EEE 15. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, whenexecuted by a processor, cause the processor to perform the method of one of EEEs 1-13. The details contained in the above description of embodiments should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but rather represent an exemplification of some of its embodiments. Many variants are possible and immediately apparent to the skilled person. In particular, this relates to variations comprising a combination of features of the individual embodiments disclosed in the present specification. Therefore, the scope of the invention should be determined not by the illustrated embodiments, but by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.

Claims

ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025CLAIMS1. A method for lighting design, comprising:receiving a lighting scene definition, the lighting scene definition specifying an area to be illuminated according to illumination requirements of a lighting scene, wherein the area of the lighting scene is defined by a set of calculation points located within the area, each of the calculation points specifying a location in the area of the lighting scene for which the impact on illuminating the area is determined; receiving a set of light points, each light point of the set of light points specifying a position for placing a luminaire that fulfills at least a portion of the illumination requirements of the lighting scene; receiving a set of luminaire product definitions, each luminaire product definition of the set of luminaire product definitions specifying a luminaire product and corresponding light characteristics; determining a set of luminaire settings, each luminaire setting associated with a particular light point from the set of light points and a particular luminaire product definition from the set of luminaire product definitions, each luminaire setting specifying the impact of a luminaire according to the respective luminaire product definition and located at the respective light point on illuminating the lighting scene; receiving one or more illumination constraints that the luminaires associated with the subset of luminaire settings need to fulfill when illuminating the lighting scene, wherein receiving one or more illumination constraints comprises: determining, for each luminaire setting of the set of luminaire settings and for each calculation point of the set of calculation points, an illumination response function dependent on the number of luminaires associated with the respective luminaire setting at the respective calculation point; and determining, for each calculation point of the set of calculation points, a total response function by combining the illumination response functions over all luminaire settings of the set of luminaire settings at the respective calculation point; receiving an optimization objective for selecting a subset of luminaire settings from the set of luminaire settings, wherein receiving an optimization objective for selecting a subset of luminaire settings from the set of luminaire settings comprises:ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025determining, for each luminaire setting of the set of luminaire settings, a cost function that represents the optimization objective, the cost function being dependent on the number of luminaires associated with each luminaire setting; minimizing a combination over all determined cost functions; and determining, for each cost function in the minimized combination over all determined cost functions, the numbers of luminaires associated with the luminaire setting that corresponds to the respective cost function; selecting the subset of luminaire settings that matches the optimization objective under the received one or more illumination constraints; and causing a lighting scene to be set up according to the selected subset of luminaire settings.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the position of a light point represents alocation in the area and an offset height indicative of a distance of the light point to the location in the area.

3. The method of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein each luminaire setting furtherspecifies an orientation of the respective luminaire, the orientation having an impact on the luminaire as how to illuminate the area of the lighting scene; and wherein determining the set of luminaire settings comprises determining, for one or more combinations of (i) a light point from the set of light points and (ii) a luminaire product definition from the set of luminaire product definitions, luminaire settings of different orientations.

4. The method of any of claims 1-3, wherein receiving one or more illuminationconstraints further comprises: defining a constraint of minimum illumination by specifying a minimum illumination for the total response function at each calculation point of the set of calculation points.

5. The method of any of claims 1-4, wherein receiving one or more illuminationconstraints further comprises:ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 2025defining a constraint of average illumination by specifying an average illumination for the total response function over all calculation points of the set of calculation points.

6. The method of any of claims 1-5, wherein receiving one or more illuminationconstraints further comprises: defining a constraint of a first uniformity for the total response function at each calculation point of the set of calculation points, the first uniformity specifying a ratio of minimum illumination to average illumination over all calculation points of the set of calculation points.

7. The method of any of claims 1-6, wherein receiving one or more illuminationconstraints further comprises: defining a constraint of maximum illumination by specifying a maximum illumination for the total response function at each calculation point of the set of calculation points.

8. The method of any of claims 1-7, wherein receiving one or more illuminationconstraints further comprises: defining a constraint of a second uniformity for the total response function at each calculation point of the set of calculation points, the second uniformity specifying a ratio of minimum illumination to maximum illumination over all calculation points of the set of calculation points.

9. The method of any of claims 1-8, wherein each of the illumination responsefunctions is twice continuously differentiable, and wherein each of the cost functions is twice continuously differentiable.

10. The method of any of claims 1-8, wherein each of the illumination responsefunctions is linear, and wherein each of the cost functions is linear.

11. An apparatus comprising a processor configured to perform the method of anyof claims 1-10.ewo GmbHC17170WO 3 June 202512. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, whenexecuted by a processor, cause the processor to perform the method of one of claims 1-10.

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