Akila Udage, a doctoral candidate at the Lighting Research Center (LRC) in the School of Architecture at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) with an Honorable Mention in the 2022 Solid-State Lighting Workshop student poster competition for his research into the use of 3D printing to integrate electromagnetic elements into lighting systems.

The research, “Evaluation of 3D-Printed Antenna Performance for Lighting Fixtures,” will be featured at the Virtual Poster Forum of the annual DOE Lighting R&D Workshop beginning January 31.

Under the guidance of Nadarajah Narendran, a professor and the director of research at the LRC, Udage is developing improvements in the communication abilities of networked solid-state lighting systems used in commercial buildings such as office spaces, hospitals, and factories. Currently, antennas that allow information to be shared along the lighting networks are placed in fixture enclosures hidden in walls or ceilings. Udage’s research uses 3D printing to incorporate these antennas onto the surface of the lighting fixture enclosures, thereby improving signal reliability of the system.

Since 2003, the DOE Lighting R&D Workshop gathers industry experts to share the latest on lighting technology advances. Each year, the student poster session offers one-on-one interaction between presenters and attendees to network, exchange ideas, and help accelerate lighting innovations. The event is co-sponsored by the Illuminating Engineering Society.