Did you know that the light inside your home can generate energy?
Be part of the Interlux project and help scientists to transform indoor lighting into the clean energy of the future.
About the project
The Interlux project (Interior + Light) is part of the European research project EFFECTOR (HORIZON-CL5-2024-D3-01-02-EFFECTOR-101172820), funded by the European Union, which comprises a consortium of European universities and companies, as well as USP. Our aim is to develop organic solar cells — a more sustainable, flexible and efficient technology for harnessing light from indoor environments (homes, offices and schools) to power small, everyday electronic devices.
Today, most of these devices rely on conventional batteries, which require the extraction of natural resources (such as lithium) and generate waste that is difficult to recycle. Interlux – EFFECTOR aims to change this situation.
What is Citizen Science and Why Do We Need You?
Science doesn’t just happen in laboratories. It also happens in your home.
Scientists can already measure light in the laboratory, but for this technology to work in real situations, we need to understand what real-world lighting is like in the places where people live, work and socialise.
This is where Citizen Science comes in: a movement in which the public actively participates in research. Without your real-world data, the technology may not work well outside the laboratory. The more people who take part, the more accurate and powerful our collective map becomes.
Why is this important?
By measuring the brightness of your rooms, you make a real difference:
You reduce
reliance on disposable batteries and mining.
You support
the development of sustainable technologies worldwide.
You bring science
closer to our daily lives and the real world.
How to participate
Participating is quick, free and requires no previous technical knowledge. All you’ll need is your mobile phone and a few minutes:
Download App
Download the light measurement app suitable for your smartphone below
Measure the lighting
Choose a room to take the measurement – it could be the living room, kitchen, bedroom or any other room in your home
Take a note of the reading
Once you’ve noted down the reading, you can fill in the form below and you’ll already be contributing to the project!
Form
Fill in the form with the data from your collection and click the button to submit!
FAQ
Dúvidas frequentes e respostas
No. The process is simple, completely free and takes just a few minutes using only your mobile phone.
Only basic information about the environment, such as the measured light level (in lux), the type of room and the city/region. No personal or sensitive information is collected.
Laboratories are unable to replicate the true diversity of people’s homes and daily routines. Without citizen science and the real-world data it provides, new technologies may not work well in the real world.
Yes, definitely! The more data you send, the more complete our map becomes. You can record the measurements of your living room, your bedroom, your kitchen or even your workplace at different times of the day.
