Effect of illumination on perceived temperature

PLoS One. 2020 Aug 10;15(8):e0236321. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0236321. eCollection 2020.

Abstract

The widely known hue-heat effect, a multisensory phenomenon between vision and thermal sensing, is a hypothesis based on the idea that light and colors affect perceived temperature. However, the application of this effect has not been prevalent in our daily lives. To work towards developing more practical use of the hue-heat effect, we conducted a series of psychophysical experiments to investigate the relationship between perceived temperature and illumination in a well-controlled experimental environment. The results showed that illumination had three types of effects to change our sense of coolness/warmness: creating, eliminating, and exchanging effects. Furthermore, we confirmed the existence of two distinctive time courses for the three effects: creating effect started immediately, but the eliminating effect takes time. These findings provide us with a better understanding of the hue-heat effect and enable us to apply it in everyday life. Paired with the new technologies it can also help with energy conservation.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Color Perception / physiology*
  • Female
  • Hot Temperature
  • Humans
  • Lighting*
  • Male
  • Photic Stimulation / methods
  • Psychophysics
  • Thermosensing / physiology*
  • Young Adult

Grants and funding

This work was partially supported by a JST (Japan Science and Technology Agency) project “Keihanna Research Complex”. This work was also supported by Kimura Kohki Co. Ltd. Kimura Kohki Co. Ltd. The funder provided support in the form of salaries for an author [A.S.], but did not have any additional role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The specific roles of the author are articulated in the ‘author contributions’ section.