Illumination of Signage and Lettering

There are several basic types of illumination used for sign and sign letters. Of course, there are two ways to use these types of lighting either externally from a light source or internally.
Types of Lighting:
Incandescent:

Incandescent illumination uses Incandescent bulbs or quartziodine lamps. They light up with high intensity, their light output ranges from low to medium. Their rendition of colors emphasizes reds and yellows, and they require no ballasts, wired to a 120-volt circuit.
Fluorescent:

Fluorescent illumination uses common fluorescent tubes in blueto-warm colors. They light large areas with low intensity lighting, their light output is fair to good (best with daylight type bulbs, but they also come in soft white type lamp), their rendition of colors varies according to the color of the bulb, and they require ballasts. Exercise care in the selection of ballasts. The ballasts are for varying temperatures, and bulb sizes. They generally are available in lengths of 24", 30", 36", 48", 60", 72", 84", 96", 108", 117", and 120", to accommodate many different sizes of sign cabinets.
High-Intensity Discharge:

High-intensity discharge illumination uses mercury vapor lamps in cool to warm colors. Light produced by an electric arc in mercury vapor gasses. They light small areas with very high intensity, their light output is high, their rendition of colors is fair with normal tones taking on bluish and greenish casts, and they require ballasts. The ballast size will depend on the wattage of the light used.
Reflective:

Reflective illumination depends upon an independent exterior light source controlled by the viewer of the sign, (such as headlights from a vehicle), and not the sign itself. Normally the design is cutout from a reflective vinyl film with glass beads imbedded in it to reflect light. The material comes in a variety of standard colors.
Sign Light Sources
Incandescent Lighting:

Only practical for very small signs, incandescent lighting may be used for such special effects as flashing signs. The bulbs themselves may form the letter. or arranged in a grid, with any combination of light bulbs flashing to form simple letters or numbers. Las Vegas uses a lot of this lighting technique with

flashers to spell out promotions. The frame for this type of sign is usually a metal box with a sunshield glass front, mounted to a building or pole sign. Within this box, each bulb placed in its own black tubular frame to direct the light and prevent glare from adjacent bulbs. Also synchronized with a computer program, you can change messages on a rotating basic.
Fluorescent Lighting:

Fluorescent lighting requires a minimal electrical installation, and comes in a wide variety of sizes. This is the most practical method for interior lighting of sign cabinets. The tubes should not be installed more than 1 foot (.3 meters) apart and 4 or more inches (10.2 centimeters) away from the face of the sign to achieve an even light quality. Larger signs generally consist of several access panels for quick accessibility when tubes need replacing. As these signs are illuminated from within and, therefore, as colors by night can only be perceived by light passing through them, translucent plastics or paints must be used. Otherwise, the colors will read correctly by day but as black by night.
Neon Lighting:

Neon used as the interior light source for channel letters. Intense colors can be obtained by using the same color in both neon tube and plastic face. If the light source is excessively bright, irradiation or halation will cause the individual letters (if they are translucent against an opaque background) to merge with their neighbors, and the message will disappear as a blur of light, and will look fuzzy. If the letters are opaque against a translucent background, halation will cause them to be eroded in thickness until they virtually disappear or lose much of the legibility for which they were designed. A white letter on a black background is more legible than any other arrangement due to an optical illusion that causes a white letter to appear larger then colored letters. The degree of effect is directly related to letter spacing.
LED Lighting:

Interior light source for lighted channel letters. a also starting to replace fluorescent lighting as a light source for lighted sign cabinets.
Exterior Illumination. An

exterior light source provides the simplest and cheapest way to light a sign, in terms of both installation and maintenance. It is used to light large painted or printed signs, such as billboards, or signs made of various opaque materials such as metal, stone, or wood. Lighting techniques include spotlighting, floodlighting, backlighting, and utilization of

ambient lighting. Light sources include mercury,

Lighting Techniques
Spotlights. Spotlights

are the simplest kind of outside light sources and can be set up easily. They are strong, focused lights, used to light small areas from above, below, or side. Spotlights must be carefully placed to avoid reflections. Mercury, fluorescent, or incandescent lights are used. Floodlights. Floodlights are used for uniform illumination of a large area. Light types are mercury, quartz-iodine, halogenreflector, fluorescent, andin some instancesalso incandescent light. Both floodlights and spotlights must be adequately shielded from the eyes of the viewer, providing that they can also be protected from vandalism. This generally means putting the light sources up and out of reach, carefully shielding them against unwanted spill, and selecting a type of illumination that will not adversely affect the sign colors. Floodlighting can also be placed in ground trenches covered with a vandalproof wire cage, but special care must be taken to properly shield the lamps from weather and ensure adequate drainage. Backlighting. Silhouetting a sign can be done in several ways. Neon tubes, set into the back of an individual letter or sign, usually of fabricated sheet metal, will produce a glowing, repetitive outline of the letter or halo effect. Reflecting light off a wall, with the letterfonn or sign extending away from it, will create another silhouetting effect. Ambient Light. The spill from existing light sources may offer sufficient illumination to make a sign legible. If so, there will be no need to provide additional lighting, thus reducing the initial and long-term costs of the sign system considerably. Designers planning to rely on this method for illuminating their signs should study carefully the matter of color contrast. Floodlight may also be used to boost the ambient light.