Photopia Evaluations

We appreciate your interest in evaluating Photopia and realize that it can be difficult to make time to evaluate new software. In order to use your time for the evaluation most efficiently, we recommend that do not try to fully learn the software. While some customers with a good knowledge of CAD and photometrics can learn Photopia very quickly, it is not practical for us to fully train every potential customer before they make a decision to purchase. This is why some software companies do not issue trial licenses or they do so only for a fee. Our intention with the trial licenses is to give our potential customers enough time to determine if Photopia will meet their needs. Each customer may have a different way of determining this, but the general questions they should try and answer are:

1. Can Photopia analyze the types of products you manufacture? Does Photopia have a library of lamps that you use? Does Photopia have a library of materials that you use? Does Photopia produce the types of output you require?

2. Can Photopia import models from your CAD software?

3. Can Photopia help you design reflector shapes in addition to analyzing shapes that you design in your CAD software?

4. Is Photopia accurate enough for your needs?

5. Is Photopia easy to use and understandable given your particular lighting knowledge?

6. Does your company design enough new luminaires that require specific photometric performance to justify the cost of Photopia assuming that Photopia will drastically reduce the costs of prototyping and testing required on future development projects? Or do you need to create photometry for products that have not been physically measured and want to use Photopia instead of paying for each test at a laboratory?

If the answer to these questions is generally ‘yes,’ then a decision can be made to purchase the software and then learn what is necessary to accomplish these tasks. The answers vary depending upon whether you are a lighting manufacturer or a design consultant.

For architectural lighting companies and any other manufacturers of illumination optical devices, the answers are generally:

1. Yes to all items.
2. Yes, but they should confirm for their specific software.
3. Yes, using the Parametric Optical Design Tools. These tools can currently be used for spun, linear, and other reflectors, including segmented and hydroformed roadway optics. The next addition to the PODT will be refractive tools.
4. We are convinced of Photopia’s accuracy, but most customers want to convince themselves of it and we respect this. We encourage you to review the Photopia Accuracy page for general information on the program accuracy.
5. You need to answer this question for yourself and we realize that is why the evaluation is being made. In general however, if you have a good knowledge of 3D CAD modeling and a knowledge of lighting and photometric fundamentals, then learning Photopia is very straight forward. We do our best to provide quick, detailed and personal product support so that as long as you are using the software and ask questions initially, then you can get a good understanding of the software quickly.
6. You need to answer this question as well. But we assume the investment in Photopia can be justified if it is determined that it will meet your needs. Otherwise you should not be spending time evaluating it.

For optical design consultants, the answers are generally:

1. The answers to these questions depend on the type of work you do. If you are involved with architectural lighting or any other illumination based work such as signal devices, medical illumination and some automotive applications, then the answers will generally be yes.
2. Yes, but you should confirm for your specific software.
3. Yes, using the Parametric Optical Design Tools. These tools can currently be used for spun, linear, and other reflectors, including segmented and hydroformed roadway optics. The next addition to the PODT will be refractive tools.
4. We are convinced of Photopia’s accuracy, but most customers want to convince themselves of it and we respect this. We encourage you to review the Photopia Accuracy page for general information on the program accuracy.
5. You need to answer this question for yourself and we realize that is what you are trying to do during the evaluation. In general however, if you have a good knowledge of 3D CAD modeling and a knowledge of lighting and photometric fundamentals, then learning Photopia is very straight forward. We do our best to provide quick, detailed and personal product support so that as long as you are using the software and ask questions initially, then you can get a good understanding of the software quickly.
6. You need to answer this question as well. If your consulting work is centered around optical design, then owning Photopia will most likely be justified. Most companies hiring consultants in this industry expect them to have optical design and analysis software and since many do, those who don’t are at a disadvantage. But if your optical design work is limited to occasional projects, then you should consider the following options:
a. Photopia can be leased and a portion of the lease payment is put toward the eventual purchase of the software. Contact us for details.
b. Lighting Technologies or our representatives can use Photopia to analyze your designs for you. If you provide a 3D CAD model of your design, then we can typically make the analysis within a few hours of consulting time. Contact us for a quote for your particular project.