LEDs & SSL Design

LEDs Magazine 40 Under 40 Profile: Daniel Bånkestad

July 24, 2020

Daniel Bånkestad is advancing LED lighting technology and control solutions for the horticultural and agricultural industries.

Carrie Meadows,

Maury Wright

DANIEL B&angst;NKESTAD. (Photo credit: Image courtesy of Heliospectra.) — DANIEL BÅNKESTAD. (Photo credit: Image courtesy of Heliospectra.)

As a research and development engineer for Heliospectra in Gothenburg, Sweden, Daniel Bånkestad is considered a leader in advancing LED lighting technology and control solutions for the horticultural and agricultural industries.

Bånkestad completed graduate degrees and work in bioengineering with Chalmers University in Sweden and Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA before joining the Heliospectra team in 2003. Much of his engineering work is focused on light characterization and collaboration with supply-chain partners, third-party agencies, and growers to ensure that horticultural lighting and LED products are validated and verified to deliver reliable and efficient performance. He also actively develops light plans, light simulations, and customized optics to optimize light transmittance and uniformity within a diverse array of growing environments and facilities.

He enjoys working with strawberries, basil, and lettuces because not only are they tasty but the plants also offer ideal leaf angles and symmetry for remote sensing trials. Currently, Bånkestad and a PhD candidate are working with the University of Basel to evaluate natural sunlight and supplemental LED spectra to control light dynamics and light intensities over the course of the day and the course of production cycles.

Chairing a new research project with the European Innovation Partnership (EIP), Bånkestad and his team are currently developing new optical sensors to measure chlorophyll fluorescence at the plant canopy level. The sensor integrations will detect plant stress caused by incoming light and other non-biotic factors such as drought or salt as well as biotic stress caused by pests or other disease aggressions in greenhouse environments. He recognizes the power that artificial intelligence will bring to smart farms and autonomous greenhouses in the future.

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About the Author

Carrie Meadows | Editor-in-Chief, LEDs Magazine

Carrie Meadows has more than 20 years of experience in the publishing and media industry. She worked with the PennWell Technology Group for more than 17 years, having been part of the editorial staff at Solid State Technology, Microlithography World, Lightwave, Portable Design, CleanRooms, Laser Focus World, and Vision Systems Design before the group was acquired by current parent company Endeavor Business Media.

Meadows has received finalist recognition for LEDs Magazine in the FOLIO Eddie Awards, and has volunteered as a judge on several B2B editorial awards committees. She received a BA in English literature from Saint Anselm College, and earned thesis honors in the college's Geisel Library. Without the patience to sit down and write a book of her own, she has gladly undertaken the role of editor for the writings of friends and family.

Meadows enjoys living in the beautiful but sometimes unpredictable four seasons of the New England region, volunteering with an animal shelter, reading (of course), and walking with friends and extended "dog family" in her spare time.

About the Author

Maury Wright | Editor in Chief

Maury Wright is an electronics engineer turned technology journalist, who has focused specifically on the LED & Lighting industry for the past decade. Wright first wrote for LEDs Magazine as a contractor in 2010, and took over as Editor-in-Chief in 2012. He has broad experience in technology areas ranging from microprocessors to digital media to wireless networks that he gained over 30 years in the trade press. Wright has experience running global editorial operations, such as during his tenure as worldwide editorial director of EDN Magazine, and has been instrumental in launching publication websites going back to the earliest days of the Internet. Wright has won numerous industry awards, including multiple ASBPE national awards for B2B journalism excellence, and has received finalist recognition for LEDs Magazine in the FOLIO Eddie Awards. He received a BS in electrical engineering from Auburn University.