- Title: Sun mirror keeps drinkers out of the shade
- Date: 22nd June 2017
- Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UK (JUNE 21, 2017) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF HELIOSTAT MIRROR IN BEER GARDEN OF PUB VARIOUS EXTERIORS OF THE SUN PUB IN CLAPHAM VARIOUS OF ANDREW SHOBEN, ARITST AND INVENTOR, SETTING UP SUN MIRROR CO-ORDINATES / COORDINATE NUMBERS ON CONTROL PANEL CHANGING AS MIRROR MOVES (SOUNDBITE) (English) ANDREW SHOBEN, PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC ART AT GOLDSMITHS, SAYING: "What we've created is what's called a heliostat. It's a device which inherently knows where the sun is and moves in order to keep the reflection of that sunlight in a particular space. So it involves knowing whereabouts you are on the surface of the earth and working out where the sun is and the inclination of where you want to shine it to." SUN SHINING THROUGH LEAVES SUN MIRROR MOVING ZOOM OUT FROM SUB SYMBOL TO MIRROR SUN REFLECTING ON PAVING STONES FROM MIRROR (SOUNDBITE) (English) ANDREW SHOBEN, PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC ART AT GOLDSMITHS, SAYING: "The location of this is all about is really key here. We couldn't put it in the shaded area because there would be no sun to reflect, so we needed to think about which way the sun travels over the day and then calculate the angle depending on what time of day you want to illuminate the garden. So this is set up really so that when the pub garden is open, which is the afternoon, and the sun is kind of in that area there we'll get a nice bit of sunshine right here." MIRROR IN PUB GARDEN DRINKERS BEER GLASS SUN SHINING THROUGH LEAVES (SOUNDBITE) (English) MATT LAMB, TEAM LEADER AT THE SUN PUB, SAYING: "It's like an illusion, you know, having an extra sun in the garden. Hopefully it will please the customers, keep everyone happy and smiling." MADELEINE BLACKALL, BRAND MANAGER, MEANTIME BREWERY, DRINKING BEER IN PUB GARDEN (SOUNDBITE) (English) MADELEINE BLACKALL, BRAND MANAGER, MEANTIME BREWERY, SAYING: "One of the great things about the British summertime is enjoying a pint with your mates in the sunshine. One of the not-so-great things is having to fight people for the shade within your favourite pub garden and so we're trying to solve that problem or we have solved that problem with the Smart Mirror which will beam the brightest of sunshine into the darkest and shadiest corners of the pub." BLACKALL DRINKING SUN SHINING THROUGH BEER GLASS MIRROR (SOUNDBITE) (English) ANDREW SHOBEN, PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC ART AT GOLDSMITHS, SAYING: "The real issue is that in order to calibrate something like this you actually have to point at the sun. Now your north facing garden is great, but if you never get the sun directly overhead or somewhere where a mirror will work it's rather difficult. You'd have to calibrate it somewhere else and move it in. It's all getting a bit dull technically, but from our point of view this is a perfect environment because you've got an audience here who love sitting in this lovely garden, and we've got an opportunity to make it sunnier. MIRROR (SOUNDBITE) (English) BEN SOWTON, DRINKER, SAYING: "I think it's a fantastic idea. I make outdoor beanbags and the one thing you want is to have sun all the time, so if this guarantees sun perfect." (SOUNDBITE) (English) MARK EVANS, DRINKER, SAYING: "I actually drink in another pub on quite a regular basis and what it doesn't have is light in the garden because it's not quite in line with where the sun comes in. So whilst it's a nice place to sit and drink it would be very nice to see a bit more of the sun coming in and lightening things up." MORE OF MIRROR WIDE OF MIRROR IN PUB GARDEN
- Embargoed: 6th July 2017 14:51
- Keywords: sun mirror sun mirror pub beer garden heliostat Solstice
- Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UK
- City: LONDON, ENGLAND, UK
- Country: United Kingdom
- Topics: Science
- Reuters ID: LVA0016MD1IE3
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:British artist and inventor Andrew Shoben has combined mathematics and art to shed light into the darkest corners of the gardens of a British pub.
His 'Smart Mirror' was installed at The Sun public house in Clapham, south east London on June 21, the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, as Britain sweltered during an unusually hot spell of weather.
It has been launched in conjunction with UK brewers meantime, which hopes eventually to install the mirror across pub beer gardens nation-wide.
The prototype is made of reflective shatter-proof acrylic and looks much like a television satellite dish, with a circumference of 1.2 metres. It's mounted onto a motorised bracket that can rotate 270 degrees, in an effort to track and reflect the sun through its full arc.
Its movement is controlled by a computer programme using algorithms based on time, date, latitude and longitude.
"We've created a heliostat, a device which inherently knows where the sun is and moves in order to keep the reflection of that sunlight in a particular space. It involves knowing where you are on the surface of the earth and working out where the sun is and the inclination of where you want to shine it to," Shoben told Reuters.
Shoben says the programme can be altered to any global location by simply changing the co-ordinates.
Matt Lamb, team leader at The Sun pub, likes the idea.
"It's like an illusion, having an extra sun in the garden. Hopefully it will please the customers, keep everyone happy and smiling," he said.
Shoben says the mirror wouldn't necessarily be a suitable application for householders looking to avoid the shade in their own gardens.
"In order to calibrate something like this you actually have to point at the sun. If you never get the sun directly overhead or somewhere where a mirror will work it's rather difficult," he said.
The Smart Mirror is being trialed at The Sun for two days and will be packed up on Friday (June 23), potentially leaving regulars sitting gloomily in the shade, asking 'Where did the sun go?' - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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