Ford Says Color Can Keep You Alert And Make You Feel Good

With the right lighting, everything else falls into place. Lighting in a vehicle is about space and dimension, said Mahendra Dassanayake, Ford Technical Leader for Design, but there's more to it.

"Lighting gives you a sense of orientation," said Dassanayake. "It's a unique combination of functionality and comfort. Lights, graphics, and displays are critical to drivers; we need to make sure that information is presented to the customer in an effective way."

Developing the ice blue color available in the ambient, or accent, lighting palette was critical, since it is a shade that can help keep drivers and passengers more alert. This makes it easier for a driver to absorb all the other messages coming from inside the vehicle. The carmaker's researchers have tested how the lighting affects the vehicle's interior from the driver's perspective, checking the textures and materials under a multitude of lighting conditions to make sure that glare and reflection are limited on smooth surfaces and that eye strain would be minimized.

It all starts with how the brain recognizes light. "The brain does not see color," Dassanayake said. "What we call color of light is actually a form of electromagnetic energy with different wavelengths. Light is like a pond, with ripples as the wavelengths. These ripples form and reflect and interact with each other, just like a ray hits a surface and sends a signal and then another sends a signal, and the sensation between the two is what people perceive as blue or red or green."

Certain levels or combinations of light trigger enzymes in the brain. Those enzymes cause emotional responses within the body – states we recognize as stress or calmness or happiness. "The emotions are created based on the secretions of these enzymes that are associated with certain light wavelengths," Dassanayake said. "There are certain triggers."

So it's not your imagination – color can affect how you feel. In fact, it affects everything from your buying choices to your blood pressure. For example, there are shades of yellow that stimulate parts of the brain, bringing clear-headed, decisive action. Green, on the other hand, affects the nervous system, causing us to breathe slowly and deeply, helping the heart to relax by slowing the production of stress hormones. Red – arguably the most attention-getting of colors – likely will evoke the strongest emotions, be that passion or anger.

On the Ford Fusion, the palette is ice blue, purple, blue, orange, red, white, and green. The palette allows the customer to set and change each color, depending on wants and needs. With a seven-color palette, customers have several options. "We're opening this up to let the customer decide," Dassanayake said. "It's offering them a choice."

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