Hanshin Koshien Stadium

Japan
Public Spaces
Sports

Recreates traditional cocktail lights using LED lighting, which brings the stadium to life through the combination of lighting, imaging, and music

Built in 1924, Hanshin Koshien Stadium was equipped with night game lighting in 1956. The main night game lighting used at that time was orange-tinged incandescent light bulbs, but at Hanshin Koshien Stadium, bright blue-white mercury lights were added to supplement the illuminance. Known as “cocktail lights,” this lighting created a brighter environment that made playing nighttime baseball games easier. Subsequently in 1974 the light sources were changed to metal halide lamps and high-pressure sodium lamps with high rendering properties. This project therefore aimed to upgrade this lighting.
The objective for upgrading the stadium’s lighting was to enhance new fan services that encourage support by passionate fans while maintaining the nostalgic atmosphere created by the cocktail lights. In order to recreate the effect of cocktail lights with LED lighting, Panasonic developed 2050K (orange) and 5700K (white) LED lights to custom specifications. Adjustments were made to reflect Hanshin Koshien Stadium’s uniquely warm atmosphere as closely as possible when these two colors are mixed together, and 4K/8K broadcast-compatible high color rendering was also achieved. Furthermore, the introduction of DMX* controls enables the 756 stadium lights to blink or dim individually while the tower lights display patterns and characters using the lighting like pixel art. As for lighting displays, when the Hanshin Tigers win a game, the tower lights display the words “VICTORY” and “KAKERU TORA” (Running Tiger”) with the main and upper perimeter display screens also displaying a series of characters and images, which provide entertainment combining LED lighting, music, and visual images.

In addition, with this switch to LED lighting, not only have CO₂ emissions been reduced by around 60% but also the angles of all the lighting fixture have been precisely set, which creates a light environment that does not feel too bright and minimizes light leakage to the outside of the stadium. In this way, Hanshin Koshien Stadium—which is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2024—is endeavoring to contribute to an environmentally friendly society so it may continue to be a beloved baseball facility for the next 100 years as well.

*DMX: Communications standard for dimming/controlling lighting fixture.

Architectural Design Report Vol. 43/Issued November 2022
*Corporate names/positions are current as at the time of reporting.

Sports field lighting recreates Koshien Stadium’s traditional cocktail lights mixing orange and white using LED lighting and realizes 4K/8K broadcast-compatible high color rendering properties.

Professional baseball mode (when all lights are on) night game lighting. Illuminance: Infield 2,500 lx; Outfield 1,500 lx

Display shown when the Hanshin Tigers win. A tiger is shown running around in dots in the tower lights and images on the main vision screen.

Display when a homerun has been hit, seen from the outfield top row.

Tower lights recreate the original cocktail lights using LED.

The angles of floodlights installed on top of the Ginsan roof have been carefully angled to reduce glare.

Floodlights on the lowest row on the towers are fixed at an angle so that they illuminate spectator seating.

Custom-made lighting shines on spectator seating from the catwalk underneath the Ginsan roof.

Display of highlights with the Hanshin Tiger’s symbol flashing- Part 1

Display of highlights with the Hanshin Tiger’s symbol flashing- Part 2

An elaborate light distribution control system prevents light leakage to the area around the stadium.

Providing state-of-the-art displays while maintaining tradition

Katsuji Akaso
Acting Stadium Manager, Koshien Department
Sports and Entertainment Business Division
HANSHIN ELECTRIC RAILWAY CO., LTD.

We had been considering the switch to LED lighting since 2016, but recreating the cocktail lights originally installed at Koshien Stadium was a difficult challenge. I believe that using the LED floodlights developed especially for this project has enabled us to recreate the stadium’s nostalgic atmosphere. The LED lighting makes the field brighter, and players have been telling us that fielding is much, much easier now. Furthermore, in terms of not only maintaining tradition but also seeing just how state-of-the-art the lighting can become, the introduction of DMX controls has enabled unprecedented dynamic displays through the combination of LED lighting, music, and large vision screens. Displays are finely detailed, so I hope that you will visit the stadium to enjoy them for yourself.

New-era cocktail lights that revolutionize entertainment

Ikuo Oue
Koshien Department
Sports and Entertainment Business Division
HANSHIN ELECTRIC RAILWAY CO., LTD.

After seeing the demonstration LED floodlights at Panasonic’s Kadoma Factory, we submitted our exacting requirements for Koshien Stadium, and in the process of Panasonic creating several prototypes, ultimately they created floodlights that exceeded our expectations. In addition to creating lights that are highly effective in minimizing glare and saving energy, recreating the colors of the high pressure sodium lamps used in the cocktail lights was a tremendous achievement. These unprecedented dynamic lighting displays have made a tremendous impact and been met with a very favorable reception. The finished lighting facilities are magnificent, and so moving forward we intend to pursue lighting displays that will delight stadium visitors even more.