Electrical CAD
DIALux evo Lighting Design: Interior, Daylight and Documentation
Design and calculate lighting for a building in the free DIALux evo software, from a DWG plan to raytraced images and reports.
DIALux evo Lighting Design: Interior, Daylight and Documentation is a free, self-paced online course from EDWartens for engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers and panel designers. It has 12 modules and takes about 21.1 hours, with written notes, a practice task per module, a practical project and a final assessment of 15 questions (pass mark 60%). Learning costs nothing and needs only a free account. The optional EDWartens Certificate of Completion, verifiable by code, is a one-off US$23.99 for you; it is not a vendor credential. Updated 1 November 2026.
- Free
- Beginner
- 21.1 hours
- Self-paced
- Certificate optional
No card, no trial. The course is free for good. Certificate US$23.99, optional.
- Who it is for
- Engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers and panel designers
- Jobs
- Roles that use this skill: electrical design engineer, panel designer, electrical technician and maintenance engineer. No course guarantees a job.
- Tools
- DIALux evo (free download from DIAL). Hardware: none required.
- Updated
After this course you can
By the end you will be able to:
- Set up a DIALux evo project from a DWG plan
- Model rooms, openings, floors and roofs
- Choose luminaires from manufacturer catalogues and arrange them
- Run lux, uniformity and daylight calculations
- Deliver raytraced images, reports and AutoCAD exports
Who it is for, and what you need first
Who it is for
Engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers and panel designers.
Level: Beginner. Beginner. No lighting or CAD experience needed.
What you need
Software: DIALux evo (free download from DIAL).
Hardware: None required.. What to download, and how.
How this course works
Watch the lessons
Short video lessons, one module at a time, at your own pace.
Read the notes
Open the Reading tab for the written notes and diagrams of the module.
Check yourself
Answer the questions to see what stuck before you move on.
Final assessment
Pass the final once you have been through the modules.
Certificate, if you want oneOptional
Optional, with a page anyone can use to verify it.
What you learn
12 modules in order, at your own pace. 21.1 hours of video lessons, with written notes and a practice task in each module.
- 1DIALux evo: Introduction, Installation and Interface35m
- 2Importing Plans and Building Outlines37m
- 3Rooms, Floors, Doors, Windows and Roofs1h 8m
- 4Spaces, Ceilings, Cut-outs, Stairs and Textures1h 17m
- 5Furniture, Objects and Materials1h 6m
- 6Luminaire Catalogues and Selection49m
- 7Arranging Luminaires and Running the Calculation1h 21m
- 8Lighting Fundamentals, Manual Calculation and Daylight56m
Show the other 4 modules
- 9Architectural Lighting Techniques1h 25m
- 10Images, Raytracing, Documentation and Export50m
- 11Complete House Project1h 57m
- 12Final Assessment
Software you need
What to download, where from, what it costs and how to install it. Every link goes to the maker's own site, never a mirror.
Show what to download (1 tool)
Required
- 01Free
DIALux evo
DIAL
- Runs on
- Windows 10 (version 1803 or later) or Windows 11, 64-bit
- Account
- A free DIALux ID (you can register inside DIALux evo)
DIALux evo is free to use with luminaires from DIAL's member manufacturers. Using luminaires from non-member manufacturers, and some extra features such as DIALux Pro, are paid options.
Steps
- 1.Open the DIALux download page and select DIALux evo.
- 2.Run the downloaded Windows installer.
- 3.Start DIALux evo with an internet connection.
- 4.Sign in with your DIALux ID, or register one in the program.
- 5.Download luminaire catalogues from member manufacturers inside DIALux evo.
- A graphics card with OpenGL 3.2 and a 1920 x 1080 screen are recommended.
- DIAL's own online course and community are useful companions to this course.
Official download pagedialux.com
Checked against each maker's own page on 27 September 2026. Trial lengths and editions change; the maker's page is the final word.
What you practise
Course project, about 10 hours
Two-storey house lighting in DIALux evo: targets, hand check, scenes and client pack
Light a two-storey house in DIALux evo from a dimensioned plan. Set a stated target for every room, add calculation surfaces on the kitchen worktop and the bathroom mirror, and check two rooms by the lumen method. Then set day, evening and night scenes and issue a client pack.
- 7documents in the pack
- 8steps to follow
- 6things to hand in
- 10 hof work, at your pace
- URSLighting Requirements: Two-storey House
- PlanCalculation Basis: Geometry, Reflectances and Settings
- RegisterLuminaire Schedule
- ReportLighting Design Results and Hand Check
- Drawing listDocument List: Lighting Design
- ProcedureCheck-on-site Procedure, with a Completed Example Record
The project is optional practice. The certificate needs only the modules and the final assessment.
Free 3D lab
Electrical lab
Practise in your browser. Free, nothing to install.
After the course, your next step
Show what you can do, then keep going in the same field.
A certificate you can verify
Finish the modules and pass the final assessment (15 questions, pass mark 60%) and you can add a certificate with a public verification page. One-off, US$23.99 for you. It is not a vendor credential.
Want a free certificate? Do the matching Free internship: 4 weeks, nothing to buy, with a free certificate of completion.
Electrical Design
Eight short weeks of single-line diagrams, load schedules, cable sizing and protection: notes, diagrams, a few videos and self-checking design exercises. Finish the 4 weeks and get a free Internship Completion Certificate, with a QR code anyone can scan to verify it. Training, not employment.
See the internshipPart of a learning path
Courses in a planned order, so each one builds on the last.
More free courses
Roles that use this skill
- Electrical design engineer
- Panel designer
- Electrical technician
- Maintenance engineer
These are the kinds of roles where the skill is used. We make no promise of a job or an interview.
Plain notes
- Free: the whole course, the notes, the practice tasks, the final assessment and support from practising engineers.
- Paid, and optional: the course certificate, and the Premium internship (the Free internship costs nothing).
- No job promise: the course teaches a skill. It does not place you in a job.
- Lessons by: Electrical Design Engineering, Khadija Academy (Engr. Ahmed), DIALux made by DIAL, Lighting Design with Artem Voronov, Autodesk Learning Center. Independent creators; the lessons stream from their own channels. EDWartens wrote the study plan, notes, practice tasks and assessments.
Electrical Design Engineering · Khadija Academy · DIALux made by DIAL · Lighting Design with Artem Voronov · Autodesk Learning Center. If you are one of these creators and want a lesson removed or credited differently, write to info@wartens.com.
Why learn with EDWartens
What you get with this course, and what comes after it.
- Free from the first lesson to the final assessment.
- Video lessons with written notes and a project.
- An optional certificate that anyone can verify online.
- Free internships to keep practising afterwards.
Common questions
Is DIALux evo really free?
Yes. DIAL is funded by luminaire manufacturers whose catalogues plug into it; download it from dialux.com.
Which standard are the lux levels from?
EN 12464-1 for interiors, as used in the lectures and aligned with ISO 8995-1 and many national lighting codes.
Do I need AutoCAD?
No. Plans can be DWG or JPG; export to AutoCAD is covered but not required.
Is the DIALux evo Lighting Design course really free?
Yes. Every module, practice task and assessment. You create an account so your progress is saved and the assessments can be marked. The certificate is the only paid item, and only if you want it.
What certificate do I get, and is it a vendor qualification?
An EDWartens Certificate of Completion, issued when you pass the final assessment, with a verification code anyone can check. It is not a vendor credential and is never described as one.
Who made the video lessons in the DIALux evo Lighting Design course?
The creators named in the Credits block at the foot of this page, on their own YouTube channels. EDWartens did not make the videos and the creators are not affiliated with EDWartens. What EDWartens wrote is the study plan, the notes, the practice tasks and the assessments.
How long does the DIALux evo Lighting Design course take?
Plan on about 21 hours in all, including the video lessons, notes and practice tasks. It is self-paced, so you work through the twelve modules at your own speed.
What topics does the DIALux evo Lighting Design course cover, module by module?
The DIALux evo Lighting Design course has 12 modules. It opens with "DIALux evo: Introduction, Installation and Interface", goes through "Importing Plans and Building Outlines", "Furniture, Objects and Materials", "Lighting Fundamentals, Manual Calculation and Daylight" and "Complete House Project" and ends with "Final Assessment". The full list with minutes is under "What you learn" on this page.
What can I do after the DIALux evo Lighting Design course?
After the DIALux evo Lighting Design course: Import plans and model buildings, rooms, openings and roofs in DIALux evo; Furnish and assign materials with correct reflectances; Select luminaires from catalogues and arrange them to hit lux and uniformity. These are the practical outcomes the course is written around, and the final assessment of 15 questions checks them.
What software and hardware do I need for the DIALux evo Lighting Design course, and does it cost anything?
For the DIALux evo Lighting Design course, software: DIALux evo (free download from DIAL). Hardware: none required. The course itself is free.
Is the DIALux evo Lighting Design course suitable for me, and what level is it?
DIALux evo Lighting Design is rated beginner. Beginner. No lighting or CAD experience needed. It is written for engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers and panel designers, and takes about 21.1 hours at your own pace.
Which jobs use the skills from the DIALux evo Lighting Design course?
Skills from the DIALux evo Lighting Design course (for example: import plans and model buildings, rooms, openings and roofs in DIALux evo) are used in roles such as electrical design engineer, panel designer, electrical technician and maintenance engineer, and in electrical design engineer work. The course gives you practical evidence of the skill; it does not promise a job, and employers decide on experience and interview.
Start free today
DIALux evo Lighting Design: Interior, Daylight and Documentation, at your own pace. Add the certificate only if you want one.