Wired or Wireless | Lighting Control Articles

I’ve seen many articles recently about the death of wired solutions and how wireless will dominate and I thought that perhaps I would give my views on this.

As a company zencontrol is certainly going down the wireless route and will be supplying a range of IEC 62386 Part 104 devices post Light+ Building. These are all built on this international standard and will use Bluetooth and or Open thread, which gives us a range of options for wireless control.

I can’t imagine we are unique in this, but I do know we will have these third part approved by DiiA to ensure we have a truly interoperable solution.

This is quite critical, and I think perhaps this is one area where you need to carefully consider the wireless solution you are using.

There are proprietary and non-proprietary solutions out there and its crucial you select the solution that is firstly appropriate for your application and secondly is ideally not tied to an individual manufacture. As an industry we have collectively made the decision to endorse an open and interoperable approach to wireless so you have to question why you would move away from such an approach.

I can’t imagine we are unique in this, but I do know we will have these third part approved by DiiA to ensure we have a truly interoperable solution.

This is quite critical, and I think perhaps this is one area where you need to carefully consider the wireless solution you are using.

I will discuss wireless languages in a little more detail later in this document but for the moment I want to discuss the benefits of wired versus wireless. Each has its merits and we need to carefully consider the application before we select a particular solution.

Now this will be very general and obviously there will be exceptions to the rule, so this is in no way definitive. The majority of control devices be they wired or wireless need power, and to that end a cable needs to be provided to the control device, and for the sake of argument let’s call it a multi sensor.

If the sensor is DALI-2 it can be connected to a controller via simple 2 wire bus and will draw its power from the network. The wiring is simple and with DALI-2 that sensor can be configured to work across multiple networks via software.

A similar wireless multi sensor has no physical connections to the DALI-2 network but does require mains power. Obviously, configuration is once again through software, but functionality should be identical.

So, the first question is it cheaper to run two DALI wires to a sensor or to power the sensor via the mains. You would also need to factor in the on cost for the wireless sensor as generally they would carry a premium.

The argument they are cheaper to install is then questionable. Now I did say this isn’t straight forward and if we consider D4i, then the Ballast within the luminaire can power a local wireless device and would obviously provide a lower cost solution for powering the sensor.

In all cases we need to deliver power to the luminaire or its associated smart controls and the way in which we manage this power can be pivotal on the efficiency of the overall scheme.

Obviously, the use of the space will have a huge impact on whether you choose a wired or wireless solution and this is something we need to fully assess prior to specification otherwise a proper comparison of technologies isn’t possible.

The other factor that works against certain wireless technologies is the way we develop our buildings. If we have a client on board then generally, we will have a clear plan of how that

building will function but often, the developer doesn’t have a client signed up for all the building so a number of the floors may be fitted out to the most basic specification.

In these instances, contractor and developers would be reluctant to pay the on cost for wireless technology and would leave this to the client to request upon fit out.

Therefore in so called Cat A developments a basic level of installation will most likely be based around a traditional wired solution using a structure cabling system or similar.

Cost drives this type of development and can be easily set up to allow basic operation of the lighting on that floor plate. Obviously, this can be done wirelessly and may in certain instances, be done this way, but with a much reduced infrastructure.

In some applications such as Airports, Mass transit railways etc there may be a reluctance to use wireless for security reasons and in these applications, wireless may only be used in a very limited manner.

The reality is that Hybrid circuits will dominate; that is a mix of both wired and wireless.

I know there are battery operated systems out there, but these are limited in their functionality and the information they can provide to the management system.

Sending data about space utilisation, air quality or the temperature of the room etc consumes power therefore battery-operated devices will have a very limited life. That’s not to say they won’t be used, and we have used these in the past and where you have a simple operation with no diagnostics then they will have their place.

Wireless will no doubt dominate the very smart connected devices where analytical data on air quality, temperature and tracking will be key feature of a Building automation system.

Using wireless technology has the advantage that these devices can be placed where they need to be and as a high value diagnostic tool they will be seen as an enhancement to the management of the building.

Less intelligent wireless devices will have their use and linked to a D4i ballast will provide a simple infrastructure for basic controls and if well thought out could be upgraded over its operating life to work in harmony with a smarter control’s infrastructure.

This is where Part 104 comes into its own as wireless devices can be engineered to suit any application and therefore can be scalable to match performance criteria. You have the flexibility to upgrade when you need too or combine technologies.

What you must carefully consider is the underlying technology that supports both the wired and wireless core system.

If you have a twenty-year-old car, putting on a go-faster stripe won’t make it go any faster or perform any better and the same is true of a dated lighting control platform. If the underlying technology underpinning your solution is twenty years old, then wireless controls will have a negligible impact on overall performance.

The choice of protocol you opt for when using wireless controls is driven by the limitations of your control platform and perhaps personal preference. You might also include “Peer pressure” and “What’s trending” as technology such as Bluetooth for example has become very popular as the perceived go to wireless solution and it does have merit, in that every smart phone has Bluetooth integrated into its core operating system, however, this could also be its Achilles heel if your network isn’t secure.

IEC has embraced Bluetooth as one of the protocols of choice with Part 104 and any compliant Part 104 device will work on both wired and wireless networks, so interoperability is assured and you are not locked into a single supplier and the associated restrictions that apply when you can only source this product from one vendor.

We favour Bluetooth and Open Thread as they have features that we can exploit to suit different applications and as I previously mentioned, Hybrid wired / wireless solutions will also support multiple wireless platforms as disparate systems will need to work in tandem. Having more than one wireless platform within a building will become common place as specialist manufacturers will favour one technology over another and therefore the core infrastructure must be smart enough to support this melding of technologies.

The open approach zencontrol with our emergency lighting brand ektor has taken may be at odds with some companies as we fully support an open approach to controls, be this wired or wireless; we see this as a strength. Each has its merits and it’s paramount we build in flexibility to the design to reflect the ever-evolving market.

Lighting is pivotal to the management of the Internet of Things (IoT) as it provides granularity and an infrastructure that can be used to measure and adjust more than just lighting. For this to work we must embrace what our industry is promoting and work with open platforms. Wired or wireless is irrelevant as should the choice of wireless protocol providing its interoperable and the core system is up to date and relevant.

author: Stewart B Langdown FSLL
email: stewart.langdown@zencontrol.co.uk

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