DALI2: the new DALI protocol for LED lighting applications - Digimax

When designing professional LED lighting installations, it is impossible not to mention the DALI protocol, one of the most widely used standards for digital lighting control.

An acronym for Digital Addressable Lighting Interface, DALI enables easy installation of lighting networks and the ability to control and manage various LED lighting functions in real time, both within rooms and in entire buildings.

Initially, the DALI protocol was designed to manage the brightness of fluorescent luminaires only, but gradually LED devices and light sources of various types were implemented, leading to the development of the new DALI-2 standard.

Today, DALI-2 certified products offer interesting possibilities for development within professional LED lighting systems: let's find out about the features of the DALI protocol and how it has evolved into DALI-2 technology.

What is the DALI lighting standard?

Developed and managed by the Digital Illumination Interface Alliance, the global consortium of leading lighting manufacturers, the DALI brand was created to replace the traditional 0/1-10V lighting control standard.

DALI is designed to enable the management, configuration and programming of LED lighting systems in digital mode: through a process of two-way communication between devices and control units, it is possible to execute on, off or dimmer commands, report faults or various types of information.

The innovations that the DALI system has brought to the management of LED lighting systems are numerous and of great impact in the professional lighting ecosystem:

• It is an open standard based on the IEC 62386 standard, i.e. it ensures interoperability between devices belonging to different brands;
• The digital nature of the protocol allows two-way dialogue between devices, facilitating the installation of scalable and flexible lighting networks;
• Based on a Master / Slave architecture, the DALI standard allows both individual digital control of devices and group and/or broadcast programming;
• Wiring a DALI lighting network is generally straightforward, in favour of software-based lighting programming independent of the network.

In addition to these innovations, a very important one has been added: the DALI-2 protocol, the latest version of the DALI standard, which brings considerable technological advantages.

DISCOVER THE BENEFITS OF DALI2 TECHNOLOGY

DALI-2: Differences from DALI 1

DALI-2 is the evolution of the first DALI protocol and is a standard integrated in both the IEC 62386 specifications and those drawn up by the DALI Alliance, in a continuous exchange of design and development data between the two bodies.

The first advantage of DALI-2 is its full compatibility with its predecessor: it is possible to use DALI-2 LED drivers in lighting systems with DALI standards, just as it is possible to use DALI-2 modules or sensors in combination with standard LED drivers.

When compared, the new DALI 2 LED lighting standard brings numerous improvements, controls and functions compared to the previous DALI 1 version:

1. Addition of lighting control devices: e.g. pushbuttons, sensors and LED drivers not included in the previous version. In addition, in order to obtain DALI 2 certification, the new protocol requires functional and inter-compatibility tests to be carried out by DiiA.
2. Introduction of Multi Master architecture: with regulation of various lighting control devices it is possible to send commands and signals to the DALI-2 bus from multiple sources, facilitating independent, immediate and simultaneous data communication.
3. Development of functional and application standards: new extensions were drafted for DALI 2 devices, e.g. for emergency lighting or colour control, creating a new product standard for intelligent lighting systems and IoT called D4i.

Digimax and DALI 2 technology for LED lighting systems

The continuous search for innovative and technologically advanced solutions is what distinguishes Digimax in the design of professional LED lighting systems.

In addition to our dedicated design consultancy service, we offer a wide range of products for LED lighting systems with DALI-2 technology. Examples include.

• Mean Well LCM and PWM constant voltage and constant current LED drivers with DALI-2 and push dimming functionality;
• DLC-02 LED driver from Mean Well able to exploit both DALI-2 and KNX protocols for lighting system automation;
• Eaglerise LED drivers with DALI 2 technology, simple to configure and capable of handling up to 30 power supplies simultaneously.

The DALI-2 standard is a great opportunity in the design of innovative LED lighting systems, from Home Automation to Smart Building. Contact us to learn more.

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