Brief Introduction about "Smart" LED lighting

The typical image of “Smart” lighting is an LED Lamp or Luminaire connected wirelessly and controlled via a mobile device to turn on and off, set dimming level and in some cases, change the color.

The Smart Lighting tends to be dominated by the choice of wireless interface: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth etc or some proprietary network approach and the merits or limitations of having to install a bridge to connect your home network.

Traditionally the world of controls and light sources has been separated.  Simple residential dimmer switches, occupancy or vacancy sensors were wired to control the delivery of AC power to the load.  Smart lighting has now merged controls into the light source.  With the addition of ambient light, proximity, and passive-IR sensors, these smart lighting solutions can become even smarter.  For example integrating a photo sensor inside a lamp with some intelligence allows occupancy detection and ambient light monitoring so that when you walk into your house or open a closet the light will immediately turn on if insufficient ambient light is not available.  Smart LED light bulbs that have this function are already on the market.

Beyond motion based control, perhaps a more useful autonomous smart light is one that has vacancy control.  This may require the integration of Passive IR sensors, but once a light is turned on, if a room becomes un-occupied, it will automatically turn off after an appropriate delay. For a parent with teenagers, this could be a real energy saver.

By integrating ambient light and/or Passive IR sensors, self-directed smart lighting solutions offer an additional path to smarter lighting systems especially in residential spaces where controls are less commonly found.  In commercial applications, more sophisticated variations of these control concepts are being mandated...