The IoT-Ready Alliance will focus on the creation of a common standard for IoT-enabled lighting fixtures
A group of internet of things (IoT) companies, lighting and LED driver manufacturers and other industry groups have established the IoT-Ready Alliance with the main aim of creating a common standard for IoT-enabled lighting fixtures.
This standard will ensure all new LED lighting fixtures can be shipped with a standard socket to easily add intelligent IoT sensors to the fixture after the it has been installed.
Lighting fixtures are an ideal platform for IoT technologies in smart buildings, providing ubiquitous locations for granular data collection throughout the building while delivering electric power to the sensors. However, only a small percentage of LED fixtures currently have smart sensors.
LED light fixtures typically boast a long lifetime of 15 years or more, while IoT and smart sensor technology is evolving rapidly. This means major IoT technology upgrades will certainly occur throughout the LED fixture’s life.
“There is tremendous urgency to enable today’s shipping LED luminaires to be easily upgraded with IoT technology. Otherwise, these luminaires condemn buildings to be unintelligent for the entire lifecycle of those fixtures,” Enlighted CEO Joe Costello, said. “Fifteen or more years is a long time before building owners have another chance to install smart sensors. With IoT-Ready fixtures, customers can install future-proof LED luminaires in their buildings.”
The IoT-Ready Alliance is currently working to standardize the key interface characteristics needed to make this happen. Both fixture-integrated and external sensors are being addressed. The IoT-Ready standards will include definitions for electrical interfaces, connectors, and mechanical form-factors.
“IoT-based lighting systems have tremendous potential to optimize energy efficiency and bring new kinds of value to the lighting and building industries and beyond,” said Gabe Arnold, Technical Director at DesignLights Consortium”. “By standardizing the interface between these IoT systems and the luminaires they are attached to, the IoT-Ready Alliance is addressing an essential aspect needed to unlock the full technology potential and enable widespread adoption.”
Initial industry participants include Aruba, Click Technology, DECO Lighting, DesignLights Consortium, Enlighted, ERP Power, Focal Point, MEAN WELL, Orion Energy Systems, Selux, Shenzhen Lighting Control, Silergy Corporation, Tridonic, Universal Lighting Technologies and USAI Lighting. The Alliance said that it is open to receive new members.
