By Steve Mesh This article on emergency lighting and controls was very much a collaborative effort. Many experts in the field—including Rick Miller, Craig DiLouie, and several manufacturers—provided extremely valuable input in reviewing and fact-checking the content. Egress and emergency lighting are critical elements of building design. During periods of occupancy, a clear, unobstructed path [...]

In senior care centers, tunable LED lighting system retrofits can save energy, reduce operating costs, and improve quality of life for occupants when compared to outdated fluorescent systems that are still used in many facilities nationwide. A recent study suggests that LED tunable lighting system retrofits can offer energy savings and reduced costs, along with the possibility of improved quality of life for residents.

What will it take to truly change the lighting paradigm and arrive at a place where energy-efficient lighting systems are simpler to install, easier to operate, enable dynamic control, and provide clear productivity and health benefits, with less environmental impact? Explore questions like these with top lighting scientists and industry experts at DOE’s 19th annual Solid-State Lighting Workshop, cosponsored by the Illuminating Engineering Society.

In a recent article published by EC&M Magazine, Evergreen Consulting Group’s Tony Adams talks about the evolution of lighting control toward dimming, color tuning, discrete zoning, and application of multiple control strategies in the same space, focusing on luminaire-level lighting controls.

Because of the new features provided by many lighting control systems, such as the ability to change colors, some drivers now available in the market are also “programmable.”  What does this mean?  And why would you want to use programmable drivers?

Let’s talk about dimming and dimming curves, and a variety of attributes that you should consider, inquire about, then specify what you actually want.

In this article, C. Webster Marsh, designer with Horton Lees Brogden, discusses the topic of interfaces between incompatible devices designed to different protocols, and how to get the best results.

Networked lighting controls can reduce energy consumption by an average 47 percent, according to a recent industry study. That makes control a powerful tool in managing energy costs, but it only captures a small fraction of its potential value in enhancing quality lighting with LED technology.

Combining LEDs with integrated controls and sensors, luminaire level lighting controls (LLLC) offer customers a single solution that will improve their building, deliver maximum energy savings and enable long-term flexibility. Check out this infographic courtesy of the Northwest Lighting Network …

Republication of Postings from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solid-State Lighting Program by Jim Brodrick, SSL Program Manager, U.S. Department of Energy It’s no secret that the explosion of connectivity triggered by the advent of the Internet of Things (IoT) is also impacting the lighting industry — to such an extent as to constitute [...]

Below is an interview between Craig DiLouie, LC and Manuel Oomen, Senior Director of Product Marketing, Philips Lighting, for an article about luminaire-integrated lighting controls written for tED Magazine. DiLouie: What types of luminaire-integrated controls are available for LED lighting? Oomen: For indoor lighting, integrated controls include presence detectors, (day)light sensors and receivers. For outdoor [...]

When evaluating an existing lighting system, the owner can do nothing, something or everything. Doing nothing abandons operating cost savings. Doing something entails replacing lamps and installing some automatic controls. Doing everything involves installing a new lighting and control system. As many owners opt for the “something” option, demand for LED replacement lamps continues to [...]

In an article recently published by Oracle’s Profit, Current by GE CTO David Bartlett saves LED lighting not only saves energy but also presents new capabilities due to it being a digital platform. He compares it to a smart phone, which bundles multiple functions into a single device. “It’s to the point where I don’t [...]

Craig DiLouie, LC, CLCP recently interviewed Ethan Biery, LED Engineering Leader, Lutron Electronics about TLED retrofits and control options. DiLouie: What basic choices do building owners have to upgrade existing troffer-based fluorescent lighting systems to LED? Biery: There are three basic choices for TLED retrofits: 1. UL Type A: TLEDs retrofitted with existing fluorescent ballasts [...]

The U.S. Department of Energy recently posted the presentations from the 2016 DOE SSL Technology Development Workshop, held November 16–17 in Denver. You can download them here. The controls-related presentations included: Connected Lighting: What Is It, What Makes It Different, and Where Is It Going? Moderator: Michael Poplawski, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Matt Petti, Eaton [...]

In “Lighting Controls for Dummies,” a presentation at 2016 LEDucation in NYC, Andrea Hartranft, LC, IALD, of Hartranft Lighting Design, LLC, attempts to demystify lighting control vocabulary and provide a better understanding of solid-state dimming. Lighting Controls for Dummies from LEDucation on Vimeo.  

In 2016, ENERGY STAR hosted a series of webinars on important lighting and control topics including flicker, evaluating color quality, connected lighting and dimmable LED lamps. You can also sign up for the last 2016 webinar, which will be held December 29, 2016 from 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM ET. This webinar will cover the [...]

Craig DiLouie, LC, CLCP recently had the opportunity to interview Yan Rodriguez, VP, Product & Technology, Acuity Brands Lighting for an article about LED flicker for Electrical Contractor Magazine. DiLouie: In your opinion, how big a problem is LED product flicker in the lighting industry as of 2016? What types of products (lamps versus luminaires, [...]

Traditionally, outdoor lighting was automatically turned ON and OFF at the circuit level by an astronomical time switch or photosensor. Energy codes are now promoting power reduction during dusk-to-dawn lighting operation. Coupled with advances in wireless communication and intelligent control, the result is dramatic changes in how outdoor lighting is controlled. New construction Twenty-four states [...]

Vehicles are expected to play a big part in the Internet of Things. By 2020, 250 million connected vehicles will be on the road, creating new services and driving capabilities, according to Gartner, Inc. Infotainment is high in demand, though other capabilities are enabled, including crash warning, traffic violation warning and relaying weather, traffic and [...]

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) published NEMA SSL 7A-2015 Phase-Cut Dimming for Solid State Lighting—Basic Compatibility. This standard provides compatibility requirements when a forward phase-cut dimmer is combined with one or more dimmable light-emitting diode (LED) light engines (LLEs). An LLE, for the purposes of this document, comprises one or more LED modules, LED [...]

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) published NEMA LSD 73-2015, Energy Savings with Fluorescent and LED Dimming. This new white paper describes the signal path from the user control input through the control wiring, ballast or driver, and lamp or LED module. It also explains factors that affect energy consumption and savings, efficacy and user [...]

Republication of Postings from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solid-State Lighting Program by Jim Brodrick, SSL Program Manager, U.S. Department of Energy As we mentioned in these Postings a few weeks ago, the biggest takeaway from this year’s LIGHTFAIR® International was the prevalence of connected products, and the fact that sensors and controls seemed [...]

Given current adoption of commercial building energy codes, conventional wisdom indicates that LED lighting is frequently specified with automatic lighting controls. However, there is little public data available concerning market penetration of LED lighting, how often it is specified as controllable and with lighting controls, owner preferences, and how satisfied specifiers and installers are with [...]

Republication of Postings from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solid-State Lighting Program by Jim Brodrick, SSL Program Manager, U.S. Department of Energy You may recall that last year, DOE’s GATEWAY program released a report entitled Dimming LEDs with Phase-Cut Dimmers: The Specifier’s Process for Maximizing Success, which was created in response to issues raised [...]

The U.S. Department of Energy has revised its October 2013 report, Dimming LEDs with Phase-Cut Dimmers: The Specifier’s Process for Maximizing Success, to include updated information about the installation of LED lighting and controls at the Burden Museum in Troy, NY, a GATEWAY project that was still in construction when the original report was published. [...]

Outdoor lighting controls is undergoing a mini-revolution that offers new design and selling opportunities while challenging electrical professionals to stay on top of technological change. Traditionally, outdoor lighting control was relatively simple. A typical scheme featured a controller providing automatic ON/OFF based on time of day (using an astronomical time switch) or daylight (photosensor). The [...]

With efficacy and service life steadily increasing and costs declining by about 18 percent each year (Memoori, 2014), the LED revolution continues to develop at a rapid pace. LED’s inherent compatibility with digital control, aided by other trends, is setting the stage for the next LED revolution: smart lighting control. Many LED products are sold [...]

Lutron’s Dr. Pekka Hakkarainen recently wrote an article for LEDs MAGAZINE that makes the case that further LED adoption depends on advanced lighting controls. Check it out here.

The Illuminating Engineering Society, in partnership with the Lighting Controls Association, has published LEM-7, Lighting Controls for Energy Management, a detailed guide to energy-saving lighting controls. The publication was written by Craig DiLouie, LC in support of the IES Energy Management Committee. The 48-page 8.5×11 guide, which is available for $35 (IES members) and $50 [...]

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has published a new report, Dimming LEDs with Phase-Cut Dimmers: The Specifier’s Process for Maximizing Success. The report was created in response to issues raised about dimming by energy efficiency organizations and specifiers, and is based on experience from CALiPER testing and GATEWAY demonstrations. While progress has been made [...]

The Alliance for Solid-State Illumination Systems and Technologies (ASSIST), a program of the Lighting Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, recently released a new publication that addresses the issue of how lamps should dim in terms of their “look and feel” during the dimming process. The publication, ASSIST recommends… Dimming: A Technology-neutral Definition, provides [...]