The landscape of lighting is evolving towards a greener future, but the introduction of more eco-friendly sources such as LED is just part of the story. Only by using and controlling fixtures in a more intelligent manner can we harness the full potential of the smart approach to lighting, says the company.
Artistic Licence Engineering's sunDial range provides the technology to make this happen. To ensure maximum versatility, the MC80-DMX and MC64-DALI controllers respectively accept DMX512 and DALI input data. These units can be paired with sunDial output modules, which provide 'source agnostic' dimming for every fixture from incandescent to solid-state.
Demonstrating this versatility in action, the sunDial ML4000 leading-edge mains dimmer will be driving an 'eco-halogen' source, while the OIL448 low voltage dimmer will be driving high-power LED and the latest in OLED technology, the Philips Lumiblade GL350.
The ML4000 is equipped with four output channels, each dimming European mains voltages at 250W, giving 1KW in total. The input is protected with a cartridge fuse, and the outputs with electronic cut-outs.
The OIL448 also provides four outputs, which automatically adjust to the user-supplied DC supply in the range 12-48V. This allows series chains of high power LEDs to be controlled and dimmed. Each output can be user-selected to operate at either 350mA or 700mA, for driving 1W and 3W LEDs respectively.
The 'smart' aspect of the range is highlighted by the in-built DMX remote device management (RDM) or DALI back-channel. These protocols enable the controllers to not only tell the fixture what to do, but also listen to its environment. Such feedback provides intelligent monitoring of installations, allowing the implementation of automated fault reporting and energy conserving programmes.
(Jim Evans)
