¶ Main products
¶ See also...
¶ What is smart street light module?
The smart street light module allows you to communicate with the ballast and send the information through the radio - in our case it is the LoRaWAN protocol over the LoRa network. The main purpose of the module is to dim light and report faults such is overheating, broken LED module or faulty ballast.
¶ How is street light module connected and how to pick the right one?
The street light module comes in 2 variants. The ZHAGA and NEMA socket. The difference is in the form factor and the power supply. ZHAGA uses the 4 pin ZHAGA socket with the 24V AUX power supply whether NEMA uses the 8 pin socket with the 230V AC power supply.
¶ How do I know it will work with my light?
The rule of thumb is that any DALI driver is suitable and it doesn't matter if it's the DALI or DALI-2. Howewer, we reccomend to use the D4i ballasts which have the AUX 24V power supply built in. Always check if the ballast you intend to use has the AUX power supply built in or if the external power supply is needed. In case the external power supply is needed, it is usually less cost-effective compared to the D4i ballasts and there is another hardware within the setup that can be faulty.
¶ How many gateways will I need?
Some vendors are claiming that hundreds of nodes can be connected to the one gateway and it can be a true claim, howewer it depends a lot on the landscape relief. Usually the better spot for the gateway is the one that has a clear view but is further, compared to the one which is closer but with obstacles in the way. We do suggest you to use the minimum of 2 gateways for the substitutability.
¶ How to integrate your module?
You can check our webpage www.acrios.com where we do present a 3-tier model consisting of just a hardware, hardware + backend or the complete management system. You can do the integration as you would for any other device and we will provide you with the payloads and some examples. Or you can use our backend which takes care of the communication and the LoRaWAN layer and you only need to use your own frontend. The backend would be communicating via the REST API. Or we can provide you with the complete management system. It all comes down to what your customer needs and what you can provide. Then we can fill in the blanks.
¶ What does an "Active DALI" means?
It means that the module is powering the DALI bus. In various installations, we have encountered 2 types of ballast. The first one which does not have the DALI bus-powered and the second one, which does. By default, the AirSLC module does not power the DALI bus and it is designed to be powered via the ballast. In case the ballast doesn’t power the DALI bus, the AirSLC module can do so by sending the „0x01“ command to port 190. By sending 0x00, the node will NOT power the DALI bus.
Other option would be to use the ACR-SLC, which has an automatic DALI (or DX) power detection.
¶ How should I proceed with the project?
The project is such a complex topic with so many variables that there is a no easy answer. Howewer the rough guidlines could be:
- Picking the ballast and light with the module (preferably Acrios module)
- Do a single light setup in the office and test all of the functionalities. We can assist you with it as well.
- Do an installations of tens of lights to get everything correct and proof that the installation will be without any issues. The last thing you want to do is to search for a nodes in the installation of 300+ lights.
- Finish the installation.
There is many variable such is how to know the location of the node, how to set-up the LoRa network, how to configure the ligths etc., which we will discuss together.
¶ What if there is an issue with the LoRa network?
The node and its functionality are dependants on the LoRaWAN network. However, if the communication is lost, the node goes into the automatic mode where it is being controlled via the ambient light sensor. The light will be turned off during the day and turned on during the night even when there is no communication.