Smart LEDs open up the unknown potential of light bulbs
Smart led bulb light maker Xinjielighting will explore what's needed to add smart connectivity to LED bulbs, including a comparison of various key wireless technologies, as well as Silicon Labs' (aka "Silicon") industry-first Wireless Gecko multi-protocol wireless SoC solutions. Additionally, this article will explore some of the automated smart lighting solutions in the consumer market and how the latest low-power MCUs, wireless technologies and mesh networking standards for connected home applications can accelerate the market.
Why Smart Lighting Has Not Crossed the Divide
The common light bulb has evolved over 140 years, from incandescent light bulbs to fluorescent light bulbs to LED light bulbs, and LED light bulbs may be one of the most important advancements. More specifically, the Smart led bulb light opens up light bulb uses that Edison never imagined.
But connected lighting has been around for a long time, so why hasn't Smart led bulb light been as successful as other consumer-oriented technologies in the internet age?
The limiting factors for the early development of Smart led bulb light
1. The installation of smart lighting is not easy and the cost is high
One barrier to entry is the amount of work required to install connected lighting. This job is definitely not as simple as doing it yourself. Users will need to replace the switch, which means cutting power to the switch, removing the switch, and replacing it with a brand new one. A home improvement program of this magnitude is beyond the reach of most homeowners.
Another factor hampering the development of this market is cost. As with anything, adoption will increase whenever the price to consumers decreases. The labor cost of new switches, wiring, and installing hardware circuits is not cheap, and even with LEDs' ubiquity, cost is still a big barrier. But now, things have changed.
LEDs alone overcome two important hurdles: simplicity of installation and ease of use.
2. The wireless protocol standards are complex, and the multi-protocol design hopes to be rescued
Another obstacle we mentioned, the disparate protocol standard, was also addressed. Today, most connected light bulbs use zigbee or low-energy Bluetooth. The interconnect switch can use proprietary protocols as well as zigbee.
Multi-protocols have become increasingly important because, while each standard has its own advantages and disadvantages, manufacturers have no interest in risking obsolescence by betting all on one protocol.
Now, the flexibility and ease of use of multi-protocol compatibility has become a competitive advantage, providing a better user experience and enhanced use cases.
Factors required for Smart led bulb light
1. Make ordinary LED bulbs intelligent
LED bulbs have evolved over generations and now have better color balance, greater reliability, and lower cost. Many LED light bulb manufacturers are researching how to create more innovative smart connected light bulbs.
Adding smart wireless connectivity to LED light bulbs requires overcoming some design challenges. RF modules for zigbee and Bluetooth Smart are readily available. From a high-level point of view, simply adding an RF module to an existing design seems straightforward.
Electronic ballasts in LED bulbs typically contain a PMIC and some high-voltage discrete components. Electronic ballasts typically drive LED bulbs with a constant current to achieve constant brightness, independent of input voltage or temperature. The electronics also provide good power factor and can be used with conventional wall dimmers.
The PMIC usually includes an auxiliary power supply that powers the PMIC itself. The PMIC auxiliary power supply can also power MCUs, wireless SoCs or RF modules. Auxiliary power is usually an unstable 10 to 15V power supply. Therefore, Smart led bulb light needs a linear regulator to reduce this voltage to provide a stable 3V or 1.8V power supply.
The second challenge is how to turn off the LED or dim the Smart led bulb light. One way is to add a MOSFET between the cathode of the Smart led bulb light and ground for the MCU to use for switching control. This approach presents some problems if the PMIC was originally designed for constant load. Disabling the PMIC also disables the auxiliary power, so it's not feasible.
2. Adding the Circuitry Needed to Smart Connectivity to LED Bulbs
Previous generations of smart connected LED bulbs utilized a modified basic LED bulb design. Next-generation smart LED bulbs combine ballast electronics with a PMIC designed specifically for smart bulbs. These designs include a stable low-voltage power supply that is always enabled and controls the brightness of the LEDs without the need for additional MOSFETs.
Energy efficiency standards such as the EPA's Energy Star program and the California Energy Commission's (CEC) TItle 20 Appliance Efficiency Program have stringent requirements for standby or drawn current. The ENERGY STAR Lamp Specification Version 2.0 requires standby power to be less than 500 mW.
CEC's TItle 20 is more stringent, specifying that the power must be less than 200 mW in standby mode. Although the wireless transceiver power consumption is well below this limit, it is still a challenge to convert the AC line voltage to the RF transceiver voltage. The auxiliary power supply needs to provide about 50 mW of power to the RF module with over 50% efficiency and less than 100 mW of quiescent current consumption.
The placement of RF modules and antennas presents some physical design challenges. Basic LED bulbs typically have a metal barrier around the ballast circuit board to minimize EMI from switching power supplies. Smart LED bulb designs require shielded ballasts and a good antenna for RF.
If the RF module is placed vertically near the top of the Smart led bulb light, a simple PCB antenna on the module might work. However, this can interfere with light conduction and bring the smart semiconductor closer to the LED heat source. Smart led bulb light designers need to carefully consider the impact of RF performance on bulb usability. For consumers, a reliable connection is important.
Last but not least, the temperature environment of the Smart led bulb lightRF module is also a consideration. Ideally, RF modules should be kept away from heat-generating LEDs and ballast electronics. However, this idea is sometimes not practical. The reliability of LEDs and wireless SoCs can be improved by monitoring the temperature of the LEDs and wireless SoCs and dimming the LEDs to limit heat generation. A thermistor placed near the Smart led bulb light monitors the LED temperature, while the wireless SoC may have an on-chip temperature sensor.
3. Over-the-air updates and shared bootloaders
Finally, future-proofing existing devices is one of the main advantages of wireless capabilities. Transferring new image files to wireless devices without the need for external storage means Smart led bulb light suppliers can bring new functionality to existing devices.
As we discussed earlier, it's not uncommon for a household to have 40 bulbs. When the latest Bluetooth standard is released, it will be quite a hassle to manually replace each bulb, but for now you don't have to worry about it.
By using a common bootloader for all wireless standards, you are no longer limited to just updating to the latest version of zigbee or Bluetooth, etc. You'll be able to switch the Smart led bulb light back and forth between zigbee and Bluetooth as needed.
Well, the above is all about Smart led bulb light. After reading this article, I believe that everyone has limited factors in the early development of Smart led bulb light and the advantages of Smart led bulb light. I hope this article can help you better understand Smart led bulb light. bulb light, more information about led lamps can be found in Xinjielighting's previous wonderful articles:
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