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Designing a DALI application
DALI Manual | 08-2013 | en
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Designing a DALI application
This section is intended to simplify the planning and configuration of DALI installations. Using examples from the
Application Guide it discusses the typical requirements of a DALI system and the special features of Tridonic products.
The following two aspects deserve special attention when designing a DALI application.
In most cases, the prime consideration will be the conceptual aspect. What are the characteristics of the lighting
application and what requirements and criteria should they meet? You will then consider the technical aspect and
attempt to find the right products to meet these criteria.
The technical aspect of the DALI installation is closely associated with the planning process.
The key to a successful DALI installation starts with the installation plan. The installation plan should contain the
following points:
Conventional wiring or DALI
If a requirement profile calls for flexible lighting control in which the assignment of the luminaires and control gear can
be changed this must be defined in every detail before the installation phase. For conventional lighting management
(without DALI) planners have to take into account all the possible lighting control options before work actually
commences. Conventional planning would provide for multiple control lines per room section to cover all the possible
options.
With DALI all the lighting control options remain open even after the installation is complete and changes are needed
to a particular control variant (planning security). There are no additional costs for multiple control lines or rewiring
control lines. The decision to opt for DALI or a conventional control system depends on the functionality required and
the flexibility with which the lighting system is to be controlled.
Design considerations
A number of points deserve special attention when designing a DALI application.
The conceptual aspect: What characteristics must the application have? Should there be daylight-dependent
control? Are special lighting scenes or colour applications required? ...
The technical aspect: What is possible with DALI? What are the limitations of DALI and how do these affect the
application? ...
The position of all the DALI devices (including the device type and device name)
The grouping of the DALI devices
The DALI short address (optional); in some installations it makes sense to define the address at the planning
stage
The wiring of the DALI circuit including the junction boxes (if there are multiple DALI circuits it is best to colour
code them)
The cable lengths for each DALI circuit
Maximum of 64 DALI devices per DALI circuit
Maximum of 16 DALI groups per DALI circuit
Maximum of 16 DALI scenes per DALI circuit