Specifications

Controlling LED Lighting12
iColor Player
A highly compact DMX generator, iColor
Player is a simple, affordable solution
for controlling multiple light xtures
simultaneously. iColor Player can control a full universe of DMX
addresses and can play a single show authored in ColorPlay 3, our
timeline-based light show authoring software.
iPlayer 3
iPlayer 3 controller is a compact yet powerful
show storage and playback device capable of
delivering light shows to installations with up to
1024 DMX addresses. iPlayer 3 is designed to add new levels of
sophistication to your installations while eliminating the need for
expensive lighting boards and technical programming expertise.
The most common communications networks for controlling intelligent LED lighting systems are
DMX, Ethernet, and DALI. Ethernet is now the most widely used and effective network infrastructure
for medium to large architectural lighting installations, while DMX continues to be the standard for
entertainment and stage lighting. DALI is a popular control protocol for lighting systems in buildings
and homes, especially in Europe. While DALI is primarily used for fluorescent ballast switching and
dimming, LED lighting installations can be triggered by DALI systems using controllers with native DALI
support, integration devices, or protocol converters.
Controlling intelligent LED
lighting xtures
DMX
Until recently, the most generally accepted control format
for intelligent architectural lighting was DMX512-A, or
DMX for short. DMX was originally developed by the
Engineering Commission of the United States Institute
for Theatre Technology (USITT), beginning in 1986, for
controlling stage and theatrical lighting.
Many theatrical lighting boards are DMX-based, but they
tend to offer a wide array of manual control interfaces
specialized for live performances, making them too
expensive for architectural use. Like other manufacturers
of LED lighting fixtures, Philips Color Kinetics develops
and markets its own DMX-based controllers for
architectural lighting applications. These controllers are
far more compact and less expensive than full-fledged
theatrical lighting boards, and they offer special features
— such as pre-defined light shows and built-in effects —
designed to simplify and automate LED lighting control for
architectural applications.
DMX-based controllers communicate with LED lighting
fixtures using DMX addresses. Each lighting fixture or
lighting node — an individually controllable segment of a
lighting fixture — is assigned a set of addresses. These
addresses allow individual lighting fixtures within the
installation to identify the specific control signals intended
for them so that the fixtures can display the correct light
output.
Uniquely addressing and controlling color-changing LED
lighting nodes lets you display different light output —
different colors and different brightnesses — on multiple
nodes simultaneously. This level of control enables an
infinite variety and combination of dynamic effects, from
colors that fade one into another or that seem to chase
each other from node to node, to intricate light shows
that mimic the appearance of natural phenomena or that
display abstract patterns for subtle or dramatic effect.
DMX Controllers from Philips Color Kinetics