The mesh network lighting platform based on Nordic’s nRF51822 SoC, which supports dual protocols, enables easy-to-install, simple-to-use, and cost-effective smart lighting, and can be directly integrated into LED smart bulbs or drivers, as well as lighting devices.

March 25, 2015, Oslo, Norway — Nordic Semiconductor ASA (OSE: NOD, Country Manager for Korea: Soo-Chul Choi, www.nordicsemi.com), a specialist in Ultra Low Power (ULP) RF, announced that a third-party Bluetooth Smart lighting control platform utilizing its nRF51822 SoC (Systems-on-Chip) to support Bluetooth Smart® (formerly Bluetooth Low Energy) wireless technology has achieved mesh networking performance five times faster than competitors' Bluetooth Smart solutions. This platform, developed by Casambi Technologies, a leading European lighting company, was implemented using the nRF51822 SoC, which features Nordic’s unique Bluetooth Smart and 2.4GHz dedicated dual wireless protocol architecture.

This Bluetooth Smart lighting control platform can be directly integrated into standard lighting fixtures, LED smart bulbs, and drivers, requiring no new wiring, switches, devices, networks, or lighting fixtures; it simply connects to Kasambi-supported LED bulbs without separate setup or pairs with a Bluetooth Smart Ready smartphone or tablet. Then, you can control the lighting using an app with an intuitive and visual user interface.

Timo Pakkala, CEO of Kasambi, stated, “The mesh network performance of our solution is at least five times better than other competing Bluetooth Smart mesh networking solutions currently on the market,” and added, “This was made possible thanks to the nRF51822 SoC based on Nordic’s unique dual wireless protocol architecture.”

This Bluetooth Smart lighting control platform can communicate with smartphones using Bluetooth Smart wireless technology, and can also switch to the optimal 2.4GHz dedicated wireless technology for internal network communication between lighting devices and bulbs using the maximum 2Mbps pure wireless data transmission speed (dedicated mode) of the Nordic nRF51822, and can achieve higher bit-rate mesh network performance.

The nRF51822 SoC is a Bluetooth Smart and 2.4GHz dedicated wireless solution optimized for ULP wireless access. This SoC integrates a 2.4GHz wireless multi-protocol, a 32-bit ARM® Cortex™ M0 processor, up to 256kB of flash memory, and up to 32kB of RAM (Random Access Memory). Furthermore, the unique and powerful software architecture of the nRF8122 SoC separates the wireless protocol software (stack) from user application code, allowing each function to be implemented independently, thereby providing optimal flexibility and ease of development.

CEO Timofacala explained, “By adopting Nordic’s nRF51822, we were able to implement the best solution suitable for both fields. It not only provides compatibility, ease of use, and consumer utility for Bluetooth Smart wireless technology, but also supports an optimal 2.4GHz dedicated wireless protocol that is perfectly specialized for the application and designed to provide the best mesh-networking performance in these applications.”

Kasambi’s Bluetooth Smart lighting control platform integrates various IoT (Internet of Things) support features, including automatic firmware and software updates via OTA (Over-The-Air) over the entire network, cloud setup and monitoring services, advanced security features through different levels of access, multi-user support, real-time clock and timer functions based on local sunset and sunrise times, support for network-level event-activity rules (such as if-then-and-or), and support for location-based features.

Pacalla stated, “The transition to LED as a lighting source requires the realization of perfectly adjustable lighting. Dimming, color, and color temperature can be adjusted to suit the interior's mood or aesthetic, and can also produce more subtle effects, for example, to enhance alertness or aid in relaxation.”

Furthermore, Pacalla stated, “However, simple light switch on/off still remains a hindrance. Dimming control is not standardized and is not widely used.” “We view this as a drawback of conventional lighting. Consumers purchase lighting bulbs or devices, but in real life, if the lighting is too bright or too dim, they have no alternatives and are unaware of other attributes such as color temperature,” they stated. “Kasambi provides lighting control solutions for the lighting industry to offer adjustable lighting to key consumers, and we are doing our best with our partners to create a comfortable, practical, and economical integrated solution that is identical to the experience of the latest smartphone users.”

Nordic_Casambi-1. Casambi's 56.5 x 35.8mm compact wireless dimming controller can be directly integrated into lighting devices.

Nordic_Casambi-2. Hue, color, brightness, and other individual LED lighting variables can be set or adjusted via smartphone.

Nordic_Casambi-3. Bluetooth Smart wireless technology is used to communicate with smartphones, and 2.4GHz dedicated wireless technology is used for mesh networking for communication between lights.

Casambi Details

www.casambi.com

Introduction to Nordic Semiconductor

tinyurl.com/NordicSemi

nRF51822 Details

tinyurl.com/nRF51822

Bluetooth Smart (formerly Bluetooth Low Energy) and Bluetooth Smart Ready Details

tinyurl.com/BluetoothLE