XHLUX
Choosing smart lighting control for a commercial LED project is not simply a choice between DALI, Zigbee, WiFi and Casambi.
Start with what the project needs the lighting to do. Then decide the control architecture, the luminaire interface and who is responsible for commissioning.
That order matters because smart LED lighting control systems are built from several layers. The protocol name is only one of them.
This article follows the same chain from start to finish:
Required functions → Wired / wireless architecture → Technology fit → Luminaire specification → Commissioning
If you need the basics of how a single smart fixture is controlled, start with Vad är en smart downlight och hur styrs den?
TL;DR: Write down the control functions first: dimming, grouping, scenes, sensors, feedback, remote access, BMS. Then pick wired or wireless from the building conditions, and pick DALI, Zigbee, Casambi or a WiFi ecosystem from what each layer actually provides. Finally, write the driver or module, the controllers and gateways, and the commissioning party into the luminaire specification—“DALI” or “Zigbee” alone is not a specification.
Innehållsförteckning
- What the project needs the control to do
- Map the control chain
- Wired or wireless
- DALI, Zigbee, Casambi and WiFi compared
- Which approach fits which project
- What goes into the luminaire specification
- What to check before ordering
- Common specification mistakes
- Control checklist
- Sammanfattning
- Vanliga frågor
- Slutsats
📋 What Does the Project Need the Lighting Control to Do?
Do not start with “DALI or Zigbee?”
Start with a Control Requirements Schedule. It turns vague “smart” wishes into items a designer can price and a supplier can build.
| Fungera | Projektkrav |
|---|---|
| On/off | Required / Not required |
| Dimning | Required range |
| Individual luminaire control | Yes / No |
| Gruppkontroll | Yes / No |
| Scenes | Yes / No |
| Inställbar vit | Yes / No |
| Occupancy input | Yes / No |
| Daylight input | Yes / No |
| Scheduling | Yes / No |
| Status / fault feedback | Yes / No |
| Remote management | Yes / No |
| BMS-integration | Yes / No |
Fill it in per area, not once for the whole building.
A meeting room may need scenes and occupancy input. A corridor may only need switching and a schedule. A showroom may need regrouping every season.
Choose the control system from the required functions, not from the protocol name.
🎯 What comes before picking a protocol?
A per-area list of the control functions the lighting must deliver, from dimming and scenes to feedback and BMS links.
🔗 Map the Control Chain Before Choosing a Technology
A luminaire that supports DALI does not mean the project already has a complete DALI system.
A useful way to map a smart lighting system is to separate four functions:
User / Sensor / Schedule → Controller / Gateway / Network → Driver / Control Module → LED Luminaire
The parts in that chain usually include:
- the LED luminaire
- the LED driver or control gear
- a control module, where the protocol is not built into the driver
- sensors and switches
- an application controller
- a gateway, where the system connects to another network
- the app, software or BMS that people actually use
The DALI Alliance describes a complete DALI-2 system in exactly these terms: control gear such as LED drivers, application controllers that make decisions, input devices such as occupancy and light sensors, and a bus power supply.
A controllable driver is one component of the system—not the complete control system.
XHLUX supplies the luminaire side of the system, including the specified driver or control-module configuration and integrated sensor options where available. External controllers, gateways, external sensors and BMS integration should be assigned to the responsible controls supplier or system integrator.
🎯 Does a DALI driver make a DALI system?
No. A DALI driver is only the control-gear side of the system. The application controller and bus power supply still need to be accounted for, together with any input devices the project requires.
🔀 Wired or Wireless: Which Architecture Fits the Project?
Wired and wireless are architecture choices driven by the building, not labels for “old” and “new”.
| Projektvillkor | Wired deserves evaluation | Wireless deserves evaluation |
|---|---|---|
| Dedicated control cabling already planned | ✓ | ✓ |
| Existing building with limited rewiring access | Possible | ✓ |
| Frequent space reconfiguration | Possible | ✓ |
| Building-wide integration | ✓ | Depends on system / gateway |
| Avoid additional control bus wiring | — | ✓ |
| Local operation without internet | Possible | Possible |
| Existing BMS requirement | Check interface | Check gateway / integration |
New build does not automatically mean wired, and retrofit does not automatically mean wireless.
The choice also depends on project scale, cable routes, system integration, commissioning effort and who maintains the system after handover.
A smart building lighting system that must report to a BMS, for example, can be wired or wireless. What changes is where the integration point sits.
🎯 Is a retrofit automatically a wireless job?
Not automatically; ceiling access, circuit layout, integration and maintenance ownership decide it more than building age does.
📊 DALI, Zigbee, Casambi and WiFi: What Actually Differs?
DALI, Zigbee, Casambi and WiFi are not four equivalent “protocol buttons”.
DALI is a dedicated digital lighting-control standard. Zigbee is a low-power wireless mesh technology for IoT devices. Casambi is a lighting-control ecosystem built on Bluetooth Low Energy. WiFi is a network that many different product ecosystems use in different ways.
Compare them on the same dimensions:
| Control approach | Core architecture | Main strength to evaluate | Key project question |
|---|---|---|---|
| DALI / DALI-2 | Dedicated digital lighting control | Addressing, feedback, standardised lighting control | Does the project need structured, addressable commercial lighting control? |
| Zigbee | Wireless low-power mesh IoT | Wireless mesh + standardised ecosystem | Does the project require a scalable wireless IoT network? |
| Casambi | BLE-based Casambi lighting mesh | Lighting-focused wireless commissioning and scenes | Does the project need flexible local wireless lighting control? |
| WiFi-based | Devices use the WiFi network within a specific ecosystem | Existing IP / WLAN connectivity | What app, cloud, local-control and IT architecture does the selected ecosystem require? |
DALI / DALI-2
For project selection, these are the DALI features that matter most:
- The DALI bus uses two wires to carry DALI communication data and DALI bus power. This bus power is for the DALI communication system; it does not replace the luminaire’s mains supply. The polarity of the bus wires does not matter.
- Each device can have its own address, and devices can also be grouped or addressed by broadcast.
- Scenes are part of the standard (IEC 62386).
- Communication is two-way, so a device can report a failure or answer a status query.
- DALI-2 is the DALI Alliance certification programme. It adds standardised application controllers and input devices, so control devices from different manufacturers can work on the same bus.
The DALI Alliance states that each DALI subnet can have 64 control gear and 64 control devices, powered by a bus power supply of typically 16 V and up to 250 mA.
For how this plays out in recessed fixtures, see DALI-dimbara LED-downlights för kommersiell belysningsstyrning.
Zigbee
Zigbee smart lighting runs on a wireless network that the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) describes as:
- low-power
- a self-organising, self-healing mesh
- used in commercial building installations as well as homes
- available on 2.4 GHz and Sub-GHz bands
- backed by certification programmes aimed at interoperability
För IoT LED lighting management, that mesh is the attraction: luminaires, sensors and other devices can share one wireless network.
Do not write “Zigbee always requires a gateway” into a specification.
Architectures differ by ecosystem, and CSA’s Zigbee Direct lets a phone, tablet or other Bluetooth device interact with a Zigbee network. What the project must define is where coordination, onboarding, remote access and BMS integration happen.
Track-lighting projects that use Zigbee are covered in What Is a Zigbee Magnetic Track Light?
Casambi
Casambi is based on Bluetooth Low Energy, but its lighting network is Casambi Mesh.
Many buyers search for Casambi Bluetooth lighting, which is only half the picture. According to Casambi, Bluetooth Low Energy connects the phone or control device to the network, while the luminaires talk to each other over Casambi’s own mesh protocol.
What matters for a project:
- the Casambi app is used for commissioning and can also serve as a user interface, while day-to-day control can additionally come from configured switches, sensors, scenes and schedules
- the network runs locally, without an internet connection for day-to-day operation
- system intelligence is replicated in every node, so there is no single central unit
- the Casambi mesh itself does not require a central gateway for normal local operation; gateways or protocol-integration devices are added where remote access, cloud functions, BMS or other external-system integration requires them
- Casambi lists compatibility with DALI (including DT6 and DT8), DALI-2, D4i, 0-10V, phase-cut and DMX interfaces
That combination suits retrofits and layouts that change often.
For a tunable-white example on track, see Casambi justerbar vit skenlampa: 2700K-6500K.
WiFi-Based Lighting Control
WiFi is a network, not a lighting-control specification in the way DALI is.
WiFi LED lighting control always sits inside a specific product ecosystem. Before it goes into a commercial specification, ask:
- Which exact ecosystem and app?
- Does control run locally, or through a cloud service?
- Does it depend on a user account, and who owns that account?
- How are routers and access points planned for the lighting load?
- What still works when the internet connection drops?
- Who is responsible for IT and network security?
If those answers are unclear, the project does not yet have a control design.
The network-level differences for fixtures are covered in Bluetooth vs WiFi Downlights: Vilken smart belysning passar dig?
🎯 Is WiFi a lighting protocol like DALI?
No. WiFi carries the data, while the chosen product ecosystem defines control, commissioning and fallback behaviour.
🏢 Which Control Approach Fits Different Commercial Projects?
There is no single winner. The project conditions point to the architecture.
Use these profiles as a starting point, then return to your Control Requirements Schedule.
New-Build Commercial Project
Kontrollera:
- whether dedicated control cabling can be planned into the electrical design
- BMS requirements and the integration interface
- whether individual addressing and monitoring are needed
- who commissions the system and who maintains it
Retrofit With Limited Rewiring
Kontrollera:
- existing circuits and switching points
- ceiling access for drivers or modules
- wireless coverage across the floor plate
- whether a gateway is needed, and where it sits
- how easily zones can be regrouped later
Retail, Showroom or Gallery
Kontrollera:
- the number of scenes and how often they change
- how often fixtures are moved or regrouped
- whether tunable white is required
- who on site will make the changes
Large Multi-Floor Building
Kontrollera:
- total system scale and how it is split into subnets or networks
- interoperability between suppliers
- diagnostics and fault reporting
- BMS-integration
- handover documentation and long-term maintenance
Small Standalone Commercial Space
Not every project needs a networked smart-lighting architecture.
If the requirement is basic switching and dimming, adding a network adds commissioning and maintenance work without adding function.
🎯 Which project profile needs the most planning?
Large multi-floor buildings, where scale, diagnostics, BMS links and handover all have to work across many zones.
🧾 What Must Be Written Into the Luminaire Specification?
“DALI”, “Zigbee” or “Casambi” alone is not a complete luminaire specification.
A useful specification tells the supplier exactly which interface to build into each fixture and who provides the rest of the system.
| Specification item | What must be checked |
|---|---|
| Control technology | Exact required approach |
| Driver / module | Exact compatible configuration |
| Dimning | Range and expected behaviour |
| Adressering | Individual / group, if relevant |
| Inställbar vit | Required / not required |
| Sensorer | Integrated or external |
| Emergency | Required / not required |
| Controller / gateway | Supplier responsibility |
| BMS interface | Required interface |
| Idrifttagning | Responsible party |
| Handover | Profiles, credentials, documentation |
Our product pages list the control options per fixture, so the schedule can name the exact configuration:
- De 5035 commercial recessed LED linear light lists On/Off, DALI, Push dimming, Tunable White, Casambi, HCL, Sensor and Emergency configurations.
- De D52 48V magnetic track light lists DALI, 0/1-10V, ZigBee, BLE and 2.4G dimming.
- De F1M D62 surface-mounted LED downlight lists 0/1-10V, TRIAC, DALI, 2.4G/RF, ZigBee and Casambi/BLE dimming.
Where a project needs WiFi-based control, the ecosystem, app and network requirements should be written into the specification before any fixture is quoted.
🎯 Is “DALI dimmable” enough on a fixture schedule?
No. Add the driver or module, dimming behaviour, addressing, controller supplier and the party that commissions it.
✅ What to Check Before Ordering
This is a purchasing check, not another protocol explanation.
DALI projects
- driver model and DALI version or DALI-2 certification requirement
- addressing plan: individual, group or broadcast
- who supplies the application controller and bus power supply
- who commissions the system
- tunable-white control capability, where tunable white is required
Zigbee projects
- the exact ecosystem the luminaires must join
- certification or compatibility requirement for that ecosystem
- coordinator and commissioning architecture
- the Zigbee module fitted in each luminaire
- handover of the network to the operator
Casambi projects
- Casambi-compatible driver or module
- the luminaire profile to be used
- network design and any need to connect to DALI
- required scenes or tunable white
- whether a gateway is needed for remote access or BMS integration
WiFi projects
- the exact ecosystem and app
- local or cloud control
- network requirements and IT approval path
- account ownership after handover
- commissioning responsibility
- fallback behaviour when the network or internet is unavailable
🎯 What goes on the pre-order list for Casambi?
The module or driver, the luminaire profile, network design, scenes and whether a gateway is needed for remote or BMS access.
❌ Common Smart Lighting Specification Mistakes
- Choosing the protocol before defining the functions.
- Treating a dimmable driver as a complete control system.
- Writing only “DALI” or “Zigbee” in the fixture schedule.
- Assuming every wireless architecture uses the same gateway model.
- Forgetting who supplies controllers, sensors and gateways.
- Leaving BMS integration until after luminaire ordering.
- Failing to define commissioning and handover responsibility.
These problems become harder and more expensive to resolve once luminaires have been ordered or installed. Defining the requirements before quotation reduces that risk.
🎯 Which mistake is the most expensive to fix late?
Leaving BMS integration until after ordering, because the luminaire interface may then not match the building system.
🧭 Commercial Smart Lighting Control Checklist
Save this as the project’s control checklist. Whether the project uses wired or wireless control, the design should answer every step in this order:
Functions → Architecture → Protocol / ecosystem → Luminaire driver / module → Sensors → Gateway / controller → BMS → Commissioning → Handover
| Steg | Answer before quotation |
|---|---|
| Functions | Control Requirements Schedule completed per area |
| Architecture | Wired, wireless or mixed, with the reason |
| Protocol / ecosystem | Named approach and version or ecosystem |
| Luminaire driver / module | Exact configuration per fixture type |
| Sensorer | Type, location and whether integrated or external |
| Gateway / controller | Model or performance requirement, and who supplies it |
| BMS | Interface required, or “none” |
| Idrifttagning | Named responsible party |
| Handover | Documents, credentials and network ownership |
When every row has an answer, the project is ready for supplier quotation.
🎯 When is a project ready to request quotes?
When each checklist row, from functions to handover, has a written answer that every supplier can price against.
📌 Summary
- Start with functions, not protocol names.
- Separate the luminaire interface from the complete control system.
- Choose wired or wireless from project constraints.
- DALI, Zigbee, Casambi and WiFi are not identical technology layers.
- Write the driver or module, the infrastructure and the commissioning party into the procurement specification.
Vanliga frågor
🏁 Conclusion: When Is a Smart Lighting Control Decision Complete?
A commercial smart-lighting decision is complete only when the required functions, control architecture, luminaire interface, system infrastructure and commissioning responsibility all match.
Getting one of those right does not carry the others. A DALI driver without a controller, or a wireless module without a named commissioning party, leaves the project with fixtures that cannot yet do what the brief asked.
The protocol name starts the specification; it does not finish it.
Utforska våra relaterade blogginlägg:
- Hur man enkelt åtgärdar flimmerproblem i dimbara LED-downlights
- Commercial LED Downlights: Specification, Selection & OEM/ODM Guide for B2B Projects
- Spår- och rälsbelysningssystem: Typer, delar och hur man väljer
Anteckningar och källor
- DALI Alliance — Introducing DALI: individual, group and broadcast addressing; two-way communication for failure and status queries; DALI power and data on the same pair of wires; IEC 62386; DALI-2 as the DALI Alliance certification programme (dali-alliance.org/dali).
- DALI Alliance — DALI-2 systems and components och DALI Quick Start Guide (v1.1, April 2023): control gear, application controllers, input devices and bus power supplies; 64 control gear and 64 control devices per subnet; bus power typically 16 V, up to 250 mA (dali-alliance.org/systems).
- IEC 62386-102:2022 — control gear requirements, including system failure behaviour, scenes, SET SYSTEM FAILURE LEVEL and SET POWER ON LEVEL (paid standard; contents checked against the public sample).
- Connectivity Standards Alliance — Zigbee: Full Stack Solution for Smart Devices: low-power self-organising, self-healing mesh; commercial building installations; 2.4 GHz and Sub-GHz; Zigbee Direct Bluetooth integration (csa-iot.org).
- Casambi — Casambi System Overview (support article) and Casambi System Security (January 2025): Bluetooth Low Energy to the control device, Casambi Mesh between nodes, intelligence replicated in every node, local operation without internet, app as commissioning tool and user interface alongside switches and sensors, gateways and the Casambi DALI Gateway for remote access and BMS / third-party integration, listed interoperability with DALI, DALI-2, D4i, 0-10V, phase-cut and DMX (casambi.com, support.casambi.com).
- XHLUX product pages — control options as listed on the 5035 recessed linear light, D52 48V magnetic track light and F1M D62 surface-mounted downlight pages (checked 2026-09-29).
Planning a Commercial Lighting Control Project?
XHLUX supplies commercial LED luminaires with DALI, Zigbee, Casambi and other driver or module configurations matched to your control requirement. Send us your Control Requirements Schedule and fixture list, and we will work through the luminaire side with you.
