A key technical challenge for next-generation lighting systems is to provide individual building occupants with personal control of multi-luminaire, centralized lighting systems. The existing digital ballast protocol addresses this challenge in many ways by allowing zonal control of individual luminaires on a single circuit, with zone membership as small as a single ballast. But, the current standard does have its limitations. In order to address some of these limitations, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), in partnership with the California Energy Commission, has developed an open digital communication protocol for complete lighting systems, NEMA Standards Publication 243.

NEMA 243 compliant wall switches		Bainer Hall demonstration site		NEMA 243 gateway for Wattstopper occupancy sensor

To develop and demonstrate an open digital communication protocol that applies to all components in a lighting system. Standardization will allow compatibility among lighting components offered by multiple manufacturers.

• Commercial
• Retail
• Institutional
• Industrial

• Provides manufacturer compatibility
• System Performance - Monitoring and diagnostics down to the ballast level
• Peak Demand Savings - Built in demand response capability
• Energy Savings - Occupancy sensing, daylighting, and electronic ballasts with 1% dimming capability
• Long-term Cost Savings - Reconfigurability of lighting systems without the need for rewiring or new equipment
• Increased Productivity - Individual user control of workspace lighting

Analysis and results of both CLTC and Bainer Hall are in process and will be used to highlight the potential impact of in-situ tunable and reconfigurable lighting solutions. In addition, NEMA and its partners are planning future projects on development of lighting control systems that build on the NEMA open digital communication protocol. One is the development of an open-source software tool for commissioning NEMA 243 systems. The other is development of user-friendly control interfaces to replace traditional wall switches, which are limited in supporting the changing functionality of reconfigurable system.

		DEMONSTRATION LOCATION: California Lighting Technology Center Performance results / energy savings: Successful proof-of-concept demonstration of the new open digital communication protocol developed by NEMA Installation Date: Spring 2008 Timeframe of testing/evaluation: Winter 2008 Partners: California Lighting Technology Center, Finelite, Inc., Leviton Manufacturing, Inc., MICRODESIGNS, Inc., NEMA, Osram Sylvania, Philips‚ Advance, WattStopper, Tridonic.USA Sponsors: California Energy Commission
		DEMONSTRATION LOCATION: University of California, Davis, Bainer Hall, Room 1132 Performance results/energy savings: 30-40% energy savings Installation Date: Summer 2008 Timeframe of testing/evaluation: Winter 2008 Partners: Finelite, Inc., Leviton Manufacturing, Inc., MICRODESIGNS, Inc., NEMA, Osram Sylvania, Philips, Advance, Tridonic.USA, University of California, WattStopper Sponsors: California Energy Commission
		DEMONSTRATION LOCATION: University of California, Davis, Bainer Hall, Room 1130 Performance results/energy savings: 30-40% energy savings Installation Date: Summer 2008 Timeframe of testing/evaluation: Winter 2008 Partners: Finelite, Inc., Leviton Manufacturing, Inc., MICRODESIGNS, Inc., NEMA, Osram Sylvania, Philips, Advance, Tridonic.USA, University of California, WattStopper Sponsors: California Energy Commission

• LightFair 2008 Project Brief
• IES Annual Conference 2008 paper presentation
• Dynamic project map