0–10V, DALI and other lighting control system protocols compared

0–10V and 1–10V dimming

What you would use it for

Dimming LED or fluorescent lights.

How it works

0–10V

A 0–10V dimming driver sends a low DC voltage signal to the fluorescent ballast or LED driver. The lighting changes as the voltage is varied.

So, at zero volts the light will dim to 0% and turn off. At 10 volts the system is operating at 100% and the light will be fully on.

1–10V

It works in a similar fashion to 0-10v dimming, but the voltage is ‘sinked’ by the driver and will only go as low as 10% before the power to the circuit needs to be physically switched off. This method provides a very smooth dimming curve which is especially useful for colour changing LEDs.

What you should know

• 0–10V and 1–10V are:
  • analogue—the lighting changes according to controlled variations in voltage
  • hardwired—each device needs its own wiring, which makes installation quite tricky if the lighting control system is large and complex
  • unidirectional—data goes only one way, from the dimming driver to the LED driver or fluorescent ballast. Because there’s no signal coming back from the lights, there’s no data on which to measure their performance, as with digital systems
• A 0–10V system can accommodate around 10 luminaires per controller.

DALI (digital addressable lighting interface)

What you would use it for

Lighting control for LED, fluorescent, halogen or incandescent lights.

How it works

A DALI ballast receives voltage through one pair of wires, while another pair relays a digital signal from the controller devices (e.g. a dimmer) to the luminaires.

In a DALI network, each ballast and relay switch is assigned a unique address to which commands can be sent. This allows the system to be controlled from web-based software installed on a PC.

What you should know

• DALI is:
  • digital—meaning the system can dim lights to much more precise levels of brightness
  • bidirectional—the two-way communication between the DALI ballast and luminaires means the system can diagnose issues and relay feedback and data to the user interface (i.e. PC software)
  • open—because it isn’t a proprietary technology, it’s available from many different suppliers worldwide and can be used alongside devices from other manufacturers
• The DALI protocol is useful if luminaires need to respond to more than one input device (such as a wall switch and a daylight sensor).
• As with 0–10V dimming, DALI requires a lighting control cable, but the cable can be run between many fittings. In fact, one DALI network can accommodate up to 64 DALI ballasts.
• DALI allows lighting controls to operate as stand-alone systems or be integrated into larger building management systems.

DSI (digital serial interface)

What you would use it for

Dimming LED, fluorescent, halogen or incandescent lights.

How it works

Like 0–10V dimming, DSI enables hard-wired groups of luminaires to dim collectively. But where 0–10V uses a varying voltage to tell the lights how to dim (the amount of current is roughly equal to the intensity of the light—e.g. 1V = 10%, 5V = 50% and so on), a DSI driver sends digital data to define precise levels of brightness.

Although DSI ballasts can lower the light level to ‘zero’, the light is still drawing current and so, technically speaking, isn’t switched off.

What you should know

• DSI is:
  • incompatible with DALI, despite being its predecessor
  • proprietary to one brand (Tridonic), and so can only be used with devices made by that manufacturer

Other protocols

Wired vs. wireless lighting control—what’s the difference?

Related content

A guide to Audacy, CMD’S wireless lighting control system

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