What is DALI?
DALI stands for Digital Addressable Lighting Interface. It is an internationally standardised protocol (IEC 62386) used for the digital control of lighting installations in buildings.
DALI enables individual or group control of lamps, drivers and Sensors over a two-wire communication bus.
💡 What is DALI used for?
DALI is widely used in:
- Office and utility buildings
- Hospitals and schools
- Warehouses and industrial halls
- Smart buildings and BMS systems
With DALI, luminaires can be:
- Switched on/off
- Dimmed
- Programmed with time schedules
- Automated based on light or motion sensors
⚙️ Characteristics of DALI
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Protocol type | Serial two-wire bus (non-polarised) |
| Max. devices per line | 64 addresses (DALI-2 supports more with extensions) |
| Addressing | Individual, group or broadcast |
| Feedback | Devices can return status information |
| Interoperability | Open standard, vendor-neutral |
| Compatibility with other systems | Can be linked with KNX, BACnet, Modbus etc. via gateways |
🆚 DALI vs. traditional lighting
| Traditional | DALI |
|---|---|
| Control via 230 V | Digital control over a bus cable |
| No feedback | Devices provide feedback (e.g. lamp failure) |
| Everything together | Individual or group-based control |
| No intelligence | Sensors, drivers and luminaires with logic possible |
🔐 Security
Although DALI traditionally provides no security, when integrated with other networks such as BMS or SCADA you should apply:
- Network segmentation
- Firewalls
- Defense in Depth to protect digital lighting systems against cyber threats.
📌 In summary
DALI is a smart, flexible and standardised lighting protocol that enables efficient, programmable and energy-efficient building lighting. It plays an important role in modern, automated buildings.