Image by Alexandre Zveiger

Illuminating the Future: How Bluetooth Mesh will Fundamentally Change Lighting Systems

由专筑网李韧，吴静雅编译

如果通过蓝牙信号，人们可以使用智能手机来定位路径，那么会是什么样的场景？如果照明系统能够精确地定位建筑内的人与物，那么会是什么样的状态？如果自动化系统能够通过数字信息来调节人们的使用偏好与个性化设施，那么会有多方便？

Imagine light fixtures that act as Bluetooth beacons, allowing smartphones to help visitors find their way around a building. Imagine a lighting system which can pinpoint the location of people and physical assets within the building. Imagine an automation system which can use occupancy data and personal preferences to orchestrate an optimized and personalized building environment.



蓝牙网络与诸如WIFI等无线照明系统不同，它转为大规模集合设备而设计，其数量成百上千。转换开关、暖通、传感设施、照明系统、灯罩都可以通过蓝牙来接受命令，然后进行操作。其信息来源于原始设备，而非WIFI路由器，然后从灯具传达向传感器、空调单元，以及其他支持蓝牙网络的设备，其中包括蓝牙公路、个体中枢神经系统等等，最后命令会到达某一楼层的灯具之中。

蓝牙网络支持设备之间传播的交流，因此蓝牙网络能够在网内的各个设备之间进行传播。另外，设备无需在命令设备的无线电范围内。消息通过一系列"跳跃"在网络上从设备中传递，因此能够大范围地覆盖物理区域。

Unlike wireless lighting systems like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Mesh is designed for large collections of devices, numbering into the thousands. Switches, HVAC, sensors, light fixtures, and shades can communicate with each other by forwarding a message, or command, across all the devices in that Bluetooth chain until reaching the destination to perform said operation, (i.e. turn ON the third-floor office lights). The communication, instead of passing through your WiFi router, comes from the originating device and travels from light fixture to sensor, to AC unit, to any other chain of Bluetooth Mesh enabled devices, like a Bluetooth highway or a body’s central nervous system, until the command reaches the lights on the 3rd floor.
Bluetooth mesh supports device-to-device-to-device communication so that any device in the mesh network can communicate with any other device in the network. Furthermore, devices do not have to be in direct radio range of the originating command. Messages are relayed across the network from devices in a series of “hops” and can, therefore, span very large physical areas.


Image by John Sturrock. ImageAllies and Morrison, Kings

蓝牙网络的术语理解

节点：蓝牙网络系统的一部分的设备（如开关、照明设备、传感器、空调、电话等）

信息：蓝牙网络中节点之间通过信息彼此联系。信息表示节点能够启动的不同类型的命令。

蓝牙网络 VS WIFI

无线（WIFI）照明系统和蓝牙网络之间的重要区别在于联系方式。使用WIFI的网络以路由器为基础，所有的命令与流量都来源于路由器。每个灯具设备都必须与WIFI网络先连接。如果路由器不可用，那么设备网络也无法使用了。

相比之下，蓝牙网络节点（照明设备、传感器和其他设备）能够接受来自其他节点的信息，这些节点与无线范围内的原始节点直接相连。

Terminology to Help You Understand Bluetooth Mesh
Nodes: Devices (i.e. switches, lighting fixtures, sensors, HVAC units, phones, etc.) which are a part of a Bluetooth mesh network.
Messages: Nodes in the Bluetooth mesh network communicate with each other using messages. Messages represent various types of commands that a node may initiate.

Bluetooth Mesh Vs. WiFi
The most significant difference between wireless (WiFi) lighting systems and Bluetooth Mesh lighting systems is in the method of communication. A network which uses WiFi is based around a central network called a router, and all commands and traffic pass through that router. Each light fixture must be able to communicate with the wireless network. If the router is unavailable, the network of devices become unavailable to communication.
In contrast, Bluetooth Mesh nodes (lighting fixtures, sensors, and other devices) receive messages from other nodes that are in direct radio range with the originating node.



双向交流&用户行为数据收集

针对智能照明，蓝牙网络相较于WIFI的一大优点是它支持双向交流。只要灯具传感器到位，相同的基础设施就能够用于监测其他建筑状况，其中包括使用率、温度等等，并将信息会发送到控制系统之中。收集关于房间的数据和使用者行为模式能够使得智能建筑变得更加自动化，这能够减少能源消耗，同时在大范围内提升用户体验。

LED灯具的智能信息是智能照明改革的第一部分。许多LED设备都结合了程序编码，可以根据光线的色调、灯光强度、能源消耗等照明特性进行调整，当结合诸如蓝牙网络等无线网络时，使用者能够创建智能照明生态体系。这种生态体系就如同现在的商业建筑，亦或是覆盖了蓝牙网络的建筑群。

2-Way Communication & User Behavior Data Collection
One of the advantages of using Bluetooth Mesh over WiFi for smart lighting is that it can support two-way communications. Once the luminaire sensors are in place, the same infrastructure can be used to monitor other building conditions, like occupancy or temperature, and send this information back to a control system. Gathering data about room use and user behavior patterns allows smart buildings to automate processes in the structure that can reduce energy consumption and improve the user experience on a very large scale with a lot fewer wires.
Building intelligence into LED luminaires was the first part of the smart lighting evolution. Many LED fixtures now feature embedded programmability to adjust for light characteristics such as hue, light intensity, dimming, and energy consumption; and when you add wireless communications like Bluetooth Mesh, you create intelligent lighting ecosystems. The ecosystem could be a commercial building or now, with the range of Bluetooth Mesh, a collection of buildings.


Image by Katherine Allen

关于作者：

David Hakimi是照明专业人士，同时也是Alcon Lighting公司的联合创始人。David毕业于加州大学洛杉矶分校（UCLA），一直工作在能源效益灯具革新的前沿，让建筑师、设计师、照明工程师能够充分应用理想化照明方式，即LED。David为Alcon公司的设计、能源、绿色建筑成就而感到自豪，而这些品质、创新意识、责任感、价值感都能追溯到他的父亲，这位老人20多年来都致力于南加州的照明灯具的销售以及顾问工作。

About the Author
David Hakimi is a lighting specialist and one of the co-founders of Alcon Lighting. A graduate of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), David works on the front lines of the energy-efficient lighting revolution, enabling architects, designers, and lighting engineers to transition from outmoded halogen and fluorescent lighting to what David calls “the ideal replacement for all lighting applications,” —LEDs. David takes particular pride in Alcon’s design, energy, and green building knowledge, tracing his and Alcon’s commitment to quality, innovation, accountability and value back to the lessons learned from his father, a Southern California lighting salesman and consultant for more than two decades.