Museum Gallery Lighting Controls

First, let us take the basic track circuit, with each light fitting having an onboard dimming capability via a manual knob. This is the cheapest of the three systems. It allows the operator to dim each light source to the level of light required. The advantage of this system is that it is so straightforward. This method allows you to take a light fitting from anywhere in the three spaces and plug it into the track. Moreover, you twist, tilt, dim, and presto, you’re done. If you need more lights, buy some and add them. This is very straightforward.

Nonetheless, there are a few disadvantages. Primarily, it would help if you did this either with an assistant or by spending a lot of time going up and down the object. This is especially true if you’re working on lighting-sensitive artwork that necessitates precise lux levels. Whichever system you choose, having an assistant at height and a skilled lighting designer on the ground is the best technique for focusing lighting to get excellent results.

Secondly, there is no scope to change light levels via a scene function. One example is when you need the lighting to be different in the evening than during the day. Scene functions allow you to pre-program areas where the lights will dim automatically to set values automatically or at the touch of a button.

Thirdly, once you have sent it back or put it into storage if you are working on a high-access platform, you would have to get that out again if you decide to change anything. It’s not always easy in a busy gallery or museum.

The easiest way to understand DALI (Digital Addressable Lighting Interface) controls is to think of each light fitting as though it were a printer in your office on a computer network. Thus, on that network, you will have multiple printers that you may want to print your work to; you choose one from a list and send the command. That’s, in a nutshell, how you control DALI light fittings. Each light fitting (printer) has its IP address, and when you use your computer or touchscreen tablet, you find the slider for the appropriate fitting. Additionally, you can tell it remotely to dim from anywhere from 0% to 100%. The control application sends a message to that lighting fitting, and the fitting dims to the desired level.

Using one DALI controller, you can control up to 64 lighting fittings on the same track or circuit, each of which can be individually controlled independently of the others. This can be done from the ground without the need for a ladder.

This is effective if you are doing it for three permanent galleries or spaces. You only have to set up these DALI light fittings once to accomplish the project. Even then, if you want to make alterations to the light levels, you can do so without having to get out and work on height equipment.

It is necessary to understand at this point that each DALI light fitting has to be programmed to be recognised by the specific lighting controller. The restriction of this method is that you cannot just take a light fitting from gallery one and move it to gallery three and expect it to work correctly. It will probably just come on at 100% power level with no adjustability. This requirement makes it a lot more problematic to move a fitting from one space to another compared to the basic system.

In addition, you can only have a maximum of 64 DALI light fittings on one DALI controller. Subsequently, this could prove problematic again when working on a temporary exhibition. With temporary exhibitions, you need spaces to be as flexible as possible, and this includes lighting. This is because each exhibit is different from the next. As a result, you never know what kind of lighting you’ll need.

Using our generic example, each gallery has one DALI controller, so it has a maximum capacity of 64 fittings. Let us say, in total, you purchased 150 light fittings, 50 for each gallery. That might be fine for some exhibitions, but for the next, you’ll need more light in gallery one. Therefore, you take some from Gallery 3, as there are some spares. You can only take another 14 fittings as 50 plus 14 reaches your maximum of 64, assuming this will be enough. You have to reprogram these lights before you can use them and for them to be recognised on the Gallery One controller. This is a real time-consuming pain and not something a gallery or anyone wants to be doing before each exhibition when time is short.

Another irritation with the DALI system is finding the light fixture you want to control on the controlling application. On-screen, you have 64 slider controls, but which one is for what fitting? You either have to label your fittings and the slider control to match, or you have to go through each one until you find the one you’re looking for again. It’s a real pain. This is not such a problem on the permanent installation, where each fitting can be shown on a reflected ceiling plan, and the controls are labelled to match. For temporary exhibitions, nonetheless, the light fittings will be moved all over the place. Therefore, this is never going to work.

As a result, when faced with this problem and given the time, we label our lighting fittings discreetly. We can then go straight to the slider and dim it. DALI also requires additional cabling to be run on installation or retrofitting from its centralised control position to each area, which considerably increases the cost of installation.

However, it is not all bad news! DALI can do lots of other things, though. For example, it can automatically or manually change light scenes, fade, or combine light level sensors to adjust the lights to other conditions, like the amount of daylight.

Bluetooth lighting controls and light fittings are the new kids on the block. Undoubtedly, we are all familiar with and comfortable with technology, as we all have it on our smartphones.

Qualified Bluetooth light fittings take away the central control that we saw with the DALI system and make it local. There is no need to run additional cabling. Furthermore, instead of the 64 DALI fixtures, you can control up to 8000 light fixtures. If you want to move or add Bluetooth light fittings, then add them; there’s no need to reprogram them.

You can easily locate the fitting you want to control without fuss or loss of time because the control software is localised. Qualified Bluetooth Mesh technology is part of the smart control system in new buildings that works seamlessly with other devices. This allows museum gallery lighting controls to work with sensors to monitor occupancy and daylight. Moreover, it permits you to adjust the lighting levels in real time. For example, if the gallery is empty, you can reduce the lighting to a lower level until it detects activity. Thus, it then fades imperceptibly back up to the original pre-set levels. This not only saves a significant amount of energy but also reduces light exposure to sensitive objects on display.

It is also a very stable control protocol. The control software is generally open source, meaning it is free for anyone to use. Everything can be controlled from the ground or a height using any Bluetooth-enabled device. Some examples are smartphones, tablets, and laptops. We like this system, and it’s the one to go with if you have the budget. The only genuine downside to the Bluetooth lighting option is that it costs more than the simple system. Although on the flip side, it costs less than the DALI system because it’s far cheaper to install.

Notably, you will still need to work from a height platform until they invent a light fitting that can move along the lighting and track automatically and remotely. With any luck, you found this elementary explanation of light controls beneficial. Nonetheless, if you need more advice, please get in touch with one of our lighting design experts. We look forward to discussing this with you.