Product and Applications Description
The switch/dimming actuator N 525E is a KNX EIB device with 8 DALI outputs (= channels). A group of up to 8 DALI devices can be connected per channel.
DALI (Digital Addressable Lighting Interface) is a bidirectional communications interface in accordance with IEC 60929, whose specification has been defined by manufacturers of electronic ballasts. It not only enables the receipt of e.g. switching and dimming commands but also the sending of status information such as the failure of a lamp or the report of a detected error in the electronic ballast. According to IEC 60929 up to 64 DALI devices can be connected to a DALI bus line and can each be assigned an individual device address. The EIB/DALI-Gateway GE 141 can be used for example to control up to 64 DALI devices individually.
If individual communication with each individual DALI device is not required and you wish for example to simply connect a group of dimmable fluorescent lamps in parallel and control them in the same way as you would previously have connected and controlled dimmable electronic control gear (ECG) with a 1...10 V interface, this is also possible with the switch/dimming actuator.
N 525E. Status and error signals are also detected by the N 525E and transmitted, whereby these signals are assigned to the respective group and not to an individual DALI device.
The power supply unit integrated in the N 525E enables the actuator and the lamps connected to its channels to be operated even if the N 525E has not yet been commissioned with the ETS (Engineering Tool Software) or if the communication via the EIB has been interrupted. For this purpose, the N 525E has a push button located bottom left on its front plate for switching on ìDirect modeî as well as for selecting a group of 4 channels. When the button is pressed for the first time, the yellow LED lights up permanently to indicate direct mode. Channels A to D can then be operated directly. If the direct mode button is pressed for the second time, the LED flashes to display direct mode. Channels E to H can then be operated directly. If the direct mode button is pressed for a third time, the LED to indicate direct mode is extinguished and the N 525E is switched to "Bus mode".
In ìDirect modeî, a channel can be operated via the relevant push buttons on the front plate of the actuator such as via bus push buttons: pressing the upper push-button briefly switches the channel on while a long push button action is used for dimming brighter; pressing the lower push button briefly switches the channel off while a long push button action is used for dimming darker. The state of channels A-D (whether the output is switched on or off as well as by 1 Hz flashing if an error, e.g. a lamp failure, is present) is indicated by LEDs integrated in the lower push buttons, while the state of channels E-H is indicated via LEDs integrated in the upper push buttons.