DALI stands for Digital Addressable Lighting Interface. It is a two-way open standard that is used internationally to control lighting devices such as lights and LED drivers. The digital signal is used for more precise and flexible control, also, lighting commands, fault details and diagnostics can be exchanged between devices effectively.

DALI-2 is the latest version of DALI. There are many new commends and features in DALI-2, most importantly, it includes the addition of control devices which were not included in the original DALI. DALI-2 is also focused on interoperability of products between different vendors, each product has to go through a mandatory test verified by DiiA before DALI-2 certification is granted. This certification program confirms compatibility of products between different vendors, and all products with DALI-2 symbol will work with one another.

DALI/DALI-2 is an open standard and DALI-2 symbol is issued after comprehensive test/certification process by DiiA. Therefore, selection of luminaires is easier, as long as the devices have DALI2 logo, you are confident that they will work together without any compatibility issue.

Since all luminaires can be controlled/managed by the DALI master through the DALI bus, all lamps can be re-addressed and re-grouped without rewiring circuits. Also, if a new device is required later, it can be added directly to the group/system through DALI bus. Future additions, alternations and improvements are all made easy thanks to the DALI protocol.

As all the devices can be managed through DALI master, the user gets a view for full        system visibility so energy usage can be monitored and optimised. It can also extend the lifespan of the lighting system and different lighting requirements can be easily achieved.

DALI is topology and polarity free meaning it costs less and is more robust than traditional lighting systems – hence less work and lower costs. One control module can provide control for up to 64 lamps, this is not achievable by traditional lighting systems either. Despite the simple wiring, DALI typically provides a very smooth dimming curve for LED lamps.

DALI enables the creation of multiple groups, meaning users can control a single luminaire, a whole room or an entire floor at the same time. It also allows for up to 16 DALI scenes to be saved locally in the fixture to be recalled on command, allowing the maximum flexibility.

Invented in the late 1990s, DALI is becoming more and more popular and it has a complete ecosystem today. DALI signal can be easily converted to 1-10V, traic, on/off and so on to work with traditional lighting system. It can also be integrated into KNX, Vimar By-me Plus, Control4 and other popular systems.