Remote-controlled street lighting: importance, benefits and applications

Remote-controlled street lighting now and in the future

The journey from street lighting control to smart cities will inevitably encompass remote control. Businesses in the sector often mistakenly believe that the biggest energy savings can be achieved by simply swapping out incandescent luminaires for LEDs. While this move certainly increases urban sustainability and reduces energy consumption, even bigger savings are possible thanks to technology advances in this area of the industry.

With remote control, the intensity of individual luminaires can be modified, not to mention individual monitoring and control. If we consider that the majority of LED suppliers already equip their devices with a NEMA socket for connection to remote control systems, the process of change does not seem so far fetched.

There is also a wide range of communication architectures available. Which one is used depends on the number of controllers in the system. That is, antennas, boosters and hubs. It is even possible to implement this system on a large scale using access points that not only communicate with the luminaires but with domestic energy meters. Installing smart street lighting is therefore an important step towards the smart cities of the future. In fact, several vertical applications depend on it.

Main benefits of smart street lighting

Cities and the people who live there can reap multiple rewards from remote-controlled street lighting. For example:

Lower energy consumption

In addition to the efficiency of LED luminaires, smart controllers work via the Internet of Things to generate even more savings. The intensity of the luminaires can be regulated throughout the day to save between 60% and 80% on current daily energy expenditure. There are clear benefits for sustainability too by lowering the environmental impact of the system.

Operational efficiency

Installing LED luminaires increases the useful life of the entire street lighting system. Artificial intelligence and remote luminaire control support this by anticipating possible outages and faults in the electricity  network.

And if energy consumption spikes in one part of the city, the system can be regulated, preventing the need to send out technicians for repairs.

Versatility

LED and remote control systems are incredibly versatile. In addition to providing a vast amount of information, they can adapt to the weather conditions and to the time of day, regulating the lighting output to improve efficiency.

Real-time luminaire control

Events are logged in the database to enable real-time monitoring. Reports can be customised and the most significant factors used to adjust the luminaires as and when desired.

Consumption control and management

With remote dimming, the intensity of specific groups of luminaires can be programmed or reduced to generate significant financial savings and improve efficiency to a high degree.

Warnings and safety

The array of reports available generate precise metrics to inform the design of an efficient alarm and alert system. This helps identify minor faults as well as crime and vandalism. The information can be sent automatically via phone call, SMS or email.

Most common applications

Smart street lighting is equipped with several functions that support the development of clean and smart cities in all respects. These are some of the most common applications:

Automatic on/off

Given the variation in natural light throughout the year, automated on/off capability is extremely important and means power distributors do not have to invest in timers.

Event detection

This function analyses the performance of each luminaire using a variety of charts. When it comes to events in luminaire circuits, for example, a system of colours can help locate LEDs which are off and should be on.

Remote parameter readings

Remote-control systems are going digital. It is now possible to remotely check voltage, power and energy consumed without a technician having to read the meters.

Luminaire regulation

With a remote-control system, luminaire regulation is made simple. Motion sensors can detect people or vehicles, while photosensitive devices can react to the amount of sunlight received. Together with the available metrics, this makes power regulation an almost automatic process.

SECOM products and systems

At SECOM, we’re experts in the design, manufacture and marketing of LED lighting solutions for professionals, and we create various smart street lighting systems equipped with remote control. We support businesses to get the most out of this cutting-edge technology and, above all, to enjoy greater efficiency and sustainability by reducing unnecessary energy use.

It is clear that remote-controlled street lighting is hugely important and marks a before and after in the development of the cities of the future, and it is no surprise that many aspects of smart cities depend on these digital systems.