Cree Lighting has entered into a partnership with Synapse Wireless to supply the latter’s SimpleSNAP wireless connectivity for solid-state lighting (SSL) applications in commercial & industrial (C&I) high-bay lighting, parking-area lighting, and outdoor street and area lighting. Synapse is one of the oldest players in wireless connectivity predating the LED lighting era, and has vast experience in building and municipal connectivity including Internet of Things (IoT) applications. This partnership would enable Cree Lighting to offer that technology with its OSQ Series of outdoor luminaires, the IG Series of parking area luminaires, and the KBL Series of high-bay luminaires.
It’s not the first ever partnership for Cree Lighting for connected lighting technology. The company has been offering its luminaires with optional support for third-party controls such as from Lutron and for the DALI (Digital Addressable Lighting Interface) standard. In 2014, Cree had rolled out its own SmartCast technology. Originally, the target was control scenarios in one room with plug-and-play installation. Later, it expanded the wireless SmartCast system for building-level controls and went on to integrate Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) support. But Cree Lighting had not developed an outdoor connectivity scheme of its own. For that, SimplySNAP will immediately enable Cree Lighting to offer connectivity in the industrial and outdoor settings and open the door to the Synapse ecosystem.
The SimplySNAP family of wireless lighting controls will enable Cree Lighting to deliver integral connectivity options in some luminaires and supply the same technology in modules for outdoor applications. The SimplySNAP system uses a proprietary mesh network to connect as many as 1000 luminaires to a single gateway device that Synapse calls a Site Controller of which the range is about one mile. The wireless scheme relies on 128-bit AES security. The Site Controllers can communicate with a CMS (central management system) or a BMS (building management system) via Ethernet or wireless options. Ultimately, the user can control the systems with a PC, tablet, or smartphone with the ability to control luminaires individually or in zones and to capture data for analytics and preventative maintenance.
Cree Lighting will support the SimplySNAP platform in different ways for different products. In the case of the IG parking luminaires and the KBL high-bay luminaires, Cree will sell a specific model of the luminaires with an integrated SimplySNAP module that Synapse calls an Embedded Wireless Lighting Controller. There are multiple choices in those controllers relative to features such as sensors supported or white-point tunable capabilities. In the case of the OSQ outdoor area light, the SimplySNAP support will be implemented in a twist-lock module that connects to the typical NEMA socket. Cree Lighting will also supply other SimplySNAP elements needed in a smart lighting installation such as a BMS gateway and more.
