GreenChip lighting permits you to flip the switch remotely, thumbs nose at IPv4 depletion

NXP’s GreenChip Smart Lighting Solution Opens a completely New Dimension in Energy Efficient Lighting

EINDHOVEN, NETHERLANDS–(Marketwire – May 16, 2011) – What if every light bulb had its own unique Internet IP address? The probabilities are endless: That you could monitor, manage and control every light bulb from any Internet-enabled device — turning lights off and on individually, dimming or creating scenes out of your smartphone, tablet, PC or TV — to save lots of energy in addition to electricity costs. Your “smart lighting” network may have dozens or maybe hundreds of appliances connected through a wireless network designed for optimum energy savings, communicating details about their environment, about power consumption levels, and alerting you to any problems. Today, NXP Semiconductors (NASDAQ: NXPI) is introducing its GreenChip™ smart lighting solution that makes the net-enabled, energy-efficient lighting network a reality — not just for businesses, but in addition for consumers looking to cash in on energy savings in the house.

Beginning tomorrow at LIGHTFAIR International, NXP and partners TCP and GreenWave Reality can be showcasing a client-ready, Internet-enabled Smart Lighting network powered by the GreenChip smart lighting solution within the NXP booth (no. 2823) and TCP booth (no. 2659).

“The GreenChip smart lighting solution signals a fundamental shift within the way we interact with lights — at home, inside the office, even outdoors,” said John Croteau, senior vp and general manager, power lighting solutions and high performance RF, NXP Semiconductors. “By bringing together wireless IP connectivity with our energy-efficient lighting and tool conversion technologies in a compact, low-cost solution, we’re transforming the manner we design, control and manage lights. For individual consumers, Smart Lighting means highly personalized, intelligent lighting environments — lights that activate and stale when and where you wish them, on the desired level of brightness — while saving power and electricity costs. Our smart lighting solution also brings us one step towards the ‘Internet of Things’ — a worldwide by which every home appliance will also be monitored and regulated via an IP address — at a extremely compelling price point for consumers.”

GreenChip Smart Lighting Technology
NXP’s GreenChip smart lighting solution reduces the requisite electronics to the scale, cost and gear consumption to slot in a daily light bulb. It brings together wireless IP connectivity, energy-efficient lighting and occasional standby power (right down to 50mW) in a compact, low-cost solution, which enables new the way to control lights and manage energy consumption.

The GreenChip smart lighting solution is supplied in two versions — GreenChip iCFL for compact fluorescents and GreenChip iSSL for LEDs — and currently includes:

The GreenChip iCFL or GreenChip iSSL chipsets, which function as highly efficient, dimmable drivers for smart lamps
An ultra-low-power standby supply controller with 10mW no-load capability; standby power is very critical in smart lighting applications where lamps are continuously “listening” for the command from the user and/or network
A 2.4-GHz IEEE 802.15.4 standard-compatible wireless microcontroller with a Tx/Rx current below 17mA
Low-power, IP-based wireless connectivity enabled by JenNet-IP network layer software

JenNet-IP Network Drives Home and Industrial Connectivity
GreenChip-enabled light bulbs would be capable of operate at the same wireless sensor networks consumers is perhaps using at home for energy metering, smart appliances and security systems. NXP’s JenNet-IP network layer software provides the ultra-low-power wireless connectivity within the GreenChip smart lighting solution. JenNet-IP is a 6LoWPAN mesh-under tree network with low memory footprint, specifically targeting low-power IEEE 802.15.4-based networking for residential and industrial applications. In keeping with NXP’s proven JenNet network protocol stack, JenNet-IP provides a highly robust self-healing tree network proven at over 500 nodes, supporting IPv4 and IPv6 with over-network upgradability. JenNet-IP is extremely secure, offering 128-bit AES encryption with secure authentication and device joining, and may be made available under an Open Source license in Q4 2011.

Smart Lighting Ecosystem
TCP, a number one manufacturer of CFL and LED lamps in North America, have been an early adopter of Smart Lighting technology, and is using the GreenChip smart lighting solution for both its CFL and LED lamps.

“Driving new ideas for energy-efficient lighting is in our DNA. Through our proprietary technology and innovations comparable to our TruStart™ and TruDim™ CFLs which build on custom TCP GreenChip CFL drivers from NXP, we’re ready to match the standard of sunshine and user experience of an incandescent lamp with as much as 20,000 hours of life. As a next step, we’re developing Internet-enabled CFL and LED bulbs accessible to mainstream consumers and commercial applications,” said Ellis Yan, CEO, TCP.

GreenWave Reality is introducing a breakthrough intelligent lighting control and management solution in line with the GreenChip smart lighting solution. GreenWave Reality’s IP-based platform wirelessly connects GreenChip-enabled bulbs, running JenNet-IP software, to supply users with a feature-rich lighting application. The applying can be utilized stand-alone or as part GreenWave Reality’s innovative energy management solution. The GreenWave Reality solution benefits both consumers and commercial customers by permitting them to save energy and simplify their lives by adding lighting Smart Controls.

As an instance, consumers can dim or turn lights off and on using Home, Away, and Night Smart Controls from any combination of devices which includes a computer, smartphone, or even a TV. The GreenWave Reality solution further simplifies consumers’ lives by extending the lighting Smart Controls to work with sensors without requiring any re-wiring of the house. For example, a sensible Control can adjust indoor lighting in keeping with outdoor lighting conditions. Other Smart Controls can automatically turn lights off when no person is in a room. Similarly, these advancements are extended to commercial and hospitality customers who can reduce ongoing lighting and related maintenance costs with this advanced lighting control system.

“Consumers and commercial customers now can easily and cheaply reduce their energy consumption linked to lighting, saving them money, simplifying their lives, and creating a positive impact at the environment,” said Greg Memo, CEO, GreenWave Reality. “GreenWave Reality — along with the GreenChip smart lighting solution — redefines lighting by providing a complicated control and management solution built on a scalable, IP-based platform.”