Introduction#

Part of the reason that Bluetooth technology has become such a prevalent technology in people's lives is its reliance on standards. Through standards, the Bluetooth connections made between phones, PCs, headphones, game controllers, vehicle entertainment systems, and countless others all work because they all have built and established trust in the device profiles that initiate these connections, and they are universally used and available.

The Bluetooth SIG is taking that to the next step with the release of their new Network Lighting Control (NLC) bundle of device profiles. These standardized profiles will improve interoperability and scalability, simplify integration in the field, and grow the Bluetooth ecosystem. The same Silicon Labs Bluetooth SoCs and modules that support the new feature enhancements can also support the following NLC profiles: ambient light sensor, basic scene selector, dimming control, basic lightness controller, and occupancy sensor.

Lighting Control Device Profiles#

Device profiles define which options and features of the Bluetooth Mesh specifications are mandatory for a certain kind of end product. The first suite of mesh device profiles, collectively referred to as NLC profiles, build on Bluetooth Mesh to enable the world’s first full-stack, multi-vendor interoperable wireless standard for wireless lighting control, Bluetooth® NLC.

NLC Profile Relationships#

A device implementing the Basic Lightness Controller NLC Profile interacts with devices implementing the following NLC profiles: Occupancy Sensor NLC Profile, Ambient Light Sensor NLC Profile, Dimming Control NLC Profile, Basic Scene Selector NLC Profile (see Interaction of a Basic Lightness Controller with other NLC Profiles).