Since the 1990s, with the rapid development of the lighting industry, the concept of intelligent lighting has gradually appeared in the industry. However, due to the influence of market consumption consciousness, market environment, product price and promotion, intelligent lighting has been in the stage of slow development. In recent years, in order to improve energy conservation efficiency, European and American governments have introduced new energy regulations one after another, such as the US government increasing tax subsidies and encouraging enterprises to replace lighting systems; California introduced new building regulations, requiring that the use density of lighting power must be introduced into the automatic dimming system in strict accordance with the standard building code, and manual control is prohibited; The EU energy directive sets 20-20-20 targets, aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20%, reduce energy consumption by 20% and increase the proportion of renewable energy by 20% by 2020. Various policies have driven International LED lighting brand enterprises to strengthen the deployment of LED lighting schemes that can independently adjust the brightness according to the environment, thus driving the upsurge of intelligent lighting development.

At present, most lighting enterprises have not seen the trend of large-scale intelligent lighting, but they are still close to the intelligent lighting market. On the one hand, energy regulations strictly limit the power consumption range of enterprises and families, and it is difficult to meet the increasingly stringent requirements to simply replace LED bulbs. Therefore, LED lighting manufacturers began to vigorously promote the intelligent lighting control system that can automatically adjust the brightness according to the environment, further improve the power-saving capacity of LED lighting system, and strive to develop the intelligent control products of enterprises. At the same time, enterprises have been exploring a model suitable for the development of this industry in channel construction. Therefore, the number of products close to the actual demand is increasing, and the functional positioning and stability of products have made great progress. On the other hand, enterprises, designers, engineering companies and other groups also actively guide consumers to accept and recognize intelligent lighting products and promote the rapid development of intelligent lighting.

Business opportunities are highlighted, and intelligent lighting has become an inevitable trend

Since entering the 21st century, China's national economy has developed rapidly, and the real estate industry has made rapid progress. The lighting industry closely related to the real estate industry is also seeking innovation and breakthrough in the face of huge opportunities and competition, resulting in the emergence of various technical manufacturers. The voice of intelligent products is growing, especially the combination of lamps and intelligent control system, which has become a competitive product in lighting solutions.

According to the official data of Philips, the revenue scale of the global lighting market will reach 90 billion euros in 2020. Among them, up to 57.4% of the revenue comes from LED lamps and control systems, which will become the main revenue source of LED suppliers. According to the data of authoritative institutions, the global output value of intelligent lighting has reached US $91 million in 2013, and is expected to double rapidly to US $250 million to US $300 million in 2014, and will grow to US $1471 million in 2019. At present, Europe is a large market for intelligent lighting, especially commercial buildings, outdoor lighting and automotive applications. North America is the second largest market, attracting more and more local led enterprises to invest in the development of intelligent lighting products. The Asia Pacific market is regarded as an emerging market with development potential, and the growth rate of relevant output value will be as high as 37.7% from 2013 to 2018.

Facing the new blue ocean of intelligent lighting, many giants in the lighting industry have made intensive planning and formed alliances with each other to seek common development. Dialog, NXP, STMicroelectronics and other LED driven IC developers have also successively put forward design schemes including chips, networking technology, communication protocols and application software, so as to reduce the threshold and overall BOM cost for LED lighting system enterprises to develop intelligent lighting products.

Someone once described the relationship between LED and intelligent system: "LED lighting is like a Porsche. On the muddy road in the countryside, its travel speed may be no different from that of the tractor, but if we build a road and sell it to users together with Porsche, users will obviously feel more convenience and enjoyment." But how to build this road and what problems will be encountered when building this road are the problems we have to face. Similarly, how to make good use of the characteristics of led to break the bottleneck of intelligent lighting is a problem that every lighting enterprise needs to think about. At present, for lighting enterprises that have made some achievements in the field of intelligence, how to make further efforts in technology, improve the maturity of the overall control of the system, and how to better combine the system with lamps, so that users can better master the control of the system and the use of lamps, so as to make the intelligent lighting control truly fall to the ground.

Think and act. Don't let the intelligent system become a gorgeous decoration

Although the industry is unanimously optimistic about the development prospect of intelligent lighting, and giant enterprises at home and abroad are also committed to promoting the development of intelligent lighting, intelligent lighting is still a strange "noun" for most ordinary consumers. At present, the intelligent control system products of many enterprises are still in the stage of R & D and improvement, and most of the products that have been introduced to the market are only used in high-end commercial places such as hotels, clubs and villas, which are not widely used. There are many reasons for this phenomenon. One is that the technology is not mature enough, and the other is that the cost of the overall intelligent control system is too high. However, for ordinary consumers, the main reason why the intelligent control system can not be deeply rooted in the hearts of the people and become a necessity of life is that the intelligent control system is not practical.

During the public opinion survey, the author learned that many consumers have a dispensable attitude towards intelligent lighting, and do not "catch a cold" about the various "modes" attached to the intelligent control system. "Who will turn their home into a concert hall, a dance platform, a high-end restaurant and a conference room?" Ordinary consumers' understanding of intelligence is more convenient, more energy-saving, more scientific, and more inclined to create a comfortable family atmosphere. The gorgeous lighting mode is like magic. Although it will bring people a moment of surprise, it will not become an essential part of life, and even become a high-priced decoration over time.

Seeking from top to bottom, intelligent "people-friendly road" is the right way

As a designer group with a thorough understanding of lighting and a deeper understanding of market demand, they expressed another concern: the landing of intelligent control system is difficult, and its use stability and cost are a big obstacle. From the perspective of design, intelligent lighting must develop in the direction of "people-oriented", and carry out different designs for lighting according to different needs, so as to give space emotion and make space more flexible.

However, at present, whether it has been introduced to the market or is trying to build intelligent lighting, all are moving in the direction of "tall". Many manufacturers even believe that the result of LED product development must be the combination and matching with the system, rather than just selling lamps. However, when LED is still used as a light source product, the price is still the main consideration in the eyes of consumers. Even though the combination of LED and intelligent control system gives it various desirable advantages, it still can not attract ordinary consumers. Therefore, it is still a long way to "be close to the people" for intelligent lighting.

Since IBM put forward the concept of "smart city" in 2009, the development of smart city in China has been booming. As of 2013, more than 400 cities in China have announced the construction of smart cities. The construction of smart city will inevitably drive the development of intelligent lighting, which is a cause that needs to be popularized and recognized. If intelligent lighting blindly follows the "tall" route and develops in the trend of luxury, it will be defeated by another wave of "luxury".

The law of many industries is that demand determines production. However, miracles are often created by ideas that take an unusual path, so as to become the leader of the times, such as the platforms born in the Internet age. Therefore, in today's era, keeping up with demand can only survive. Development always comes from innovation and from the exploration and deepening of the overall needs of the society. Therefore, the development of intelligent lighting must also be based on the development form of the whole society and the potential consumption needs of consumers, so as to create real intelligent lighting products.