Troubleshooting Daylight Harvesting (DH)
Overview
In LightRules, daylight harvesting is calibrated using Commissioner software. Commissioner software can be used to troubleshoot daylight harvesting issues at facilities with LightRules or no controls.
Common Issues
Light pulsing brighter and dimmer
If a fixture with daylight harvesting (DH) enabled is constantly increasing and decreasing light output (pulsing brighter and dimmer), then it is likely that the light from the LEDs is being reflected back into the ambient light sensor located within the fixtures motion sensor cap. The resulting feedback loop prohibits the fixture from matching the ambient light sensor value to the DH targets.
The light pulsing brighter and dimmer is the fixture trying to match the ambient light sensor value to the DH targets. Both the reflectance and proximity of the surface to the fixture can contribute to the issue. Causes include reflective plastic wrap on pallets, trucks parked directly beneath fixtures and reflective machinery/scaffolding.
The solutions involve reducing the reflectance or disabling DH.
Fixture is dimmed due to DH while floor has insufficient light
If a light is dimmed due to daylight harvesting while the area beneath the light has insufficient lighting there are two likely causes:
- DH targets are too low
- Light levels at the fixture are not representative of light levels below the fixture
While DH is enabled, the output of the fixture is directly related to the DH targets. You can increase the DH targets in SiteWorx by increasing the fixture's active and inactive levels. You can increase the DH targets in LightRules using Commissioner by recalibrating with a higher active and/or inactive level or using the Adjust DH feature.
Light levels at the fixture being not representative of light levels below the fixture may be caused by vertical windows or doors that illuminate the fixture but not the area beneath it. Periods shortly after sunrise or before sunset when the sun is low on the horizon may also cause this issue. Artificial lighting projecting upwards at the fixtures can also cause DH issues.
Calibration in Commissioner
Calibration of DH targets
When the motion sensor is triggered, the fixtures go to the active occupancy state and remain in the active state until the delay time has elapsed without a single motion sensor event detected. Once the delay time has elapsed without motion detected, the fixture changes to the inactive occupancy state. When motion is detected while the fixture is inactive, the fixture changes to the active state and the process repeats.
After DH calibration is complete, the light fixtures will have two DH targets that correspond to the occupancy state of the fixture. The fixture will adjust light output according to the active DH target while in the active state. The fixture will adjust light output according to the inactive DH target while in the inactive state.
Operation of calibrated fixtures
Each fixture contains an integrated ambient light sensor located beneath the motion sensor cover. The current ambient light sensor value can be viewed in Commissioner by right-clicking a fixture, selecting Advanced, then Read Fixture Info and then Read. The Read Fixture Info window will display the current light level, ambient sensor value and if daylight harvesting is enabled.
After a daylight harvesting calibration is complete, you can view a fixtures' daylight harvesting calibration values by double-clicking a fixture to enter the Edit Fixture Configuration dialog box. Within the Edit Fixture Configuration dialog box, click DH Config... to view the active target and inactive target of the calibration for that particular fixture.
Note that the ambient sensor values and DH targets are not comparable between fixtures. The values are specific to the environment on the individual fixture. It is normal for ambient sensor values to vary drastically between adjacent fixtures.Based on the occupancy state of the fixture, the Ambient Sensor Value can then be compared to the active level or inactive level DH targets to determine light behavior. If the Ambient Sensor Value exceeds the applicable target, then the light will dim to off or minimum output (depending if Dim to Off is selected). If the Ambient Sensor Value is less than the applicable target, then the light bars will produce light so that the ambient sensor reaches the applicable light target.
Adjust DH feature
Note: the Adjust DH Feature should NOT be used with SiteWorx. The DH targets in SiteWorx should be adjusted by changing the active and inactive level in SiteWorx Tune.
To adjust DH settings in Commissioner, double-click a fixture to enter the Edit Fixture Configuration dialog box. Within the Edit Fixture Configuration dialog box, click Adjust DH...
The Adjust DH Calibration slider simultaneously increases or decreases both the active and inactive targets by the specified percentage. If your ambient sensor value is 100,000 but the DH active target is 105,000, then the fixture would not dim for daylight harvesting. If you adjust the DH calibration by -10%, then the active target becomes 94,500 and the fixture will dim until the ambient sensor value decreases to approximately 94,500. Please note that if you then adjusted the DH target by +10%, then the DH target would only return to 103,950.
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