Crossing The Rimikon

Slowly but surely, we’re moving towards the future of lighting. In January of 2014, Canada legislated to ban 75- and 100-watt incandescent light bulbs. Then in January of 2015 40- and 60-watt incandescent bulbs were outlawed. Businesses are still allowed to sell through their existing inventory, which is why 40- and 60-watt bulbs are still on the shelves at Rona and Home Depot (but no more 100-watt bulbs, I’ve noticed — those are long gone), but it’s only a matter of time now.

Indeed, the future, and in fact the present now belongs to LED technology.

By now everybody knows that LED bulbs use much less electricity than incandescent bulbs, last substantially longer and generate next to no waste heat. The bulbs contain no mercury, which is far more environmentally friendly than CFL (compact florescent) bulbs. And in the case of new LED fixtures, as opposed to LED bulbs that are intended for high voltage legacy fixtures, they are of a low enough voltage to mitigate any risk of shock during installation.

One lighting vendor who has gone All-In on LED technology is Ottawa, Canada-based Rimikon, who now specializes in LED Lighting and creates, designs, and manufactures low voltage lighting systems.

Rimikon points to a number of features that makes their product stand out, and allows lighting designers and integrators to create exciting lighting solutions for residential, commercial, or architectural applications.

All the LED products in their lighting systems, such as pot lights, cabinet lights and strip lights run on 24-volt extra low voltage DC current. There’s no shock hazard, and their pots, for example, can be wired using 14/2 stranded speaker wire!

It also means that their pots can be retrofitted in ceiling spaces without a metal back can. That makes them ideal for use in ceiling, outdoor soffit or bathroom shower installations.

Rimikon also points to the other usage benefits of LED lighting. Unlike CFL bulbs, there’s no flickering, which can lead to headaches, eyestrain and discomfort. They don’t give off UV light, which can discolor lightly colored furnishings over time. And perhaps the biggest benefit is that they don’t generate heat, which means they can be installed in places, like under-counter task lighting where excess heat could warp and damage cabinets.

All of that is all well and good, but what’s going to be of more interest to AV pros is that Rimikon is releasing the RIM-IPC, its own IP Controller module for its Extra Low Voltage LED Products. The unit is IP addressable, as well as being able to operate on WIFI, and can be used with the Rimikon Android and IOS App, offering a remote control distance that can reach up to 50 meters indoor and up to 100 meters outdoors. One IP Controller is required for each lighting zone. Additionally, IP control drivers are available to integrate the RIM-IPC for Control 4, Crestron, URC and RTI control systems.

More information can be found here.

Resources:

• IP Controller installation manual
• IP Controller App demo video