Light/dimmer block

This control element switches and dims a light. On top of that it offers switching times, the behaviour on presence and absence, a presence simulation for the holidays and an operating hours counter for maintenance.

Operation

The tile shows whether the light is on and how bright it is. A tap on the switch turns the light on or off, a tap on the rest of the tile opens the dialog. In some visualizations the element appears as a circle instead (basic screen) – there a tap opens the dialog; if it has been set up that way, a short tap switches the light and only holding it longer opens the dialog.

If a red circle flashes at the top right, something needs doing: W means that the configured operating time has been reached and maintenance is due, F reports a fault at the light source or the ballast. The dialog shows what exactly is wrong.

The dialog

Clock, presence, settings – the three symbols in the title bar, see below.
Ring: drag it with the finger to set the brightness continuously.
Centre: a tap toggles between 0 % and 100 %.
+ and –: change the brightness by 1 % each.
Switch-on time: the operating hours so far, in case of a fault also its cause.
Favourite values: A tap recalls the value and closes the dialog. To assign a new value to a button, first set the desired brightness and then hold the button for 2 seconds – it gets a yellow frame, the value is stored. A button can only be reassigned if the element is linked to a function block. Without a block the factory values (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100 %) remain.

If the light can only be switched and not dimmed, the dialog shows a single On/Off button instead of the ring.

Switching times and presence

The clock leads to the switching times – for instance setting the light to 50 % every evening at 6 pm, optionally only when it is dark. The house holds what should happen when the presence changes: switch off when leaving the house, a certain value when coming home, on request only when it is dark. Both are the same for all Block control elements and are described in detail under Presence.

Settings

The gear opens the settings. Save applies them.

Brightness	Sets from when it counts as bright or dark: Threshold bright and Threshold dark, each in lux. The brightness currently measured is shown in brackets. The threshold applies to all settings of this element in which “If bright” or “If dark” can be chosen. The section only appears when a brightness value is available.
Presence simulation	Switches the light on and off at random so that the house looks lived in. The three symbols select in which state it runs – usually vacation. Start / End: period in which the simulation switches. Start only when dark: with Yes the simulation only begins if it is also dark at the start time. Number of / to: how often the light is switched on during that period. The number is chosen at random within this range and spread over the period at random. Duration from / to: how long the light stays on each time, in minutes, also at random within this range.
Switch-on time	Switch-on time shows the accumulated operating hours. Once the time under Maintenance after is reached, a red W flashes on the tile. After the maintenance Reset sets the counter back to 0 – a confirmation is asked first.

Setup

This section is meant for the installer of the system.

Two variants

The control element comes in two variants:

Operation presence – is linked to the function block Light/dimmer block. The variables sit at the function block, the control element itself has none. It is linked with the right mouse button on the control element. Only this variant offers switching times, presence and settings. See also Presence.
Standalone – without a function block, the variables are linked directly at the control element. The dialog then carries the text of the element as its heading and has no symbols in the title bar. It only opens if an address Percentage is linked – otherwise only the switch on the tile is available.

Tip: If the transparency of the element is 0, a tap anywhere on it opens the dialog. This way the element can be laid invisibly over an image.

Parameters

Display
Scene selection	Sets whether the element is offered for selection in the control element Block Scene Group.
View	Block (tile with switch) or Basic screen (circle with the current value, for instance for a floor plan).
Text	Caption of the tile. Its size scales with the element. A line break is inserted with \n, for instance “Line1\nLine2”; two lines at most.
Text switch on / off	Caption next to the switch of the tile, default “On” and “Off”. The text matching the feedback Status switch is shown.
Switching in basic screen	Only visible with the view basic screen. If ticked, a short tap switches the light on or off, holding it for 0.7 seconds opens the dialog. Without the tick every tap opens the dialog.
Pause time telegram	Limits the send rate while dragging the ring: values are then sent at most every set number of milliseconds (0 to 5000 ms, step 100 ms). The last value on release is always sent. 0 switches the limit off. Tapping +/–, the centre or a favourite value is not affected.

Variable links

With the variant Operation presence all variables sit at the function block. With the variant Standalone the following are linked at the control element:

Switch	Sent when the switch is tapped, 1 = on, 0 = off.
Percentage	Brightness value 0 to 100 %. Optional. Not linked: the element only switches, the dialog and the percentage display are omitted.
Status switch	Optional. Feedback of the actuator, it determines symbol and text of the tile. Not linked: the switching command sent last applies.
Status percent	Optional. Feedback of the brightness, shown on the tile and in the dialog.