Control4®

Driver Set for Colorbeam Lighting (OS 3.3.2+)

The driver set allows control of a Colorbeam DMX Lighting setup through a Colorbeam Gateway Processor, requiring Colorbeam v2 firmware.

The new Control4 Color User Interface available with OS 3.3+ is fully supported for color (RGB, RGBW) and tunable white (WW) lighting fixtures. To simplify installation, the driver supports SDDP for the Gateway Processor, as well as automatic addition of lighting loads based on the Colorbeam configuration. Several Colorbeam Gateway Processors may be used in a Control4 project, each with its own Processor driver. The Light driver may then select which Gateway Processor it is to be associated with.

Instructions

• Connect and configure all Colorbeam fixtures in the Colorbeam Gateway Processor using the available Colorbeam facilities, ensuring all fixtures are operational. Installationin Control4 will be greatly simplified if you complete this first. You must also ensure that your Gateway Processor is running the Colorbeam V2 (or above) software.

• Utilize SDDP discovery to add the Colorbeam Processor driver to your project. Your project may have as many instances of the Colorbeam Processor driver as required (one per physical Colorbeam Gateway Processor in your project). In this case, it is useful to give meaningful names to Processor drivers for easy association with the corresponding physical Colorbeam Gateway Processors.Alternatively, manually add the Processor driver(s) to your project and enter the IP address of each corresponding Colorbeam Gateway Processor. Use a fixed IP address or a MAC-based address reservation for each (this is not required if you use SDDP).

• The drivers use a Colorbeam LoadID unique configuration value to communicate with the Colorbeam Gateway Processor. You do not have to worry about this LoadID, other than knowing that it exists and that it is used in the background to control lights.

• Specify the default Keypad ON and OFF colors so that all added loads use the same colors. You may later change colors (broadcast automatically) or use the Action ‘Broadcast Default Keypad Colors’.

• Use the Processor driver’s ‘Colorbeam Calibrated Colors’ Action to ‘Update Colors from Colorbeam’ into the Control4 Color Agent, if you plan to use pre-calibrated Colorbeam Colors. This needs to be done only once, unless pre-calibrated Colors are added or removed on the Colorbeam Gateway. See the discussion in section COLORBEAM SCENES, CIRCADIAN AND COLORS below.

• Add configured Colorbeam lights to your project using two methods, and you can use a combination of both: use the Processor driver’s Action to ‘Add Colorbeam Load(s)’ (recommended) to import the Colorbeam configuration and create/activate all the missing Light drivers (they are all created in a room you specify) or, if you prefer, simply manually add the Light drivers yourself. You may also auto add a Light driver for a single LoadID, if you wish.
  
  When using the ‘Add Colorbeam Load(s)’ Action, the Processor driver adds one instance of the Light driver for each Colorbeam LoadID not currently found in the project. This is added to the Room you select. It is recommended that you first create a ‘Colorbeam’ room in your project, where you will have all lights created; you would then rename them and move them to the appropriate Control4 room. The name given to each load by the Processor driver is made of a prefix you specify (or CBL_ if you do not specify any), the load name imported from the Colorbeam configuration and, in parentheses, the room name imported from the Colorbeam configuration. Example: ‘CBL_Playroom/RBGW (Playroom)’.After a Light driver is added this way, the Processor driver will activate it properly. The whole process is staged to allow each driver to initialize properly. Once you start the process, Composer will move to the latest Light driver added, so you will lose the status printout from the Processor driver (you can always go back to the Processor driver at any time, if you wish, as this will NOT disrupt the process). Once all the added Light drivers have been activated, you may run the Processor driver’s Action to ‘Print Messages from Add Loads’. This will give you a full report on the process just completed.

• When adding Light drivers manually, add them in the desired room, rename them as appropriate, then select the Colorbeam Processor which controls the current Light. If there is only one Processor driver in your project, it is automatically selected. Finally, use the drop-down list to select one of the Available Devices (usually an unassigned device). This list should be updated automatically, but you may request it by using the Actions ‘Refresh All Devices List’ or ‘Refresh Unassigned Devices List’.
  
  For RGBW Lights, you may select the Saturation properties (see below for more details).

• Use the Processor driver’s Action to ‘Add Colorbeam Load(s)’, if later adding/removing devices using the Colorbeam configuration facilities. It will scan the project, compare it with the Colorbeam configuration, optionally add missing (in the designated room) and/or update existing Light drivers, and deactivate Light drivers connected to Loads no longer present in the Colorbeam configuration (you may then decide to delete them from your Control4 project). The Messages from Add Loads will inform you of the actions taken and/or the issues found.

• Always refresh Navigators, after adding/adjusting Devices.

Properties

• Driver Version displays the version of this driver.
  
  
• Driver Information displays various status messages about the driver.
  
  
• Debug Mode turns Debug Mode Off or On (with output to the Lua Output window). For the Light driver, an option is also available to Forward its Debug Output to the Processor driver for easier troubleshooting.
  
  
• Debug Duration in Minutes sets the duration of Debug On.

Processor Driver

• Processor Available via IP indicates if the Network Connection has been established with the Colorbeam Gateway Processor (directly or via SDDP).
  
  
• Processor Firmware Version (informational) indicates the firmware level reported by the Gateway Processor.
  
  
• Circadian Preset Prefix specifies the prefix you would use in naming presets to indicate Colorbeam Circadian presets (the Colorbeam Circadian process is handled by the Colorbeam Gateway). See the discussion in section COLORBEAM SCENES, CIRCADIAN AND COLORS below. An equivalent Control4 facility is available with the Daylight Agent.
  
  
• Regroup Advanced Lighting Scene Commands allows you to cause the driver to regroup several loads in one command sent to the Colorbeam Gateway Processor. Although this regrouping introduces a small delay when activating Advanced Lighting Scenes, it has the advantage of reducing any “popcorn” effect when a Scene activates several different loads. Experiment to see if it benefits the installation.
  
  
• Selector for Default Keypad ON Color and Selector for Default Keypad OFF Color allow you to specify the default LED colors to be sent to Colorbeam Light drivers when they are created or later when these properties are updated. As the light drivers do not obtain keypad LED colors from the project, this is an easy way to ensure that all Colorbeam Light drivers use the same LED colors. This can be overridden at the Light driver level.

Light Driver

• Select Colorbeam Processor allows you to select which Colorbeam Gateway Processor controls the current Light.
  
  
• Available Devices allows you to select which physical Light this driver will be assigned to (or
  associated with). You may request a new list by using the Actions ‘Refresh All Devices List’ or
  ‘Refresh Unassigned Devices List’.
  
  
• Saturation Slider Method (for RGBW loads only) allows you to select the effect on the lighting load of moving the center slider (saturation) on the Control4 Color User Interface. See the section USER INTERFACE below for more details on each available option.
  
  
• Saturation Trigger Level (for RGBW loads, S1 Method only) allows you to select a saturation level where the White channel will turn fully On and the RGB channels will turn fully Off. See the section USER INTERFACE below for more details on how this works.
  
  
• Selector for Keypad ON Color and Selector for Keypad OFF Color allow you to change the LED colors of connected keypad buttons. Some experimentation may be necessary to get the exact color. If you change these colors at the Light driver level, consider setting the property ‘Above Colors are Locked’ to ‘Yes’.
  
  
• Above Colors Are Locked is used to prevent LED color broadcasts from the Processor driver to change this driver’s colors.
  
  
• Load Controlled as Device (informational) shows which Light this driver has been assigned to control. The Colorbeam LoadID is also listed.
  
  
• Load Type (informational) shows the type of load being controlled (RGB, RGBW, W, WW). For dual whites (WW), the type may also include the min/max color temperatures in 100 degrees K. For example, WW2765 would have a minimum temperature of 2700K and a maximum of 6500K.
  
  
• Supports Color (informational) shows if the Control4 User Interface color wheel will be available.
  
  
• Supports CCT (informational) shows if the Control4 User Interface color temperature control will be available.
  
  
• Current Status (informational) shows the current status of the lighting load, along with the status of each available channel (0 to 255) and/or the Color Coordinated Temperature (CCT) in degrees Kelvin.

User Interface

The Light driver supports the new Color User Interface available with OS 3.3+. For RGB and RGBW Loads, the user sees a color wheel with two sliders: a circular Color selector and a central up/down Saturation slider. For dual-white Loads (WW), there is an up/down Temperature slider to select the specific color temperature in degrees K.

It is important to tell the user how presets behave. You may select in Composer properties a specific Color On Mode preset, for example, or simply the Previous color. If the user selects a preset on a Navigator interface while the light is On, the preset will be activated (the light will change to that color). If however the user selects a preset on a Navigator interface while the light is Off, this has NO EFFECT and the next time the light comes On, it will use the selected Color On Mode preset or simply turn On to the previous color. Although the Light driver supports the Control4 Color User Interface in a very standard and complete way, it does offer innovative added functionality for RGBW Loads with one specific White channel. This is all related to the up/down Saturation slider and offers different ways to achieve saturation and to control the White LED within the Control User Interface model. 

1. If the Saturation slider is fully up, only the RGB channels are used to display the selected color (from the circular color selector). This, of course, is subject to the overall brightness slider.

2. If the Saturation slider is fully down or below the value selected by the ‘Saturation Trigger Level’ property, the RGB channels are turned OFF and the White channel is turned fully ON. This, of course, is also subject to the overall brightness slider. The default value for the ‘Saturation Trigger Level’ is 10% to allow the user a little ‘wiggle room’ when moving the saturation slider down. If you wish ‘pure’ functionality, set the ‘Saturation Trigger Level’ to 0, which means the Saturation slider fully down.

3. Between these two levels of the Saturation slider, the behavior is determined by the ‘Saturation Slider Method’ property, as per the following table. This describes what happens to the RGB Channels and to the White Channel when the Saturation slider is moved Up or Down.

Description and Effects of each Method

Method S1: as the Saturation slider moves down, the three colored (RGB) LEDs progressively ramp up toward an unsaturated color (more or less white). The White LED remains OFF until the slider is at or below the Trigger Level where the three RGB LEDs are turned OFF and are replaced with the White LED fully turned ON (this is, of course, further controlled by the overall Brightness slider). When moving the Saturation slider up, the White LED is turned OFF above the Trigger Level and the RGB LEDs are turned back ON. In this method, the RGB (as a group) and the White LEDs are never ON at the same time.

Method S2: similar to method S1, this allows the RGB LEDs to progressively output a white light (as a group) as the Saturation slider is moved down, BUT the White LED is also gradually added on. At the bottom, all four LEDs are fully ON. This is, of course, further controlled by the overall Brightness slider. This method allows the highest level of Lumens to be output by the light fixture.

Method S3: this is a variant of S2 where the RGB LEDs, as a group, will gradually output a white light as the slider is moved down, while the White LED ramps up, BUT the RGB LEDs will also ramp down at the same time. At the bottom, only the White LED will be ON. This is, of course, further controlled by the overall Brightness slider.

Method S4: as the Saturation slider moves down, the RGB LEDs remain ‘locked’ on their original color (based on the color wheel circular slider) while the White LED ramps up. This allows a different type of saturation. When the Saturation slider is at or below the Trigger Level, the RGB LEDs are turned OFF and only the White LED is ON. In this method, it is better to set the Trigger Level at 0%. This is, of course, further controlled by the overall Brightness slider.

Method S5: is a variant of S4 where, while the RGB LEDs remain ‘locked’ on their original color, they gradually dim down. When the Saturation slider is at or below the Trigger Level, the RGB LEDs are turned OFF and only the White LED is ON. In this method, it is better to set the Trigger Level at 0%. This is, of course, further controlled by the overall Brightness slider.

Colorbeam Scenes, Circadian and Colors

In the Control4 environment, using Advanced Lighting Scenes is the preferred way. However, Colorbeam also has the possibility to create native Scenes in the Gateway itself. These Colorbeam Scenes may be handled by an Action (Import, List and Run) and Run by a Programming command on the Processor driver. Colorbeam Scenes are automatically imported upon startup, but an Action allows you to Import Scenes dynamically should you make changes on the Colorbeam Gateway.

Similarly, Circadian Lighting in the Control4 environment is handled using the Daylight Agent. However, Colorbeam has the possibility to create Circadian programs in the Gateway itself. You may use one facility or the other, but usually not both. To use the Colorbeam Circadian facility, specify the Circadian Preset Prefix property (or leave it the default ‘C/’). Example: if you have specified ‘C/’ (the default), then simply name your Circadian presets starting with ‘C/’ such as ‘C/WarmEvening’. Such presets may be activated with a Control4 touchscreen, Advanced Lighting Scenes and Programming commands. When Presets are added or changed, remember to synchronize the Light drivers as required, with their Action ‘Synchronize Scenes and Presets’.

Colorbeam offers a set of pre-calibrated Colors which are used to provide predictable lighting across several different load types. This facility is provided by the Colorbeam Gateway itself and managed by the Processor driver. Simply use the Processor driver’s Action to ‘Update Colors from Colorbeam’. You would typically only need to do this once during the first installation, as the Control4 Color Agent is persistent. The pre-calibrated colors are then uploaded as ‘Dealer’ Colors into the Control4 Color Agent (prefixed with ‘CC/’) and may be used in Advanced Lighting Scenes, Programming commands, Lighting properties and User interfaces.

Actions and Programming

In Processor Driver

‘Add Colorbeam Load(s)’ Action enables adding a single Light driver or all missing Light drivers based on the Colorbeam configuration. The Action also allows you to update existing drivers if you have changed the basic characteristics of some Lights in the Colorbeam configuration. The added drivers are created in the project room of your choice (or the room containing the Processor driver if you omit this). You may start with the operation to ‘Gather info and report’ to get a preview of that the driver sees in the project, without adding or updating anything. If you have orphan Light drivers (currently unassigned or unused), you may wish to clean this up before going any further. Then proceed with the Add and/or Update operation. You may print the most current operation Messages with the Action ‘Print Messages from Add Loads’. After adding/adjusting Devices, always refresh Navigators.

‘Colorbeam Calibrated Colors’ Action enables updating pre-calibrated colors into the Control4 Color Agent (the names are prefixed with ‘CC/’) and to list the current Colors offered by the Color Agent. **CAUTION**: finally, should you wish to re-initialize the Color Agent to the ‘factory default’, the driver can reload the Default presets. If you later Update from the Colorbeam Calibrated colors, you should review all your previous Advanced Lighting Scenes, programming commands and Lighting properties which reference Colorbeam pre-calibrated colors.

‘Colorbeam Scenes’ Action enables dynamically importing Colorbeam Scenes from the Colorbeam Gateway, to list these Scenes and to Run a Scene from a drop-down list.

‘Reload and rebuild Device Table’ Action refreshes the tables in the Processor driver itself. This would normally not be required, but you may wish to clean things up if you have done a lot of testing by adding and deleting Loads.

In Lighting Driver

Full support is provided for Advanced Lighting Scenes. Normally, the driver is notified when any Scene is changed, but if you suspect there are issues, you may run the Action to ‘Synchronize Scenes and Presets’. Similarly, use this Action whenever Presets are added/modified. Colorbeam native Scenes can be reloaded, listed and run from the Processor driver.

ChangLog