What is KNX?
KNX: Introduction
More comfort, more safety, more energy savings: The demand for building management systems is constantly growing.
Whether in a single-family home or an office complex, the demand for comfort and flexibility in the management of air conditioning, lighting and access control systems is growing. At the same time, the efficient use of energy is becoming increasingly important. However, more comfort and safety combined with lower energy consumption can only be achieved through intelligent control and monitoring of all products involved. But with that comes more wiring, running from sensors and actuators to monitoring and control centres. The quantity of cables in turn means more effort for design and installation, increased risk of fire and skyrocketing costs.
The Answer:KNX – the Global STANDARD for Home and Building Control
In order to transfer control data to all building management components, a decentralised system is required, ensuring that all its components communicate via a common language: in short, a manufacturer and application domain independent system, i.e. the KNX bus. This standard is based on more than 20 years of market experience, including the predecessor systems of KNX: EIB, EHS and BatiBUS. Through the KNX medium to which all bus devices (twisted pair cable, radio frequency, power lines or IP/Ethernet) are connected, they are able to exchange information. Bus devices can be either sensors or actuators required to control building management equipment such as: lighting, blinds/shutters, security systems, energy management, heating, ventilation and air conditioning, signalling and monitoring systems, interfacing with service and building control systems, remote control, metering, audio/video control, white goods, etc. All these functions can be controlled, monitored and signalled through a single system without the need for additional control centres.
Reports from all over the world: the world of home and building control “speaks” KNX. Several million successful KNX installations can be found not only throughout Europe, but also in the Far East, North and South America – proof of how attractive the KNX approach is. More than 340 KNX member companies offer worldwide almost 7,000 certified KNX product groups in their catalogues, from different fields of application.
OPEN MODEL means:
KNX has been approved as an International Standard (ISO/IEC 14543 – 3), as well as a European Standard (CENELEC EN 50090 and CEN EN 13321 – 1) and a Chinese Standard (GB /T 20965). KNX is therefore future-proof. KNX products made by different manufacturers can be combined – the KNX trademark logo guarantees their interworking and interoperability. Therefore, KNX is the only open standard in the world for the control of both commercial and residential buildings.
Home and Building Control means:
A benefit to each type of building: From the office complex to the average household. Whatever the type of building, KNX opens up new opportunities for the development of building control systems, while keeping costs at a manageable level. KNX can provide solutions that can only be achieved with a great deal of effort with conventional installations. Μέσω μιας ενιαίας οθόνης αφής μπορούν να ελέγχονται όλες οι εφαρμογές στο σπίτι ή στο κτίριο. From heating, ventilation and access control, to remote control of all household appliances – KNX enables completely new ways to increase comfort, safety and energy savings in the home or building.
KNX: A single approach with many advantages
Wherever it is used, KNX brings real benefits for architects, designers, and building contractors, but above all, building owners and/or users.
Low operating costs due to significant energy savings. Lighting and heating are only activated when needed, e.g. depending on the time and/or presence of people, resulting in energy and money savings. In addition, lighting can be automatically controlled in relation to daylight intensity, thus maintaining a set minimum level of brightness in each workplace and reducing energy consumption (only the light sources that are actually needed are left on).
Saving time
Interconnecting all communication devices with a single bus significantly reduces design and installation time. A unique tool independent of manufacturer and scope, Engineering Tool Software (ETS) enables the design, configuration and commissioning of installations with certified KNX products. Since the tool is manufacturer independent, the system installer is able to combine products from different manufacturers with different communication media (twisted pair, radio, Powerline or IP/Ethernet) in one installation.
Flexibility and adaptability to future developments. A KNX installation can be easily adapted to new applications and is easily expandable. New components can be easily connected to the existing bus installation.
KNX Association: your guarantee for a global standard!
The driving force behind KNX is the KNX Association, a group of leading companies active in many areas of home and building control. Currently, KNX Association has more than 370 members, representing more than 80% of the home and building control devices sold in Europe. With a common goal, these companies promote the development of building systems in general and KNX as the only global open standard for home and building control. KNX Association has cooperation agreements with more than 44,000 installer companies in 128 countries, more than 100 technical universities and more than 300 training centres.