Is there a need for a central controller in a Z-Wave lighting system?
No. That’s a major value of a mesh network. Other lighting control systems that have been on the market for a while have relied on a centralized lighting cabinet. All lighting circuits require wires that lead back to this cabinet, and all control functions (scenes, zones, intensity) are controlled inside this cabinet. Use wall-mounted switches, dimmer and controllers to operate the system. But, everything is hard wired back to one control cabinet. Z-Wave eliminates the centralized cabinet requirement, thus dramatically lowering the costs, by allowing each device to become an intelligent transceiver: sending and receiving command information wirelessly. Putting all these individual intelligent devices into a home makes the entire system more reliable, efficient and scaleable. It also allows the products to be used in retrofit and new home construction with equal results.
