Municipal BMS Integration Brief
This page answers common municipal and government questions about Inspextor PoE lighting integration with an existing Building Management System (BMS). It complements the CSI guide specification (Section 265116 Municipal & Government Facilities) and is intended for design professionals, BMS integrators, and Owner IT staff.
:::tip Quick answer for BMS submittals
For writable vs read-only BACnet objects today, use Level 1 PICS Addendum or export live PICS from the controller after commissioning (GET /api/v1/bacnet/pics.md). Command/control (dim, power, CCT) is supported at Level 1; CO₂, SubscribeCOV, and demand-response BACnet points require Level 2.
:::
Frequently asked questions
What communication protocol does PoE lighting use?
PoE luminaires and nodes communicate over Cat6 Ethernet using IEEE 802.3bt for power and IP-based control protocols at runtime:
| Layer | Protocol | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Field (node ↔ controller) | CoAP or MQTT (mode depends on node security profile) | Discovery, commands, sensor events |
| Northbound (controller ↔ BMS) | BACnet/IP (UDP 47808) | BMS graphics, schedules, municipal submittals |
| Alternative northbound | HTTPS REST (Public API) | Scripts, legacy integrators, demand-response automation |
PoE nodes do not speak BACnet directly. The Aida Controller is always the BACnet gateway — one BACnet device per controller, aggregating many PoE nodes into cluster-level points.
See BACnet/IP Server for the full object model and architecture diagram.
Do PoE lighting manufacturers require proprietary software?
Inspextor includes a browser-native management platform (scheduling, scenes, occupancy, energy reporting, aida AI). For BMS integration, Owners are not locked into a standalone lighting-only UI:
- BACnet/IP — standard BMS ReadProperty / WriteProperty on zone points
- Open REST API — same contract as Controller 1.0 at
/aida/api/*
The Inspextor UI remains available for facilities staff, commissioning, and firmware updates. BMS operators can command lighting from existing graphics without a separate lighting head-end when BACnet or REST is configured.
Can we use our existing BMS instead of a standalone lighting system?
Yes, for projects that select Integration Level 1 or Level 2:
| Capability | Level 1 (available today) | Level 2 (planned) |
|---|---|---|
| BMS commands dim, on/off, CCT | Yes | Yes |
| BMS reads occupancy, lux, temp, sound | Yes (poll/event-based) | Yes + SubscribeCOV |
| BMS reads CO₂ / humidity for DCV | No | Yes |
| Scene recall, BMS override, demand response via BACnet | No | Yes |
| Near-real-time lux step response for commissioning | Limited (poll interval) | Yes |
Level 1 satisfies command/control validation and partial monitoring for most municipal BMS graphics. Projects that cite full §3.6 integration testing including CO₂ at the BMS workstation should plan for Level 2 or document Level 1 exclusions in the PICS addendum.
How reliable is PoE lighting? Any latency issues?
Power and control path
- Each luminaire has a dedicated Cat6 home-run to a managed PoE switch (star topology). There is no daisy-chaining of control data between fixtures.
- Control commands are local to the building LAN. Typical command latency from BMS WriteProperty to node actuation is on the order of tens to low hundreds of milliseconds, depending on network load and cluster size — suitable for normal HVAC-style supervisory control, not sub-millisecond theatrical dimming.
Operational resilience
- Loss of BMS: Local Inspextor schedules, occupancy policies, and on-device behavior continue. BACnet reads/writes stop until the BMS reconnects.
- Loss of WAN / cloud: On-premises controller operation continues for local control and BACnet (if on the same VLAN).
- 24/7 critical facilities (police, fire, dispatch): Configure and test local edge control so zones operate through central server or BMS outages per project commissioning scope.
Read freshness (Level 1)
- BMS reads return last-known controller state (health-check poll + INX event memory), refreshed on a configurable interval (default 30 s). This is not a certified live PIR or NDIR stream. See reliability notes in the PICS addendum.
Integration paths
| Path | When to use |
|---|---|
| BACnet/IP Server | Primary municipal submittal path; BMS graphics and schedules |
| Controller Public API | Non-BACnet integrators, legacy 1.0 clients, custom demand-response logic |
| Inspextor web UI | Commissioning, scenes, schedules, firmware, operator overrides |
Level 1 — what is included today
Writable from BMS (WriteProperty)
| Object | BACnet type | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Zone power | binary-output | ON / OFF |
| Zone dim | analog-output | 0–100 % |
| Zone CCT | analog-output | 3000–5000 K (if tunable-white fixtures present) |
Read-only from BMS (ReadProperty)
| Object | BACnet type | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Occupancy | binary-input | Last mot / vac INX event |
| Illuminance | analog-input | Lux sentype events |
| Temperature | analog-input | Temp sentype events |
| Sound | analog-input | Sound sentype events |
Objects are omitted or marked out-of-service when the cluster has no matching sensor or fixture capability.
Deliverables for submittal
- Static template: Level 1 PICS Addendum
- Live export (post-commissioning):
GET /api/v1/bacnet/pics,GET /api/v1/bacnet/pics.md,GET /api/v1/bacnet/inventory - Acceptance tests: BACnet Commissioning Checklist
Level 1 limitations (document in every submittal)
:::warning Required PICS exclusions at Level 1 The following are not available at Integration Level 1. Do not promise them in municipal specs without selecting Level 2 or documenting an explicit exclusion. :::
| Item | Level 1 | Level 2 |
|---|---|---|
| SubscribeCOV | Not supported — BMS must poll | Supported |
| CO₂ / humidity BACnet points | Not exported | {cluster}-CO2, {cluster}-RH |
| Scene multi-state output | Not exported | {cluster}-SCN |
| BMS override / demand response BACnet points | Not exported | {cluster}-OVR, {cluster}-DR |
| Priority array commissioning semantics | Not implemented | Full B-BC / B-AAC behavior |
Passive sensor push (SENSOR-STATUS-REQUEST) | Pending | RTC-driven updates |
| Read freshness | Poll + event memory (default 30 s refresh) | Near-real-time + COV |
If the project specification references §3.6 integration testing with CO₂ verification at the BMS workstation, either upgrade to Level 2 or amend the spec to Level 1 scope (dim, occupancy, lux — no CO₂).
Level 2 roadmap
Level 2 adds the Realtime Controller (RTC) as the authoritative state source for reactive policies, COV, and full municipal commissioning.
Planned Level 2 additions
| Feature | BACnet impact |
|---|---|
| Realtime Controller sidecar | Authoritative occupancy, lux, CO₂, humidity |
| SubscribeCOV | BMS subscriptions on dim, occupancy, lux, CO₂, temp |
| CO₂ / humidity sensors | {cluster}-CO2, {cluster}-RH analog inputs |
| Scene MSO | {cluster}-SCN writable multi-state output |
| BMS override | {cluster}-OVR binary value |
| Demand response | {cluster}-DR binary value (with DR module) |
| Zone status | {cluster}-STS multi-state value |
| Priority array | Standard BACnet priority 8–16 semantics |
Dependency: realtime_controller.enabled=true and RTC healthy before Level 2 BACnet objects are exported.
Contact MHT Technologies for Level 2 availability on your controller firmware version and RTC deployment guide.
Inspextor software data sheet (informational submittal)
Per municipal guide §1.4 item 15, combine these references for the Owner submittal package:
| Topic | Documentation |
|---|---|
| System architecture | Aida Controller overview, Architecture |
| Browser-native UI | Inspextor operator guide (closeout O&M package) |
| aida AI capabilities | Platform features / operator training materials |
| Open REST API | Controller Public API |
| BACnet/IP integration | BACnet/IP Server, PICS addendum |
| BACnet commissioning | Commissioning checklist |
| ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager export | Inspextor energy reporting module — coordinate format with Owner energy manager (not part of BACnet PICS) |
| Cybersecurity summary | TLS, RBAC, audit logging — coordinate with Owner IT (separate security submittal) |
BACnet point naming coordination
Before bid, coordinate with the municipal BMS administrator (guide Appendix C §C.3):
- Confirm device instance is unique on the Owner BACnet network.
- Agree cluster name prefixes (
clusters.metadata.bacnet.name_prefix) for BMS graphics. - Export object inventory at commissioning and attach to as-built BMS database.
- Document instance block size (default 100) so future clusters do not collide.
Default name pattern: {cluster}-PWR, {cluster}-DIM, {cluster}-CCT, {cluster}-OCC, {cluster}-LUX, etc.
Related documentation
- BACnet/IP Server — Object model, configuration, REST helpers
- Level 1 PICS Addendum — Submittal template (writable vs read-only)
- BACnet Commissioning Checklist — Level 1 and Level 2 acceptance tests
- Controller Public API — REST alternative to BACnet
Vendor: MHT Technologies · Product: Inspextor AIDA Controller 2.0