Every commercial building in the EU requires emergency lighting that activates within 5 seconds of mains failure and provides at least 3 hours of maintained illumination. EN 50172 mandates monthly function tests and annual duration tests — and requires written records. DALI-2 Part 202 and 203 automates this entirely.

EN 50172 test requirements

Monthly function test (Part 8 function test): Each emergency luminaire is momentarily switched to battery power. The test verifies the lamp illuminates and the battery charges. Duration: 25% of rated battery duration (typically 25% × 3h = 45 minutes). Annual duration test (Part 2): Each luminaire runs on battery for the full rated duration (3 hours minimum). Both tests must be logged with date, result, and tester identity.

DALI-2 Part 202/203 standard

The DALI-2 standard IEC 62386 Part 202 defines "self-contained emergency lighting" device type. An emergency driver (or conversion pack) with Part 202 compliance: automatically runs monthly and annual tests per schedule, reports test results (pass/fail) back to the DALI-2 controller, stores test history internally, and supports DALI commands to initiate, cancel and query tests.

How Helvar Router 950 automates testing

Configure the emergency module in HelvarNet: set test schedule (e.g. function test every 28 days, 2am; duration test every 364 days). The Router sends the DALI test initiation command to all Part 202 ECGs on the bus simultaneously. ECGs test themselves and report results to the Router. Pass/fail status is logged in HelvarNet with timestamp and ECG address. Export as PDF for maintenance records.

What Part 202 reports

Each emergency driver reports: test start time, test duration completed, test result (PASS/FAIL), battery voltage during test, lamp status. If a test fails: Router logs the ECG address and reason (lamp failed, battery insufficient, etc.). The HelvarNet report lists all failures — the maintenance team can identify and replace the faulty unit without walking the building.

Conversion packs vs dedicated emergency drivers

For retrofit: DALI-2 emergency conversion packs (Tridonic System 216, Helvar 216) fit inside an existing luminaire housing alongside the standard LED driver. The pack provides battery power and Part 202 intelligence. For new build: dedicated emergency drivers (DALI-2 Part 202 self-contained) are more compact. Both approaches result in the same DALI-2 controllable emergency device.

Integration with building systems

DALI-2 emergency lighting can report to KNX via the DALI-2 gateway: "emergency luminaire 0/1/3 test FAILED" → KNX group address telegram → HA notification → maintenance email. This eliminates the need to log into HelvarNet to check test results — the building management system gets automatic alerts.

False triggers and the inhibit function

DALI-2 Part 202 includes an inhibit command: if you're doing planned maintenance (mains temporarily disconnected), send DALI inhibit to all emergency drivers first. This prevents the duration test from starting during planned works. Inhibit expires after 15 minutes automatically — no permanent inhibit possible by standard design.