Lighting control actuator design and development for a ZigBee network with a Web server mounted on Raspberry Pi

Competitive solutions to the growing demand for home automation will most likely include the use of low cost components, open source and open hardware. Using the ZigBee protocol, a low cost lighting control actuator was developed that was battery efficient and easy to use in a home automation system environment. Raspberry Pi was used to house a Web server, which provided the user an adaptive Web application to access the lighting actuator control. XBee modules were chosen for their small size, low energy consumption and the large amount of documentation that exists in regard to its use. Considering the worst-case scenario, the lighting control actuator was designed so if its battery runs out of power or the ZigBee network fails, it can work as a normal light switch.