RadioRA 3

This article will cover the following topics:

• What is LEAP?
• Why did Lutron develop LEAP?
• How does LEAP communication work? 
• What products/companies integrate with RadioRA 3 via Lutron LEAP?
• How do I use LEAP to integrate with other non-Lutron products/applications?

What is LEAP?

Lutron’s Extensible Application Protocol (LEAP) is the protocol by which many 3rd party systems communicate to the RadioRA 3 system. Think of it as the language that RadioRA 3 speaks and a 3rd party system can learn to communicate in this language so that it can send and receive information about the RadioRA 3 system for control and monitoring purposes. 

Why did Lutron Develop LEAP?

For many years, most Lutron systems communicated using a Telnet-based protocol over TCP/IP. While Telnet integration with other systems proved to be very capable and deployed on thousands of projects, technology in the industry has continued to advance in addition to the needs of the client. This is where LEAP comes in to play. 

• Secure – Instead of just utilizing a username and password for security, LEAP uses a pairing process with the 3rd party device that requires both verification of physical access as well as certificate-based authentication over a Transport Layer Security (TLS) connection. This helps provide peace of mind for the client. 
• Dynamic – As opposed to the Telnet integration with a static configuration file, created when the database was transferred into the system, LEAP is more dynamic and allows for configuration reads during setup or runtime, depending upon what is best for the 3rd party system. One thing that is certain, reading the Lutron configuration has never been easier for a 3rd party system and this all leads to an efficient deployment for the integrator, reducing time consuming, error prone and costly double entry of data. 

How does LEAP communication work?

What products/companies integrate with RadioRA 3 via Lutron LEAP?

LEAP integration drivers are developed by the 3rd party system manufacturer in most cases. As a result, information on how to setup a specific 3rd party system will come from the 3rd party, often packaged in with the integration driver or the 3rd party software and dealer websites. Lutron works closely with these companies, providing development support and mutual testing of the solution to ensure that the integration leads to a reliable and effective solution for both the integrator and homeowner. 

For the latest list of companies that integrate with RadioRA 3, Click this link  

How do I use LEAP to integrate with other non-Lutron products/applications?

Setting up LEAP integration is simple. Every RadioRA 3 system runs off of a configuration file that is created when the system is designed and commissioned. Every time you add a dimmer, switch, or keypad to the system you are adding to the configuration. As you add these devices, configure names for lighting zones and shades, and add engraving text onto keypad buttons all of this information is being stored in the configuration. This configuration feeds directly into the LEAP API. Essentially, as you build the system you are concurrently setting up LEAP integration for the system. 

Once the Lutron system is up and running, someone on the project, knowledgeable in using the 3rd party system, can work through the specific procedures required to connect the 3rd party system to the Lutron processor and pull in the various configuration information that is pertinent to the specific integration.