Short answer: The Somfy UAI Plus (1870272) is Somfy's IP interface for wired SDN motors. It commissions, groups and controls up to 250 RS485 motors, including the Sonesse 30 RS485, Sonesse 50 ULTRA RS485 and Glydea ULTRA, and passes them to Control4, Crestron or Savant through the Somfy Synergy API. It takes power from the SDN bus and joins the site router over Ethernet.
The UAI Plus on an SDN job
Somfy Digital Network motors carry no radio. Each one takes an address on a wired RS485 bus, reports its real position, and moves to a percentage on command. That bus needs a commissioning point and a doorway to the control processor, and the Somfy Connect Universal Automation Interface (UAI) Plus (1870272) is both.
Older SDN jobs leaned on separate converters, laptop software and custom pinouts. Somfy folded the commissioning software into the UAI Plus itself, so the integrator opens a Chrome browser on the local network, discovers the motors, sets labels and limits, and builds groups by drag and drop. Firmware updates arrive over IP. The configuration file backs up, which saves a full recommission after a hardware swap.
Somfy rates one unit for up to 250 motors. A hotel floor or a glass office facade fits inside that ceiling with room to spare.
Motors and control systems it works with
Somfy lists four motor families for the UAI Plus:
- Sonesse 30 RS485
- Sonesse 50 ULTRA AC and DC RS485
- Glydea ULTRA
- Irismo 35 with the SDN enclosure kit
On the roller side, the Somfy Sonesse 30 RS485 24V DC (1241144) covers the 30 mm tube work: 2 Nm at 25 rpm on a 1.13 in minimum tube. Larger shades move up to the Somfy Sonesse ULTRA 50 506A2 RS485 120V motor (1002566), which turns 6 Nm at 24 rpm and runs at 38 dB.
Drapery joins the same bus. A Glydea ULTRA DCT motor takes the Somfy SDN RS485 Module for Glydea ULTRA motors (1871412), and from that point the UAI Plus addresses the track like any roller motor on the network.
Upstream, Somfy names Control4, Crestron and Savant as the automation platforms, with the Somfy Synergy API as the shared language. The interface speaks SDN 2.0. Third-party processors reach it over IP or through RS232 on Port 1.
A UAI Plus has no radio of its own. RTS remotes, DecoFlex WireFree switches and Zigbee hubs talk to radio motors, and they have no place on an SDN quote. For radio shades on the same project, the Somfy hub comparison covers the TaHoma Switch and the URTSI II.
Verified UAI Plus specifications
Figures below come from Somfy's product records for reference 1870272 on somfypro.com and somfysystems.com, and from the Somfy Connect UAI Plus spec sheet.
| Somfy reference | 1870272 |
| Function | Commissions and integrates Somfy Digital Network (SDN) over IP |
| Motor capacity | Up to 250 motors over IP |
| Network | SDN 2.0, works with the Somfy Synergy API |
| Input voltage | 12 to 24V DC |
| Bus power budget | 6 SDN power units |
| Ports | Port 1 RS232 input, Port 2 SDN, Ethernet |
| Maximum Ethernet run | 328 ft on Cat5e |
| Maximum SDN wiring | 4,000 ft total wire length |
| IP protocols | TCP, UDP, Telnet, HTTP web server, UPnP, SDDP |
| Width x height | 2.37 x 2.12 in |
| Housing | ABS, grey |
| Protection | IP 20, Class II, indoor use only |
| Approvals | UL listed, CE approved |
| In the box | UAI Plus, 8 in DIN rail, 7 ft Ethernet cable, quick start guide, cable pinouts |
| Shipping weight | 1 lb |
| Warranty | 5 years |
Ports, power and the SDN bus
Somfy powers the UAI Plus from the SDN bus line. It draws 6 SDN power units from the bus budget, so count it alongside the keypads and other devices when you size the supply. Input runs 12 to 24V DC.
Port 2 carries the SDN connection to an open device port on the network. On a bus fed by the Somfy SDN PowerConnect Surface-Mount Panel (1871026), that means one of the panel's two device ports, beside its 10 isolated motor ports. Somfy allows 4,000 ft of total SDN wire length on the system.
Port 1 accepts RS232 from a control processor. A processor that sends RS485 instead needs Somfy's DB9 to RJ45 adaptor (9015029), and Somfy caps that run at 50 ft on Cat5 or better.
The Ethernet port goes to the site router, up to 328 ft away on Cat5e. The housing mounts on the included DIN rail in a low-voltage panel or rack. Keep it indoors. Somfy rates it IP 20.
Commissioning steps from Somfy's quick start
Somfy publishes this sequence in the Somfy Connect UAI Plus quick start guide:
- Mount the unit on the included DIN rail if the panel calls for it. Extend the mounting ear with a screwdriver to snap it onto the rail.
- Connect the SDN communication wire to Port 2 and to an open device port on the SDN system.
- Connect the Ethernet cable to the Ethernet port and to an open port on the site router.
- From a Windows PC on the same network, open the unit in Windows Explorer, enter the default password from the guide, and click Update to load the firmware.
- Select Troubleshoot and test the up and down arrows to confirm motor operation.
- Open the Motors tab, click the spyglass icon to discover the SDN motors, then set labels and limits.
- Open the Groups tab, add a group, name it, and drag motors into it.
- Run the shades from the third-party system over RS232 or IP, from Somfy controls, or from a Chrome browser at the unit's IP address.
The browser interface needs Chrome 59.0.3071 or later. Steps and screens change with firmware, so keep the Programming Guide (V4.1) and the Control4 or Crestron Home integration guide open on the first job. Motor wiring diagrams sit in each motor's install guide in our Somfy spec library.
Ordering the UAI Plus and the parts around it
The UAI Plus ships as the interface with its DIN rail and Ethernet cable. Build the rest of the order from the motor schedule. Count SDN motors by address, confirm the total stays at 250 or fewer per unit, and add the power panel and any Glydea ULTRA modules the drapery needs.
The full range of bus motors, keypads, panels and commissioning tools sits in our Somfy SDN digital network collection. For wiring detail on the 30 mm motor, the Sonesse 30 RS485 wiring guide walks the 5-conductor lead and supply sizing.
Somfy UAI Plus questions
What does the Somfy UAI Plus do?
The UAI Plus commissions and integrates Somfy Digital Network motors over IP. Its built-in software discovers SDN motors and writes their labels, limits and groups from a Chrome browser. It then hands those motors to Control4, Crestron or Savant through the Somfy Synergy API, with capacity for up to 250 motors on one unit.
Does the UAI Plus work with RTS or Zigbee motors?
The UAI Plus serves wired SDN motors on an RS485 bus and carries no radio. Somfy lists the Sonesse 30 RS485, Sonesse 50 ULTRA AC and DC RS485, Glydea ULTRA, and Irismo 35 with the SDN enclosure kit. RTS and Zigbee shades run from the TaHoma Switch, or from a URTSI II for RTS in a serial control system.
Does the UAI Plus need its own power supply?
Somfy powers the UAI Plus from the SDN bus line, and the unit draws 6 SDN power units from the bus budget. Input runs 12 to 24V DC. Count those power units with the rest of the devices on the bus when you size the SDN supply, so the motors keep the current they need.
How far can the UAI Plus sit from the router?
Somfy publishes a 328 ft maximum Ethernet run on Cat5e cable between the UAI Plus and the network switch or router. The SDN side allows 4,000 ft of total wire length. An RS485 link from a control processor through the DB9 to RJ45 adaptor stays at 50 ft or less on Cat5 or better.
Sources: Somfy product records for reference 1870272 (somfypro.com, somfysystems.com); Somfy Connect UAI Plus Spec Sheet 2025.01.30; Somfy Connect UAI Plus Quick Start Guide 2024.11.21.
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