Resettable lighting system and method

• US 10,085,331 B2
• Filed: 01/30/2018
• Issued: 09/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/14/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Feit Electric Company Incorporated
• Original Assignee: LiFi Labs, Inc. (Buddy Technologies Ltd.)
• Inventors: Alexander, Marc, Bosua, Philip Anthony
• Primary Examiner(s): Chang, Daniel D
• Application Number:
  US15/884,213
• Publication Number:
  US 20180177033A1
• Time in Patent Office: 238 Days
• Field of Search: 315291
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/30 Driver circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/60 Circuit arrangements for operating LEDs comprising organic material, e.g. for operating organic light-emitting diodes [OLED] or polymer light-emitting diodes [PLED]
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/175 by remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/19 via wireless transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/195 the transmission using visible or infrared light

Abstract

A lighting system, including: light emitting elements; a reset switch operable in a first and second state; non-volatile reset memory configured to record the state of the reset switch when power is provided to the system; a wireless communication system; non-volatile communication memory configured to store default settings and configuration settings; a control system operable, in response to initial power provision to the control system, between: a configured mode when an instantaneous reset switch state matches the recorded state, the configured mode including: connecting the wireless communication system to a remote device based on the configuration settings, receiving instructions from the remote device, and controlling light emitting element operation based on the instructions; and a reset mode when the instantaneous reset switch state differs from the recorded state, the reset mode including: erasing the configuration settings from the communication memory and operating the system based on the default settings.

Claims

1. A method for connected lightbulb operation, comprising, at the lightbulb:

automatically connecting to a wireless network, using network credentials stored in memory on-board the lightbulb, upon power receipt from an external source;

receiving encrypted operation instructions over the wireless network;

decrypting the operation instructions using an encryption key stored in the memory;

operating according to the operation instructions;

detecting a predetermined power cycle pattern;

erasing the network credentials from the memory in response to detecting the predetermined power cycle pattern;

upon subsequent power receipt, automatically generating a local area network;

connecting to a user device through the local area network;

receiving secondary network credentials for a second wireless network from the user device through the local area network; and

automatically connecting to the second wireless network using the secondary network credentials.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein erasing the network credentials further comprises erasing the encryption key from the memory.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving secondary network credentials for the second wireless network further comprises receiving a second encryption key from the user device.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing a device credential for a second device in the memory;

in response to receipt of a secondary operation instruction addressed to the second device, establishing a second connection to the second device using the device credential; and

transmitting the secondary operation instruction to the second device over the second connection.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein erasing the network credentials further comprises erasing the device credential from the memory.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein receiving secondary network credentials for the second wireless network further comprises receiving the device credential from the user device.

7. A method for connected lightbulb operation, comprising, at the lightbulb:

automatically connecting to a wireless network, using network credentials stored in memory on-board the lightbulb, upon power receipt from an external source;

emitting light according to operation instructions received over the wireless network;

detecting a predetermined power cycle pattern;

erasing the network credentials from the memory in response to detecting the predetermined power cycle pattern;

upon subsequent power receipt, automatically generating a local area network;

connecting to a user device through the local area network;

receiving secondary network credentials for a second wireless network from the user device through the local area network; and

automatically connecting to the second wireless network using the secondary network credentials.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the operation instructions are received from a remote computing system over the wireless network.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the operation instructions are received from a second device connected to the wireless network.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the lightbulb and the second device share a set of credentials.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the operation instructions are encrypted, wherein the operation instructions are decrypted by the lightbulb using a key stored by the lightbulb.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the key is received from a third device separate from the lightbulb.

13. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

receiving secondary operation instructions for a second device over the wireless network;

establishing a second connection to the second device using a set of device credentials for the second device; and

forwarding the secondary operation instructions to the second device over the second connection.

14. The method of claim 7, wherein the lightbulb comprises a vibration sensor.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the vibration sensor comprises a transducer physically connected to a housing of the lightbulbs.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

sampling lightbulb vibration signals with the vibration sensor;

determining secondary operation instructions associated with the sampled lightbulb vibration signals; and

operating the lightbulb according to the secondary operation instructions.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the secondary operation instructions comprise operation instructions for a second device, the method further comprising:

establishing a second connection to the second device using a set of device credentials for the second device; and

transmitting the operation instructions for the second device to the second device over the second connection.

18. The method of claim 7, wherein detecting the predetermined power cycle pattern comprises detecting a predetermined number of power cycles within a predetermined time period.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein detecting the predetermined number of power cycles within the predetermined time period comprises:

storing a count of a power-on events in reset memory; and

detecting the predetermined power cycle pattern when the count meets the predetermined number of power cycles.

20. The method of claim 7, wherein the lightbulb comprises:

a housing comprising a threaded base electrically connected to an external power supply, the threaded base complimentary to an external threaded socket, wherein the threaded base removably mounts the housing to the external threaded socket and receives external power provided by the external threaded socket; and

an on-board power source electrically connected to the threaded base and configured to power the memory when external power provision has ceased.