Lighting system color control

• US 10,159,132 B2
• Filed: 01/12/2017
• Issued: 12/18/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hunter Industries Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Hunter Industries Incorporated
• Inventors: Woytowitz, Peter John
• Primary Examiner(s): Chan, Wei
• Application Number:
  US15/404,825
• Publication Number:
  US 20170127493A1
• Time in Patent Office: 705 Days
• Field of Search: 315307, 315291, 315149, 315209 R, 315294, 315119, 315201
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/28 using temperature feedback
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/3725 Switched mode power supply [SMPS]
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/375 using buck topology
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/382 with galvanic isolation between input and output
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/56 involving measures to prevent abnormal temperature of the LEDs
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/185 via power line carrier transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/19 via wireless transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/1965 using handheld communication devices
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/25 Circuit arrangements for protecting against overcurrent
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/30 Semiconductor lamps, e.g. solid state lamps [SSL] light emitting diodes [LED] or organic LED [OLED]

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided to control the color and brightness of LED lighting. A control signal generator generates a hybrid control signal using pulse width modulation and analog control to drive an LED driver with increased resolution to maintain color mixing while adjusting brightness of the LED lighting.

Claims

1. A lighting system configured to control illumination color of lighting, the lighting system comprising:

a plurality of LED lights;

a plurality of modules, one or more LED lights of the plurality of LED lights associated with each module of the plurality of modules;

a two-wire communication network configured to transmit a data encoded power signal to address at least one module of the plurality of modules and to provide power to each module of the plurality of modules, each module including a zero crossing detector configured to detect zero-crossings of the data encoded power signal and a counter configured to count a number of zero-crossings;

a user interface configured to acquire user input regarding the illumination color of at least one of the one or more LED lights, and configured to output information based at least in part on the user input, wherein the user input comprises at least a starting hue of a color wheel and a transition time;

a processor in communication with the user interface, the processor configured to accept the information and to output command and address data responsive to the information; and

a power supply operatively coupled to a power source and the two-wire communication network, the power supply in communication with the processor to receive the command and address data, the power supply configured to modify an input voltage of the power source to produce the data encoded power signal responsive to the command and address data;

wherein the at least one module of the plurality of modules is configured to receive the data encoded power signal via the two-wire communication network, and wherein at least one addressed module is configured to decode the starting hue and the transition time from the data encoded power signal, output the starting hue, and autonomously transition to a next hue through the color wheel based at least in part on the transition time and the number of zero-crossings.

2. The lighting system of claim 1 wherein the user input further comprises an ending hue of the color wheel and the at least one addressed module is further configured to transition from the starting hue through the color wheel to the ending hue based at least in part on the transition time and the number of zero crossings of the data encoded power signal.

3. The lighting system of claim 2 wherein the user input further comprises cycle information and wherein the at least one addressed module of the plurality of modules is further configured to cycle the transition from the starting hue through the color wheel to the ending hue and a transition from the ending hue through the color wheel to the starting hue based at least in part on the cycle information.

4. The lighting system of claim 1 wherein the at least one addressed module is configured to use the data encoded power signal as a time base to synchronize the transitions.

5. The lighting system of claim 1 wherein the data encoded power signal forms a sinusoidal waveform between zero-crossings.

6. The lighting system of claim 5 wherein the at least one addressed module is configured to use the zero-crossings of the data encoded power signal to synchronize the transitions.

7. The lighting system of claim 5 wherein the at least one addressed module is configured to generate an interrupt when the zero-crossing is detected.

8. The lighting system of claim 7 wherein the at least one addressed module is further configured to generate control signals to control the transitioning of the at least one of the one or more LED lights to a next hue of the color wheel when a number of the interrupts correlates with the transition time.

9. The lighting system of claim 1 wherein the data encoded power signal is further responsive to a polarity of the input voltage.

10. A method to control illumination color of a lighting system that includes a plurality of LED lights and a plurality of lighting modules, wherein one or more LED lights of the plurality of LED lights is associated with each lighting module of the plurality of lighting modules, and a two-wire communication network configured to transmit a data encoded power signal to at least one lighting module of the plurality of lighting modules, wherein the data encoded power signal provides power and command and address data to the at least one lighting module of the plurality of lighting modules, the method comprising:

acquiring at a user interface user input that comprises at least a starting hue of a color wheel and a transition time associated with the illumination color of at least one of the one or more LED lights;

outputting information based at least in part on the user input;

receiving with a processor the information and outputting with the processor the command and address data responsive to the information;

modifying with a power supply an input voltage of a power source in response to the command and address data to produce the data encoded power signal;

transmitting over the two-wire communication network the data encoded power signal to the at least one lighting module of the plurality of lighting modules, the at least one lighting module including a zero crossing detector configured to detect zero-crossings of the data encoded power signal and a counter configured to count a number of zero-crossings;

decoding the command and address data from the data encoded power signal with the at least one lighting module of the plurality of lighting modules; and

outputting the starting hue and autonomously transitioning, with at least one addressed lighting module, to a next hue through the color wheel based at least in part on the transition time and the number of zero-crossings.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising transitioning, with at least the one addressed lighting module, from the starting hue through the color wheel to an ending hue based at least in part on the transition time and the number of zero-crossings of the data encoded power signal.

12. The method of claim 10 further comprising generating, with the at least one addressed lighting module, an interrupt when the zero-crossing of the data encoded power signal is detected.

13. The method of claim 12 further comprising counting, with the at least one addressed lighting module, the interrupts.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising generating, with the at least one addressed lighting module, control signals to control the one or more LED lights to transition to the next hue of the color wheel when a number of interrupts correlates with the transition time.

15. A lighting controller to control illumination color of a lighting system that includes a plurality of LED lights, a plurality of lighting modules, wherein one or more LED lights of the plurality of LED lights is associated with each lighting module of the plurality of lighting modules, and a two-wire communication network configured to transmit a data encoded power signal to at least one lighting module of the plurality of lighting modules to provide power and command and address data to the at least one lighting module of the plurality of lighting modules, the lighting controller comprising:

a user interface configured to acquire user input that comprises at least a starting hue of a color wheel and a transition time associated with the illumination color of at least one of the one or more LED lights and to output information based at least in part on the user input;

a processor in communication with the user interface, the processor configured to accept the information and to output the command and address data responsive to the information; and

a power supply operatively coupled to a power source and the two-wire communication network, the power supply in communication with the processor to receive the command and address data, the power supply configured to modify an input voltage of the power source to produce the data encoded power signal responsive to the command and address data;

wherein at least one addressed lighting module includes a zero crossing detector configured to detect zero-crossings of the data encoded power signal and a counter configured to count a number of zero-crossings, the at least one addressed lighting module is configured to autonomously transition from the starting hue to a next hue through the color wheel in response to the transition time and the number of zero-crossings.

16. The lighting controller of claim 15 wherein the at least one lighting module of the plurality of lighting modules is configured to receive the data encoded power signal via the two-wire communication network and to decode the command and address data from the data encoded power signal.

17. The lighting controller of claim 15 wherein the user input further comprises an ending hue of the color wheel and the at least one addressed lighting module is further configured to transition from the starting hue through the color wheel to the ending hue based at least in part on the transition time and the number of zero crossings of the data encoded power signal.

18. The lighting controller of claim 17 wherein the user input further comprises cycle information and wherein the at least one addressed lighting module is further configured to cycle the transition from the starting hue through the color wheel to the ending hue and a transition from the ending hue through the color wheel to the starting hue based at least in part on the cycle information.

19. The lighting controller of claim 15 wherein the data encoded power signal provides a time base to synchronize color wheel transitions.

20. The lighting controller of claim 15 wherein the data encoded power signal forms a sinusoidal waveform between zero-crossings.