Lighting control

• US 10,243,756 B2
• Filed: 09/08/2015
• Issued: 03/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Signify Holding B.V. (Signify N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Signify Holding B.V. (Signify N.V.)
• Inventors: Magielse, Remco, Aliakseyeu, Dzmitry Viktorovich, Mason, Jonathan David, Chraibi, Sanae
• Primary Examiner(s): Fennema, Robert E
• Assistant Examiner(s): Patel, Jigneshkumar C
• Application Number:
  US14/847,416
• Publication Number:
  US 20160072639A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,295 Days
• Field of Search: 700275
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23027 Database with information on how to control or test different appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2816 Controlling appliance services of a home automation network by calling their functionalities arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station; in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom H04Q9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/115 by determining the presence or movement of objects or living beings
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/19 via wireless transmission
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/40 Control techniques providing energy savings, e.g. smart controller or presence detection

Abstract

Apparatus comprising: a transmitter for controlling one or more luminaires which illuminate at least part of an environment occupied by a user; and a controller configured to provide control functionality for controlling the luminaires via the transmitter; wherein the controller is configured to receive an altitude measurement from an altimeter disposed about the user'"'"'s person, and based thereon to provide said control functionality in dependence on an altitude of the user relative to an altitude of each of the luminaires.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a transmitter for controlling one or more luminaires which illuminate at least part of an environment occupied by a user, and/or controlling one or more domestic or office appliances available in said environment; and

a controller configured to provide control functionality for controlling the luminaires and/or appliances via the transmitter;

wherein the controller is configured to receive an altitude measurement from an altimeter disposed about the user'"'"'s person and to perform an assessment, based on said measurement, of a proximity of an altitude of the user to an altitude of each of the luminaires and/or appliances, and based on the assessment to provide said control functionality in dependence on the altitude of the user relative to the altitude of each of the luminaires and/or appliances.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

said control functionality comprises automatically controlling the luminaires and/or appliances, and said dependence on relative altitude comprises performing the automatic control in dependence on the altitude of the user relative to an altitude of each of the luminaires and/or appliances.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the environment is divided into a plurality of discrete levels,

said dependence on relative altitude comprises;

providing the control functionality in dependence on which of the discrete levels the user is located on relative to which of the levels the luminaires and/or appliances are located on.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the environment comprises a building and said levels are floors of the building.

5. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the controller is further configured, based on said altitude measurement, to determine a height of the altimeter within the level the user is located on, and to provide said control functionality in dependence on said height.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to access a record of the altitude of each of the luminaires and/or appliances from a database, said provision of the control functionality in dependence on relative altitude being based thereon;

and wherein the controller is further configured to provide a commissioning function for use by the user, enabling the user to record the altitudes of the luminaires and/or appliances in said database by;

indicating locations of the luminaires and/or appliances on a graphical map ofthe environment;

or

placing the altimeter at the altitude of each of the luminaires and/or appliances, and taking a corresponding measurement from the altimeter.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said apparatus is a mobile user terminal and the altimeter is incorporated internally in said user terminal.

8. The user terminal of claim 7, wherein the user terminal is wearable.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said apparatus comprises a user terminal comprising the transmitter and controller, and the altimeter is external to the user terminal.

10. A system comprising the user terminal of claim 9 and the external altimeter, wherein the altimeter is wearable.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said control functionality comprises presenting the user, via a user terminal, with a set of user-operable controls each enabling the user to control a respective one or more of the luminaires and/or appliances, the user-operable controls being presented in a manner representing relevance to the user according to how close the altitude of the user is to the altitude of the respective luminaires and/or appliances.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the user-operable controls are presented in a list, and the controller is configured to represent the relevance of the user-operable controls by ordering the list in dependence on how close the altitude of the user is to the altitude of the respective luminaires and/or appliances.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the transmitter is for controlling a plurality of luminaires and/or domestic or office appliances;

the environment comprises a plurality of zones including zones on a same horizontal level, each zone comprising one or more of the luminaires and/or appliances; and

and the controller is further configured to group the user-operable controls within the user interface according to the zones of the respective luminaires and/or appliances.

14. A method of controlling one or more luminaires which illuminate at least part of an environment occupied by a user, and/or controlling one or more domestic or office appliances available in said environment;

the method comprising;

using control functionality of an apparatus to control the luminaires and/or appliances via a transmitter of the apparatus;

receiving an altitude measurement from an altimeter disposed about the user'"'"'s person; and

performing an assessment, based on the altitude measurement from the altimeter, of a proximity of an altitude of the user to an altitude of each of the luminaires and/or appliances, wherein said control functionality, based on said assessment, is dependent on the altitude of the user relative to the altitude of each of the luminaires and/or appliances.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said control functionality comprises presenting the user, via a user terminal, with a set of user-operable controls each enabling the user to control a respective one or more of the luminaires and/or appliances, the user-operable controls being presented in a manner representing relevance to the user according to how close the altitude of the user is to the altitude of the respective luminaires and/or appliances.

16. A computer program product for controlling one or more luminaires which illuminate at least part of an environment occupied by a user, and/or controlling one or more domestic or office appliances available in said environment;

the computer program product comprising code embodied on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and configured, when executed, to perform operations of;

providing control functionality for controlling the luminaires and/or appliances via a transmitter;

receiving an altitude measurement from an altimeter disposed about the user'"'"'s person;

performing an assessment, based on the altitude measurement from the altimeter, of a proximity of an altitude of the user to an altitude of each of the luminaires and/or appliances; and

based on the assessment, providing said control functionality in dependence on the altitude of the user relative to the altitude of each of the luminaires and/or appliances.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein providing said control functionality comprises presenting the user, via a user terminal, with a set of user-operable controls each enabling the user to control a respective one or more of the luminaires and/or appliances, the user-operable controls being presented in a manner representing relevance to the user according to how close the altitude of the user is to the altitude of the respective luminaires and/or appliances.