Distributed intelligence ballast system and extended lighting control protocol

• US 20060125426A1
• Filed: 12/14/2004
• Published: 06/15/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lutron Technology Company LLC
• Original Assignee: Lutron Electronics Company Incorporated (Lutron Electronics)
• Inventors: Cash, Audwin W., Skvoretz, Matthew A., Anselmo, Robert, Veskovic, Dragan
• Granted Patent: US 7,369,060 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 315/312
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 41/38 Controlling the intensity of light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/18 via data-bus transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/199 Commissioning of light sources

Abstract

A ballast for use in a multi-ballast lighting system wherein the ballasts are coupled together by a digital communication network. The ballast comprises a power circuit portion for providing an electrical current to power a lamp. The ballast further includes a sensor input circuit for receiving at least one sensor input from a sensor device, a processor receiving an input from the sensor input circuit and providing control signals to control the operation of the ballast, and a communication port coupled to the processor and to the communication network for exchanging data. The ballast processor is operative to receive a serial data that has a portion defining whether the message is in a first or a second format, the first format comprising a DALI standard format and the second format comprising a format providing extended functionality. The ballast processor is capable of processing messages in either the first or second formats.

Claims

1. A method for processing electronic sensor information in a ballast of a multi-ballast lighting system wherein the ballasts are connected together for exchanging data over a communication link, the method comprising:

receiving at the ballast the electronic sensor information from at least one sensor device;

determining in the ballast whether the ballast is configured either to broadcast electronic sensor information transmitted from any device on the link or if the ballast is configured to broadcast electronic sensor information from the at least one sensor device; and

broadcasting the electronic sensor information on the communication link from the sensor device if the ballast is configured to broadcast electronic sensor information on the communication link.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether the ballast is configured to process local electronic sensor information from the at least one sensor device;

receiving from the communication link electronic sensor information in the ballast and determining if the ballast is configured to process electronic sensor information transmitted by any device over the communication link; and

processing at least one of the transmitted electronic sensor information received from the communication link and the electronic sensor information from the sensor device if the ballast is configured to process at least one of the transmitted electronic sensor information and the electronic sensor information from the sensor device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of processing includes averaging all electronic sensor information received by the ballast.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the electronic sensor information is received from a plurality of remote devices connected to the communication link.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the electronic sensor information is received from at least one remote device and at least one local device.

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising subtracting a value representing light contributed from a local lighting device from the electronic sensor information received from the at least one sensor device.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein the ballast is configured with a processor and a memory.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one sensor device comprises at least one photosensor, occupancy sensor, or infrared receiver.

9. A method for commissioning a ballast in a distributed addressable lighting system having a plurality of ballasts connected by a digital electronic communication link, the method comprising:

providing the ballast with an out-of-box default mode wherein the ballast is configured to receive and transmit electronic information over the digital electronic communication link;

installing the ballast so that it is in communication with the digital electronic communication link; and

electronically transmitting commands to the ballast over the digital electronic communication link to assign an address to the ballast and to configure the ballast with desired performance characteristics.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the performance characteristics include restricting the ballast to receiving transmissions from at least one particular remote device.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the performance characteristics include restricting the ballast to transmission of information to at least one particular remote device.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the performance characteristics include configuring the ballast to transmit information to a selected group of remote devices.

13. A method for configuring a ballast in a multi-ballast addressable lighting system wherein the ballasts interface with a communication link, the method comprising:

providing the ballast with at least a processor, sensor inputs and a communication port; and

installing the ballast for communication with the link, the ballast being configured prior to installing the ballast on the link in an out-of-box mode to broadcast over the communication link sensor information from the sensor inputs received by the ballast and to receive messages broadcast over the link from remote devices coupled to the communication link.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the ballast is configured prior to installing the ballast on the link to perform the step of seasoning a lamp connected to the ballast.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of seasoning includes operating the lamp at full power for a minimum amount of time prior to executing a command to dim the lamp.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the step of seasoning further includes pausing the step of seasoning while the ballast is commissioned with at least an address, and resuming the step of seasoning for the remaining duration of the minimum amount of time after the commissioning is completed.

17. A communication protocol for transmitting messages between at least two devices over a serial communication link of a digital addressable lighting system, wherein each of the at least two devices comprises a processor and a communication port for interfacing with the communication link, the protocol comprising:

serial digital data comprising at least two stop bits located at the end of the message that represent an end of the message, and a plurality of message bytes disposed before the stop bits, wherein the message bytes are in accordance with standard DALI format when the stop bits are in a first state, and the message bytes are in accordance with a second format when the stop bits are in a second state, the message in the first format being receivable by a device configured to receive only DALI messages when the stop bits are in the first state and being ignored by a device configured to receive only DALI messages when the stop bits are in the second state, the message bytes in the second format being receivable by at least one of the devices connected to the communication link.

18. The communication protocol of claim 17, wherein the messages are formatted to include:

at least one start bit that represents a start of message indicator positioned at the beginning of the message;

three bytes comprising twenty-four consecutively ordered bits that are placed after to the at least one start bit, wherein the twenty-four bits represent device address information, device command information, and information associated with the command information; and

wherein

the two stop bits comprise two control bits that are placed adjacent to the last of the twenty-four consecutively ordered bits, wherein the two control bits represent a stop message indicator, wherein the state of the two control bits signal the status of the message as formatted in the standard DALI format or the second format.

19. The protocol of claim 18, wherein at least one bit in the message represents a command parameter.

20. The protocol of claim 19, wherein the command parameter is at least one selected from the group consisting of:

at least one photocell sensor, at least one occupancy sensor, at least one infrared transmitter, at least one sensor keypad, at least one select group of ballasts, photosensor gain, photosensor target light level, photosensor low end intensity, photosensor fade time, photosensor delay to off time, photosensor fixture light feedback, photosensor reading scaling, remote occupancy sensor address, occupancy sensor low end value, occupancy sensor timeout period, out-of-box flags, burn-in duration value, infrared sensor stored light value representing most recent reading, infrared sensor preferred light level, infrared sensor high end trim, infrared sensor low end trim, infrared sensor master address, infrared sensor area address, infrared sensor personality, infrared sensor scene, diagnostic information, ballast minimum level, ballast maximum level, ballast fade rate, ballast fade time, ballast short address, and scene intensity value.

21. The protocol of claim 18, wherein at least two bits in the twenty-four consecutively ordered bits represent a command type issued by a central controller, an infrared transmitter, a ballast, a sensor, or a keypad connected to the communication link.

22. The protocol of claim 17, wherein the message is encoded using Manchester encoding.

23. A method for establishing a set point determining a lamp load current in a ballast of a multi-ballast lighting system comprising a control communication link connecting the ballasts, the method comprising:

receiving at the ballast an input control command for setting the ballast set point;

establishing a high end light level for the ballast;

establishing a low end light level for the ballast; and

limiting the input control command to within the range set by the high end light level and the low end light level of the ballast.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the step of establishing a high end level comprises:

converting a preprogrammed DALI logarithmic maximum level to a maximum linear power limit, determining whether the maximum linear power limit is greater than a high end limit of a photosensor;

setting the high end light level to equal the photosensor high end limit if the maximum linear power limit is greater than the photosensor high end light level; and

setting the high end light level to equal the maximum linear power limit if the maximum linear power limit is less than the photosensor high end limit.

25. The method of claim 23, wherein the step of establishing a low end light level comprises converting a preprogrammed DALI logarithmic minimum level to a minimum linear power limit and setting the ballast low end light level as the minimum linear power limit.

26. The method of claim 23, wherein the step of limiting comprises:

converting the input command to an input linear power level;

determining whether the input linear power level is higher than the high end level;

setting the lamp power equal to the high end level if the input linear power level is higher than the high end level;

determining whether the input linear power level is lower than the low end level;

setting the lamp power equal to the low end level if the input linear power level is lower than the low end level; and

setting the lamp power equal to the input linear power level if the input linear power level is not higher than the high end level and the input linear power level is not lower than the low end level.

27. A method for establishing a set point determining a lamp load current in a multi-ballast lighting system wherein the ballasts are connected together for exchanging data over a communication link, the method comprising:

receiving an input control command from the link, including an input level determining the ballast set point;

establishing a high end level and a low end level for the ballast;

determine a maximum input level;

subtracting the low end level from the high end level to calculate a difference;

multiplying the difference by the ratio of the input level to the maximum input level to calculate a product; and

adding the product to the low end level to calculate a sum to provide the ballast set point.

28. The method of claim 27, further comprising converting the sum to a DALI value, and storing the DALI value for reception as a DALI input by a DALI compatible device.

29. A ballast that processes electronic sensor information received in a multi-ballast lighting system, wherein the ballasts are connected together for exchanging data over a communication link, the ballast comprising:

a communication port that is adapted to receive electronic sensor information from at least one remote device;

a sensor input that is adapted to receive sensor information from a sensor device;

a processor that is adapted to determine whether the ballast is configured either to broadcast electronic sensor information transmitted from any device on the link or if the ballast is configured to broadcast electronic sensor information from the at least one sensor device;

a memory that is adapted to store the electronic sensor information; and

a transmitter that is adapted to broadcast the electronic sensor information if the ballast is configured to broadcast electronic sensor information on the communication link.

30. The ballast of claim 29, wherein the processor is further adapted to:

determine whether the ballast is configured to process local electronic sensor information from the at least one sensor device, receive from the communication link electronic sensor information and determine whether the ballast is configured to process electronic sensor information transmitted by any device over the communication link; and

process at least one of the transmitted electronic sensor information received from the communication link and the local electronic sensor information from the sensor device if the ballast is configured to process at least one of the transmitted electronic sensor information and the electronic sensor information from the sensor device.

31. The ballast of claim 30, wherein the processor is further adapted to average all electronic sensor information received by the ballast.

32. The ballast of claim 31, wherein the electronic sensor information is received from a plurality of remote devices connected to the communication link.

33. The ballast of claim 31, wherein the electronic sensor information is received from at least one remote device and at least one local device.

34. The ballast of claim 30, wherein the processor further subtracts a value representing light contributed from a local lighting device from the electronic sensor information received from the at least one sensor device.

35. The ballast of claim 30, wherein the at least one sensor device comprises at least one photosensor, occupancy sensor, or infrared receiver.

36. A ballast in a distributed addressable lighting system having a plurality of ballasts connected by a digital electronic communication link, wherein the ballast is adapted to be commissioned for operation on the communication link, the ballast comprising:

a memory storing a ballast configuration representing an out-of-box default mode wherein the out-of-box default mode allows the ballast to receive and transmit electronic information over the digital electronic communication link;

a processor;

a communication port enabling the processor to communicate over the digital electronic communication link; and

wherein the processor receives commands transmitted over the digital electronic communication link to assign an address to the ballast and to configure the ballast with desired performance characteristics.

37. The ballast of claim 36, wherein the performance characteristics include restricting the ballast to receiving transmissions from at least one particular remote device.

38. The ballast of claim 36, wherein the performance characteristics include restricting the ballast to transmission of information to at least one particular remote device.

39. The ballast of claim 36, wherein the performance characteristics include configuring the ballast to transmit information to a selected group of remote devices.

40. A ballast in a multi-ballast addressable lighting system wherein the ballasts interface with a communication link, the ballast comprising:

a processor, memory, sensor inputs and a communication port, wherein the ballast is configured in an out-of-box mode prior to being installed on the link such that the ballast is adapted to broadcast over the communication link sensor information from the sensor inputs received by the ballast and to receive messages broadcast over the link from remote devices coupled to the communication link.

41. The ballast of claim 40, wherein the ballast is further adapted to season a lamp connected to the ballast.

42. The ballast of claim 41, wherein the ballast is adapted to season the lamp by operating the lamp at full power for a minimum amount of time prior to executing a command to dim the lamp.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein the ballast is further configured to pause seasoning the lamp while the ballast is being commissioned with at least an address, and is further configured to resume seasoning for the remaining duration of the minimum amount of time after the ballast is commissioned.

44. A ballast for use in a multi-ballast digital addressable lighting system that transmit and receive messages over a serial communication link connecting ballasts of the digital addressable lighting system, wherein the ballast exchanges messages over the communication link according to a communication protocol that comprises:

serial digital data comprising at least two stop bits located at the end of the message that represent an end of the message, and a plurality of message bytes disposed before the stop bits, wherein the message bytes are in accordance with standard DALI format when the stop bits are in a first state, and the message bytes are in accordance with a second format when the stop bits are in a second state, the message in the first format being receivable by a device configured to receive only DALI messages when the stop bits are in the first state and being ignored by a device configured to receive only DALI messages when the stop bits are in the second state, the message bytes in the second format being receivable by the ballast connected to the communication link.

45. The ballast of claim 44, wherein the messages are formatted to include:

at least one start bit that represents a start of message indicator positioned at the beginning of the message;

three bytes comprising twenty-four consecutively ordered bits that are placed after the at least one start bit, wherein the twenty-four bits represent device address information, device command information, and information associated with the command information; and

wherein the two stop bits comprise two control bits that are placed adjacent to the last of the twenty-four consecutively ordered bits, wherein the two control bits represent a stop message indicator, wherein the state of the two control bits signal the status of the message as formatted in the standard DALI format or the second format.

46. The ballast of claim 45, wherein at least one bit in the message represents a command parameter.

47. The lighting system of claim 46, wherein the command parameter is at least one selected from the group consisting of:

at least one photocell sensor, at least one occupancy sensor, at least one infrared transmitter, at least one sensor keypad, at least one select group of ballasts, photosensor gain, photosensor target light level, photosensor low end intensity, photosensor fade time, photosensor delay to off time, photosensor fixture light feedback, photosensor reading scaling, remote occupancy sensor address, occupancy sensor low end value, occupancy sensor timeout period, out-of-box flags, burn-in duration value, infrared sensor stored light value representing most recent reading, infrared sensor preferred light level, infrared sensor high end trim, infrared sensor low end trim, infrared sensor master address, infrared sensor area address, infrared sensor personality, infrared sensor scene, diagnostic information, ballast minimum level, ballast maximum level, ballast fade rate, ballast fade time, ballast short address, and scene intensity value.

48. The ballast of claim 45, wherein at least two bits in the twenty-four consecutively ordered bits represent a command type issued by a central controller, an infrared transmitter, a ballast, a sensor, or a keypad connected to the communication link.

49. The ballast of claim 44, wherein the message is encoded using Manchester encoding.

50. A ballast that is adapted to establish a set point determining a lamp load current in a lamp connected to the ballast of a multi-ballast lighting system having a control communication link connecting the ballasts, the ballast comprising:

a communication port adapted to receive an input control command for setting the ballast set point;

an information processor adapted to establish a high end light level for the ballast and a low end light level for the ballast, and wherein the information processor is further adapted to limit the input control command to within the range set by the high end light level and the low end light level of the ballast.

51. The ballast of claim 50, wherein the processor is further adapted to establish the high end level by:

converting a preprogrammed DALI logarithmic maximum level to a maximum linear power limit;

determining whether the maximum linear power limit is greater than a high end limit of a photosensor;

setting the high end light level to equal the photosensor high end limit if the maximum linear power limit is greater than the photosensor high end light level; and

setting the high end light level to equal the maximum linear power limit if the maximum linear power limit is less than the photosensor high end limit.

52. The ballast of claim 50, wherein the processor is further adapted to establish the low end light level by:

converting a preprogrammed DALI logarithmic minimum level to a minimum linear power limit; and

setting the ballast low end light level as the minimum linear power limit.

53. The ballast of claim 50, wherein the processor is further adapted to limit the input control command by:

converting the input command to an input linear power level;

determining whether the input linear power level is higher than the high end level;

setting the lamp power equal to the high end level if the input linear power level is higher than the high end level;

determining whether the input linear power level is lower than the low end level;

setting the lamp power equal to the low end level if the input linear power level is lower than the low end level; and

setting the lamp power equal to the input linear power level if the input linear power level is not higher than the high end level and the input linear power level is not lower than the low end level.

54. A ballast that is adapted to establish a set point determining a lamp load current in a multi-ballast lighting system wherein the ballasts are connected together for exchanging data over a communication link, the ballast comprising:

a communication port that is adapted to receive an input control command from the link, including an input level determining the ballast set point;

a processor that is adapted to;

establish a high end level and a low end level for the ballast;

determine a maximum input level;

subtract the low end level from the high end level to calculate a difference;

multiply the difference by the ratio of the input level to the maximum input level to calculate a product; and

add the product to the low end level to calculate a sum to provide the ballast set point.

55. The ballast of claim 54, further comprising a memory, wherein the processor is further adapted to convert the sum to a DALI value, and the memory is adapted to store the DALI value for reception as a DALI input by a DALI compatible device.

56. A ballast for use in a multi-ballast lighting system wherein the ballasts are coupled together by a digital communication network, the ballast comprising:

a power circuit portion having an input to an AC main supply and for providing an electrical current to power a lamp;

a digital processing circuit portion having a sensor input circuit for receiving at least one sensor input from a sensor device in the space illuminated by the system;

further comprising a processor receiving an input from the sensor input circuit and providing control signals to control the operation of the ballast; and

further comprising a communication port coupled to the processor and to the communication network for exchanging data with the communication network;

further wherein the ballast has an out-of-box mode in which the ballast has a default configuration allowing the ballast to communicate with the network and receive at least one input from the sensor input circuit without requiring any programming configuration of the ballast when the ballast is installed in the system.

57. The ballast of claim 56 wherein, in the out-of-box mode, the ballast will transmit onto the network via the communication port the sensor input received from the sensor input circuit.

58. The ballast of claim 56, wherein the ballast can be reconfigured from the out-of-box mode to a customized mode having customized characteristics after installation into the system.

59. A ballast for use in a multi-ballast lighting system wherein the ballasts are coupled together by a digital communication network, the ballast comprising:

a power circuit portion having an input to an AC main supply and for providing an electrical current to power a lamp;

a digital processing circuit portion having a sensor input circuit for receiving at least one sensor input from a sensor device in the space illuminated by the system;

further comprising a processor receiving an input from the sensor input circuit and providing control signals to control the operation of the ballast; and

further comprising a communication port coupled to the processor and to the communication network for exchanging data with the communication network;

further wherein the ballast processor is operative to receive a serial data message from the communication network, the serial data message having a portion defining whether the message is in a first or a second format, the first format comprising a DALI standard format and the second format comprising a format providing functionality different than the first format, said ballast processor being capable of processing messages in either said first or second formats.

60. A ballast for use in a multi-ballast lighting system wherein the ballasts are coupled together by a digital communication network, the ballast comprising:

a power circuit portion having an input to an AC main supply and for providing an electrical current to power a lamp;

a digital processing circuit portion having a sensor input circuit for receiving at least one sensor input from a sensor device in the space illuminated by the system;

further comprising a processor receiving an input from the sensor input circuit and providing control signals to control the operation of the ballast; and

further comprising a communication port coupled to the processor and to the communication networks for exchanging data with the communication network;

further wherein the ballast processor is responsive to input commands from the communication network, and wherein the input command comprises a desired lamp brightness level, and further wherein the ballast has a high end light level limit and a low end light level limit and wherein the process scaled or value converts the input command to a ballast setpoint level by scaling the input command to a range from the low end light level to the high end light level and uses the scaled value as the ballast set point.

61. The ballast of claim 60, wherein the processor scales the input command by determining a difference between the high end light level and the low end light level, multiplying the difference by the ratio of the input command to a maximum input level to form a product and adding the product to the low end light level to ensure that the result is not less than the low end light level.

62. The ballast of claim 60, wherein the processor is further operative to convert the scaled value to a DALI value for storage in a ballast memory and for selective transmission onto the network.