Methods and system for controlling an illuminating apparatus

• US 20060291199A1
• Filed: 09/21/2004
• Published: 12/28/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Signify Holding B.V. (Signify N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Qian, Xuecheng
• Granted Patent: US 7,714,521 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 362/227
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0626 for control of overall brightness
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/021 Power management, e.g. power saving
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/144 the light being ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3426 the different display panel areas being distributed in two dimensions, e.g. matrix

Abstract

This invention provides an improved digital luminance controlling system, chich can control the luminous intensity of an illuminating apparatus by choosing the number of the ignited luminaries. It optimizes the number of the ignited luminaries according to the different contribution rate of each luminary to the general luminous intensity to reduce the power consumption. By properly adjusting the sampling frequency of the luminous intensity of the circumstance, this invention could decrease the operating frequency of the luminance controlling system, thereby to further reduce the power consumption. This invention also provides a analog type of the luminance controlling system, which consists of a optical sensing apparatus, a analog type of the luminance controlling apparatus and a set of optical source and can realize a real time luminance adjustment, to reduce the power consumption.

Claims

1. A kind of system for controlling an illuminating apparatus consisting of at least two luminaries, comprising:

a sensing apparatus for sensing the luminous intensity of the circumstance;

a luminance controlling apparatus for sending a luminance controlling signal correspondingly after the disposal of the luminous intensity of the circumstance received from the sensing apparatus; and

a light source controlling apparatus for controlling the luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus through igniting the corresponding number of the luminaries according to the luminance controlling signal received from the luminance controlling apparatus.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein said luminance controlling apparatus can control whether a luminary should be ignited based on its contribution to the general luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus.

6. The system according to claim 1, 3 or 4, wherein said luminance controlling signal can make the whole illuminating apparatus under the non-igniting state.

7. The system according to claim 1, 3 or 4, wherein said luminance controlling apparatus can control the luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus by adjusting the electric current passing through the luminaries.

3. A kind of system for controlling the illuminating apparatus, comprising:

a sensing apparatus for sensing the luminous intensity of the circumstance;

a luminance controlling apparatus for sending a luminance controlling signal correspondingly after the disposal of the luminous intensity of the circumstance received from the sensing apparatus, this luminance controlling apparatus can adjust the sampling frequency according to the sensed variation of the luminous intensity of the circumstance;

a light source controlling apparatus for controlling the luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus according to the luminance controlling signal received from the luminance controlling apparatus.

4. A kind of system for controlling the illuminating apparatus, comprising:

a sensing apparatus for sensing the luminous intensity of the circumstance;

a luminance controlling apparatus for sending a luminance controlling signal correspondingly after the analog signal disposal of the luminous intensity of the circumstance received from the sensing apparatus, thereby to control the luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus.

5. The system according to claim 4, further comprising:

a displaying apparatus, which is provided with the back light by said illuminating apparatus; and

a data inputting apparatus, which is provided with the back light by said illuminating apparatus.

8. A kind of electronic system, comprising:

a illuminating apparatus which includes at least two luminaries;

a displaying apparatus which is provided with the back light by said illuminating apparatus; and

a controlling apparatus for controlling said illuminating apparatus, comprising;

a sensing apparatus for sensing the luminous intensity of the circumstance;

a luminance controlling apparatus for sending a luminance controlling signal correspondingly after the disposal of the luminous intensity of the circumstance received from the sensing apparatus; and

a light source controlling apparatus for controlling the luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus through igniting the corresponding number of the luminaries according to the luminance controlling signal received from the luminance controlling apparatus.

10. The system according to claim 8 or 9, further comprising:

a data inputting apparatus, which is provided with the back light by said illuminating apparatus.

11. The system according to claim 10, wherein said illuminating apparatus can provide the back light with the different intensity for said displaying apparatus and said data inputting apparatus.

12. The system according to claim 8 or 9, further comprising:

a status identifying apparatus which can judge whether the state of the system itself needs the back light.

9. A kind of electronic system, comprising:

a illuminating apparatus which includes at least one luminary;

a displaying apparatus which is provided with the back light by said illuminating apparatus; and

a controlling apparatus for controlling said illuminating apparatus, comprising;

a sensing apparatus for sensing the luminous intensity of the circumstance;

a luminance controlling apparatus for sending a luminance controlling signal correspondingly after the disposal of the luminous intensity of the circumstance received from the sensing apparatus, this luminance controlling apparatus can adjust the sampling frequency according to the sensed variation of the luminous intensity of the circumstance; and

.

a light source controlling apparatus for controlling the luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus according to the luminance controlling signal received from the luminance controlling apparatus.

13. A method for controlling the illuminating apparatus consisting of at least two luminaries, comprising:

sensing the luminous intensity of the circumstance;

creating a luminance controlling signal after the disposal of the sensed luminous intensity of the circumstance; and

igniting the corresponding number of the luminaries according to the created luminance controlling signal, thereby to control the luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the step of sending the luminance controlling signal also including controlling whether each luminary should be ignited based on its contribution to the general luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus.

17. The method according to claim 13, 15 or 16, wherein said luminance controlling signal can make the whole illuminating apparatus under the non-igniting state.

18. The method according to claim 13, 15 or 16, wherein said luminance controlling signal including a signal for adjusting the electric current passing through the luminaries.

15. A kind of method for controlling the illuminating apparatus, comprising:

sensing the luminous intensity of the circumstance;

creating the luminance controlling signal after the disposal of the sensed luminous intensity of the circumstance;

controlling the luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus according to the created luminance controlling signal; and

adjusting the sampling frequency according to the sensed variation of the luminous intensity of the circumstance.

16. A kind of method for controlling the illuminating apparatus, comprising:

sensing the luminous intensity of the circumstance;

creating the luminance controlling signal after the analog signal disposal of the sensed luminous intensity of the circumstance, thereby to control the luminous intensity of said illuminating apparatus.