METHOD OF DISCOVERING A REMOTELY-LOCATED WIRELESS CONTROL DEVICE

• US 20080055073A1
• Filed: 09/06/2006
• Published: 03/06/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Lutron Technology Company LLC
• Original Assignee: Lutron Electronics Company Incorporated (Lutron Electronics)
• Inventors: Mierta, Justin, Raneri, Daniel Curtis
• Application Number:
  US11/470,382
• Publication Number:
  US 20080055073A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/539.13
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2823 Reporting information sensed by appliance or service execution status of appliance services in a home automation network device-related reporting H04L43/065; 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: H04L 2012/2841 Wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/285 Generic home appliances, e.g. refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5038 for local use, e.g. in LAN or USB networks, or in a controller area network [CAN]
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/19 via wireless transmission

Abstract

The present invention provides a method of discovering a remotely-located control device in a wireless control system having a plurality of control devices. Each of the control devices of the control system has a unique serial number. A query message is first transmitted to the plurality of control devices. An acknowledgement message is transmitted from the first control device in response to the query message. The acknowledgement message is transmitted in a random transmission slot and contains a random data byte. The first control device is identified by the random transmission slot and the random data byte. The serial number of the first control device is requested, and transmitted from the first control device. At this time, the control device is operable to be assigned a unique device address.

Claims

1. A method for identifying a plurality of remote control devices having a unique identifier in an RF control system wherein a first device provides RF control signals to the plurality of remote control devices, the method comprising the steps of:

transmitting a polling signal from the first device to one of the remote control devices;

transmitting an acknowledgment signal from the one of the remote control devices to the first device in response to the polling signal;

transmitting an identifier request signal to the one of the remote control devices from the first device using information related to the acknowledgement signal; and

transmitting the unique identifier from the one of the remote control devices to the first device in response to the identifier request signal.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

transmitting from the first device to the remote control devices a clear signal to clear a found flag in a memory of each remote control device; and

transmitting a signal to the remote control device whose unique identifier has been received at the first device to set the found flag in the memory of the remote control device.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

setting a power-cycled flag in a memory of the one of the remote control devices by cycling power from off to on to the one of the remote control devices; and

the one of the remote control devices responding to the polling signal only if the power-cycled flag has been set.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the unique identifier comprises a manufacturer serial number of the remote control device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the information related to the acknowledgement signal comprises a random transmission slot and a random data byte

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

storing information related to the acknowledgment signal in a memory of the first device.

7. A method of discovering a first remotely-located control device in a control system having a plurality of control devices, the method comprising the steps of:

transmitting a query message to the plurality of control devices;

the first control device transmitting an acknowledgement message in response to the query message, the acknowledgement message transmitted in a random transmission slot and containing a random data byte; and

identifying the first control device by the random transmission slot and the random data byte.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising the steps of:

requesting a serial number of the first control device; and

the first control device transmitting the serial number.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of:

transmitting a device address to the first control device.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the control system comprises a wireless control system.