MULTI-GANG CAPACITIVE TOUCH SWITCH PLATE

• US 20100244586A1
• Filed: 03/27/2009
• Published: 09/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Inncom Intl Inc (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Inncom Intl Inc (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Quirino, Rick, Roosli, Philipp, Gardner, Ryan
• Granted Patent: US 8,772,982 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 307/116
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2239/006 Containing a capacitive switch or usable as such
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/9622 using a plurality of detectors, e.g. keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/94094 Wired transmission, e.g. via bus connection or similar

Abstract

An apparatus is provided and includes two or more sensor assemblies, each including a sensing unit at a front face thereof, and each being communicatively interconnected and power sharing, a cover plate, mounted adjacent to the front face of the sensor assemblies to entirely cover the sensing units, through which user commands are transmittable, and a wall box, onto which the sensor assemblies and the cover plate are mountable, including a housing in which a space is defined for housing of one or more devices, each device being controllable by the sensor assemblies in accordance with the user commands, and each device being disposed to fit within the space and to be in signal communication with at least one of the sensor assemblies.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

two or more sensor assemblies, each including a sensing unit at a front face thereof, and each being communicatively interconnected and power sharing;

a cover plate, mounted adjacent to the front face of the sensor assemblies to entirely cover the sensing units, through which user commands are transmittable; and

a wall box, onto which the sensor assemblies and the cover plate are mountable, including a housing in which a space is defined for housing of one or more devices, each device being controllable by the sensor assemblies in accordance with the user commands, and each device being disposed to fit within the space and to be in signal communication with at least one of the sensor assemblies.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the sensor assemblies comprises a capacitive touch sensor.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the devices comprises a load switching device to control an electrical load in accordance with the user commands.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a power source to provide power to at least one of the sensor assemblies.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a bus to communicatively interconnect the sensor assemblies and by which the power sharing is achievable.

6. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the bus comprises wiring disposed between the sensors.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a printed circuit board to communicatively interconnect the sensor assemblies and by which the sensor assemblies share power.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein at least one of the sensor assemblies comprises a capacitive touch sensor.

9. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein at least one of the devices comprises a load switching device to control an electrical load in accordance with the user commands.

10. The apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising a power source to provide power to at least one of the sensor assemblies.

11. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the printed circuit board comprises a header for each sensor assembly.

12. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the sensor assemblies have a first width and the wall box has a second width different from the first width.

13. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the sensor assemblies have a width that is wider than that of the wall box.

14. An apparatus, comprising:

two or more communicatively interconnected and power sharing sensor assemblies;

a cover plate, mounted adjacent to the sensor assemblies to entirely cover the sensor assemblies, through which user commands are transmittable; and

a wall box, onto which the sensor assemblies and the cover plate are mountable, to house one or more devices, each device being controllable by the sensor assemblies in accordance with the user commands, and each device being disposed to fit within the wall box and to be in signal communication with at least one of the sensor assemblies.

15. The apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising a printed circuit board to communicatively interconnect the sensor assemblies and by which the sensor assemblies share power.

16. A multi-gang electrical wall box to which two or more communicatively interconnected and power sharing sensor assemblies and a cover plate entirely covering the sensor assemblies through which user commands are transmittable are mountable, the multi-gang electrical wall box comprising:

a housing in which a housing space is defined;

one or more devices, disposed to fit within the housing space, each of which is configured to control an electrical load in accordance with the user commands; and

a communication system to enable signal communication between at least one of the two or more sensor assemblies of the cover plate assembly and the one or more devices.

17. The multi-gang electrical wall box according to claim 16, wherein the communication system enables the signal communication via wired components.

18. The multi-gang electrical wall box according to claim 16, wherein the communication system enables the signal communication via wireless components.