SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR CONTROLLING HOME AND COMMERCIAL ENVIRONMENTS INCLUDING ONE TOUCH AND INTUITIVE FUNCTIONALITY

• US 20130282180A1
• Filed: 04/20/2012
• Published: 10/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Liaison Home Automation, LLC
• Original Assignee: Electronic Environments U.S. Co.
• Inventors: Layton, William Kent
• Granted Patent: US 9,507,327 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/275
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2642 Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32085 Layout of factory, facility, cell, production system planning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00001 characterised by the display of information or by user interaction, e.g. supervisory control and data acquisition systems [SCADA] or graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 90/20 Smart grids as enabling technology in buildings sector smart grids supporting the management or operation of end-user stationary applications in general, or like technologies with no associated climate change mitigation effect Y04S20/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/40 Display of information, e.g. of data or controls
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/00 Management or operation of end-user stationary applications or the last stages of power distribution; Controlling, monitoring or operating thereof

Abstract

To provide an improved system for home environment control, in one embodiment, a system for controlling a living environment includes a computing device having a touch screen input system, the computing device including an interface. The interface includes a graphical representation of the living environment. The interface provides for control of a plurality of systems distributed in the living environment. The plurality of environmental systems is distributed in a plurality of rooms that make up the living environment. The interface is configured to activate a portion of the plurality of environmental systems upon a single touch command of a user received by the interface via the touch screen input system of the computing device.

Claims

1. A system for controlling a living environment, the system comprising:

a computing device having a touch screen input system;

the computing device including an interface, the interface including a graphical representation of the living environment;

the interface providing for control of a plurality of systems distributed in the living environment;

the plurality of environmental systems distributed in a plurality of rooms that make up the living environment; and

the interface configured to activate a portion of the plurality of environmental systems upon a single touch command of a user received by the interface via the touch screen input system of the computing device.

2. The system of claim 1 where the portion of the plurality of environmental systems are interrelated in their function.

3. The system of claim 2 where the portion of the plurality of environmental systems are all in a first room of the plurality of rooms, and the single touch command is a touch of a representation of the first room in the living environment, the representation of the first room being part of the graphical representation of the living environment.

4. The system of claim 3 where the function is lighting.

5. The system of claim 1 where the computing device communicates wirelessly with the plurality of environmental systems.

6. The system of claim 4 where the portion of the plurality of environmental systems includes multiple lighting devices.

7. The system of claim 3 where the interface is configured to cause the first room or landscape irrigation zone to glow based on it being activated.

8. The system of claim 3 where the interface is configured to allow the first room to be selected, and the interface is configured to provide a closer view of the first room.

9. The system of claim 8 where the interface is configured to provide control of individual systems of the plurality of environmental systems in the first room when the closer view of the first room is provided.

10. The system of claim 1 where the plurality of environmental systems are selected from a list consisting of lighting systems, home theater systems, climate control systems, irrigation systems, blinds systems, and security systems.

11. A system for controlling a living environment, the system comprising:

a computing device having an interface;

the computing device communicating wirelessly with a plurality of home systems;

the plurality of home systems selected from a list consisting of lighting systems, home theater systems, climate control systems, irrigation systems, blinds systems, and security systems;

the interface receiving touch based commands through the computing device;

the interface providing and displaying a plan view of the home or commercial environment;

the interface configured to actuate a room-wide system when a room on the plan view is touched;

the room-wide system being deployed in the room, the room-wide system included within one of the plurality of home systems; and

the room-wide system including more than one separately deployed and interconnected device.

12. A method of controlling a living environment, the method comprising:

creating a graphical representation of a living environment;

creating a plurality of versions of the graphical representation of the living environment providing for highlighting of particular rooms of the graphical representation of the living environment;

loading the graphical representation on a touch screen interface computing device; and

interconnecting a plurality of home systems with graphical representation.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

receiving a touch based command at the touch screen interface computing device, the touch based command being a single touch on a symbolic room, the symbolic room being part of the graphical representation, the symbolic room being related to an actual room of the living environment; and

activating a portion of a first home system of the plurality of home systems, the portion of the first home system being in the actual room.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

causing the symbolic room to glow responsive to the touch based command.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

communicating with the portion of the first home system through a wireless interface.

16. The method of claim 15 where the plurality of home systems include lighting systems, home theater systems, climate control systems, irrigation systems, blinds systems, and security systems.

17. The method of claim 16 where the first home system is a lighting system.

18. The method of claim 17 where the portion of the first home system includes more than one lighting device.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

receiving a first selection of a menu button;

displaying a menu of environmental controls reflective of the plurality of home systems;

receiving a second selection of one of the menu of environmental controls; and

displaying the graphical representation of the living environment related to the one of the menus of environmental controls.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

receiving a selection of the symbolic room;

displaying a zoomed version of the symbolic room;

receiving a selection of a single lighting device of the more than one lighting devices, the single lighting device displayed in the zoomed version of the symbolic room; and

activating the single lighting device.

21. The method of claim 20 where the single lighting device is not displayed in the graphical representation of a living environment.