CONFIGURING COMMUNICATIONS FOR A LOAD CONTROL SYSTEM

• US 20150015377A1
• Filed: 06/11/2014
• Published: 01/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lutron Technology Company LLC
• Original Assignee: Lutron Electronics Company Incorporated (Lutron Electronics)
• Inventors: Bull, John H., Crafts, Jordan H., Steiner, James P.
• Granted Patent: US 9,590,453 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/12.5
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00004 characterised by the power network being locally controlled
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00022 using wireless data transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00024 by means of mobile telephony
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00026 involving a local wireless network, e.g. Wi-Fi, ZigBee or Bluetooth
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/12 The local stationary network supplying a household or a building
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/00 Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/126 using wireless data transmission

Abstract

A load control system may include multiple control devices that may send load control messages to load control devices for controlling an amount of power provided electrical loads. To prevent collision of the load control messages, the load control messages may be transmitted using different wireless communication channels. Each wireless communication channel may be assigned to a load control group that may include control devices and load control devices capable of communicating with one another on the assigned channel. A control device may send load control messages to a load control device within a transmission frame allocated for transmitting load control messages. The transmission frame may include equal sub-frames and load control messages may be sent at a random time within each sub-frame. Control devices may detect a status event within a sampling interval to offset transmissions from multiple control devices based on detection of the same event.

Claims

1. A load control system configured to send load control messages from a plurality of control devices, and wherein each load control message is transmitted for controlling an amount of power provided to an electrical load, the load control system comprising:

a first load control group that includes at least one control device configured to send load control messages on a first wireless communication channel for controlling an electrical load; and

a second load control group that includes at least one control device that is a same type of control device as the at least one control device of the first load control group, and wherein the at least one control device of the second load control group is capable of causing interference with the load control message transmitted by the at least one control device of the first load control group by sending a respective load control message on the first wireless communication channel, wherein the second load control group is configured to transmit on a second wireless communication channel to avoid the interference with the load control messages from the at least one control device in the first load control group.

2. The load control system of claim 1, wherein the first load control group resides on a different floor in a building than the second load control group.

3. The load control system of claim 1, further comprising:

a third load control group configured to transmit load control messages on the first wireless communication channel, and

wherein the first load control group and the third load control group are separated by a plurality of other load control groups that are configured to communicate load control messages on a plurality of other wireless communication channels to avoid interference between the load control messages of the first load control group and the load control messages of the third load control group.

4. The load control system of claim 3, wherein the first load control group resides on a different floor in a building than the third load control group, and wherein each of the plurality of other load control groups reside on consecutive floors in the building between the floor on which the first load control group resides and the floor on which the second load control group resides.

5. The load control system of claim 4, wherein each floor includes a different load control group configured to communicate on a respective wireless communication channel.

6. The load control system of claim 3, wherein the plurality of other wireless communication channels includes consecutive channels within a wireless frequency band.

7. The load control system of claim 1, wherein the first load control group resides on a different floor and in a different building than the second load control group.

8. The load control system of claim 1, wherein the first load control group and the second load control group include control-source devices.

9. The load control system of claim 1, wherein the at least one control device of the first load control group and the at least one control device of the second load control group include one-way communication devices.

10. A control device for controlling an amount of power provided to an electrical load, the control device comprising:

a control circuit configured to;

determine a transmission frame that is defined for transmission of a plurality of load control messages, wherein the defined transmission frame is divided into four equal sub-frames; and

transmit a load control message of the plurality of load control messages at a random time within each sub-frame of the transmission frame.

11. The control device of claim 10, wherein a last sub-frame of the transmission frame is followed by a first sub-frame of a next transmission frame, and wherein the last sub-frame of the transmission frame and the first sub-frame of the next transmission frame include a respective load control message.

12. The control device of claim 11, wherein the respective load control messages include different load control information.

13. The control device of claim 10, wherein the transmission frame is configured to be transmitted over a five second time interval.

14. The control device of claim 10, wherein each load control message of the plurality of load control messages is a duplicate of the other load control messages.

15. The control device of claim 10, wherein each of the sub-frames comprises 128 slots in which the load control message may be transmitted.

16. A control device for controlling an amount of power provided to an electrical load, the control device comprising:

a control circuit configured to;

detect a first status event during a status event sampling time interval;

generate a load control message based on the first status event;

determine a transmission time interval for transmitting the load control message, wherein the transmission time interval follows the status event sampling time interval, and wherein the transmission time interval includes at least one other status event sampling time interval;

detect a second status event during the at least one other status event sampling time interval; and

transmit the load control message at a random time within the transmission time interval based on the first and second status events.

17. The control device of claim 16, wherein the transmission time interval includes a next sampling time interval for detecting a subsequent status event.

18. The control device of claim 17, wherein the control circuit is configured to:

detect the subsequent status event at the next sampling time interval; and

prevent the transmission of the load control message when the subsequent status event is detected prior to the transmission of the load control message.

19. The control device of claim 17, wherein the control circuit is configured to:

detect the subsequent status event at the next sampling time interval; and

modify the load control message based on the subsequent status event, wherein the load control message is modified prior to the transmission of the load control message.

20. The control device of claim 17, wherein the control circuit is configured to:

detect the subsequent status event at the next sampling time interval; and

continue to transmit the load control message when the subsequent status event is detected prior to the transmission of the load control message.

21. A group controller device for enabling communication of load control messages between control devices and load control devices, wherein the control devices are configured to send the load control messages to the load control devices to control an amount of power provided to an electrical load, and wherein the load control devices are configured to directly control the amount of power provided to the electrical load based on the load control messages, the group controller device comprising:

at least one communication circuit configured to;

receive, via a first wireless communication channel, a first load control message from a control device in a first load control group,

transmit, via the first wireless communication channel, load control instructions to a load control device in the first load control group,

receive, via a second wireless communication channel, a second load control message from a control device in a second load control group, wherein the control device in the second load control group is a same type of control device as the control device in the first load control group, wherein the second load control message from the control device in the second load control group is capable of causing interference with the first load control message from the control device in the first load control group if sent on the first wireless communication channel, and

transmit, via the second wireless communication channel, load control instructions to a load control device in the second load control group; and

a control circuit configured to;

determine the load control instructions for the load control device in the first load control group based on the first load control message received from the control device in the first load control group, and

determine the load control instructions for the load control device in the second load control group based on the second load control message received from the control device in the second load control group.

22. The group controller device of claim 21, wherein the first load control group resides on a different floor in a building than the second load control group.

23. The group controller device of claim 22, wherein the first load control group and the second load control group are separated by a plurality of other load control groups, wherein each of the plurality of other load control groups reside on consecutive floors between the floor on which the first load control group resides and the floor on which the second load control group resides.

24. The group controller device of claim 21, wherein the control device in the first load control group and the control device in the second load control group are one-way communication devices.

25. A load control system configured to coordinate load control messages between control devices and load control devices, wherein the control devices are configured to send the load control messages to the load control devices to control an amount of power provided to an electrical load, and wherein the load control devices are configured to directly control the amount of power provided to the electrical load based on the load control messages, the load control system comprising:

a first group controller for a first load control group configured to;

receive, via a first wireless communication channel, a first load control message from a control device in the first load control group,

determine load control instructions for a load control device in the first load control group based on the first load control message received from the control device in the first load control group, and

transmit, via the first wireless communication channel, the load control instructions to the load control device in the first load control group; and

a second group controller for a second load control group configured to;

receive, via a second wireless communication channel, a second load control message from a control device in the second load control group, wherein the control device in the second load control group is a same type of control device as the control device in the first load control group, wherein the second load control message from the control device in the second load control group is capable of causing interference with the first load control message from the control device in the first load control group if sent on the first wireless communication channel,

determine load control instructions for a load control device in the second load control group based on the second load control message received from the control device in the second load control group, and

transmit, via the second wireless communication channel, the load control instructions to the load control device in the second load control group.

26. The load control system of claim 25, wherein the first load control group resides on a different floor in a building than the second load control group.

27. The load control system of claim 25, wherein the first load control group resides on a different floor and in a different building than the second load control group.

28. The load control system of claim 27, wherein the first load control group and the second load control group are separated by a plurality of other load control groups, wherein each of the plurality of other load control groups reside on consecutive floors between the floor on which the first load control group resides and the floor on which the second load control group resides.

29. The load control system of claim 25, wherein the control device in the first load control group and the control device in the second load control group are one-way communication devices.

30. A load control system configured to control an amount of power provided to an electrical load using load control messages from a plurality of one-way sensors, the load control system comprising:

a first one-way communication sensor configured to;

detect a first status event during a first status event sampling time interval,

generate a first load control message based on the first status event, and

transmit the first load control message at an end of the first status event sampling time interval; and

a second one-way communication sensor configured to;

detect a second status event during a second status event sampling time interval,

generate a second load control message based on the second status event,

determine a transmission time interval for transmitting the second load control message, wherein the transmission time interval follows the second status event sampling time interval, and wherein the transmission time interval includes at least one other status event sampling time interval; and

transmit the second load control message at a random time within the transmission time interval.

31. The load control system of claim 30, wherein the first one-way communication sensor is an occupancy sensor and the second one-way communication sensor is a light sensor or a shadow sensor.

32. The load control system of claim 31, wherein the first status event and the second status event are detected by measuring a load control environment.

33. The load control system of claim 32, wherein the first status event indicates an occupancy or a vacancy of the load control environment.

34. The load control system of claim 32, wherein the second status event indicates a measured light level of the load control environment.

35. The load control system of claim 30, wherein the second load control message is transmitted in a sub-frame of the transmission time interval that comprises a plurality of equal sub-frames, and wherein each of the other sub-frames of the plurality of equal sub-frames includes a duplicate of the second load control message.