Lighting Control System and Method

• US 20150305115A1
• Filed: 04/18/2014
• Published: 10/22/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sanjaykumar J. Vora
• Original Assignee: Sanjaykumar J. Vora
• Inventors: Vora, Sanjaykumar J.
• Granted Patent: US 9,826,605 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/20 Controlling the colour of the light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/155 Coordinated control of two or more light sources
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/175 by remote control

Abstract

A system and method of controlling lighting schedules in a lighting control application on a computer system is disclosed. A graphical user interface is displayed to a user on a display in signal-communication with the computer system. The graphical user interface has a plurality of lighting control schedule areas. Each lighting control schedule area has an in-schedule portion and a corresponding out-of-schedule portion. One or more interface objects, corresponding to one or more lighting control devices, are associated with the in-schedule lighting control schedule of a first lighting control schedule area of the plurality of lighting control schedule areas without instructing the corresponding one or more lighting control devices to operate on said in-schedule lighting control schedule, in response to a user moving the one or more interface objects to the out-of-schedule portion of the first lighting control schedule area.

Claims

1. A method of controlling lighting schedules in a lighting control application on a computer system, comprising the steps of:

displaying a graphical user interface to a user on a display in signal communication with the computer system, the graphical user interface comprising a plurality of lighting control schedule areas, each lighting control schedule area comprising an in-schedule portion and a corresponding out-of-schedule portion, the out-of-schedule portion corresponding to an out-of-schedule lighting control schedule comprising only one light intensity setting, the in-schedule portion corresponding to an in-schedule lighting control schedule comprising a plurality of light intensity settings;

associating one or more interface objects, corresponding to one or more lighting control devices, with the in-schedule lighting control schedule of a first lighting control schedule area of the plurality of lighting control schedule areas without instructing the corresponding one or more lighting control devices to operate on said in-schedule lighting control schedule, in response to a user moving the one or more interface objects to the out-of-schedule portion of the first lighting control schedule area.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of associating comprises the step of instructing the one or more lighting control devices corresponding to the one or more interface objects located in the out-of-schedule portion of the first lighting control schedule area to operate on a first out-of-schedule lighting control schedule when said one or more interface objects are moved into the out-of-schedule portion from the in-schedule portion of the first lighting control schedule area.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of instructing comprises the step of sending an electronic scheduling message to the one or more lighting control devices corresponding to the one or more interface objects located in the out-of-schedule portion with instructions to operate on the out-of-schedule lighting control schedule.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising the step of instructing the one or more lighting control devices to operate on the in-schedule lighting control schedule of the first lighting control schedule area in response to a user moving the one or more interface objects to the in-schedule portion of the first lighting control schedule area.

5. The method of claim 1, comprising the step of associating one or more second interface objects, corresponding to one or more lighting second control devices, with the in-schedule lighting control schedule of a second lighting control schedule area of the plurality of lighting control schedule areas without instructing the corresponding one or more lighting control devices to operate on said in-schedule lighting control schedule in response to a user moving the one or more interface objects to the out-of-schedule portion of the second lighting control schedule area.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of associating is further defined in that at least one of the interface objects are moved into the out-of-schedule portion in response to a user entry of an ID into a text entry box, the ID corresponding at least one of the one or more lighting control devices.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of associating is further defined in that at least one of the interface objects are moved into the out-of-schedule portion in response to a user selecting, dragging, and dropping the one or more interface objects into the out-of-schedule portion of the first lighting control schedule area.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of associating comprises the step of associating all of the interface objects in the in-schedule lighting control schedule of the first lighting control schedule area with the in-schedule lighting control schedule without instructing the corresponding one or more lighting control devices to operate on said in-schedule lighting control schedule, in response to a user moving all of the interface objects to the out-of-schedule portion of the first lighting control schedule area, wherein the user moving all of the interface objects is accomplished by one user action.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of associating all of the interface objects in the in-schedule lighting control schedule of each of the plurality of lighting control schedule areas with the corresponding in-schedule lighting control schedule without instructing the corresponding one or more lighting control devices to operate on said corresponding in-schedule lighting control schedule in response to a user instructing to move all of the interface objects to the corresponding out-of-schedule portion of the corresponding lighting control schedule areas.

10. A lighting control computer system, comprising:

a processor;

a memory comprising a plurality of lighting control schedules;

a display in signal-communication with the processor;

a graphical user interface display function stored on the memory and executable by the processor to display a graphical user interface on the display, the graphical user interface comprising a plurality of lighting control schedule areas, each scheduling area comprising an in-schedule portion and a corresponding out-of-schedule portion, each in-schedule portion corresponding to one of the plurality of lighting control schedules, each out-of-schedule portion corresponding to an out-of-schedule lighting control schedule;

an associating function stored on the memory and executable by the processor to associate one or more interface objects, corresponding to one or more lighting control devices, with one of the plurality of lighting control schedules without instructing the corresponding one or more lighting control devices to operate on said one of the plurality of lighting control schedules, in response to a user moving the one or more interface objects to the corresponding out-of-schedule portion.

11. The system of claim 10, comprising,

an out-of-schedule function stored on the memory and executable by the processor to instruct one or more lighting control devices corresponding to the one or more interface objects located in the out-of-schedule portion to operate on the out-of-schedule lighting control schedule when said one or more interface objects are moved by a user into the corresponding out-of-schedule portion from the in-schedule portion;

and,

a move in-schedule function stored on the memory and executable by the processor to instruct one or more lighting control devices corresponding to one or more interface objects located in the in-schedule portion to operate on the corresponding in-schedule lighting control schedule, of the plurality of lighting control schedules, when said interface objects are moved by a user into the in-schedule portion from the corresponding out-of-schedule portion.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the associating function stored on the memory and executable by the processor is configured to instruct the one or more lighting control devices corresponding to one or more interface objects located in the out-of-schedule portion of the corresponding lighting control schedule area to operate on the corresponding out-of-schedule lighting control schedule when said interface objects are moved into the corresponding out-of-schedule portion from the in-schedule portion.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the associating function stored on the memory and executable by the processor is configured to send an electronic scheduling message to one or more lighting control devices corresponding to one or more interface objects located in the out-of-schedule portion with instructions to operate on the corresponding out-of-schedule lighting control schedule.

14. The system of claim 10, comprising an in-schedule operations function stored on the memory and executable by the processor to instruct one or more lighting control devices to operate on the corresponding in-schedule lighting control schedule, of the plurality of lighting control schedules, in response to a user moving the one or more interface objects to the in-schedule portion of the corresponding lighting control schedule area.

15. The system of claim 10, comprising a drag-and-drop interface function stored on the memory and executable by the processor to recognize user drag and drop gestures in the graphical user interface;

and the associating function is further defined in that at least one of the interface objects are moved into the out-of-schedule portion in response to a user selecting, dragging, and dropping the one or more interface objects into the out-of-schedule portion.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein the associating function is further configured to associate all of the interface objects in the in-schedule portion of a given lighting control schedule area, of the plurality of lighting control schedule areas, with a corresponding lighting control schedule of the plurality of lighting control schedules without instructing the corresponding one or more lighting control devices to operate on the corresponding lighting control schedule, in response to a user moving all of the interface objects to the out-of-schedule portion of the given lighting control schedule area, wherein the user moving all of the interface objects is accomplished by one user action.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein the associating function is further configured to associate all of the interface objects in the in-schedule portion of each of the plurality of lighting control schedule areas with the corresponding in-schedule lighting control schedule without instructing the corresponding one or more lighting control devices to operate on the corresponding in-schedule lighting control schedule, in response to a user instructing to move all of the interface objects to the corresponding out-of-schedule portion of the corresponding lighting control schedule areas of the plurality of lighting control schedule areas.

18. The system of claim 10, comprising a manual intensity function stored on the memory and executable by the processor to move an interface object of the one or more interface objects to the corresponding out-of-schedule portion when a user sets a manual intensity for the corresponding lighting control device.

19. A graphical user interface on a display of a computer system with a memory, and one or more processors to execute one or more programs stored in the memory, the graphical user interface comprising:

a first out-of-schedule area corresponding to a first out-of-schedule lighting control schedule comprising one light intensity setting;

a first in-schedule area corresponding to a first in-schedule lighting control schedule comprising a first plurality of light intensity settings;

a second out-of-schedule area corresponding to a second out-of-schedule lighting control schedule comprising one light intensity setting;

a second in-schedule area corresponding to a second in-schedule lighting control schedule comprising a second plurality of light intensity settings;

wherein,

in response to a user moving one or more interface objects representing one or more lighting control devices into the first or second out-of-schedule areas, associating the one or more lighting control devices corresponding to the one or more interface objects with the corresponding first or second in-schedule lighting control schedules.