CONTROL SYSTEM

• US 20150355613A1
• Filed: 06/09/2015
• Published: 12/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/10/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Paxton Access Limited
• Original Assignee: Paxton Access Limited
• Inventors: Palmer, Bill
• Granted Patent: US 10,488,833 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2642 Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2816 Controlling appliance services of a home automation network by calling their functionalities 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

Abstract

The present technology relates to building management control systems, such as a distributed database arrangement for systems that control functional aspects in buildings. A method and controller for controlling one or more building control or access devices in response to events, comprises an interface operable to communicate with a server storing a database containing logic for controlling the devices in response to events; a memory operable to store a local copy of a subset of the database, the subset of the database containing logic relevant to a group of the devices; wherein the controller is configured to receive updates to the local copy of the subset of the database; wherein the controller is operable to receive one or more signals indicative of the events relevant to said group of the devices; and wherein the controller is operable to control the group of devices in response to the signals.

Claims

1-42. -42. (canceled)

43. A building or access management controller for controlling one or more building control or access devices in response to one or more events, comprising:

an interface operable to communicate with a server, wherein a database is provided on the server, and wherein the database contains logic for controlling said one or more devices in response to said one or more events;

a memory operable to store a local copy of a subset of the database, the subset of the database containing logic relevant to a group of said one or more building control or access devices;

wherein the controller is configured to receive, from the server, updates to said local copy of said subset of the database;

wherein the controller is operable to receive one or more signals indicative of said one or more events relevant to said group of said one or more devices; and

wherein the controller is operable to control said group of said one or more devices in response to said one or more signals.

44. The controller of claim 43, wherein the controller is configured to control at least some of said group of one or more building control or access devices based on read-only access to the local copy of the subset of the database in response to at least some of said one or more events.

45. The controller of claim 43, wherein the logic contained in the local copy of the database stored on the controller is optimized for read access by storing the logic in a read-optimized arrangement different to the arrangement of the logic in the database provided on the server.

46. The controller of claim 43, wherein:

the memory is operable to store a further local copy of said subset of the database;

the controller is configured to write said received updates to the further local copy of the subset of the database; and

the controller is configured to replace the logic stored in said local copy of said subset of the database with the updated logic stored in said further local copy of said subset of the database.

47. The controller of claim 43 wherein, when communications with the server are unavailable, the memory is operable to store a cache of at least one of:

data to be sent to the server; and

data received from the server.

48. The controller of claim 43, wherein the controller is configured to receive data indicative of the status of said group of one or more building control or access devices.

49. The controller of claim 48, wherein the memory is operable to store, in a location separate from the local copy of the subset of the database, at least a portion of the received data indicative of the status of said group of one or more building control or access devices.

50. The controller of claim 43, wherein the controller is configured to store, in a location separate from the local copy of the subset of the database, a record of the control of said group of one or more building control or access devices.

51. The controller of claim 43, wherein the one or more events are selected from one or all of the group comprising:

acquisition of a credential;

identification of an entity;

detection of user input;

detection of motion;

an indication of occupancy;

a temperature measurement;

a pressure measurement;

a humidity measurement;

a time measurement;

triggering of a security alarm; and

triggering of a fire alarm.

52. A building or access management system for controlling one or more building control or access devices in response to one or more events, the system comprising:

a server; and

one or more controllers according to the controller of claim 43, each for controlling a respective group of said one or more building control or access devices.

53. A computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a computing system having a processor, cause the computing system to perform operations, the operations comprising:

displaying, to a user of the system of claim 52, system settings governing the logic stored in the database on the server for controlling said one or more building control or access devices in response to said one or more events; and

presenting an interface to allow the user to alter at least some of the system settings governing the logic for controlling said one or more devices in response to said one or more events.

54. A building or access management method for controlling a group of one or more building control or access devices in response to one or more events relevant to said group of one or more devices, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving from a server updates to a local copy of a subset of a database, wherein the database is provided on the server and contains logic for controlling said one or more devices in response to said one or more events, and wherein the local copy of the subset of the database contains logic relevant to said group of one or more devices;

receiving one or more signals indicative of said one or more events relevant to said group of one or more devices; and

controlling said group of one or more devices in response to said one or more signals.

55. The method of claim 54, further comprising, based on read-only access to the local copy of the subset of the database in response to receiving one or more signals indicative of at least some of said one or more events, the steps of:

identifying that the logic stored in the local copy of the subset of the database is insufficient for controlling said group of one or more building control or access devices in response to the one or more received signals; and

sending, to the server, a request indicative of the further logic required to control said group.

56. The method of claim 55, further comprising, in response to receiving said request at the server, the step of sending, from the server, at least one of:

an update of logic in the local copy of the subset of the database;

an indication for controlling said group of one or more devices in response to said one or more received signals indicative of at least some of said one or more events to at least one of;

a controller; and

at least one of said group of one or more devices.

57. The method of claim 54, further comprising the steps of:

displaying, to a user, system settings governing the logic stored in the database on the server for controlling said one or more building control or access devices in response to said one or more events; and

presenting an interface to allow the user to alter at least some of the system settings governing the logic for controlling said one or more devices in response to said one or more events.

58. A computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions for controlling one or more building control or access devices in a system including one or more sensors in response to one or more events, the computer-readable instructions comprising instructions that, when executed by a computing system having a processor, cause the computing system to perform operations, the operations comprising:

defining a plurality of appliance types such that appliance instances may be created, which correspond to sensors or building control or access devices;

defining a set of actors which interact with appliances for defining the behavior of each appliance type;

wherein the actors include at least one input value type, at least one output value type and at least one counter, timer or clock; and

relating actors to individual appliance instances to provide control of said one or more building control or access devices.

59. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 58, wherein the appliance instance for each control or access device may be reallocated to another of said plurality of defined appliance types to alter the behavior of said control or access device.

60. A building or access management controller for controlling one or more building control or access devices in a system including one or more sensors in response to one or more events, comprising:

to the computer-readable storage medium of claim 58;

a processor operable to execute the instructions; and

one or more interfaces operable to communicate with said one or more building control or access devices or sensors.

61. A building or access management method for controlling one or more building control or access devices in a system including one or more sensors in response to one or more events, comprising the steps of:

defining a plurality of appliance types such that appliance instances may be created, which correspond to sensors or building control or access devices; and

defining a set of actors which interact with appliances for defining the behavior of each appliance type;

relating actors to individual appliance instances; and

providing control of said one or more building control or access devices based on the relating of actors to individual appliance instances.

62. The method of claim 61, wherein the one or more building control or access devices are selected from the group comprising:

an access control mechanism;

an environmental control system;

a lighting system;

a manufacturing system and a building transport system.