Method and apparatus for controlling distributed electrical loads

• US 4,598,286 A
• Filed: 05/25/1984
• Issued: 07/01/1986
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/1979
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Eichelberger, Charles W., Miller, Edward B.
• Primary Examiner(s): YUSKO, DONALD
• Application Number:
  US06/614,141
• Time in Patent Office: 767 Days
• Field of Search: 340/825.06, 340/825.07, 340/825.22, 340/825.16, 340/825.15, 340/825.18
• US Class Current: 340/3.51
• 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: H02J 13/00002 characterised by monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00018 using phone lines
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00036 the elements or equipment being or involving switches, relays or circuit breakers circuits for indication of single switches H01H9/167
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/11 by determining the brightness or colour temperature of ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/115 by determining the presence or movement of objects or living beings
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/155 Coordinated control of two or more light sources
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/40 Control techniques providing energy savings, e.g. smart controller or presence detection
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/30 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for improving the carbon footprint of the management of residential or tertiary loads, i.e. smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the buildings sector, including also the last stages of power distribution and the control, monitoring or operating management systems at local level
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/00 Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/18 using switches, relays or circuit breakers, e.g. intelligent electronic devices [IED]
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/40 Display of information, e.g. of data or controls
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/246 the system involving the remote operation of lamps or lighting equipment

Abstract

An apparatus for controlling distributed electrical loads including a microprocessor based central controller coupled via a twisted pair bidirectional data line to a plurality of microcomputer based transceiver decoders. Each transceiver decoder is coupled to a plurality of relays, each relay associated with a particular load to be controlled. Override switches and sensors, coupled to transceiver decoders provide override requests and information related to ambient conditions at the site of a load. A user defined data base includes sub-sets of relays called sectors, patterns of relay states, remote switches, a time dependent schedule and condition responses. A communication protocall and arbitration scheme provide for interactive communication between the central controller and each transceiver decoder with interfacing with the operation of any other transceiver decoder. Enhanced data storage capacity is achieved through dynamic allocation of memory space for pattern data.

Claims

1. In a programmable system for controlling distributed electrical loads including plural relays, each connected to control a respectively corresponding one of said plural distributed electrical loads, a programmable central controller connected to provide data signals for controlling selected ones of said distributed electrical loads, a method for controlling said distributed loads by communication between a transceiver decoder and said programmable central controller comprising the steps of:

receiving at a transceiver decoder load control signals from said central controller for controlling particular ones of said relays,

decoding said load control signals and determining the particular relays to be controlled in respect thereto,

pulsing relay drivers associated with said particular relays,

indicating which of said relays drivers associated with particular relays have been pulsed,

signalling said central controller, in response to an interrogating signal received therefrom, and indicating which of said relay drivers associated with particular relays have been actuated,

determining an error condition if the interrogated transceiver decoder fails to respond,

retransmitting an appropriate control instruction to the interrogated transceiver decoder if it responds with an incorrect status, and

self-clearing the error condition if a response is eventually received.

2. A method according to claim 1, further including the steps of:

receiving at said transceiver decoder a signal indicative of the status of at least one external switch; and

signalling said central controller in response to a changed state of said external switch.

3. A method according to claim 1 further including the steps of:

receiving at said transceiver decoder a signal indicative of a parameter sensed by at least one external sensor, and

signalling said central controller and indicating thereto the status of said sensor in response to said received signal from said central controller.

4. In a programmable system for controlling an electrical load including a relay coupled to control said load, a programmable central controller connected to provide data signals for controlling said load, and a transceiver decoder coupling said programmable central controller to said relay, an improved transceiver decoder comprising:

means for receiving load control signals from said central controller for controlling said relay;

means for decoding said load control signals and determining whether a particular relay associated therewith is to be controlled;

means for actuating a relay driver associated with said particular relay;

means for indicating whether said relay driver has been actuated;

means for signalling said central controller, in response to an interrogating signal received therefrom, and indicating whether a particular relay driver has been actuated

means for determining an error condition if the interrogated transceiver decoder fails to respond;

means for retransmitting an appropriate control instruction to the interrogated transceiver decoder if it responds with an incorrect status, and

means for self-clearing the error condition if a response is eventually received.