Load control system

• US 5,175,677 A
• Filed: 09/11/1989
• Issued: 12/29/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/1988
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Inventors: Kushiro, Noriyuki, Igarashi, Kazuyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, Jerry
• Assistant Examiner(s): BROWN, THOMAS
• Application Number:
  US07/405,140
• Time in Patent Office: 1,205 Days
• Field of Search: 364/138, 364/139, 364/140, 364/141, 364/492-494, 364/142-146, 340/825.06, 340/825.07, 340/825.08, 340/310 R, 340/310 A, 307/35, 307/38-42
• US Class Current: 700/22
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00004 characterised by the power network being locally controlled
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00007 using the power network as support for the transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00034 the elements or equipment being or involving an electric power substation
• 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: H02J 2310/14 The load or loads being home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/185 via power line carrier transmission
• 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: Y02B 70/3225 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• 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 20/222 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/246 the system involving the remote operation of lamps or lighting equipment
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/121 using the power network as support for the transmission

Abstract

An improved luminaire load control system for handling control signals as by converting them into power line carrier communication signals which are transmitted through branch power lines to terminal control units without causing any significant interference to power line installation. The conversion of the control signals is done respectively at a plurality of gate way units mounted on each branch power line and each gate way unit further includes memory unit for storing the information regarding to the connecting status of the terminal unit for sending back the stored information to a central control unit upon receipt of a send back command therefrom. In a specific embodiment of the invention, a plurality of gate way units are mutually connected with specific signal transmission lines for providing the reciprocity control of luminaire loads by installing a plurality of operation command input terminals in each of the branch power line, whereby the control signal is transmitted through the specific signal transmission lines.

Claims

1. A load control system comprising:

a plurality of branch power lines;

a plurality of loads selectively connectable to respective ones of said branch power lines;

a plurality of terminal control means for controlling the connecting status of the loads in response to load control signals, each terminal control means being connected to a respective one of said loads and to said load'"'"'s respective branch power line;

a plurality of input terminal means for transmitting operation commands as power line carrier communication signals on said branch power lines, the input terminal means being connected to ones of said branch power lines;

a plurality of gate way means connected to one another by specific communication lines for providing reciprocity control for the plurality of loads, the gate way means being connected to one another and to respective ones of the branch power lines, and the gate way means generating transmission signals and the load control signals in response to said operation commands received as power line carrier communication signals, said transmission signals being communicated among the gate way means and the load control signals being communicated to selected ones of the terminal control means.

2. A load control system as recited in claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of gate way means includes means for converting the power line carrier communication signal into a transmission signal for the specific communication lines.

3. A load control system as recited in claim 1, wherein said plurality of loads are luminaire loads.