Stage lighting lamp unit and stage lighting system including such unit

• US 5,921,659 A
• Filed: 12/18/1997
• Issued: 07/13/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Production Resource Group LLC
• Original Assignee: Light and Sound Design Limited
• Inventors: Hughes, Michael D., Owen, Keith J., Hunt, Mark A.
• Primary Examiner(s): HUSAR, STEPHEN F
• Application Number:
  US08/994,036
• Time in Patent Office: 572 Days
• Field of Search: 362/233, 362/269, 362/272, 362/286
• US Class Current: 362/233
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 11/10 of iris type
• CPC Class Codes: F21W 2131/406 for theatres, stages or film studios
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/155 Coordinated control of two or more light sources

Abstract

A stage lighting lamp unit includes a processor for receiving control data from a remote console. Beam orientation data for the lamp unit is passed to the lamp in the form of the x, y and z coordinates of a point in space through which the beam is to pass. The processor divides the required lamp travel into a number of stages dependent on execution duration data sent with the position data, and calculates, for each stage, a new value for pan and tilt angles for the lamp. These values are passed to pan and tilt controlling co-processors which control servo-motors for pan and tilt operation. The lamp unit also incorporates a rotatable shutter for interrupting the lamp beam when required. The shutters of all the lamps in a system can be instructed from the remote console to open and close in synchronism, thereby providing a stroboscopic effect.

Claims

1. A coordinate converting lamp unit, comprising:

a communication element, receiving a signal for the lamp unit, said signal including information indicative of a desired position of the lamp in an absolute coordinate system; and

a first lamp, receiving said signal including said desired position information, and including;

a) a calculating device, including information from which a conversion between said absolute coordinate system and a first coordinate system of the lamp can be effected, and operating to convert said desired position information from said absolute coordinate system into said first coordinate system of the first lamp; and

b) lamp moving devices, said lamp moving devices responsive to said information in said lamp coordinate system to move said lamp to a position indicated thereby and to thereby point said lamp at an area indicated by said absolute coordinate system.

2. A lamp unit as in claim 1, further comprising:

a second lamp, receiving the same said signal including said desired position information in said absolute coordinate system, and including;

a) a calculating device, including information from which a conversion between said absolute coordinate system and a second coordinate system of the second lamp can be effected, said second coordinate system of the second lamp being different than the first coordinate system of the first lamp, and operating to convert said desired position information into said second coordinate system; and

b) lamp moving devices, said lamp moving devices responsive to said information in said second lamp coordinate system to move said lamp to a position indicated thereby to thereby also point said second lamp at said area indicated by said absolute coordinate system.

3. A distributed lighting system comprising:

a lighting console, storing a plurality of control information for a plurality of remotely-located luminaires, said lighting console including a memory area storing control information for a plurality of said luminaires;

a plurality of serial communication controllers, said serial communication controllers producing serial outputs, a separate serial output being provided for each of said luminaires, and each said serial communication controller associated with a block of said memory, each serial communication controller including a line driver which is enabled to transmit data to its associated luminaire; and

a plurality of remotely-located luminaires, each said luminaire connected to a different one of said serial outputs, each luminaire comprising a plurality of motors respectively controlling pan and tilt of the luminaire, each said luminaire including a serial communication controller, connected to receive information from an associated serial output and to produce an output indicative of the information on said serial output, said output including information which indicates coordinates in space of a location through which an axis of a light beam from the luminaire will be directed, said luminaire including a processor which commands said motors to pan and tilt the luminaire to direct said axis of the beam to the coordinates in space.

4. A system as in claim 3 further comprising a plurality of coprocessing devices, each said coprocessing device associated with a different motor control function of the luminaire.

5. A system as in claim 4 wherein said motors include a panning motor and a tilting motor, and wherein said coprocessing devices include a first coprocessing device controlling said panning motor and a second coprocessing device controlling said tilting motor.

6. A system as in claim 3 further comprising a plurality of coprocessors, each coprocessor associated with a motor and controlling operations of said motor.

7. A system as in claim 3 further comprising a detector which detects a turn on of said line driver and determines synchronization of the frame being sent thereby.

8. A computer controlled automated moving luminaire operating responsive to commands from a central console, comprising:

a lighting system;

a first motor system which controls a direction of said lighting system to move in a panning direction;

a second motor system controlling said lighting system to move in a tilting direction;

a communication controller, receiving communication information from the central console;

a processor, receiving said information from said communication controller and translating said information into commands for pan and tilt;

a first coprocessor, associated with panning carried out by said first motor system, said first coprocessor receiving said information indicative of panning, and controlling said first motor system to appropriately pan the lighting system; and

a second coprocessor, associated with tilting carried out by said second motor system, and controlling said second motor system to appropriately tilt the lamp.

9. A method of synchronizing positions of a plurality of moving lights, comprising:

issuing a control command from a central console to a plurality of remotely-located moving lights, said control providing position information to said moving lights and also providing at least one time value indicating a time when said moving light should be located at a position;

receiving said control command in each of said plurality of remotely-controlled moving lights;

each of said remotely-controlled moving lights determining, a movement profile from said position information and time which will cause each of said remotely-controlled luminaires to point at substantially a same position at the same time.

10. A method as in claim 9 wherein each said moving light includes a processor and each said processor carries out a time slicing operation to provide said movement profile.

11. A method as in claim 9 further comprising, in each moving light, obtaining said position information, and translating said position information into a local set of coordinates in the lamp'"'"'s own frame of reference, and calculating positions for moving the lamp based on said local set of coordinates.