Vehicle auxiliary lamps installation kit

• US 6,465,962 B1
• Filed: 10/25/1999
• Issued: 10/15/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Calvin S. Wang, Sam Fu
• Original Assignee: Calvin S. Wang, Sam Fu
• Inventors: Fu, Sam, Wang, Calvin S.
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, DAVID HUNG
• Application Number:
  US09/426,007
• Time in Patent Office: 1,086 Days
• Field of Search: 315/77, 315/82, 315/83, 362/464, 362/543, 307/10.8
• US Class Current: 315/77
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2900/30 Lamps commanded by wireless transmissions
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/11 by determining the brightness or colour temperature of ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/19 via wireless transmission
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/40 Control techniques providing energy savings, e.g. smart controller or presence detection

Abstract

A vehicle auxiliary lamps installation kit (10) that is designed to be operated in combination with a set of auxiliary lamps (26), a vehicle'"'"'s alternator (34) and a vehicle battery (36). The kit (10), which is designed to be placed and attached within the engine compartment of a vehicle, is disclosed in four design configurations. The first and second designs allow the auxiliary lamps (26) to be manually turned on for a brief period with a remote pocket transmitter (14). In the third and fourth designs the auxiliary lamps (26) automatically turn on when the vehicle'"'"'s engine is running with the vehicle generator (34) operating. The fourth automatic design also incorporates a photo sensor circuit (40) that causes the auxiliary lamps (26) to turn on only when the ambient lamp level falls to a preselected level such as when darkness appears.

Claims

1. A vehicle auxiliary lamps installation kit that operates in combination with a vehicle which includes an engine, an alternator and a battery said kit comprising:

a) at least one auxiliary lamp, and

b) circuit means for producing a turn lamps ON code or a turn lamps OFF code and subsequently determining if the turn lamps ON code or the turn lamps OFF code has been received for further processing, wherein if the turn lamps ON code is received, a 12 VDC lamps signal is produced which is applied to said at least one auxiliary lamp to cause said lamp to illuminate, wherein said circuit means is comprised of a manually operated lamps control circuit comprising;

(1) a remote RF transmitter incorporating an ON button switch, an OFF button switch and means for producing and transmitting a modulated RF signal that is modified by said button switches to produce a unique and encrypted security code corresponding to either a lamps ON command or a lamps OFF command,

(2) an RF receiver having means for receiving demodulating the modulated RF signal from said transmitter and for producing an encrypted code signal,

(3) a decoder circuit having means for decoding and determining if the encrypted code signal from said RF receiver is the turn lamps ON code or the turn lamps OFF code,

(4) a logic control circuit comprising a microcontroller having means for receiving and determining whether the encrypted code from said decoder circuit is the turn lamps ON code or the turn lamps OFF code, if the turn lamps ON code is received said microcontroller produces and applies a logic high output signal to a switching transistor which causes the transistor to turn on and energize a power relay which controls the application of a 12 VDC lamps power signal that turns on said at least one auxiliary lamp, and

(5) a logic circuit having an input connected to the vehicle battery, wherein the battery voltage is passed on to a voltage regulator from where a regulated power signal is produced that powers the elements of said lamps control circuit.

2. A vehicle auxiliary lamps installation kit that operates in combination with a vehicle which includes an engine, an alternator and a battery said kit comprising:

a) at least one auxiliary lamp, and

b) circuit means for producing a turn lamps ON code or a turn lamps OFF code and subsequently determining if the turn lamps ON code or the turn lamps OFF code has been received for further processing, wherein if the turn lamps ON code is received, a 12 VDC lamps power signal is produced which is applied to said at least one auxiliary lamp to cause said lamp to illuminate, wherein said circuit means is comprised of a manually operated lamps control circuit comprising;

(1) a remote RF transmitter incorporating an ON button switch, an OFF button switch and means for producing and transmitting a modulated RF signal that is modified by said button switches to produce a unique and encrypted security code corresponding to either a lamps ON command or a lamps OFF command,

(2) an RF receiver having means for receiving and demodulating the modulated RF signal from said transmitter and directly producing the turn lamps ON code or the turn lamps OFF code,

(3) a logic control circuit comprising a microcontroller having means for receiving and determining whether the encrypted code from said RF receiver circuit is the turn lamps ON code or the turn lamps OFF code, if the turn lamps ON code is received said microcontroller produces and applies a logic high output signal to a switching transistor which causes the transistor to turn on and energize a power relay which controls the application of a 12 VDC lamps power signal that turns on said at least one auxiliary lamp, and

(4) a logic circuit having an input connected to the vehicle battery, wherein the battery voltage is passed on to a voltage regulator from where a regulated power signal is produced that powers the elements of said lamps control circuit.

3. A vehicle auxiliary lamps installation kit that operates in combination with a vehicle which includes an engine, an alternator and a battery said kit comprising:

a) at least one auxiliary lamp, and

b) circuit means for producing a turn lamps ON code or a turn lamps OFF code and subsequently determining if the turn lamps ON code or the turn lamps OFF code has been received for further processing, wherein if the turn lamps ON code is received, a 12 VDC lamps power signal is produced which is applied to said at least one auxiliary lamp to cause said lamp to illuminate, wherein said circuit means is comprised of a lamps control circuit that is automatically activated when the vehicle'"'"'s engine is running with the vehicle'"'"'s alternator operating at which time the turn lamps ON code is produced, wherein said lamps control circuit comprises;

(1) a wave detector circuit having an input connected to the output of the vehicle'"'"'s alternator, wherein said lamps control circuit having means for determining if the vehicle'"'"'s engine is running by detecting a ripple voltage produced by the alternator when the vehicle'"'"'s engine is running, wherein said lamps control circuit produces an output signal consisting of either a logic high or a logic low output signal,

(2) a logic circuit having means for receiving the output signal from said wave detector circuit and applying the signal to the base of a switching transistor, wherein;

(a) when the vehicle'"'"'s engine is running and the vehicle'"'"'s alternator is operating the output signal from said wave detector circuit is a logic high which is applied to and causes the switching transistor located in said logic circuit to turn on and produce the turn lamps ON code and

(b) when the vehicle'"'"'s engine is not running the output signal from said wave detector is a logic low which causes the switching transistor to remain off and produce the turn lamps OFF code, and

(3) a logic control circuit comprising a microcontroller having means for receiving and determining whether the coded signal from said logic circuit is the turn lamps ON code or the turn lamps OFF code, if the turn lamps ON code is received said microcontroller produces and applies a logic high output signal to the switching transistor which causes the transistor to turn on and energize a power relay which controls the application of a 12 VDC lamps power signal that turns on said at least one auxiliary lamp, and

(4) a logic circuit having an input connected to the vehicle battery, wherein the battery voltage is passed on to a voltage regulator from where a regulated power signal is produced that powers the elements of said lamps control circuit.

4. A vehicle auxiliary lamps installation kit that operates in combination with a vehicle which includes an engine, an alternator and a battery said kit comprising:

a) at least one auxiliary lamp, and

b) circuit means for producing a turn lamps ON code or a turn lamps OFF code and subsequently determining if the turn lamps ON code or the turn lamps OFF code has been received for further processing, wherein if the turn lamps ON code is received, a 12 VDC lamps power signal is produced which is applied to said at least one auxiliary lamp to cause said lamp to illuminate, wherein said circuit means is comprised of a lamps control circuit that is automatically activated when darkness appears at which time the turn lamps ON code is produced, said lamps control circuit comprising;

(1) a wave detector circuit having an input connected to the output of the vehicle'"'"'s alternator, wherein said wave detector circuit having means for determining whether the vehicle'"'"'s engine is running by detecting a ripple voltage produced by the alternator when the vehicle'"'"'s engine is running, wherein said wave detector circuit produces an output signal consisting of either a logic high or a logic low output signal,

(2) a logic circuit having means for receiving the output signal from said wave detector circuit and applying the signal to the base of a switching transistor, wherein;

(a) when the vehicle'"'"'s engine is running and the vehicle'"'"'s alternator is operating the output signal from said wave detector circuit goes to a logic high which is applied to and causes the switching transistor located in said logic circuit to turn on and produce the turn lamps ON code, and

(b) when the vehicle'"'"'s engine is not running the output signal from said wave detector is a logic low causing the switching transistor to remain OFF and produce the turn lamps OFF code,

(3) a photo sensor circuit having an internal resistance that varies in accordance with the changes in the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum, wherein the output of said photo sensor circuit is a resistance signal,

(4) an amplifier circuit having means for receiving and converting the resistance signal to a logic 1 equivalent to the turn lamps ON code or a logic 0 equivalent to the turn lamps OFF code, and

(5) a logic control circuit comprising a microcontroller having means for receiving the turn lamps ON code or the turn lamps OFF code concurrently from both said logic circuit and from said amplifier circuit, wherein after both codes are received said microcontroller produces and applies a logic high output signal to a switching transistor which causes the transistor to turn on and energize a power relay which controls the application of a 12 VDC lamps power signal that turns on the lamps.

5. The kit as specified in claim 4 wherein said photo sensor circuit is comprised of a lamp sensitive device which is a cadmium sulfide cell.

6. The kit as specified in claim 4 wherein said amplifier circuit comprise an operational amplifier or a transistor amplifier.

7. The kit as specified in claim 6 wherein said amplifier circuit further comprises a variable resistor designed to adjust and set the level of an ambient light that activates said photo sensor circuit.