Method for bonding a lighting device to a lighting system while using wireless communication

• US 7,590,457 B2
• Filed: 10/06/2005
• Issued: 09/15/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/15/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Signify Holding B.V. (Signify N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Beij, Marcel, Buij, Arnold
• Primary Examiner(s): DeCady; Albert
• Assistant Examiner(s): Stevens; Thomas H
• Application Number:
  US11/576,919
• Publication Number:
  US 20070250181A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,440 Days
• Field of Search: 700/3, 315/149, 709/211
• US Class Current: 700/3
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/175 by remote control

Abstract

A method for bonding a lighting device to a first lighting system, in which the first system comprises a master controller, which is remote from the lighting device and which may control a slave controller of the lighting device if the slave controller has stored therein an identification (ID) of the system. Upon powering up, if the slave controller contains such an ID, it tries to communicate with a master controller of the system. If the slave controller does not succeed in establishing such a communication it enters a state in which it can change it settings, in particular clearing said ID, upon receiving, during a time window with reduced communication security level, a message for allowing such changing of its settings.

Claims

1. A method for bonding a lighting device to a lighting system, in which a master controller of the system, which is remote from the lighting device, is configured to selectively access a slave controller of the lighting device over a wireless connection for storing an identification (ID) of the system in the slave controller in case no system identification has been stored yet in the slave controller and for controlling the lighting device in case an identification stored in the slave controller is identical to the identification of the system with the accessing master controller, the method comprising:

upon powering up of the lighting device, if its associated slave controller contains a system identification of a system,

attempting to establish a communication by the slave controller with a master of the system; and

if the attempting by the slave controller fails to establish the communication, setting the slave controller, for a duration of a time window and with reduced communication security, to accept a clear message indicating that the slave controller is allowed to neglect the stored ID.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the slave controller applies several of a limited number of time windows with reduced communication security until it receives the clear message.

3. A method according to claim 2, wherein the security level is lowered for a next time interval, if entered.