Procedure for addressing remotely-located radio frequency components of a control system

• US 7,755,505 B2
• Filed: 09/06/2006
• Issued: 07/13/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lutron Technology Company LLC
• Original Assignee: Lutron Electronics Company Incorporated (Lutron Electronics)
• Inventors: Johnson, Benjamin A., Courtney, Brian Michael, Mierta, Justin, Raneri, Daniel Curtis, Carmen, Lawrence R. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee; Benjamin C
• Assistant Examiner(s): BEE, ANDREW W.
• Application Number:
  US11/470,367
• Publication Number:
  US 20080068126A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,406 Days
• Field of Search: 340/825.52, 340/825.22, 340/10.52
• US Class Current: 340/9.16
• 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 wireless lighting control system has a plurality of control devices, some of which may be remotely-located. Each of the control devices is operable to be coupled to a source of power and to be assigned a unique device address. To assign a unique address to the control devices that are remotely-located, power is cycled to those control devices, i.e., by interrupting and restoring power to the control devices. The control device then transmits wirelessly a signal uniquely identifying the control device within a predetermined amount of time after the cycling of power. A list of unaddressed control devices that have recently been power cycled is generated. Each of the control devices on the list is then assigned and transmitted a unique device address.

Claims

1. A method for assigning a unique device address to a control device in a control system, the control device adapted to be coupled to a source of power, a switch coupled in series between the source of power and the control device, the method comprising the steps of:

initiating by an addressing device a repeated transmission of a wireless beacon signal;

subsequently operating the switch to cycle power to the control device by interrupting and immediately restoring power to the control device;

the control device receiving the wireless beacon signal within a predetermined amount of time after the step of operating the switch to cycle power;

the control device subsequently transmitting a signal to the addressing device uniquely identifying the control device;

identifying by the addressing device the control device using the signal uniquely identifying the control device;

transmitting by the addressing device the unique device address to the control device in response to the step of identifying the control device; and

the control device subsequently receiving the unique device address.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of transmitting a signal uniquely identifying the control device comprises:

transmitting a serial number of the control device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of transmitting the unique device address to the control device further comprises transmitting the unique device address to the control device using the serial number.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of:

the control device receiving a query message from the addressing device prior to the step of transmitting a signal uniquely identifying the control device;

wherein the step of transmitting a signal uniquely identifying the control device further comprises the control device transmitting an acknowledgement message to the addressing device in response to the query message, the acknowledgement message transmitted in a random transmission slot and containing a random data byte; and

wherein the step of identifying the control device further comprises identifying the control device by the random transmission slot and the random data byte.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the control device is operable to communicate on a plurality of channels, the method further comprising the step of:

establishing communication by the addressing device with the control device on a predetermined one of the plurality of channels.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the step of establishing communication with the control device further comprises the steps of:

repeatedly transmitting by the addressing device the wireless beacon signal on the predetermined channel;

the control device listening for the beacon signal for a predetermined amount of time on each of a plurality of channels;

the control device receiving the wireless beacon signal on the predetermined channel; and

the control device communicating with the addressing device on the predetermined channel.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the step of repeatedly transmitting the wireless beacon signal further comprises transmitting a beacon message repeatedly on the predetermined channel.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

starting a timer by the control device immediately after the step of operating the switch to cycle power to the control device;

wherein the timer is set to time out after the predetermined amount of time.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising the steps of:

entering by the control device a first predetermined state immediately after the step of operating the switch to cycle power to the control device; and

exiting by the control device the first predetermined state when the timer times out after the predetermined amount of time;

wherein the control device is operable to complete the step of transmitting a signal uniquely identifying the control device while the control device is in the first predetermined state.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the control system comprises a wireless control system, and the step of transmitting a signal uniquely identifying the control device further comprises the control device transmitting wirelessly a signal uniquely identifying the control device within the predetermined amount of time after the step of operating the switch to cycle power to the control device.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the control device comprises a load control device.

24. The method of claim 4, further comprising the step of:

requesting by the addressing device the serial number of the control device prior to the step of transmitting a serial number.

12. A method for providing an address to a first remote control device in an RF control system, wherein RF control signals are sent from a second device to the first remote control device, the RF control signals including the address to enable the first remote control device to respond to the RF control signals, the first remote control device adapted to be coupled to a AC power source, a switch coupled in series between the AC power source and the first remote control device, the method comprising the steps of:

initiating by the second device the repeated transmission of a wireless beacon signal;

operating the switch to cycle power to the first remote control device by interrupting and immediately restoring power to the first remote control device to designate the first remote control device as requiring the address;

receiving the wireless beacon signal at the first remote control device;

transmitting to the second device from the first remote control device a signal uniquely identifying the first remote control device within a predetermined amount of time after the step of operating the switch to cycle power to the first remote control device;

identifying at the second device the first remote control device designated as requiring the address in response to the signal uniquely identifying the first remote control device; and

providing the address to the first remote control device by sending an RF addressing signal from the second device to the first remote control device to enable the first remote control device to respond to RF control signals sent from the second device that include the address.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of cycling power causes the first remote control device to be placed in a first predetermined state.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the step of identifying further comprises:

receiving a signal at the second device uniquely identifying the first remote control device within a predetermined amount of time after the step of cycling power.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of identifying comprises:

determining at the second device a unique identifier of the first remote control device and compiling a list at the second device including the unique identifier of the first remote control device and unique identifiers of other remote control devices.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the step of identifying further comprises:

selecting the first remote control device from the list of the unique identifiers of the remote control devices.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the second device automatically provides an address to the first remote control device in the first predetermined state.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of identifying further comprises:

the second device transmitting a polling signal to the first remote control device;

the first remote control device transmitting an acknowledgment signal to the second device;

the second device transmitting a unique identifier signal to the first remote control device to obtain the unique identifier of the remote control device; and

the first remote control device transmitting the unique identifier to the second device.

19. The method of claim 12, further comprising the step of:

initiating an addressing mode at the second device.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of:

exiting the addressing mode.

21. The method of claim 12, wherein the switch comprises a circuit breaker.

22. A method for selecting a first remotely-located control device from a plurality of control devices in a control system, each of the plurality of control devices adapted to be coupled to a source of power and having a unique serial number, a switch coupled in series between the source of power and a subset of the plurality of control devices, the subset containing the first remotely-located control device, the method comprising the steps of:

initiating by an addressing device the repeated transmission of a wireless beacon signal to the plurality of control devices;

operating the switch to cycle power by interrupting and immediately restoring power to the subset of the plurality of control devices;

receiving the beacon signal at each of the control devices of the subset of the plurality of control devices within a predetermined amount of time after the step of operating the switch to cycle power;

receiving a signal from the addressing device requesting the serial number at each of the control devices of the subset;

transmitting the serial number to the addressing device of at least one of the control devices of the subset;

generating by the addressing device a list of the serial numbers; and

selecting by the addressing device the first remotely-located control device from the list of serial numbers; and

assigning by the addressing device a unique device address to the first remotely-located control device after the step of selecting the first control device.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the control system comprises a wireless control system.

25. A method for assigning a unique device address to an unaddressed remotely-located control device in a control system, the control device operable to be coupled to a source of power, the method comprising the steps of:

an addressing device initiating the repeated transmission of a wireless beacon signal;

operating a switch to cycle power to the control device by interrupting and immediately restoring power to the control device;

starting a timer at the control device immediately after the step of cycling power, the timer set to time out after a predetermined amount of time;

the control device receiving the wireless beacon signal within the predetermined amount of time;

the control device subsequently transmitting to the addressing device a signal uniquely identifying the control device within the predetermined amount of time; and

the control device subsequently receiving from the addressing device the unique device address.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising the steps of:

entering by the control device a first predetermined state immediately after the step of applying power; and

exiting by the control device the first predetermined state when the timer times out after the predetermined amount of time;

wherein the control device is operable to complete the step of transmitting a signal uniquely identifying the control device while the control device is in the first predetermined state.