Power supply system for a building

• US 8,441,216 B2
• Filed: 09/03/2009
• Issued: 05/14/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Michael Brownlee
• Original Assignee: Alva Systems, Inc.
• Inventors: Brownlee, Michael S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cho, James H
• Application Number:
  US12/553,893
• Publication Number:
  US 20100052577A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,349 Days
• Field of Search: 315/362, 315/32
• US Class Current: 315/362
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 3/00 Installations of electric cables or lines or protective tubing therefor in or on buildings, equivalent structures or vehicles installations of bus-bars H02G5/00; overhead installations H02G7/00; installations in or on the ground H02G9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 3/08 Distribution boxes; Connection or junction boxes
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 1/00 Circuit arrangements for dc mains or dc distribution networks
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/60 the devices being bipolar transistors bipolar transistors having four or more electrodes H03K17/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/542 the information being in digital form
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/325 Pulse-width modulation [PWM]
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/385 using flyback topology
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/30 Semiconductor lamps, e.g. solid state lamps [SSL] light emitting diodes [LED] or organic LED [OLED]

Abstract

An electrical system, which includes a light switch housing and an AC-to-DC converter carried by the light switch housing. The electrical system includes an input power line which provides an AC signal to an input of the converter and an output power line coupled to an output of the converter. An electrical device operates in response to receiving an output signal from the output power line, wherein the output signal is a DC signal.

Claims

1. An electrical system, comprising

an electrical device which operates in response to receiving a DC signal;

a light switch assembly which includes a light switch operatively coupled to an AC-to-DC converter, wherein the light switch assembly provides the DC signal to the electrical device in response to the light switch being activated and wherein the light switch assembly drives the DC signal to a level below a threshold level in response to the light switch being deactivated; and

further including

an electrical controller which provides a control signal S_Control modulated with the DC signal to the electrical device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the light switch does not provide the DC signal to the electrical device in response to the light switch being deactivated.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the light switch assembly includes a light switch housing which carries the AC-to-DC converter and light switch.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the light switch assembly operates as a dimmer switch.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the electrical device is a solid-state light emitting device.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the solid-state light emitting device is a two-wire lamp.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the solid-state light emitting device is a two-wire lamp.

8. An electrical system, comprising an electrical device which operates in response to receiving a DC signal;

a light switch assembly which includes a light switch operatively coupled to an AC-to-DC converter, wherein the light switch assembly provides the DC signal to the electrical device in response to the light switch being activated; and

further including

an electrical controller which provides a control signal S_Control modulated with the DC signal to the electrical device, and wherein the controller comprises a pulse wave modulator.

9. The lighting system of claim 8 wherein the controller is positioned near the light switch.

10. The lighting system of claim 9 wherein the controller is positioned upon an outside wall of the light switch housing.

11. The lighting system of claim 9 wherein the controller is positioned within the light switch housing.

12. A lighting system comprising

a. an AC to DC converter having an AC side and a DC side and supplying a DC voltage,

b. a light switch in a wall-mounted light switch housing,

c. an electrical controller comprising a pulse wave modulator, and

d. an LED lamp, and wherein

i. the light switch is in electrical communication with the DC side of the converter,

ii. the light switch is in electrical communication with an input side of the pulse wave modulator of the electrical controller,

iii, the pulse wave modulator is configured to provide a first pulsed DC signal modulated with a DC signal generated from the DC voltage for a first position of the light switch, and

iv. the LED lamp is configured to receive the first pulsed DC signal generated by the pulse wave modulator to output a first intensity of light.

13. The lighting system of claim 12 wherein the pulse wave modulator is configured to provide a second pulsed DC signal for a second position of the light switch, wherein the second pulsed DC signal differs from the first pulsed DC signal.

14. The lighting system of claim 13 wherein the second pulsed DC signal provides a second duration of pulse different from a first duration of pulse for the first pulsed DC signal and wherein the first and second pulsed DC signals have a voltage greater than a threshold voltage level.

15. The lighting system of claim 13 wherein the first pulsed DC signal has a first nominal output voltage S_out and the second pulsed DC signal has a second nominal output voltage S_out that differs from the first nominal output voltage and wherein the first and second pulsed DC signals have a voltage greater than a threshold voltage level.

16. The lighting system of claim 15 wherein the LED lamp is a two-wire lamp.

17. The lighting system of claim 13 wherein the second pulsed DC signal has a nominal value of voltage other than zero and the LED lamp is off.

18. The lighting system of claim 12 wherein the LED lamp is a two-wire lamp.

19. The lighting system of claim 12 wherein the pulse wave modulator is located remote from the LED lamp.

20. The lighting system of claim 19 wherein the pulse wave modulator is positioned near the light switch.

21. The lighting system of claim 20 wherein the pulse wave modulator is positioned upon an outside wall of the light switch housing.

22. The lighting system of claim 20 wherein the pulse wave modulator is positioned within the light switch housing.

23. The lighting system of claim 12 wherein the first pulsed DC signal is beneath a threshold value so that the LED lamp is off.

24. The lighting system of claim 12 wherein the LED lamp has a plurality of LEDs that emit light in response to a plurality of pulsed DC signals, said plurality including the first pulsed DC signal.

25. The lighting system of claim 12 wherein the pulse wave modulator is configured to pulse to encode data in the first pulsed DC signal.