Lighting systems and related methods

• US 8,658,877 B1
• Filed: 05/14/2013
• Issued: 02/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Retinal 3-D, LLC
• Original Assignee: Retinal 3-D, LLC
• Inventors: Bowser, Roger C., Neal, Lawrence A. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Qin, Jianchun
• Application Number:
  US13/894,328
• Time in Patent Office: 287 Days
• Field of Search: 846/09
• US Class Current: 84/609
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0066 using a MIDI interface
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/411 Light beams key actuation detection using light G10H2220/305
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/521 Hall effect transducers or similar magnetic field sensing semiconductor devices, e.g. for string vibration sensing or key movement sensing
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/165 following a pre-assigned programmed sequence; Logic control [LC]
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/18 via data-bus transmission

Abstract

A lighting system. Implementations may include an AC input power source coupled with a power conditioning and control module adapted output a low voltage high frequency pulse width modulated (PWM) signal. A remote transmission cable may be adapted to carry the low voltage high frequency PWM signal to a remote transformer adapted to convert the low voltage high frequency PWM signal to a high voltage high frequency PWM signal. A charge pump may be included which is adapted to receive the high voltage high frequency PWM signal and increase a voltage of the signal. A gas discharge tube may be coupled to the charge pump. A controller may be coupled to the power conditioning and control module and adapted to operate the gas discharge tube at two or more light intensity levels with the low voltage high frequency PWM signal.

Claims

1. A method of generating visual element parameters in a control sequence, the method comprising:

providing one or more visual notes on a visual staff and one or more dynamic elements adjacent to the one or more visual notes;

associating any of two or more intensity levels for one or more lighting elements included in a lighting system with each of the one or more dynamic elements;

determining which of the one or more visual notes has the shortest time duration;

multiplying a predetermined number of beats per minute by the shortest time duration and calculating a sending frequency for transmitting lighting element identifying values and lighting element intensity values;

generating a control sequence including one or more visual element parameters using the one or more visual notes and the one or more dynamic elements, the visual element parameters including one or more of the lighting element identifying values and one or more of the lighting element intensity values; and

transmitting the one or more visual element parameters in the control sequence as an output data sequence at the calculated sending frequency to a controller coupled to the lighting system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein associating any of two or more intensity levels for one or more lighting elements included in a lighting system further includes associating any of two or more intensity levels for one or more lighting elements selected from the group consisting of light emitting diodes (LEDs), halogen light bulbs, gas discharge tubes, and fluorescent tubes.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein generating a control sequence including one or more visual element parameters further includes generating a control sequence including one or more visual element parameters formatted in a Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI), DMX512-A, MIDI Timecode (MTC), Ethernet Art-Net, and a Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) standard.