Control network for LED-based lighting system in a transit vehicle
First Claim
1. A distributed control network for a transit vehicle lighting system, comprising:
- a plurality of LED-based lighting fixtures, each of said LED-based lighting fixtures comprising a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for illuminating an area of a transit vehicle and an associated slave node for controlling operation of the LEDs;
a master node in communication with said slave nodes;
a digital communications bus for communicating among the master node and the slave nodes; and
a power bus interconnecting said master node and slave nodes;
wherein said power bus is integrated with the digital communications bus in a plurality of power/data cable segments connecting the slave nodes in a daisy chain, each pair of slave nodes in the daisy chain being interconnected by one of the power/data cable segments.
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Abstract
A transit vehicle lighting system has a plurality of LED-based lighting fixtures for providing interior illumination. A control network comprises a plurality of slave nodes for controlling the LED-based lighting fixtures, and a master node for controlling the slave nodes. The master node may be connected to the slave nodes by a combined power/communication bus in a daisy chain fashion. The slave node may include a power regulator and a controller for providing a target current command to the power regulator, and may adjust the target current based upon temperature measurements or a recorded age of the LEDs. An optical sensor may provide automatic dimming. A reduced number of LEDs may be used in an emergency mode. The lighting fixture may include a ceiling panel fixture and a riser panel attachable by way of a hinge mechanism.
58 Citations
39 Claims
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1. A distributed control network for a transit vehicle lighting system, comprising:
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a plurality of LED-based lighting fixtures, each of said LED-based lighting fixtures comprising a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for illuminating an area of a transit vehicle and an associated slave node for controlling operation of the LEDs; a master node in communication with said slave nodes; a digital communications bus for communicating among the master node and the slave nodes; and a power bus interconnecting said master node and slave nodes; wherein said power bus is integrated with the digital communications bus in a plurality of power/data cable segments connecting the slave nodes in a daisy chain, each pair of slave nodes in the daisy chain being interconnected by one of the power/data cable segments. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A vehicle lighting system, comprising:
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a plurality of LED-based lighting fixtures, each of said LED-based lighting fixtures comprising a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for illuminating an area of a transit vehicle and an associated network node of a distributed control network having a plurality of network nodes, each network node comprising a local controller and electronics for supplying power to the LEDs of the LED-based lighting fixture; a digital communications bus for communicating among the network nodes; a power bus interconnecting said master node and slave nodes; wherein said power bus is integrated with the digital communications bus in a plurality of power/data cable segments connecting the network nodes in a daisy chain, each pair of network nodes in the daisy chain being interconnected by one of the power/data cable segments that includes a DC power signal derived from a vehicle battery, a ground voltage signal, and one or more digital data lines within the same cable segment. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A lighting fixture for use in a vehicle lighting system controlled by a distributed control network having a plurality of network nodes, the lighting fixture comprising:
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a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for illuminating an area of a transit vehicle; an associated network node of the distributed control network, said network node comprising; a local controller; electronics for supplying power to the LEDs of the lighting fixture; a first power/data cable input connector providing connection to a first cable segment having a first power wire and one or more digital data lines; and a second power/data cable input connector providing connection to a second cable segment having a second power wire and one or more digital data lines; wherein the first power wire and second power wire form a portion of a power bus interconnecting the network nodes of the distributed control network in a daisy chain; and wherein the one or more digital data lines of said first cable segment and the one or more digital data lines of said second cable segment form a portion of a digital communications bus interconnecting the network nodes of the distributed control network in the daisy chain. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. A method of providing a vehicle lighting system for a transit vehicle using a distributed control network, comprising:
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connecting a plurality of LED-based lighting fixtures in a daisy chain using a plurality of power/data cable segments that each include a DC power signal line, a ground voltage signal line, and one or more digital data lines within the same cable segment, wherein; each of said LED-based lighting fixtures comprises a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for illuminating an area of a transit vehicle and an associated network node of a distributed control network having a plurality of network nodes; each network node comprises a local controller and electronics for supplying power to the LEDs of the LED-based lighting fixture; and each pair of network nodes in the daisy chain is interconnected by one of the power/data cable segments; providing power to said LED-based lighting fixtures over a power bus collectively formed by the DC power signal lines and a ground voltage signal lines of the power/data cable segments of the daisy chain; and communicating among the network nodes of said LED-based lighting fixtures over a digital communications bus collectively formed by the one or more digital data lines of the power/data cable segments of the daisy chain. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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Specification