Timed charge-up and illumination

• US 9,431,855 B1
• Filed: 03/21/2014
• Issued: 08/30/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Signify Holding B.V. (Signify N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Cooper Technologies Company (Eaton Corporation PLC.)
• Inventors: Hetrick, Westly Davis, Bragg, Daniel Leland
• Primary Examiner(s): Hammond, Crystal L
• Application Number:
  US14/222,023
• Time in Patent Office: 893 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/345 using capacitors as storage or buffering devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 9/02 in which an auxiliary distribution system and its associated lamps are brought into service
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 9/065 for lighting purposes

Abstract

Exit and egress lighting, emergency lighting or emergency light fixture, having internal supercapacitor power sources are recharged after a power outage using a staggered power up process. For example, once an emergency light fixture detects a power-on transition from power being unavailable on a power source to power being available from the power source, the fixture waits a predetermined time to recharge a supercapacitor based on a charge time delay value. The predetermined time may be selected to be unique for one or several emergency light fixtures so as to distribute a combined peak power demand of the fixtures. After the predetermined time has expired, the supercapacitor is electrically coupled to a power source to in order to recharge the supercapacitor.

Claims

1. A method for timed charge-up of a power storage device used with a light source, the method comprising:

detecting a power-on transition corresponding to power from the power source being unavailable to the power from the power source being available;

providing the power from the power source to a power storage device after waiting a time period from the detecting of the power-on transition; and

charging the power storage device with the power from the power source.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising

detecting a power-off transition corresponding to the power from the power source being available to the power from the power source being unavailable;

and

decoupling the power source from the power storage device upon the detecting of the power-off transition.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising coupling the power storage device to at least one light source upon the detecting of the power-off transition.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising coupling the power storage device to at least one light source based on motion detection by a sensor.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising

detecting a power-off transition corresponding to the power being available to the power being unavailable;

and

upon the detecting of the power-off transition, converting, by a switch mode power supply (SMPS), backup power from the power storage device to converted power having a power level suitable for operation of at least one light source; and

coupling the converted power to the at least one light source.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the time period corresponds to one of a random number, a control signal from a sensor, or a control signal received via a wireless receiver.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the power storage device is a supercapacitor.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the power storage device is designed to provide backup power to a light source that provides emergency illumination.

9. An illumination apparatus, comprising:

a housing;

a switch disposed within the housing and coupled to a power source via a power distribution network;

a power storage device disposed within the housing and coupled to the switch;

a register disposed within the housing, wherein the register stores a charge time delay value; and

a controller disposed within the housing, wherein the controller controls the switch to electrically couple the power source to the power storage device based on the charge time delay value.

10. The illumination apparatus of claim 9, wherein the controller is electrically coupled to the power source and is configured to:

detect a power-on transition corresponding to power from the power source being unavailable to the power from the power source being available; and

wait a time period from the detecting of the power-on transition before coupling the power source to the power storage device by controlling the switch, wherein the time period corresponds to the charge time delay value.

11. The illumination apparatus of claim 9, wherein the controller is electrically coupled to the power source and is configured to:

detect a power-off transition corresponding to the power from the power source being available to the power from the power source being unavailable; and

control the switch to decouple the power source from the power storage device upon the detecting of the power-off transition.

12. The illumination apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a pseudorandom number generator communicably coupled to the controller, wherein the controller is further configured to set the charge time delay value based on a random number generated by the pseudorandom number generator.

13. The illumination apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a sensor communicably coupled to the controller, wherein the controller is further configured to set the charge time delay value based on motion detected by the sensor.

14. The illumination apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a wireless receiver communicably coupled to the controller, wherein the controller is further configured to set the charge time delay value based on a command received via the wireless receiver.

15. The illumination apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a light source, wherein the controller is configured to electrically couple the power source to the light source.

16. The illumination apparatus of claim 9, wherein the power storage device is a supercapacitor.

17. The illumination apparatus of claim 9, wherein the power storage device is designed to provide backup power to the light source for providing emergency illumination.

18. An illumination system, comprising:

a power distribution network coupled to a power source; and

a plurality of lighting fixtures coupled to the power distribution network, wherein each respective lighting fixture of the plurality of lighting fixtures includes a power storage device, a controller, and a delay register that stores a charge time delay value for the respective lighting fixture and wherein the controller of each respective lighting fixture of the plurality of lighting fixtures is configured to;

detect a power-on transition corresponding to power from the power source being unavailable to the power from the power source being available; and

couple the power source to the power storage device of the respective lighting fixture after waiting a respective time period from detection of the power-on transition by the controller of the respective lighting fixture, wherein the respective time period depends on the charge time delay value for the respective lighting fixture.

19. The illumination system of claim 18, wherein the charge time delay value for a first lighting fixture of the plurality of lighting fixtures is different from the charge time delay value for a second lighting fixture of the plurality of lighting fixtures.

20. The illumination system of claim 18, wherein the charge time delay value for the first lighting fixture is different from the charge time delay value for the second lighting fixture such that the power storage device of the first lighting fixture is substantially fully charged before the power storage device of the second lighting fixture is coupled to the power source.