Systems and apparatus for the light-based communication of service orders and personal objects identification

• US 9,524,622 B2
• Filed: 02/12/2010
• Issued: 12/20/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Signify Holding B.V. (Signify N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Philips Lighting BV (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Loveland, Damien Gerard, Van Der Poel, Lucas Leo Desiree, Sekulovski, Dragan, Vermeulen, Arend Jan Wilhelmus Abraham
• Primary Examiner(s): Minh, D A
• Application Number:
  US13/254,501
• Publication Number:
  US 20110316451A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,503 Days
• Field of Search: 315/312, 705/15, 705/16, 455/418, 455/420, 340/539.32
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/74 Systems using reradiation of radio waves, e.g. secondary radar systems; Analogous systems
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 5/36 using visible light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/42 Transmitting or receiving remote control signals via a network
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/195 the transmission using visible or infrared light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/1965 using handheld communication devices

Abstract

Light-based systems for communicating information associated with service orders and/or the identification of personal objects are disclosed. A personal mobile electronic communication device is used in conjunction with a communication network and a lighting controller to communicate service orders by lighting with one or more individually controllable luminaries in a lighting network. A personal mobile electronic communication device is, alternatively or additionally, used in conjunction with a communication network, a memory, and a lighting controller controlling to indicate by lighting whether there is an association between the personal mobile electronic communication device and a personal item.

Claims

1. A light-based system for identifying personal items comprising:

a personal mobile electronic communication device transmitting a first signal for indicating a device identifier;

a processor approximately ascertaining the location of the personal mobile electronic communication device by a GPS or signal analysis technology;

a personal item transmitting a second signal for indicating an item identifier;

a memory associating the device identifier with the item identifier;

a communication network receiving the first signal from the personal mobile electronic communication device and the second signal from the personal item, determining the device identifier from the first signal and the item identifier from the second signal, and transmitting the device identifier and the item identifier to the processor,

wherein the processor checks the memory for an association between the device identifier and the item identifier, and generates an illumination command dependent on the association;

a lighting controller separate from the personal mobile electronic communication device and personal item and operably controlling a plurality of luminaires in a room, receiving the illumination command and, in response to the illumination command, controlling an illumination proximate to the personal item by at least one individually-controllable luminaire of the plurality of luminaires in a lighting network such that the illumination proximate to the personal item visually indicates the association between the personal item and the personal mobile electronic communication device; and

wherein the lighting controller further controls the illumination to visually indicate the association in the memory with a first illumination and to visually indicate a lack of association in the memory with a second illumination different than the first illumination.

2. The light-based system of claim 1, further comprising a user interface for entering the association between the device identifier and the item identifier into the memory.

3. The light-based system of claim 1, wherein the processor generates a sound command dependent on the association, and wherein a sound controller receives the sound command and controls a sound proximate to the personal item such that the sound indicates the association between the personal item and the personal mobile electronic communication device.

4. The light-based system of claim 1, wherein

the processor, after checking the memory for an association between the device identifier and the item identifier and failing to find the association, further checks a second memory for the item identifier, creating an initial association between the device identifier and the item identifier in the memory and adding the item identifier to the second memory when the second memory does not contain the item identifier, and further generates a further illumination command based on the initial association, and

the lighting controller receiving the further illumination command, controls a further illumination proximate to the personal item such that the further illumination visually indicates the initial association between the personal item and the personal mobile electronic communication device.

5. The light-based system of claim 1, wherein the personal mobile electronic communication device further transmits a mode signal, the mode signal encoding a lighting scheme by which to illuminate the personal item, the lighting scheme comprising the use of lights in one or more colors and the use of a sequence of colored-lights, and

wherein the lighting controller controls the illumination proximate to the personal item to visually indicate the association between the personal item and the personal mobile electronic communication device such that the illumination is consistent with the lighting scheme encoded in the mode single.

6. The light-based system of claim 1, wherein the communication network further identifies the device identifier as associated with a non-patron before transmitting the item identifier to the processor, and wherein the processor further checks the memory for a second association involving the item identifier and deletes the second association from the memory.

7. The light-based system of claim 1, wherein the personal item includes one or more light emitting diodes and the at least one individually controllable luminaire comprises the one or more light emitting diodes.

8. A light-based system for identifying personal items comprising:

a personal item transmitting a first signal encoding a first item identifier;

a personal mobile electronic communication device, wherein the personal mobile electronic communication device comprises

a memory storing the first item identifier;

a receiver receiving the first signal from the first personal item,

a processor determining the first item identifier from the first signal, checking the memory for the first item identifier, and generating a report dependent on storage of the first item identifier in the memory; and

a transmitter transmitting a second signal encoding the report and a third signal for indicating a location of the personal mobile electronic communication device; and

a communication network receiving the second signal and the third signal from the personal mobile electronic communication device and transmitting an illumination command; and

a lighting controller separate from the personal item and the personal mobile electronic communication device for controlling a plurality of luminaires for overhead lighting in a room and receiving the illumination command and, in response to the illumination command, controlling an illumination proximate to the personal item by at least one of the plurality of individually-controllable luminaires in a lighting network such that the illumination proximate to the personal item visually indicates the inclusion of the item identifier in the memory of the personal mobile electronic communication device and,

wherein the illumination command is generated by a second processor communicatively coupled to the communication network.

9. The light-based system of claim 8, further comprising a user interface for entering the item identifier into the memory.

10. The light-based system of claim 8, wherein the communication network receiving the third signal from the personal mobile electronic communication device approximately ascertains the location of the personal mobile electronic communication device by a technology consisting of at least one of GPS, assisted GPS, triangulation, signal strength analysis, and accelerometer technology.

11. The light-based system of claim 8, wherein

the processor, after checking the memory for the item identifier and failing to find the item identifier in the memory, checks a second memory via the communication network for the item identifier, and adds the item identifier to the memory in the event that the second memory does not contain the item identifier.

12. A light-based system for identifying personal items comprising:

a personal mobile electronic communication device for transmitting a first signal for indicating an item identifier;

a processor for at least approximately ascertaining the location of the personal mobile electronic communication device;

a memory for associating the item identifier with an item location for a personal item;

a communication network for receiving the first signal from the personal mobile electronic communication device, for determining the item identifier from the first signal, and for transmitting the item identifier to the processor,

wherein the processor checks the memory for the presence of the item location associated with the item identifier and generates an illumination command based upon the association; and

a lighting controller controlling a plurality of individually controllable luminaires in a lighting network and separate from the personal item, the lighting controller operable to control the plurality of luminaires in a room containing the personal item, the lighting controller operable for receiving the illumination command and, in response to the illumination command, for controlling

a first illumination from a first luminaire in the lighting network proximate to the personal item and

a second illumination from a second luminaire in the lighting network proximate to the personal mobile electronic communication device for visually indicating a link between the personal item and the personal mobile electronic communication device using the first illumination and the second illumination.

13. The light-based system of claim 12, further comprising a pair of electronically shuttered spectacles for making the illumination visible and for blocking vision using time slices and light pulses introduced into the blocked time slices.