Beacon transmission of a fixture that includes sensed information

• US 9,544,978 B2
• Filed: 04/14/2015
• Issued: 01/10/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Building Robotics, Inc. (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Enlighted, Inc. (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: Mohan, Tanuj, Krishnamurthy, Vijayalakshmi
• Primary Examiner(s): Le, Tung X
• Application Number:
  US14/685,834
• Publication Number:
  US 20150223309A1
• Time in Patent Office: 637 Days
• Field of Search: 315/152, 315/307, 315/312, 315/360
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 1/0423 Mounting or deployment thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 1/0428 Signal details
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 1/68 Marker, boundary, call-sign, or like beacons transmitting signals not carrying directional information
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0036 of measured values, i.e. measurement on mobile and position calculation on base station
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2642 Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/11 by determining the brightness or colour temperature of ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/115 by determining the presence or movement of objects or living beings
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/13 by using passive infrared detectors
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/175 by remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/19 via wireless transmission
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/40 Control techniques providing energy savings, e.g. smart controller or presence detection

Abstract

An apparatuses, methods and systems for beacon transmission of a fixture that includes sensed information are disclosed. For an embodiment, the fixture includes a sensor operative to generate a sense signal, communication circuitry operative to maintain a link with a network, a wireless transmitter, and a controller. The controller is operative to receive the sensed signal, manage communication with the network, and manage transmission of beacons through the wireless transmitter, wherein the beacons include information associated with the fixture, wherein the information includes at least information of the sense signal.

Claims

1. A fixture comprising:

a sensor, the sensor operative to generate a sense signal, wherein the sensor comprises a motion sensor operative to sense motion;

a wireless transmitter;

a controller, the controller operative to;

receive the sensed signal that includes the sensed motion;

match the sensed motion with one of a plurality of stored patterns of events; and

identify an event associated with the sensed motion based on a match between a one of the plurality of patterns and the sensed motion;

and

manage transmission of beacons through the wireless transmitter, wherein the beacons include information associated with the fixture, wherein the information includes the identified event.

2. The fixture of claim 1, further comprising communication circuitry, the communication circuitry operative to maintain a link with a network, and wherein the controller is further operative to manage communication with the network.

3. The fixture of claim 1, further comprising adaptively adjusting a transmission signal power of the transmitted beacons.

4. The fixture of claim 3, wherein the transmission signal power is adaptively adjusted to be at a first level upon sensing motion, and decaying to a lower level after a period of time.

5. The fixture of claim 1, wherein the sensor comprises a PIR (passive infrared) sensor.

6. The fixture of claim 1, wherein the sensor comprises an ambient light sensor.

7. The fixture of claim 6, wherein the ambient light sensor senses motion and presence of a person by sensing a variation in ambient light, and wherein the sensed motion and sensed presence of the person is included within the beacons.

8. The fixture of claim 6, wherein a signature of change of a sense signal of the ambient light sensor is used to detect and identify specific movement.

9. The fixture of claim 1, further comprising a sub-sensor, wherein the sub-sensor is interfaced with the sensor, and provides a sub-sensor sensed signal.

10. The fixture of claim 1, further comprising triggering the transmission of beacons based on sensing motion.

11. The fixture of claim 10, wherein the beacon transmission ceases after sensing no motion for at least a threshold amount of time.

12. The fixtures of claim 1, wherein the controller is further operative to manage communication with an upstream server, and wherein a mobile device that receives the beacons communicates at least a portion of the information of the beacons to the upstream server.

13. A building system, comprising:

a plurality of building fixtures, wherein one or more of the plurality of building fixtures comprises;

a sensor, the sensor operative to generate a sense signal based on at least one of sensed motion or light;

communication circuitry, the communication circuitry operative to maintain a link with a network;

a wireless transmitter;

a controller, the controller operative to;

receive the sensed signal;

manage communication with the network; and

manage transmission of beacons through the wireless transmitter, wherein the beacons include information associated with the building fixture, wherein the information includes sensed motion or sensed light information;

wherein the building system further includes;

a system controller that is interfaced with the plurality of building fixtures, and wherein the system controller is operative to;

received modified beacons from a mobile device;

estimate a location of the mobile device; and

aid a controller of at least one of the plurality of building fixtures in management of the transmission of beacons based on the estimated location of the mobile device.

14. The building system of claim 13, wherein the system controller aiding the controller of at least one of the plurality of building fixtures comprises the system controller managing a timing of the transmission of the beacons and a signal strength of the transmission of the beacons.

15. A method for beacon transmission of a building fixture that includes sensed information comprising:

generating, by a sensor of the building fixture, a sensed signal, wherein the sensor comprises a motion sensor operative to sense motion;

managing, by a controller of the building fixture, communication with a network;

matching, by the controller of the building fixture, the sensed motion with one of a plurality of stored patterns of events;

identifying, by the controller of the building fixture, an event associated with the sensed motion based on a match between a one of the plurality of patterns and the sensed motion; and

managing, by the controller, transmission of beacons through a wireless transmitter of the building fixture, wherein the beacons include information associated with the building fixture, wherein the information includes the identified event.

16. The method claim 15, further comprising adaptively adjusting a transmission signal power of the transmitted beacons.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein transmission signal power is adjusted according to a predetermined sequence of power level and time intervals.

18. The method claim 15, wherein the transmission signal power is adaptively adjusted to be at a first level upon sensing motion, and decaying to a lower level after a period of time.

19. The method claim 15, wherein the sensor comprises an ambient light sensor.

20. The method claim 19, wherein the ambient light sensor senses motion and presence of a person by sensing a variation in ambient light, and wherein the sensed motion and sensed presence of the person is included within the beacons.

21. The method claim 15, further comprising triggering the transmission of beacons based on sensing motion.