Wall-mountable wireless remote control device
First Claim
1. A wall-mountable remote control device for controlling an electrical load device adapted to receive power from an AC power source, the remote control device comprising:
- an enclosure configured to be mounted inside of an electrical wallbox;
an air-gap switch located in the enclosure and adapted to be electrically coupled in series between the AC power source and the electrical load device;
an air-gap switch actuator configured to open and close the air-gap switch;
a user interface configured to receive an input;
a radio-frequency (RF) communication circuit configured to transmit an RF signal; and
a control circuit coupled to the user interface and the RF communication circuit, the control circuit configured to cause the RF communication circuit to transmit the RF signal in response to the input received by the user interface, the RF signal including a command for controlling the electrical load device.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A wall-mountable remote control device may be installed in place of an existing light switch and may be configured to transmit wireless signals to an electrical load device, such as a screw-in light-emitting diode (LED) lamp, to provide control of the electrical load device. The remote control device may comprise an air-gap switch adapted to be electrically coupled in series between a power source and the controllable light source, but may not comprise a bidirectional semiconductor switch for controlling the amount of power delivered to the electrical load device using a phase-control dimming technique. The remote control device may have a low-profile enclosure that is smaller than an enclosure of a standard dimmer switch, and thus may be easier to install in an electrical wallbox. The remote control device may comprise two parts including an air-gap switch device and a wireless communication device mounted to the air-gap switch device.
42 Citations
25 Claims
-
1. A wall-mountable remote control device for controlling an electrical load device adapted to receive power from an AC power source, the remote control device comprising:
-
an enclosure configured to be mounted inside of an electrical wallbox; an air-gap switch located in the enclosure and adapted to be electrically coupled in series between the AC power source and the electrical load device; an air-gap switch actuator configured to open and close the air-gap switch; a user interface configured to receive an input; a radio-frequency (RF) communication circuit configured to transmit an RF signal; and a control circuit coupled to the user interface and the RF communication circuit, the control circuit configured to cause the RF communication circuit to transmit the RF signal in response to the input received by the user interface, the RF signal including a command for controlling the electrical load device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
-
-
20. A load control system comprising:
-
an electrical load device adapted to receive power from an AC power source; and a remote control device configured to be mounted to an electrical wallbox, the remote control device comprising; an air-gap switch adapted to be substantially directly electrically coupled in series between the AC power source and the electrical load device to generate a load voltage across the electrical load device, wherein the load voltage is substantially undistorted from an AC line voltage produced by the AC power source; a user interface configured to receive an input; a radio-frequency (RF) communication circuit configured to transmit an RF signal; and a control circuit coupled to the user interface and the RF communication circuit and configured to cause the RF communication circuit to transmit the RF signal directly to the electrical load device in response to the input received by the user interface; wherein the electrical load device is configured to adjust an amount of power consumed by the electrical load device solely in response to the RF signal. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24)
-
-
25. An air-gap switch device for use in a load control system for controlling an amount of power delivered from an AC power source to an electrical load device, the load control system comprising a wireless communication device, the air-gap switch device comprising:
-
a yoke portion configured to be mounted to an electrical wallbox; an enclosure connected to the yoke portion in such a way as to be located inside of the wallbox when the yoke portion is mounted to the wallbox; an air-gap switch located inside of the enclosure and adapted to be electrically coupled in series between the AC power source and the electrical load device; and an air-gap switch actuator mechanically coupled to the air-gap switch and configured to be actuated by a user to open and close the air-gap switch; wherein the yoke portion defines a mounting structure that is configured to releasably receive the wireless communication device.
-
Specification