Control device having buttons with automatically adjustable backlighting

• US 9,860,952 B2
• Filed: 05/26/2016
• Issued: 01/02/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lutron Technology Company LLC
• Original Assignee: Lutron Electronics Company Incorporated (Lutron Electronics)
• Inventors: Twaddell, Daniel L., McDonald, Matthew Philip, Killo, Jason C., Quayle, Jonathan Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Owens, Douglas W
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kaiser, Syed M
• Application Number:
  US15/165,579
• Publication Number:
  US 20160353543A1
• Time in Patent Office: 586 Days
• Field of Search: 315153, 315224, 315297, 315307, 315200 R, 315185 R, 29622
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 13/83 characterised by legends, e.g. Braille, liquid crystal displays, light emitting or optical elements
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2219/038 ambient light dependent
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2219/039 Selective or different modes of illumination
• CPC Class Codes: H02B 15/00 Supervisory desks or panels for centralised control or display
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 31/50 specially adapted for ac
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/12 using optical feedback
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/10 Controlling the light source
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/11 by determining the brightness or colour temperature of ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/175 by remote control
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/40 Control techniques providing energy savings, e.g. smart controller or presence detection

Abstract

A control device may comprise a plurality of buttons, a plurality of light sources located behind the respective buttons and configured to illuminate the buttons, a light detector circuit configured to measure an ambient light level around the control device, and/or a control circuit configured to control the light sources to adjust surface illumination intensities of the respective buttons in response to the measured ambient light level. Each button may comprise indicia indicating a function of the button. The control circuit set the first button as active and the second button as inactive in response to an actuation of the first button. The control circuit may, based on the measured ambient light level, control the light sources to illuminate the first button to an active surface illumination intensity, and to illuminate the second button to an inactive surface illumination intensity that is less than the active surface illumination intensity.

Claims

1. A control device comprising:

a first button and a second button;

a first light source configured to illuminate the first button, and a second light source configured to illuminate the second button;

a light detector circuit configured to measure an ambient light level in a vicinity around the control device;

a memory for storing a first adjustment curve and a second adjustment curve; and

a control circuit configured to;

control the first light source to illuminate the first button to a first surface illumination intensity and control the second light source to illuminate the second button to a second surface illumination intensity, the second surface illumination intensity being less than the first surface illumination intensity; and

adjust the first surface illumination intensity in response to the ambient light level measured by the light detector circuit using the first adjustment curve, and adjust the second surface illumination intensity in response to the ambient light level measured by the light detector circuit using the second adjustment curve.

2. The control device of claim 1, further comprising:

a communication circuit configured to receive a signal from an external device, the signal comprising information relating to at least one of the first adjustment curve or the second adjustment curve;

wherein the control circuit is configured to adjust at least one of the first adjustment curve or the second adjustment curve stored in the memory in response to the information received via the signal.

3. The control device of claim 2, wherein the control circuit is configured to adjust the first adjustment curve and maintain the second adjustment curve the same in response to the information received via the signal to control a contrast between the first and second surface illumination intensities associated with the first and second adjustment curves.

4. The control device of claim 2, wherein the information relating to the at least one of the first adjustment curve or the second adjustment curve comprises at least one of a scaling factor or an offset;

and

wherein the control circuit is configured to generate the first and second adjustment curves based on the at least one of the scaling factor or the offset.

5. The control device of claim 1, wherein the first and second light sources comprise respective first and second light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and the control circuit is configured to pulse-width modulate first LED current conducted through the first LEDs to adjust the first surface illumination intensity, and to pulse-width modulate second LED current conducted through the second LEDs to adjust the second surface illumination intensity.

6. The control device of claim 5, wherein the control circuit is configured to determine a first LED duty cycle for the first LED current based on the first adjustment curve, and to determine a second LED duty cycle for the second LED current based on the second adjustment curve.

7. The control device of claim 1, wherein the first and second adjustment curves are non-linearly related.

8. The control device of claim 1, wherein the control circuit is configured to transmit a digital message to an external load control device via a communication link for controlling an external electrical load.

9. The control device of claim 8, wherein the communication link comprises a wired communication link or a wireless communication link.

10. The control device of claim 1, wherein the control circuit is further configured to set the first button as active and the second button as inactive in response to an actuation of the first button.

11. The control device of claim 1, further comprising a communication circuit configured to receive a signal from an external device;

wherein the control circuit is configured to set the first button as active and the second button as inactive based on the signal.

12. The control device of claim 1, wherein the first light source is located behind the first button and the second light source is located behind the second button, or the first light source is located to the side of the first button and the second light source is located to the side of the second button.

13. The control device of claim 1, wherein the first button comprises first indicia indicating a function of the first button, and the second button comprises second indicia indicating a function of the second button.

14. The control device of claim 1, further comprising an internal load control circuit for controlling power delivered to an external electrical load.

15. A control device comprising:

a plurality of buttons;

a plurality of light sources comprising light-emitting diodes (LEDs), wherein each of the plurality of light sources is configured to illuminate a respective button of the plurality of buttons;

a light detector circuit configured to measure an ambient light level in a vicinity around the control device;

a memory for storing a first adjustment curve and a second adjustment curve; and

a control circuit configured to;

set one of the plurality of buttons as active;

control the light source associated with the active button to illuminate the active button to an active surface illumination intensity based on a measured ambient light level measured by the light detector using the first adjustment curve;

control the light sources associated with the remaining of the plurality of buttons to illuminate the respective buttons to an inactive surface illumination intensity using the second adjustment curve, based on the measured ambient light level, and based on the relative location of the button with respect to the active button, the inactive surface illumination intensity less than the active surface illumination intensity.

16. The control device of claim 15, wherein each button comprises indicia that is offset from a center of the button, and the control circuit is configured to control the light sources associated with the remaining of the plurality of buttons to illuminate the respective buttons to the inactive surface illumination intensity based on the measured ambient light level and based on the relative location of the button with respect to the indicia of the active button.

17. The control device of claim 15, wherein the control circuit is configured to determine that the active button is active in response to an actuation of the active button.

18. The control device of claim 15, further comprising a communication circuit configured to receive a signal from an external device;

wherein the control circuit is configured to determine that the active button is active based on the signal.

19. A control device comprising:

a first button, a second button, and a third button, the first button located above the second button, and the third button located below the second button, the first button comprising first indicia located above a midpoint of the first button and indicating a function of the first button, the second button comprising second indicia located above a midpoint of the second button indicating a function of the second button, and the third button comprising third indicia located above a midpoint of the third button indicating the function of the third button;

a first light source comprising first light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and configured to illuminate the first button, a second light source comprising second LEDs and configured to illuminate the second button, and a third light source comprising third LEDs and configured to illuminate the third button;

a memory for storing an active adjustment curve and an inactive adjustment curve;

a light detector circuit configured to measure an ambient light level in a vicinity around the control device; and

a control circuit configured to;

set the first button as active, the second button as inactive, and the third button as inactive;

control the first light source to illuminate the first button to the active surface illumination intensity, control the second light source to illuminate the second button to the inactive surface illumination intensity, and control the third light source to illuminate the third button to the inactive surface illumination intensity, the inactive surface illumination intensity being less than the active surface illumination intensity;

determine a first LED duty cycle to pulse-width modulate a first LED current conducted through the first LEDs to adjust the active surface illumination intensity in response to the ambient light level measured by the light detector circuit using the active adjustment curve;

determine a second LED duty cycle to pulse-width modulate a second LED current conducted through the second LEDs to adjust the inactive surface illumination intensity in response to the ambient light level measured by the light detector circuit using the inactive adjustment curve;

determine a third LED duty cycle to pulse-width modulate a third LED current conducted through the third LEDs to adjust the inactive surface illumination intensity in response to the ambient light level measured by the light detector circuit using the inactive adjustment curve, wherein the second LED duty cycle is less than the third LED duty cycle.

20. A control device comprising:

a first light source configured to illuminate a first location of the control device, and a second light source configured to illuminate a second location of the control device;

a light detector circuit configured to measure an ambient light level in a vicinity around the control device;

a memory for storing a first adjustment curve and a second adjustment curve; and

a control circuit configured to;

control the first light source to illuminate the first location to a first surface illumination intensity and control the second light source to illuminate the second location to a second surface illumination intensity, the second surface illumination intensity being less than the first surface illumination intensity; and

adjust the first surface illumination intensity in response to the ambient light level measured by the light detector circuit using the first adjustment curve, and adjust the second surface illumination intensity in response to the ambient light level measured by the light detector circuit using the second adjustment curve.

21. The control device of claim 20, further comprising a faceplate comprising first indicia and second indicia, the first indicia defining the first location and the second indicia defining the second location.

22. The control device of claim 20, further comprising:

a faceplate comprising indicia, the indicia defining the first location; and

a button comprising the second location.

23. The control device of claim 20, further comprising a button comprising the first location and the second location.

24. The control device of claim 23, wherein the button comprises first indicia indicating a function of the first location of the button, and second indicia indicating a function of the second location of the button.

25. The control device of claim 20, wherein the first and second light sources comprise respective first and second light-emitting diodes (LEDs);

wherein the control circuit is configured to pulse-width modulate first LED current conducted through the first LEDs to adjust the first surface illumination intensity, and to pulse-width modulate second LED current conducted through the second LEDs to adjust the second surface illumination intensity, and wherein the control circuit is configured to determine a first LED duty cycle for the first LED current based on the first adjustment curve, and to determine a second LED duty cycle for the second LED current based on the second adjustment curve.

26. The control device of claim 20, wherein the first and second adjustment curves are non-linearly related.