Environment controllers capable of controlling a plurality of smart light fixtures

• US 9,924,021 B2
• Filed: 03/09/2017
• Issued: 03/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Distech Controls, Inc. (Acuity Brands, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Distech Controls, Inc. (Acuity Brands, Inc.)
• Inventors: Breton, Danny, Soucy, Patrice, Yousfi, Iliass, Sdruscia, Ugo
• Primary Examiner(s): SANDIFORD, DEVAN A
• Application Number:
  US15/454,417
• Publication Number:
  US 20170264731A1
• Time in Patent Office: 376 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

Environment controllers for the configuration and control of a plurality of smart light fixtures. A master environment controller exchange data with a fixture management server and a plurality of slave environment controllers. Each slave environment controller is in charge of controlling a plurality of light fixtures. The master environment controller receives a command targeting a particular light fixture from the fixture management server. The environment controller determines a target slave environment controller in charge of controlling the particular light fixture, among the plurality of slave environment controllers. The master environment controller forwards the received command to the target slave environment controller. The target slave environment controller further transmits the forwarded command to the particular light fixture. Alternatively, an independent environment controller is in charge of controlling a plurality of light fixtures under the direct supervision of a fixture management server, without using an intermediate master environment controller.

Claims

1. A master environment controller, comprising:

a communication interface for exchanging data with a fixture management server and at least one slave environment controller;

memory for storing a mapping of each of the at least one slave environment controller with a plurality of light fixtures, each one of the plurality of light fixtures being identified by a unique identifier;

a processing unit for;

receiving a first command from the fixture management server via the communication interface, the first command comprising a unique identifier of a target light fixture;

transmitting a second command to the target light fixture, wherein the second command is based on the first command and controls interactions of the target light fixture with mobile computing devices;

determining a target slave environment controller among the at least one slave environment controller based on the unique identifier of the target light fixture and the mapping stored in memory; and

transmitting a third command to the target slave environment controller, wherein the third command is based on the first command, comprises the unique identifier of the target light fixture, and controls interactions of the target light fixture with the target slave environment controller.

2. The master environment controller of claim 1, wherein the communication interface is adapted for exchanging data with the at least one slave environment controller over one of the following:

a Wi-Fi network, a mesh network, and a combination thereof;

the exchanged data comprising the third command.

3. The master environment controller of claim 1, wherein the first command comprises an activation or a deactivation of the interactions of the target light fixture, and the second command comprises the activation or the deactivation of the Interactions of the target light fixture with the mobile computing devices.

4. The master environment controller of claim 1, wherein the first command comprises a unique pattern used during the interactions of the target light fixture for uniquely identifying the target light fixture, and the second command comprises the unique pattern used during the interactions of the target light fixture with the mobile computing devices.

5. The master environment controller of claim 4, wherein the unique pattern is the unique identifier of the target fixture.

6. The master environment controller of claim 1, wherein the first command comprises information for transmission during the interactions of the target light fixture, and the second command comprises information for transmission during the Interactions of the target light fixture with the mobile computing devices;

the information being different from a unique pattern used during the interactions of the target light fixture with the mobile computing devices for uniquely identifying the target light fixture.

7. The master environment controller of claim 1, wherein the first command comprises a configuration parameter and a time period defining when the configuration parameter shall be applied to the target light fixture, and the second command comprises the configuration parameter and the time period.

8. An environment controller, comprising:

a communication interface for exchanging data with a plurality of light fixtures;

memory for storing a unique identifier for each one of the plurality of light fixtures;

a processing unit for;

receiving a first command from one of a fixture management server or a master environment controller via the communication interface, the first command comprising a target identifier;

determining a target light fixture among the plurality of light fixtures, the target light fixture having a unique identifier corresponding to the target identifier; and

transmitting a second command based on the first command to the target light fixture, wherein the first command controls Interactions of the target light fixture with mobile computing devices.

9. The environment controller of claim 8, wherein the communication interface is adapted for exchanging data with the plurality of light fixtures over one of the following:

a Wi-Fi network, a mesh network, a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) network, and a combination thereof;

the exchanged data comprising the second command.

10. The environment controller of claim 8, wherein the communication interface is adapted for transmitting the second command to the target light fixture over a mesh network compliant with the 802.11s standard.

11. The environment controller of claim 8, wherein the unique identifier of the target light fixture is mapped to at least one networking identifier used for transmitting the second command to the target light fixture, the mapping being stored in the memory.

12. The environment controller of claim 8, wherein the first command comprises an activation or a deactivation of the interactions of the target light fixture with the mobile computing devices, and the second command comprises the activation or the deactivation.

13. The environment controller of claim 8, wherein the first command comprises a unique pattern used during the interactions of the target light fixture with the mobile computing devices for uniquely identifying the target light fixture, and the second command comprises the unique pattern.

14. The environment controller of claim 13, wherein the unique pattern is the target identifier.

15. The environment controller of claim 8, wherein the first command comprises information for transmission during the interactions of the target light fixture with the mobile computing devices, and the second command comprises the information;

the information being different from a unique pattern used during the interactions of the target light fixture with the mobile computing devices for uniquely identifying the target light fixture.

16. The environment controller of claim 8, wherein the first command comprises a configuration parameter and a time period defining when the configuration parameter shall be applied to the target light fixture, and the second comprises the configuration parameter and the time period.