Association of a portable sensor device in a building management system

• US 9,952,569 B2
• Filed: 04/18/2013
• Issued: 04/24/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Schneider Electric Buildings Americas Incorporated (Schneider Electric SE)
• Original Assignee: Schneider Electric Buildings LLC (Schneider Electric SE)
• Inventors: Brissman, Jan
• Primary Examiner(s): Huang, Miranda
• Assistant Examiner(s): LOPEZ ALVAREZ, OLVIN
• Application Number:
  US14/395,335
• Publication Number:
  US 20150134085A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,832 Days
• Field of Search: 700 66
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/30 for purposes related to the operation of the system, e.g. for safety or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/46 Improving electric energy efficiency or saving
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/56 Remote control
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/63 Electronic processing
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2110/00 Control inputs relating to air properties
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/00 Control inputs relating to users or occupants
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2221/12 transportable
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2642 Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1932 to control the temperature of a plurality of spaces
• 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: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

There is provided a building management system and a method for associating a portable sensor device with a stationary control device in such a system. Upon detection of a movement of the portable sensor device, the portable sensor device starts to transmit signals more frequently to the stationary control devices. It is determined that the movement of the portable sensor device has stopped if the signal strength of the transmitted signals received at the stationary control devices is essentially constant during a time window. In response to such a determination, the portable sensor device is associated with the stationary control device having the highest received signal strength and the portable sensor device returns to an energy-saving mode.

Claims

1. A method for associating a portable sensor device with a stationary control device in a building management system comprising a plurality of stationary control devices being connected in a network, and the portable sensor device being associated with one of the stationary control devices, the method comprising:

transmitting, by the portable sensor device when in an energy saving mode, a signal occurring at a first frequency to a first stationary control device to which the portable sensor device is associated so as to provide the first stationary control device with sensor data;

detecting, by a motion detector within the portable sensor device, a movement of the portable sensor device, whereby the portable sensor device changes from the energy saving mode to an energy consuming mode in which the portable sensor device transmits a signal occurring at a second frequency being larger than the first frequency;

receiving the signal transmitted by the portable sensor device occurring at the second frequency by the plurality of stationary control devices, wherein the received signal at each of the receiving stationary control devices is associated with a received signal strength;

determining if the received signal strength of each of the receiving stationary control devices is essentially constant during a time window, thereby determining if the movement of the portable sensor device has stopped; and

in case the received signal strength of each of the receiving stationary control devices is essentially constant during a time window, associating, by a processing unit which is separate from the portable sensor, the portable sensor device with the stationary control device having the highest received signal strength, whereby the portable sensor device returns to the energy savings mode, whereby the portable sensor device returns to the energy saving mode in which the portable sensor device transmits a signal occurring at the first frequency to the second stationary control device to which the portable sensor device is associated so as to provide the second stationary control device with sensor data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensor data relates to indoor environmental conditions such as heating, ventilation, air-conditioning measurements or settings.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of associating the portable sensor device with the second stationary control device having the highest received signal strength further comprises:

transmitting control parameters from the portable sensor device to the associated stationary control device.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the control parameters comprise reference values for the stationary control device being chosen from a set of predefined control parameters.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that the portable sensor device is still associated with the first stationary control device after a predetermined time, whereby the portable sensor device returns to the energy saving mode.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the building management system comprises a plurality of portable sensor devices, and wherein each stationary control device has an order of priority for the sensor data received from the plurality of portable sensor devices.

7. The method of claim 1, prior to the act of determining if the received signal strength of each of the receiving stationary control devices is essentially constant during a time window:

determining that the received signal strength of the first stationary control device is below a predefined threshold;

associating the portable sensor device with the stationary control device having the highest received signal strength.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein in the act of determining if the received signal strength of each of the receiving stationary control devices is essentially constant during a first time window, only stationary control devices within a predetermined distance from the first stationary control device are considered.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising

storing data relating to signals received by the stationary control devices and their associated signal strengths,

tracking the movement of the portable sensor device based on the stored data by setting the position of the portable sensor device at a time point to the position of the stationary control device having the highest associated received signal strength at the time point.

10. A building management system, comprising

a plurality of stationary control devices being connected in a network;

a portable sensor device being arranged to be associated with one of the stationary control devices, wherein the portable sensor device is arranged to transmit, when in an energy saving mode, a signal occurring at a first frequency to a first stationary control device to which it is associated so as to provide the first stationary control device with sensor data;

a motion detector arranged within the portable sensor device to detect a movement of the portable sensor device, wherein the portable sensor device is arranged to change from the energy saving mode to an energy consuming mode upon a detection of a movement, wherein, when in the energy consuming mode, the portable sensor device is arranged to transmit a signal occurring at a second frequency being larger than the first frequency;

wherein the plurality of stationary control devices are arranged to receive the signal transmitted by the portable sensor device occurring at the second frequency, and wherein the received signal at each of the receiving stationary control devices is associated with a received signal strength; and

a processing unit which is separate from the portable sensor device and which is arranged to determine if the received signal strength of each of the receiving stationary control devices is essentially constant during a first time window, thereby being arranged to determine if the movement of the portable device has stopped, to associate the portable sensor device with a second stationary control device instead of the first stationary control device, the second stationary control device being the stationary control device having the highest received signal strength, in case the received signal strength of each of the receiving stationary control devices is essentially constant during a first time window, and to instruct the portable sensor device to return to the energy saving mode, whereby the portable sensor device is arranged to transmit a signal occurring at the first frequency to the second stationary control device to which it is associated so as to provide the second stationary control device with sensor data.

11. The building management system of claim 10, wherein the portable sensor device further is arranged to transmit control parameters to its associated stationary control device prior to returning to the energy saving mode.

12. The building management system of claim 10, wherein the processing unit is further arranged to determine that the first stationary control device is still associated with the first stationary control device after a predetermined time, and to instruct the portable sensor device to return to the energy saving mode in response to the determination.

13. The building management system of claim 10, further comprising several portable sensor devices, wherein each stationary control device has an order of priority for the sensor data received from the plurality of portable sensor devices.

14. The building management system of claim 10, wherein the processing unit is further arranged to store data relating to signals received by the stationary control devices and the associated signal strengths, and to tracking the movement of the portable sensor device based on the stored data by setting the position of the portable sensor device at a time point to the position of the stationary control device having the highest associated received signal strength at the time point.

15. The building management system of claim 10, wherein the processing unit further is arranged to, prior to the act of determining if the received signal strength of each of the receiving stationary control devices is essentially constant during a first time window:

determine that the received signal strength of the first stationary control device is equal to zero; and

to associate the portable sensor device with the stationary control device having the highest received signal strength.