Communications system and communications lighting apparatus

• US 20050002673A1
• Filed: 03/26/2004
• Published: 01/06/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Hino, Tomonori, Okano, Nobukata, Watanabe, Yoshiaki, Narui, Hironobu, Mitomo, Jugo
• Application Number:
  US10/809,432
• Publication Number:
  US 20050002673A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 398/130
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/1149 Arrangements for indoor wireless networking of information
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/116 Visible light communication

Abstract

An optical-information transmitting, lighting apparatus 2 is installed in a place where a lighting apparatus of the existing type for applying light generally used is provided. The lighting apparatus 2 comprises an illumination light source 4 for applying light and an information-transmitting unit 5 for transmitting optical information. A person who may receive information from the lighting apparatus 2 has a mobile terminal 3, which receives the optical information transmitted from the information-transmitting unit 5. Since the lighting apparatus of the existing type is widely used in our living space. Hence, the optical-information transmitting, lighting apparatus 2 can convert every place where an existing type lighting apparatus is used, into an optical communications space.

Claims

1. A communications system comprising:

a communications lighting apparatus having a first light source unit which emits illumination light and a second light source unit which transmits information in the form of an optical signal; and

a mobile terminal device which receives the optical signal emitted by the second light source.

2. A communications system according to claim 1, wherein the second light source unit has an emission band in the near-infrared band, the intermediate far-infrared band or a longer wavelength band.

3. A communications system according to claim 1, wherein the second light source unit has at least two light sources which intermittently emit light beams of the same wavelength, which are independent of each other.

4. A communications system according to claim 1, wherein the second light source unit has at least two light sources which intermittently emit light beams of different wavelengths, which are independent of each other.

5. A communications system according to claim 1, further comprising a third light source unit which emits a visible light beam indicating a region in which the optical signal emitted from the second light source unit can be received.

6. A communications system according to claim 1, wherein the first light source unit intermittently emits an optical signal in a predetermined pattern.

7. A communications system according to claim 1, wherein the mobile terminal device has optical-signal display means for displaying the contents of the optical signal received.

8. A communications lighting apparatus comprising:

a first light source unit which emits illumination light; and

a second light source unit which transmits information in the form of an optical signal.

9. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, which can be replaced by an existing lighting apparatus.

10. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the second light source unit has an emission band in the near-infrared band, the intermediate far-infrared band or a longer wavelength band.

11. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the second light source unit has at least two light sources which intermittently emit light beams of the same wavelength, which are independent of each other.

12. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the second light source unit has at least two light sources which intermittently emit light beams of different wavelengths, which are independent of each other.

13. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the second light source unit has an end-plane emission semiconductor laser used as a light source.

14. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the second light source unit has a vertical-plane emission semiconductor laser used as a light source.

15. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the second light source unit has a quantum-cascade semiconductor laser used as a light source.

16. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the second light source unit is a combination of an end-plane emission semiconductor laser, a vertical-plane emission semiconductor laser, and a quantum-cascade semiconductor layer.

17. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising a third light source unit which emits a visible light beam indicating a region in which the optical signal emitted from the second light source unit can be received.

18. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising a removable recording medium which stores information to be transmitted in the form of an optical signal, and reading means for reading the information stored in the recording medium.

19. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising an information input section for receiving from an external apparatus the information to be transmitted in the form of an optical signal, and recording means for recording the information received by the information input section.

20. A communications lighting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the first light source unit intermittently emits an optical signal in a predetermined pattern.