Moveable desktop light controller

• US 5,455,487 A
• Filed: 09/22/1993
• Issued: 10/03/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: The Watt Stopper Incorporated (Legrand SA)
• Original Assignee: The Watt Stopper Incorporated (Legrand SA)
• Inventors: Sprout, James C., Mix, Jerome M., Hu, Charles C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pascal, Robert J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): GAMBINO, DARUIS
• Application Number:
  US08/125,989
• Time in Patent Office: 741 Days
• Field of Search: 315/150, 315/159, 315/291, 315/307, 315/153, 315/156, 455/66, 455/70, 340/825.06, 340/825.72, 250/221, 359/142, 359/147
• US Class Current: 315/150
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 39/042 by measuring the incident light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 41/3922 and measurement of the incident light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/11 by determining the brightness or colour temperature of ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/115 by determining the presence or movement of objects or living beings
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/13 by using passive infrared detectors
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/19 via wireless transmission
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/40 Control techniques providing energy savings, e.g. smart controller or presence detection

Abstract

A device for controlling power to an electrical load. The device has two components: a portable desktop detector unit and a wall-mounted receiver unit. The desktop detector detects the presence of a human in a room and the ambient light level and sends signals to the receiver unit to supply power to or withhold power from an electrical load such as a fluorescent light and to adjust the brightness of the light. Since the detector is portable, it can be positioned and repositioned at different locations in a room to maximize its ability to detect the presence of a human and to sense the level of ambient light in various room locations. Each detector and receiver pair have matching addresses so that a receiver will operate an electrical load only in response to its mated detector, thus allowing multiple devices to be used to control multiple lights without interfering with each other. The device can also operate with a third component that acts as a master key and controls the maximum brightness, at which lights may be operated.

Claims

1. An apparatus for controlling power to a light, said apparatus comprising:

(a) a remote sensing device, including;

i) detecting means for detecting the presence of a person;

ii) timing means, coupled to said detecting means, for timing periods when no person is detected by said detecting means;

iii) signal generating means, coupled to said detecting means and to said timing means, for generating a control signal indicating the presence of a person or the absence of a person for a predetermined time period;

iv) address selecting means for selecting an address signal to be transmitted with said control signal; and

v) photo sensing means for sensing the level of ambient light in a room;

vi) intensity calculating means, coupled to said photo sensing means, for calculating a particular light output intensity level based on the sensed ambient light level and generating an intensity signal indicating said particular output light intensity level; and

vii) transmitting means, coupled to said signal generating means and to said address setting means, for transmitting a wireless transmission of said control signal, said address signal, and said intensity signal; and

(b) a control unit, separate from said remote sensing device, including;

i) signal receiving means for receiving said wireless transmission of said control signal, said address signals, and said intensity signal;

ii) address assigning means for assigning an address to said control unit;

iii) address comparing means, coupled to said address assigning means and to said signal receiving means, for comparing said assigned address to said received address signal;

iv) power switching means, coupled to said signal receiving means, for switching power to said light in response to said control signal when said received address signal matches said assigned address; and

v) brightness adjusting means, coupled to said signal receiving means and to said light, for adjusting the brightness level of said light in response to said intensity signal when said received address signal matches said assigned address; and

wherein said remote sensing device further comprises brightness selecting means, coupled to said signal generating means, for enabling a user to select a particular brightness level to which said brightness adjusting means will adjust said light to.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said brightness selecting means comprises a key pad input device.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said key pad input device comprises at least a first and a second key, said first key for enabling said user to select incrementally increasing brightness levels of said light and said second key for allowing said user to select incrementally decreasing brightness levels of said light.

4. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said brightness selecting means further comprises a light level counter coupled to said key pad input device.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a first amplifier circuit coupled at an input to said detecting means and at an output to said timing means and a second amplifier circuit coupled at an input to said photo sensor and at an output to said intensity calculating means.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 further comprising a first filter circuit coupled at an input to said output of said first amplifier circuit and at an output to said timing means, and a second filter circuit coupled at an input to said output of said second amplifier circuit and at an output to said intensity calculating means.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said detecting means comprises an infrared detector.

8. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said motion detecting means comprises an ultrasonic motion detector comprising an ultrasonic transmitter and an ultrasonic receiver.

9. The apparatus of claim 7 or 8 wherein said transmitting means comprises an infrared signal transmitter.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said signal receiving means comprises a fiber optic cable.

11. The apparatus of claim 7 or 8 wherein said transmitting means comprises a radio frequency signal transmitter.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a maintenance controller, said maintenance controller comprising:

i) maximum brightness selecting means for selecting a maximum brightness level to which said light can be adjusted; and

ii) transmitting means for transmitting a wireless transmission of a second control signal indicating the selected maximum brightness level;

wherein said brightness adjusting means adjusts the brightness of said light in response to said first control signal only up to said selected maximum brightness level.

15. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein said maintenance controller is a hand-held unit.

16. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein said maintenance controller further comprises interface means for interfacing to and exchanging data with a computer system.

12. An apparatus for controlling power to a light, said apparatus comprising:

(a) a remote sensing device, including;

i) detecting means for detecting the presence of a person;

ii) timing means, coupled to said detecting means, for timing periods when no person is detected by said detecting means;

iii) signal generating means, coupled to said detecting means and to said timing means, for generating a control signal indicating the presence of a person or the absence of a person for a predetermined time period;

iv) address selecting means for selecting an address signal to be transmitted with said control signal; and

v) photo sensing means for sensing the level of ambient light in a room;

vi) intensity calculating means, coupled to said photo sensing means, for calculating a particular light output intensity level based on the sensed ambient light level and generating an intensity signal indicating said particular output light intensity level; and

vii) transmitting means, coupled to said signal generating means and to said address setting means for transmitting a wireless transmission of said control signal, said address signal, and said intensity signal; and

(b) a control unit, separate from said remote sensing device, including;

i) signal receiving means for receiving said wireless transmission of said control signal, said address signals, and said intensity signal;

ii) address assigning means for assigning an address to said control unit;

iii) address comparing means, coupled to said address assigning means and to said signal receiving means, for comparing said assigned address to said received address signal;

iv) power switching means, coupled to said signal receiving means, for switching power to said light in response to said control signal when said received address signal matches said assigned address; and

v) brightness adjusting means, coupled to said signal receiving means and to said light, for adjusting the brightness level of said light in response to said intensity signal when said received address signal matches said assigned address; and

wherein said remote sensing device further comprises power management means, coupled to said photo sensing means, for controlling when said photo sensing means senses the level of ambient light in the room.

13. An apparatus for controlling power to a light, said apparatus comprising:

(a) a remote sensing device, including;

i) detecting means for detecting the presence of a person;

ii) timing means, coupled to said detecting means, for timing periods when no person is detected by said detecting means;

iii) signal generating means, coupled to said detecting means and to said timing means, for generating a control signal indicating the presence of a person or the absence of a person for a predetermined time period;

iv) address selecting means for selecting an address signal to be transmitted with said control signal; and

v) photo sensing means for sensing the level of ambient light in a room;

vi) intensity calculating means, coupled to said photo sensing means, for calculating a particular light output intensity level based on the sensed ambient light level and generating an intensity signal indicating said particular output light intensity level; and

vii) transmitting means, coupled to said signal generating means and to said address setting means, for transmitting a wireless transmission of said control signal, said address signal, and said intensity signal; and

(b) a control unit, separate from said remote sensing device, including;

i) signal receiving means for receiving said wireless transmission of said control signal, said address signals, and said intensity signal;

ii) address assigning means for assigning an address to said control unit;

iii) address comparing means, coupled to said address assigning means and to said signal receiving means, for comparing said assigned address to said received address signal;

iv) power switching means, coupled to said signal receiving means, for switching power to said light in response to said control signal when said received address signal matches said assigned address; and

v) brightness adjusting means, coupled to said signal receiving means and to said light, for adjusting the brightness level of said light in response to said intensity signal when said received address signal matches said assigned address; and

wherein said remote sensing device further comprises power management means, coupled to said detecting means, to said photo sensing means, and to said timing means, for controlling when said photo sensing means senses the level of ambient light in the room and for controlling when said timing means times periods when no person is detected by said detecting means in response to signals generated by said detecting means and said timing means.

17. A portable desktop apparatus for controlling power to a lighting unit, said portable desktop apparatus comprising:

(a) detecting means for detecting whether an area is occupied;

(b) brightness selecting means for enabling a user to select a particular brightness level of said lighting unit;

(c) signal generating means, coupled to said detecting means and to said brightness selecting means, for generating a control signal in response to said detecting means indicating whether said area is occupied and for generating an intensity signal in response to said brightness selecting means indicating said selected brightness level; and

(d) transmitting means, coupled to said signal generating means, for transmitting a wireless transmission of said control signal and said intensity signal from said detecting means.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein said brightness selecting means comprises a key pad input device.

19. The apparatus of claim 18 wherein said key pad input device comprises at least a first and a second key, said first key for enabling said user to select incrementally increasing brightness levels of said light and said second key for allowing said user to select incrementally decreasing brightness levels of said light.

20. The apparatus of claim 18 wherein said brightness selecting means further comprises a light level counter coupled to said key pad input device.

21. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein said detecting means comprises an infrared detector.

22. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein said detecting means comprises an ultrasonic motion detector comprising an ultrasonic transmitter and an ultrasonic receiver.

23. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein said transmitting means comprises an infrared signal transmitter.

24. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein said transmitting means comprises a radio frequency signal transmitter.

25. The apparatus of claim 17 further comprising:

(e) address selecting means, coupled to said signal generating means, for selecting an address signal to be transmitted with said control signal; and

(f) encoding means, coupled to said selecting means and to said signal generating means and contained in said first housing, for encoding said address signal before transmission.

26. A system for controlling power to a lighting unit including the portable remote desktop apparatus set forth in claim 17 and further comprising a light control unit, coupled to said lighting unit, said light control unit including:

(c) signal receiving means for receiving said wireless transmission of said control signal and said intensity signal;

(d) brightness adjusting means, coupled to said signal receiving means and responsive to said wireless transmission of said intensity signal, for adjusting the brightness level of said light in response to said intensity signal; and

(e) power switching means, coupled to said signal receiving means and responsive to said wireless transmission of said control signal, for switching power to said lighting unit.

27. A portable desktop apparatus for controlling power to a lighting unit, said portable desktop apparatus comprising:

(a) brightness selecting means for enabling a user to select a particular brightness level of said lighting unit;

(b) signal generating means, coupled to said brightness selecting means, for generating an intensity signal in response to said brightness selecting means indicating said selected brightness level; and

(c) transmitting means, coupled to said signal generating means, for transmitting a wireless transmission of said intensity signal from said detecting means.

28. A system for controlling power to a lighting unit including the portable remote desktop apparatus set forth in claim 27 and further comprising a light control unit, coupled to said lighting unit, said light control unit including:

(d) signal receiving means for receiving said wireless transmission of said intensity signal; and

(e) brightness adjusting means, coupled to said signal receiving means and responsive to said wireless transmission of said intensity signal, for adjusting the brightness level of said light in response to said intensity signal.

29. An apparatus for controlling power to an electric load,comprising:

(a) a portable remote sensing unit including;

(i) motion detecting means for detecting motion in an area;

(ii) timing means, coupled to said motion detecting means, for generating a time-out signal when said detecting means does not detect motion in said area for a predetermined duration;

(iii) signal generating means, coupled to said detecting means and to said timing means for generating a first control signal when said motion detecting means detects motion in said area and for generating a second control signal when said timing means generates said first time-out signal;

(iv) transmitting means, coupled to said signal generating means, for transmitting a wireless transmission of said first and second control signals; and

(v) power management means, coupled to said timing means, for shutting said timing means OFF in response to said time-out signal; and

(b) a load control unit, coupled to said electric load, said load control unit including;

(i) signal receiving means for receiving said wireless transmission of said first and second control signals; and

(ii) power switching means, coupled to said signal receiving means, for switching said electric load ON in response to said first control signal and for switching said electric load OFF in response to said second control signal.

30. The apparatus set forth in claim 29 wherein said power management means is further coupled to said motion detecting means and wherein said power management means switches said timing means back ON when said motion detecting means detects motion.

31. The apparatus set forth in claim 29, or 30 wherein said power management means comprises a microcontroller.

32. A method of controlling a lighting source comprising the steps of:

(a) detecting motion in an area or room with a portable motion detecting unit;

(b) allowing a user to set a brightness level of the lighting source with a brightness selection control on said portable motion detecting unit;

(c) generating a control signal when motion is detected in said area or room and an intensity signal indicating a particular brightness level selected with said brightness selection control circuit with said portable motion detecting unit;

(d) transmitting a wireless transmission of said control signal and said intensity signal from said portable motion detecting device;

(e) receiving said wireless transmission of said control signal and said intensity signal with a light control unit coupled to the lighting source;

(f) switching the lighting unit ON with said lighting control unit when said control signal is received; and

(g) adjusting the brightness of the lighting source with said lighting control unit in response to said intensity signal.