Methods and systems for powerline and radio frequency communications

• US 9,251,700 B2
• Filed: 10/28/2013
• Issued: 02/02/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DEB IP Limited (SC Johnson & Son Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Smartlabs
• Inventors: Cregg, Daniel Brian, Escobosa, Marcus Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): Backer, Firmin
• Assistant Examiner(s): Aziz, Adnan
• Application Number:
  US14/065,346
• Publication Number:
  US 20150116097A1
• Time in Patent Office: 827 Days
• Field of Search: 340/13.22
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3206 Monitoring of events, devices or parameters that trigger a change in power modality
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 19/12 in which the signal transmitted is frequency or phase of ac
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5416 by adding signals to the wave form of the power source
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/542 using zero crossing information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2601 Multicarrier modulation systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2605 Symbol extensions, e.g. Zero Tail, Unique Word [UW]

Abstract

Disconnected from the powerline, a battery-powered receiver is configured to conserve power. The receiver communicates information between a local controller and a communication network that uses the powerline and a radio frequency (RF) band to propagate messages. An antenna wirelessly detects the presence of the powerline carrier signal that radiates into free space, which indicates a first message encoded onto the powerline. A computer processor wakes up from an inactive state based on the presence of the carrier signal and receives a second message via a second RF signal having a different frequency than the powerline carrier signal, and determines whether the device address in the second message is the assigned address of the receiver. If the message is not addressed to the receiver, the receiver returns to an inactive state.

Claims

1. A battery-powered apparatus operating remotely from a powerline and configured to interface with a mesh network, the apparatus comprising:

a first antenna configured to wirelessly detect a presence of a first radio frequency (RF) signal having a first frequency, the presence of the first RF signal indicates that a first message is encoded onto a powerline, wherein the first antenna is electrically disconnected from the powerline;

memory storing an assigned address and a wake-up number, wherein the memory is electrically disconnected from the powerline;

a second antenna configured to detect a second RF signal having a second frequency different than the first frequency;

a third antenna configured to detect an electromagnetic signal generated by an alternating current of the powerline;

a zero-crossing detector operably coupled to the third antenna and configured to detect zero crossings of the powerline based on the electromagnetic signal, the zero-crossing detector further configured to count the detected zero crossings of the powerline;

a computer processor operably coupled to the memory and configured to wake up from an inactive state upon receipt of the presence of the first RF signal, to receive a second message comprising a device address via the second RF signal, and to determine whether the device address of the second message is the assigned address, the computer processor operably coupled to the zero-crossing detector and further configured to wake up from the inactive state when the count equals the wake-up number, the computer processor returning to the inactive state to save power when the device address of the second message is not the assigned address, wherein the computer processor is electrically disconnected from the powerline; and

a power supply comprising a battery and configured to supply power, the power supply electrically connected to the memory and the computer processor.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the computer processor is further configured to format at least a part of the second message into a first serial bit stream when the device address of the second message is the assigned address.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the mesh network comprises a plurality of devices electrically coupled to the powerline and configured to transmit and receive messages synchronously using powerline signaling and radio frequency (RF) signaling based on the zero crossings of the powerline, the powerline signaling comprising data modulated onto a carrier signal having the first frequency and the data modulated carrier signal added to the powerline, the RF signaling comprising the data modulated onto the second RF signal having the second frequency.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising RF receive circuitry configured to receive the second RF signal, wherein the second RF signal is modulated with data comprising the second message, the RF receive circuitry further configured to demodulate the modulated second RF signal and recover the second message.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a powerline message detector operably coupled to the first antenna and the computer processor and configured to wake up the computer processor from the inactive state upon the presence of the first RF signal.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising transceiver circuitry operatively coupled to the second antenna and the computer processor and configured to receive the second RF signal from the second antenna and to decode the second message from the second RF signal.

7. A battery-powered apparatus operating remotely from a powerline and configured to interface with a mesh network, the apparatus comprising:

a first antenna configured to wirelessly detect a presence of a first radio frequency (RF) signal haying a first frequency, the presence of the first RF signal indicates that a first message is encoded onto a powerline, wherein the antenna is electrically disconnected from the powerline;

memory storing an assigned address, wherein the memory is electrically disconnected from the powerline;

a second antenna configured to detect a second RF signal having a second frequency different than the first frequency;

a third antenna configured to detect an electromagnetic signal generated by the alternating current of the powerline; and

a zero-crossing detector operably coupled to the third antenna and configured to detect the zero crossings of the powerline based on the electromagnetic signal;

a computer processor operably coupled to the memory and to the zero-crossing detector, and configured to wake up from an inactive state based at least in part on the presence of the first RF signal and the detected zero crossings of the powerline, the computer processor further configured to receive a second message comprising a device address via the second RF signal and to determine whether the device address of the second message is the assigned address, the computer processor returning to the inactive state to save power when the device address of the second message is not the assigned address, wherein the computer processor is electrically disconnected from the powerline; and

a power supply comprising a battery and configured to supply power, the power supply electrically connected to the memory and the computer processor.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein the computer processor further wakes up during an RF message transmission period of the mesh network and is inactive between a beginning of a first packet of a powerline message and an end of a last packet of the powerline message.

9. The apparatus of Claim 7 further comprising a carrier-signal detector operably coupled to the first antenna and the computer processor and configured to generate an interrupt based on the presence of the first RF signal.

10. The apparatus of Claim 7 wherein the first message and the second message are the same.

11. The apparatus of Claim 7 wherein the first message and the second message are different.

12. A method to conserve power and interface with a mesh network, the method comprising:

wirelessly detecting with a first antenna a presence of a first radio frequency (RF) signal having a first frequency, the presence of the first RF signal indicates that a first message is encoded onto a powerline, the first antenna electrically disconnected from the powerline;

waking up a computer processor from an inactive state based on the presence of the first RF signal, the computer processor electrically disconnected from the powerline;

after waking up the computer processor, wirelessly receiving with a second antenna a second RF signal having a second frequency different than the first frequency and comprising a second message that includes a device address, and determining whether the device address of the second message is an assigned address;

returning the computer processor to the inactive state to save power when the device address of the second message is not the assigned address;

detecting the zero crossings of the powerline, counting the zero crossings, and generating an interrupt to further wake up the computer processor when the zero-crossing count reaches a wake-up count; and

supplying operating power to the computer processor from a battery-operated power supply and not supplying the operating power from the powerline.

13. The method of claim 12 further comprising formatting at least a part of the second message into a first serial bit stream when the device address of the second message is the assigned address.

14. The method of claim 12 further generating an interrupt based on the presence of the first RF signal.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein the second message is the same as the first message.

16. The method of claim 12 wherein the inactive state is a sleep state.

17. The method of claim 12 wherein the inactive state is an off state.

18. The method of claim 12 further comprising not receiving the device address from the first RF signal.

19. The method of claim 12 wherein the computer processor further wakes up during an RF message transmission period of the mesh network and is inactive between a beginning of a first packet of a powerline message and an end of a last packet of the powerline message.

20. A method to conserve power and interface with a mesh network, the method comprising:

wirelessly detecting with a first antenna a presence of a first radio frequency (RF) signal having a first frequency, the presence of the first RF signal indicates that a first message is encoded onto a powerline, the antenna electrically disconnected from the powerline;

detecting at least one zero crossing of the powerline;

waking up a computer processor from an inactive state based on the presence of the first RF signal and the at least one zero crossing of the powerline, the computer processor electrically disconnected from the powerline;

after waking up the computer processor, wirelessly receiving with a second antenna a second RF signal having a second frequency different than the first frequency and comprising a second message that includes a device address, and determining whether the device address of the second message is an assigned address;

returning the computer processor to the inactive state to save power when the device address of the second message is not the assigned address; and

supplying operating power to the computer processor from a battery-operated power supply and not supplying the operating power from the powerline.