Adaptive light system and associated methods

• US 9,681,522 B2
• Filed: 02/25/2013
• Issued: 06/13/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Healthe, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Lighting Science Group Corporation (Pegasus Capital Advisors, L.P.)
• Inventors: Maxik, Fredric S., Regan, Matthew, Grove, Eliza Katar, Bastien, Valerie A., Soler, Robert R., Bartine, David E., Oostdyk, Mark Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Taningco, Alexander H
• Assistant Examiner(s): Johnson, Christine
• Application Number:
  US13/775,936
• Publication Number:
  US 20130293158A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,569 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/085 due to special conditions, e.g. adverse weather, type of road, badly illuminated road signs or potential dangers B60Q1/10, B60Q1/12, B60Q1/1423 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/31 Atmospheric conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/22 using optical feedback
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/30 Driver circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/125 by using cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/175 by remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/19 via wireless transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/1965 using handheld communication devices

Abstract

An adaptive light system including a color matching engine, a controller, and a plurality of light sources each configured to emit a source light. The color matching engine determines a dominant wavelength of a selected color, and a combination of the light sources that the controller may operate to emit a combined wavelength that approximately matches the dominant wavelength of the selected color. A color capture device transmits a source color signal designating the selected color. A method of adapting light comprises receiving a selected color, converting a value representing a dominant wavelength of the selected color, determining a combination of and percentages of colors emitted by the plurality of light sources that may be combined to form an adapted light that matches the selected color, and operating the light sources along with a white light to emit the adapted light.

Claims

1. A method of adapting light using a lighting device that includes a color matching engine, a conversion engine, a controller, a processor programmed to execute each of the color matching engine and the conversion engine and operatively coupled to the controller, and a plurality of light sources each configured to emit a source light in a source wavelength range, wherein each of the plurality of light sources is operatively coupled to the controller, wherein at least one of the plurality of light sources is a white light, the method comprising:

receiving a source color signal designating a selected color;

determining RGB values of the selected color;

converting the RGB values of the selected color to XYZ tristimulus values;

determining a boundary intersect value, being a dominant wavelength of the selected color within a color space that is collinear with the XYZ tristimulus values of the selected color and XYZ tristimulus values of a white point, such that the boundary intersect value is closer to the XYZ tristimulus values of the selected color than to the XYZ tristimulus values of the white point;

determining a combination of at least two of the plurality of light sources that emit a combined wavelength that approximately matches the dominant wavelength of the selected color, comprising the steps of;

identifying a subset of colors within the source wavelength ranges of the source lights emitted by the plurality of light sources such that the subset of colors combine to match the dominant wavelength of the selected color,

choosing two or more of the subset of colors to combine to match the dominant wavelength of the selected color to include a first color value including a first color of a source wavelength and a second color value including a second color of a source wavelength defined as a second color value,

defining a color line containing the XYZ tristimulus values of the selected color and the XYZ tristimulus values of the white point,

defining a matching line containing XYZ tristimulus values of the first color and XYZ tristimulus values of the second color,

identifying an intersection color, which is an intersection point of the color line and the matching line,

calculating a ratio of the first color and the second color to combine,

scaling the ratio of the first color and the second color to sum to 100%,

determining a Y value for a combined monochromatic color point, the combined monochromatic color point being a combination of the first color, the second color, and all remaining monochromatic colors in the source lights emitted by the plurality of light sources,

determining XYZ tristimulus values for a combined phosphor color point, the combined phosphor color point defined as a combination of all phosphor colors in the source lights emitted by the plurality of light sources,

determining a percentage of each of the combination of all phosphor colors needed to match the combined phosphor color point, and

choosing a produced color, the produced color defined as a combination of the first color and the second color with a lowest sum of the percentages of the first color, the second color, the all remaining monochromatic colors, and the all phosphor colors required to match the selected color; and

operating the combination of at least two of the plurality of light sources to emit an adapted light, which comprises the combined wavelength, wherein at least one of the plurality of light sources is the white light.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein at least one of the plurality of light sources comprises a light emitting diode (LED).

3. A method according to claim 1 wherein the source wavelength associated with the first color value is greater than the dominant wavelength of the selected color;

wherein the source wavelength associated with the second value is lesser than the dominant wavelength of the selected color; and

wherein none of the remaining subset of colors has a source wavelength nearer to the dominant wavelength of the selected color than either of the source wavelengths associated with the first color value and the second color value.

4. A method according to claim 1 wherein the source wavelength associated with the first color value is lesser than the dominant wavelength of the selected color;

and wherein none of the subset of colors has a source wavelength greater than the first color value, and none of the subset of colors has a source wavelength lesser than a source wavelength of the second color value.

5. A method according to claim 1 wherein the source wavelength associated with the second color value is greater than the dominant wavelength of the selected color;

and

wherein none of the subset of colors has a source wavelength lesser than the second color value, and none of the subset of colors has a source wavelength greater than a source wavelength of the first color value.

6. A method according to claim 1 wherein determining a percentage of each of the combination of all phosphor colors needed to match the combined phosphor color point further comprises:

determining XYZ tristimulus values for the combined phosphor color point;

populating an inverted matrix to contain XYZ tristimulus values of each of the combination of all phosphor colors;

multiplying the inverted matrix by the XYZ tristimulus values of the combined phosphor color point;

identifying every combination of the first color, the second color, the all remaining monochromatic colors, and the all phosphor colors to create the adapted light; and

discarding any resultant combination that contains a negative percentage.

7. A method according to claim 6 wherein discarding any resultant combination that contains a negative percentage further comprises:

changing a priority for the combined monochromatic colors; and

reducing the intensity of each of the combined monochromatic colors based on the priority for the combined monochromatic colors.

8. An adaptive light system to control a lighting device comprising:

a color matching engine;

a conversion engine;

a controller; and

a processor programmed to execute each of the color matching engine and the conversion engine and operatively coupled to the controller;

a plurality of light sources each configured to emit a source light in a source wavelength range, wherein each of the plurality of light sources is operatively coupled to the controller and at least one of the plurality of light sources is a white light;

wherein the conversion engine comprises a conversion operation that operates to receive a source color signal designating a selected color, to determine RGB values of the selected color, and to convert the RGB values of the selected color to XYZ tristimulus values;

wherein the color matching engine comprises a matching operation that operates to determine a dominant wavelength of the selected color defined as a boundary intersect value within a color space that is collinear with the XYZ tristimulus values of the selected color and XYZ trisimulus values of a white point, and such that the boundary intersect value is closer to the XYZ tristimulus values of the selected color than to the XYZ tristimulus values of the white point, and to determine a combination of at least two of the plurality of light sources that emit a combined wavelength that approximately matches the dominant wavelength of the selected color,

wherein the color matching engine comprises an identifying operation that operates to identify a subset of colors within the source wavelength ranges of the source lights emitted by the plurality of light sources such that the subset of colors combine to match the dominant wavelength of the selected color;

wherein the color matching engine comprises a choosing operation that operates to choose two or more of the subset of colors to combine to match the dominant wavelength of the selected color to include a first color of a source wavelength defined as a first color value and a second color of a source wavelength defined as a second color value to define a color line containing the XYZ tristimulus values of the selected color and the XYZ tristimulus values of the white point, to define a matching line containing the XYZ tristimulus values of the first color and the XYZ tristimulus values of the second color, and to identify an intersection point of the color line and the matching line, defined as an intersection color;

wherein the matching engine comprises a production operation that operates to determine a percentage of the first color value and a percentage of the second color value to combine to match the dominant wavelength of the intersection color to perform a ratio calculation operation that operates to calculate a ratio of the first color and the second color to combine, to perform a ratio scaling operation that operates to scale the ratio of the first color and the second color to sum to 100%, to perform a luminescence calculation operation that operates to determine a Y value for a combined monochromatic color point, the combined monochromatic color point defined as a combination of the first color, the second color, and all remaining monochromatic colors in the source lights emitted by the plurality of light sources, to perform a phosphoric identification operation that operates to determine XYZ tristimulus values for a combined phosphor color point, the combined phosphor color point defined as a combination of all phosphor colors in the source lights emitted by the plurality of light sources, to perform a color combination operation that operates to determine a percentage of each of the combination of all phosphor colors needed to match the combined phosphor color point, and to choose a produced color, the produced color defined as a combination of the first color and the second color with a lowest sum of percentages of the first color, the second color, the all remaining monochromatic colors, and the all phosphor colors required to match the selected color; and

wherein the controller is configured to operate the combination of at least two of the plurality of light sources to emit the combined wavelength to be defined as an adapted light, wherein at least one of the plurality of light sources is the white light.

9. A system according to claim 8 wherein at least one of the plurality of light sources comprises a light emitting diode (LED).

10. A system according to claim 8 wherein the first color value is greater than the dominant wavelength of the selected color;

wherein the second value is lesser than the dominant wavelength of the selected color; and

wherein none of the subset of colors has a source wavelength nearer to the dominant wavelength of the selected color than either of the first color value and the second color value.

11. A system according to claim 8 the first color value is lesser than the dominant wavelength of the selected color;

and wherein none of the subset of colors has a source wavelength greater than the first color value, and none of the subset of colors has a source wavelength lesser than the second color value.

12. A system according to claim 8 wherein the second color value is greater than the dominant wavelength of the selected color;

and wherein none of the subset of colors has a source wavelength lesser than the second color value, and none of the subset of colors has a source wavelength greater than a source wavelength of the first color value.

13. A system according to claim 8 wherein the color combination operation further operates to determine XYZ tristimulus values for the combined phosphor color point;

to populate an inverted matrix to contain XYZ tristimulus values of each of the combination of all phosphor colors;

to multiply the inverted matrix by the XYZ tristimulus values of the combined phosphor color point;

to identify every combination of the first color, the second color, the all remaining monochromatic colors, and the all phosphor colors to create the adapted light; and

to discard any resultant combination that contains a negative percentage.

14. A system according to claim 8 further comprising a color capture device;

and wherein the conversion engine is configured to be operable on information generated by the color capture device.

15. A system according to claim 14 wherein the color capture device is a handheld device selected from the group consisting of a mobile phone, a tablet computer, and a laptop computer.

16. A system according to claim 14 wherein the color capture device is a sensor device selected from the group consisting of an optical sensor, a color sensor, and a camera.