WIRELESS SCENE ARRANGEMENT

AGENCEMENT DE SCENE SANS FIL

English Abstract

An example control
arrangement includes a power supply,
a first load operative to receive power
when coupled to the power supply,
and a second load operative to receive
power when coupled to the power
supply. A receiver is programmable to
couple the first load, the second load,
or both to the power supply in response
to a wireless signal. A switch includes
a wireless transmitter portion powered
by a self-energizing portion. A wireless
transmitter portion communicates
the wireless signal to the receiver in
response to an actuation of the switch.

French Abstract

L'invention concerne un exemple d'agencement de commande comprenant une alimentation électrique, une première charge pour recevoir la puissance lorsqu'elle est couplée à l'alimentation électrique, et une seconde charge pour recevoir la puissance lorsqu'elle est couplée à l'alimentation électrique. Un récepteur peut être programmé pour coupler la première charge, la seconde charge, ou les deux à l'alimentation électrique à un signal sans fil. Un commutateur comprend une partie d'émetteur sans fil alimentée par une partie auto-alimentée. Une partie d'émetteur sans fil communique le signal sans fil au récepteur en réponse à un actionnement du commutateur.

Claims

CLAIMS
We claim:
1. A control arrangement comprising:
a power supply;
a first load operative to receive power when coupled to the power supply;
a second load operative to receive power when coupled to the power supply;
a receiver programmable to couple the first load, the second load, or both to
the power supply in response to a wireless signal; and
a switch having a wireless transmitter portion powered by a self-energizing
portion, wherein the wireless transmitter portion communicates the wireless
signal to the
receiver in response to an actuation of the switch.
2. The control arrangement of claim 1, including a second receiver
programmable to
selectively couple at least one third load to the power supply in response to
the wireless
signal.
3. The control arrangement of claim 1, wherein the first load and the second
load are a
first light and a second light, and the receiver is programmable to couple the
first load and the
second load to the power supply such that the first load provides more or less
illumination
than the second load.
4. The control arrangement of claim 1, wherein the first load and the second
load are
operative to illuminate at least one interior space.
5. The control arrangement of claim 1, wherein the self-energizing portion
harvests
energy from the actuation of the switch.
6. The control arrangement of claim 1, wherein the switch is moveable between
an
interior space and an exterior space.
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7. The control arrangement of claim 1, wherein the receiver is programmable
with a
scene that provides a desired illumination level for a first light and a
desired illumination
level for a light in response to the wireless signal.
8. The control arrangement of claim 1, wherein the first load comprises at
least one of a
television, a piece of audio equipment, and a computer.
7

9. A lighting control arrangement comprising:
a power supply;
a first light operative to illuminate when coupled to the power supply;
a second light operative to illuminate when coupled to the power supply;
a programmable controller configured to store at least one lighting scene;
a receiver operative to couple the first light, the second light, or both to
the
power supply in response to a wireless signal and based on the at least one
lighting scene; and
a switch having a wireless transmitter portion powered by a self-energizing
portion, wherein the wireless transmitter portion communicates the wireless
signal to the
receiver in response to an actuation of the switch.
10. The lighting control arrangement of claim 9, wherein the switch comprises
the
programmable controller.
11. The lighting control arrangement of claim 9, wherein the receiver
comprises the
programmable controller.
12. The lighting control arrangement of claim 9, wherein the at least one
lighting scene
comprises a desired illumination level for the first light, the second light,
or both.
13. The lighting control arrangement of claim 9, wherein the first light is
operative to
illuminate an interior area and the second light is operative to illuminate an
exterior area.
14. The control arrangement of claim 9, including a stereo operative to
produce sound
when coupled to the power supply.
8

15. A method for use with a wireless control system, comprising:
programming a memory portion to store at least one scene;
communicating a wireless signal using power provided by a self-energizing
portion of a switch; and
initiating one of the at least one scenes in response to the communicated
wireless signal.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein the at least one scene comprises
illuminating a first
light, a second light, or both.
17. The method of claim 16, wherein the at least one scene comprises a desired
level of
illumination for the first light, the second light, or both.
18. The method of claim 15, including selectively electrically connecting the
first light,
the second light, or both with a power supply based on the at least one scene.
19. The method of claim 15, wherein the at least one scene couples a first
light to a power
supply, a second light to a power supply, or both the first light and the
second light to the
power supply in response to the communicated wireless signal, wherein the
coupling depends
on the at least one scene.
20. The method of claim 15, wherein the at least one scene initiates a
receiver to couple a
first light to a power supply, a second light to a power supply, or both the
first light and the
second light to the power supply in response to the communicated wireless
signal, wherein
the coupling depends on the at least one lighting scene.
9

Description

CA 02693302 2010-01-18
WO 2009/020776 PCT/US2008/071124
WIRELESS SCENE ARRANGEMENT
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The application claims priority to United States Provisional
Application
Serial No. 60/954007 filed on 5 August 2007 and to United States Provisional
Application
Serial No. 61/033838 filed on 5 March 2008, both of which are incorporated
herein by
reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] This application relates to controlling a scene utilizing self-
energizing
switches.
[0003] Switches that transmit wireless communications are known. For example,
some switches transmit wireless communications to garage door openers. Many
switches
utilize a replaceable internal power source, such as a battery, to power the
wireless
communication transmissions. Servicing these internal power sources can be
inconvenient
and costly. For example, accessing a battery within a wall-mounted light
switch is often
difficult and time-consuming. Rather than replaceable internal power sources,
some switches
harvest energy to power the wireless communications from the switch.
[0004] Some buildings include complex control systems for lighting, audio
equipment, etc. Prior control systems include wired and battery based
switches, both of
which are often expensive and inflexible.
SUMMARY
[0005] An example lighting control arrangement includes a power supply, a
first
load operative to receive power when coupled to the power supply, and a second
load
operative to receive power when coupled to the power supply. A receiver is
programmable to
couple the first load, the second load, or both to the power supply in
response to a wireless
signal. A switch includes a wireless transmitter portion powered by a self-
energizing portion.
A wireless transmitter portion communicates the wireless signal to the
receiver in response to
an actuation of the switch.
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[0006] Another example lighting control arrangement includes a power supply, a
first light operative to illuminate when coupled to the power supply, and a
second light
operative to illuminate when coupled to the power supply. A programmable
controller is
configured to store at least one scene. A receiver is operative to couple the
first light, the
second light, or both to the power supply in response to a wireless signal and
based on the
scene. A switch has a wireless transmitter portion powered by a self-
energizing portion. The
wireless transmitter portion communicates the wireless signal to the receiver
in response to
an actuation of the switch.
[0007] An example method for use with the wireless security system includes
programming a controller to store at least one light scene and communicating a
wireless
signal using power provided by a self-energizing portion of a switch. The
method includes
initiating one of the scenes in response to the communicated wireless signal.
[0008] These and other features of the present invention can be best
understood
from the following specification and drawings, the following of which is a
brief description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] Figure 1 schematically illustrates an example lighting control
arrangement.
[0010] Figure 2A shows an example receiver portion of the Figure 1 arrangement
implemented within an example building.
[0011] Figure 2B shows an example switch portion for controlling the Figure 2A
receiver portion.
[0012] Figure 3A shows another example receiver portion of the Figure 1
arrangement implemented within another example building.
[0013] Figure 3B shows an example switch portion of Figure 1 for controlling
the
Figure 3A receiver portion.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0014] Referring to Figure 1, an example control arrangement 10 includes a
switch 14 in wireless communication with a receiver 18. A power supply 22 is
operative to
provide power to a first light 26a, a second light 26b, and a third light 26c.
The receiver 18
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selectively couples the power supply 22 to one or more of the lights 26a-26c
in response to a
wireless communication 30 from the switch 14.
[0015] In this example, the switch 14 is self-energizing and includes a
wireless
transmitter portion 34 and a self-energizing portion 38. The self-energizing
portion 38
provides power to the wireless transmitter portion 34, which transmits the
wireless
communication 30. One example switch 14 suitable for transmitting the wireless
communication 30 is available from EnOcean under Product No. PTM250.
[0016] The example switch 14 is a rocker type switch and is actuated by
rocking
portions of the switch 14 within a switch housing 50. Other example switch
actuations
include motion sensors indicating the presence of a user's hand, for example,
or push button
type switches. In one example, the actuation of portions of the switch 14
energizes the self-
energizing portions 38 of the switch 14. In other examples, the self-
energizing portion 38
energizes through photovoltaic cells, piezoelectric devices, etc. The example
switch 14 thus
does not rely on an internal power supply to power the wireless communication
30, but
instead harvests energy to power the wireless communication 30.
[0017] Although the receiver 18 is shown as a multi-channel receiver, it
should be
understood that the receiver 18 could also be a single channel receiver. Other
examples
include the receiver 18 coupled different numbers of the lights 26a-26c.
[0018] Other examples of the control arrangement 10 utilize more than one of
the
receiver 18. One example receiver 18 suitable for use within the control
arrangement 10 is
available from EnOcean under Product No. RCM130C. Although the location of the
receiver
18 is fixed in this example, other example receivers are portable. For
example, other
examples of the receiver 18 include a USB portion and are operative to receive
the wireless
communication 30 once the USB portion is linked to a computer (not shown).
Such
examples facilitate moving the receiver 18 to receive the wireless
communication 30 in a
multiple of areas.
[0019] The example receiver 18 includes a programmable controller 46 that
controls the illumination levels of the lights 26a-26c by controlling the
coupling between the
power supply 22 and each of the lights 26a-26c, the power level supplied to
the lights 26a-
26c from the power supply 22, or both. A person skilled in the art having the
benefit of this
disclosure would be able to develop a controller suitable for providing such
control over the
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illumination of the lights 26a-26c. Example programmable controllers 46
include a
microprocessor, a lap top computer, etc.
[0020] The first light 26a, the second light 26b, and the third light 26c
provide a
scene 42, which is a lighting scene in this example. In this example of the
scene 42, the first
light 26a is more illuminated than both the second light 26b and the third
light 26c, and the
second light 26b is more illuminated than the third light 26c. Also in this
example, the third
light 26c is off. That is, the third light 26c provides no illumination in
this example scene 42.
Other examples of the scene 42 incorporate a piece of audiovisual equipment,
such as a
stereo, or a computer.
[0021] Referring now to Figure 2 with continuing reference to Figure 1, an
example control arrangement 110 that is somewhat similar to the control
arrangement 10
described in the Figure 1 example is implemented within a building 58. In this
disclosure,
like reference numerals designate like elements where appropriate and
reference numerals
with the addition of 100 or multiples thereof designate modified elements. The
modified
elements incorporate the same basic features and benefits of the corresponding
modified
elements, except where stated otherwise.
[0022] In this example, the control arrangement 110 includes four lights 126a-
126d and two receivers 118a and 118b. A user 66 actuates a switch 114, which
then
communicates a wireless signal 130 to both the receiver 118a and the receiver
118b. The
receivers 118a, 118b are programmed such that, upon receipt of the wireless
signal 130, the
receivers 118a, 118b couple the light 126a and the light 126d to a power
supply (not shown).
The building includes a plurality of rooms 62a-62d. Powering the light 126a
illuminates the
room 62a and powering the light 126d illuminates the room 62d. Thus, in this
example, the
scene 142 for the building 58 illuminates the rooms 62a and 62d, not rooms 62b
and 62c.
Other examples include using the control arrangement 110 to control power
distribution to a
stereo 60 within the room 62a, which is a portion of the scene 142. Still
other examples
include providing power to a computer 61, a television 63 a ceiling fan 64, or
a power
receptacle 65.
[0023] Referring now to Figure 3 with continuing reference to Figure 1, the
user
66 actuates a switch 214 to communicate a wireless signa1230 to the receiver
218, which is
mounted on the exterior of a home 70. The receiver 218, through wired
connections (not
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shown), is programmed to illuminate initiate a scene 242 in response to the
wireless signal
230. In this example, the lighting scene 242 comprises illuminating a first
plurality of lights
226a-226c, but not a second plurality of lights 226d-226g. In this example,
the lights 126a,
126b illuminate an exterior area 74, and the light 126c illuminates an
interior area 78 of the
home 70. In so doing, the user 66 is able to remotely initiate a lighting
scene 242 associated
with the home 70 using the switch 214.
[0024] Features of this disclosure include utilizing self-energizing switches
to
control a particular lighting scene, which can be changed by programming a
controller.
Another feature of this disclosure is that the switch is movable relative to
the receiver and
does not require a wired connection to power wireless communications from the
switch.
[0025] Although a preferred embodiment of this invention has been disclosed, a
worker of ordinary skill in this art would recognize that certain
modifications would come
within the scope of this invention. For that reason, the following claims
should be studied to
determine the true scope and content of this invention.

Representative Drawing