Patent Application
20180206309
This application claims priority to German Utility Model Application No. 20 2017 100 248.9 filed on Jan. 18, 2017. The contents of the priority application are hereby incorporated by reference as if set forth in their entirety herein.
Generic lighting control consoles serve for controlling lighting systems, as they are used for concert stages or in theaters, for example. These lighting systems regularly comprise a plurality of lighting devices, such as stage lights, said lighting devices in their own right often being able to be switched between a plurality of lighting conditions, such as different colors. These different lighting conditions of the lighting devices connected to the respective lighting control console can be controlled via preprogrammed parameters in the lighting program of the lighting control console. For this purpose, common lighting systems can comprise up to several thousand lighting devices. In order to be able to control such complex lighting systems, the generic lighting control consoles are equipped with a digital processor which enables digital data and signal processing. In order to store the control data, a digital memory is commonly provided which enables in particular storing or archiving lighting programs. For protecting the electric and electronic components of the lighting control console, the corresponding components are installed in a console housing which shields the electric and electronic components of the lighting control console towards the exterior.
For programming the lighting program or rather for controlling the lighting program during operation, the user has to input operating commands as input values. These operating commands can be a selection of a specific lighting device or the setting of a specific parameter, for example. In order to be able to input these operating commands, mechanical operating elements, such as buttons, rotary controls (encoders) or slide controls, are provided in known lighting control consoles, said operating elements being arranged in an operating panel on the upper side of the console housing. The operating commands allocated to the individual operating elements can be altered by adequately switching the menu in order to be able to program and control correspondingly complex lighting programs.
The slide controls, in particular, are immensely important when programming the lighting programs. The slide controls comprise a control knob which protrudes from the console housing on the upper side of the lighting control console and which can be linearly displaced by the user for setting certain programming parameters. A slit is provided in the console housing itself for each slide control, the control knob on the outer side of the console housing being connected to the slide control, which is installed in the housing itself, via said slit.
Due to the plurality of operating elements in known console housings, the programming of lighting programs requires a lot of experience and a high level of concentration. The object of the invention at hand is therefore to propose a new lighting control console which supports the user while programming and while using the lighting control console via suitable assistance measures.
This object is attained by a lighting control console according to the teachings of claim 1.
Advantageous embodiments of the invention are the subject matter of the dependent claims.
The lighting control console according to the invention is based upon the fundamental idea that a tactile sensor system, by means of which it can be detected when the user touches the control knob, is provided at the slide control. It thus becomes possible for certain assistance measures, such as fading in certain menus, to be automatically triggered by the control as soon as the user touches the control knob.
In which manner the tactile sensor system is constructively realized is generally arbitrary. The tactile sensor system can be realized particularly simply if the control knob is made of an electrically conductive material. As soon as the user touches the control knob, the changes in the electronic properties triggered by the control knob being touched can be easily detected via suitable electronic evaluation devices.
The tactile sensor system can be particularly easily realized if the capacitive change caused by the user touching the control knob can be detected.
In order to be able to provide the familiar tactile feel of the control knob of the slide control to the user and to be able to simultaneously electrically evaluate the touching of the control knob by the user, it is particularly advantageous if the control knob is made of an electrically conductive plastic.
With regard to preventing disruptions of the lighting control console, it is of great significance to prevent impurities and dust from penetrating the housing of the slide control as much as possible. In particular for slide controls containing a sliding contact, dust presents a great hazard to the functionality of the slide control. In order to minimize the risk of dust penetrating the housing of the slide control as much as possible and to simultaneously translate the movements of the control knob onto the sliding contact, the housing of the slide control can comprise a slit through which a coupling element, which connects the control knob to the sliding contact, is passed. This coupling element, too, should preferably be made of an electrically conductive material in order to be able to transmit the electric signals from the control knob into the interior of the housing of the slide control, where a corresponding evaluating sensor system can be connected.
In which manner the electric contact between the control knob, made of an electrically conductive material, on the one hand and the coupling element, made of an electrically conductive material, on the other hand is produced, is generally arbitrary. This can be realized particularly easily by the control knob comprising an indentation, by means of which the control knob can be plugged onto the coupling element thus forming an electric contact.
In order to preclude the risk of dust and impurities getting into the interior of the housing of the slide control as much as possible, it is particularly advantageous that the opening formed in the housing of the slide control by the slit is oriented horizontally to the side of the lighting control console or vertically to the bottom of the lighting control console. By this horizontal or downward orientation of the opening in the housing of the slide control, it is prevented that dust and impurities penetrate the housing of the slide control via the opening due to the effects of gravity.
In order to be able to also remotely control the slide control as an alternative to manual operation, it is particularly advantageous if an electric drive motor is provided at the slide control, the slide control being able to be motor-driven by means of said drive motor. In this manner, settings of the slide control can also be started by remote control.
With regard to the slide control being electrically contacted to the other electronic components of the lighting control console, it is particularly advantageous if the slide control comprises a plug contact having several contact elements. A plug complementary in function can then be plugged onto this plug contact in order to electrically connect the entire slide control in the lighting control console in a single assembly movement in this manner.
With regard to the electrical functionality, it is particularly advantageous if the plug contact is fastened on an electronic circuit board of the slide control.
Insofar as the slide control comprises an electronic circuit board having a plug contact, the drive motor of the slide control should preferably be electrically contacted via the electronic circuit board.
An embodiment of the invention is schematically illustrated in the drawings and is further described in an exemplary manner in the following.
In the drawing,
The slide control 06 is equipped with a drive motor 11 which can drive the coupling element 09 via a drive belt 12. In this manner, the slide control 06 can be displaced not only manually but can also be displaced via remote control of the drive motor 11.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 2017 100 248.9 | Jan 2017 | DE | national |
