Patent Application
20230018425
Home automation systems, which have become increasingly popular, may be used by homeowners to integrate and control multiple electrical loads and/or electronic devices in the homeowners' houses. For example, a homeowner may connect appliances, lights, window treatments, thermostats, cable or satellite boxes, security systems, telecommunication systems, and other devices to each other via a wireless network. The homeowner may control these devices using a controller or user interface provided via a smart phone, a tablet, a computer, or other computing device directly connected to the network or remotely connected via the Internet. These devices may communicate with each other and the controller to improve their efficiency, their convenience, and/or their usability.
In some instances, a user may desire to control electrical loads and/or electronic devices using a device other than a smart phone, a tablet, and a computer. For example, the user may consider a smart phone, a tablet, and a computer too bulky for controlling electrical loads and/or electronic devices. Further, the user may consider a smart phone, a tablet, a computer too inconvenient, for example, due to the user having to locate the smart phone, tablet, computer for controlling with the electrical loads and/or electronic devices.
As described herein, a load control system may include a wearable wireless device. The wearable wireless device may be a smart watch (e.g., an Apple® watch, and/or a Samsung® Galaxy Gear smart watch), an activity tracking device (e.g., a FitBit® device, a Misfit® device, and/or a Sony Smartband® device), smart clothing (e.g., OMsignal® smartwear, etc.), and/or smart glasses (e.g., such as Google Glass® eyewear). The wearable wireless device may be operable to transmit digital messages to one or more network devices, load control devices, gateway devices, and/or other wearable wireless devices. The wearable wireless device may be operable to transmit digital messages to other devices directly and/or via a network.
The wearable wireless device may comprise a band (e.g., a wrist band) to enable the wearable wireless device to be worn by the user. The wearable wireless device may be paired with a network device, and the wearable wireless device may communicate with the network device using a short-range wireless communication technology (such as Bluetooth® technology). The network device may be configured to transmit digital messages in response to digital messages received from the wearable wireless device. The network device may transmit digital messages to control the wearable wireless device in response to the received digital messages.
The wearable wireless device may comprise a display (e.g., a touch-responsive visual display). The wearable wireless device may have a capacitive touch pad displaced overtop the visual display. The visual display of the wearable wireless device may be smaller than the visual display of the network device. The smaller visual display of the wearable wireless device may provide less space for enabling user control than the larger visual display of the network device.
The wearable wireless device may execute a wearable control application for allowing a user of the wearable wireless device to monitor and control a lighting control system. The wearable wireless device may be configured to display on the visual display soft buttons that may be actuated by a user. The wearable wireless device may comprise a dial, which may be rotated by a user. The dial may be used to scroll through displayed options on the visual display. The wearable wireless device may transmit digital messages (e.g., to the network device) in response to actuations of the soft buttons displayed on the visual display and/or rotations of the dial. In response to the digital messages received from the wearable wireless device, the network device may transmit digital messages to the gateway device for controlling load control devices. The network device may be configured to transmit digital messages to the wearable wireless device in response to digital messages received from the gateway device for displaying data (e.g., status information) on the display of the wearable wireless device. The wearable wireless device may receive digital messages from the gateway device directly.
The wearable wireless device may display a load control adjustment screen for controlling a load control device via a parameter. The parameter may indicate an intensity of a lighting load and/or a position of a motorized window treatment. The load control adjustment screen may control one or more zones of lighting (e.g., controlled lighting loads, such as the light bulbs) and/or one or more zones of motorized window treatments. The load control adjustment screen may display a lighting zone and/or a shading zone providing feedback. The feedback may be indicated as one or more icons, such as a meter (e.g., an intensity meter and/or a position meter). The one or more icons may comprise one or more segments. For example, the one or more icons (e.g., a meter) may include four segments. The lighting zone may comprise a zone name for describing the loads controlled by the zone.
The load control system may include a network device. The network device may be a smart phone (e.g., an iPhone® smart phone, an Android® smart phone, or a Blackberry® smart phone) a personal computer, a laptop, a wireless-capable media device (e.g., MP3 player, gaming device, or television), a tablet device (for example, an iPad® hand-held computing device), a Wi-Fi or wireless-communication-capable television, or any other suitable Internet-Protocol-enabled device. The network device may transmit digital messages to load control devices, wearable wireless device, gateway device, and/or other network devices. The network device may transmit digital messages directly or via a network.
The network device may have a display, which may comprise a touch screen. The touch screen may have a capacitive touch pad displaced overtop the display, such that the display may display soft buttons that may be actuated by a user. The network device may include a plurality of hard buttons, e.g., physical buttons, in addition to the display.
The network device may execute a product control application for allowing a user of the network device to monitor and/or control the lighting control system. In response to actuations of the displayed soft buttons or hard buttons, the network device may transmit digital messages. The digital messages may be sent to the gateway device through wireless communications. The network device may transmit digital messages to the gateway device for controlling the load control devices. The gateway device may be configured to transmit digital messages to the network device in response to digital messages received from the load control devices.
The network device may display a load control adjustment screen for controlling a load control device via a parameter that indicates an intensity of a lighting load and/or a position of a motorized window treatment. The load control adjustment screen may control one or more zones of lighting (e.g., controlled lighting loads, such as the light bulbs) and/or one or more zones of motorized window treatments. The load control adjustment screen may have a slider control (e.g., a vertically-arranged linear slider control) having an adjustment knob arranged along a slot. A user may press and hold the adjustment knob with a finger and slide the finger (e.g., up and down) to move the adjustment knob to adjust the intensity of the controlled lighting load.
The slider control of the network device may provide fine tune adjustment of the intensity of the controlled lighting load and/or the position of the motorized window treatments. For example, the fine tune adjustment provided by the network device may adjust the intensity of the controlled lighting load and/or the position of the motorized window treatments by a lesser percentage than provided by the wearable wireless device. The percentage of change in the load control adjustments made on the wearable wireless device may be a multiple of the percentage of change available on the network device. For example, the network device may control a dimming level and/or a shade level in increments of 1%, while the wearable wireless device may control the dimming level and/or the shade level in 10%, 25%, or 33% increments. The network device may be capable of providing fine tune adjustments due to the network device having a larger display than the display provided by the wearable wireless device. The fine tune adjustment may provide adjustments to the intensity of a lighting load and/or positions of the motorized treatments that are in smaller increments than provided by the wearable wireless device. For example, the fine tune adjustments provided by the network device may be in increments of 1% steps, 3% steps, 5% steps, etc., while the adjustments provided by the wearable wireless device may be in increments of 25% steps, 33% steps, 50% steps, etc.
The network device may be used for configuring the wearable wireless device. The network device may be used for configuring the load control devices that may be accessed by the wearable wireless device. For example, the network device may be used to configure the wearable wireless device so that the wearable wireless device may control predetermined load control devices. The predetermined load control devices may be identified as favorite load control devices.
The load control system 100 may also comprise other load control devices. For example, the load control system may include a plug-in load control device 120, coupled in series electrical connection between the AC power source 102 and a lighting load, e.g., a light bulb 122 installed in a lamp (e.g., a table lamp 124). The plug-in load control device 120 may be plugged into an electrical receptacle 126 that is powered by the AC power source 102 and the table lamp 124 may be plugged into the plug-in load control device. The light bulb 122 may be installed in a table lamp or other lamp that may be plugged into the plug-in load control device 120. The plug-in load control device 120 may be implemented as a table-top load control device or a remotely-mounted load control device. The load control system 100 may comprise electronic switches configured to turn on and off controlled lighting loads.
The dimmer switch 110 may comprise a plurality of actuators 116 (e.g., buttons) for controlling the light bulb 112. In response to actuation of the actuators 116, the dimmer switch 110 may be configured to turn the light bulb 112 on and off, and to increase or decrease the amount of power delivered to the light bulb 112 and thus increase or decrease the intensity of the light bulb 112 from a minimum intensity (e.g., 1%) to a maximum intensity (e.g., 100%). The dimmer switch 110 may further comprise a plurality of visual indicators 118, e.g., light-emitting diodes (LEDs), which may be arranged in a linear array and illuminated to provide feedback of the intensity of the light bulb 112. The dimmer switch 110 may be configured to receive digital messages via wireless signals, e.g., radio-frequency (RF) signals 104, and to control the lighting load 112 in response to the received digital messages. Examples of wall-mounted dimmer switches are described in greater detail in U.S. Pat. No. 5,248,919, issued Sep. 28, 1993, entitled LIGHTING CONTROL DEVICE, and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0132475, published May 15, 2014, entitled WIRELESS LOAD CONTROL DEVICE, the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
The load control system 100 may further comprise a daylight control device. The daylight control device may be a motorized window treatment 130. The motorized window treatment 130 may be mounted in front of a window for controlling the amount of daylight entering the space in which the load control system 100 is installed. The motorized window treatment 130 may comprise, for example, a cellular shade, a roller shade, a drapery, a Roman shade, a Venetian blind, a Persian blind, a pleated blind, a tensioned roller shade system, or other suitable motorized window covering. The motorized window treatment 130 may comprise a motor drive unit 132 for adjusting the position of a covering material 134 of the motorized window treatment (e.g., a cellular shade fabric as shown in
The load control system 100 may further comprise one or more input devices (e.g., RF transmitters) configured to transmit digital messages via the RF signals 104. For example, the input device may comprise a battery-powered remote control device 140, an occupancy sensor 150, or a daylight sensor 152. Load control devices, such as the dimmer switch 110, the plug-in load control device 120, and/or the motorized window treatment 130 may be configured to receive digital messages via the RF signals 104 transmitted by the battery-powered remote control device 140, the occupancy sensor 150, and/or the daylight sensor 152. In response to the received digital messages, the dimmer switch 110 and the plug-in load control device 120 may each be configured to turn the respective light bulb 112, 122 on and off, and/or to increase or decrease the intensity of the respective light bulb 112, 122. The motor drive unit 132 of the motorized window treatment 130 may be configured to adjust the position of the covering material 134 to control the amount of daylight entering the space in response to the digital messages received via the RF signals 104.
The remote control device 140 may comprise one or more actuators 142. The one or more actuators 142 may include one or more of an on button, an off button, a raise button, a lower button, and a preset button. The remote control device 140 may be a handheld remote control. The remote control device 140 may be mounted vertically to a wall or supported on a pedestal to be mounted on a tabletop. Examples of battery-powered remote control devices are described in greater detail in commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 8,330,638, issued Dec. 11, 2012, entitled WIRELESS BATTERY-POWERED REMOTE CONTROL HAVING MULTIPLE MOUNTING MEANS, and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0286940, published Nov. 15, 2012, entitled CONTROL DEVICE HAVING A NIGHTLIGHT, the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
The remote control device 140 may transmit RF signals 104 in response to actuations of one or more of the actuators 142. For example, the RF signals 104 may be transmitted using a proprietary RF protocol, such as the ClearConnect® protocol, or a standard protocol, such as ZIGBEE, Z-WAVE, and/or KNX-RF protocols. The RF signals 104 may be transmitted using a standard wireless technology, such as one of Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and/or Near Field Communication (NFC) technologies. The digital messages transmitted by the remote control device 140 may include a command and identifying information. For example, the identifying information may be a serial number (e.g., a unique identifier) associated with the remote control device. The remote control device 140 may be assigned to the dimmer switch 110, the plug-in load control device 120, and/or the motorized window treatment 130 during a configuration procedure of the load control system 100, such that the dimmer switch 110, the plug-in load control device 120, and/or the motorized window treatment 130 are responsive to digital messages transmitted by the remote control device 140 via the RF signals 104. Examples of methods of associating wireless control devices are described in greater detail in commonly-assigned U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0111491, published May 15, 2008, entitled RADIO-FREQUENCY LIGHTING CONTROL SYSTEM, and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013/0214609, published Aug. 22, 2013, entitled TWO-PART LOAD CONTROL SYSTEM MOUNTABLE TO A SINGLE ELECTRICAL WALLBOX, the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
The occupancy sensor 150 may be configured to detect occupancy and/or vacancy conditions in the space in which the load control system 100 is installed. The occupancy sensor 150 may transmit digital messages to the dimmer switch 110 and/or the plug-in load control device 120 via the RF signals 104 in response to detecting the occupancy or vacancy conditions. For example, the dimmer switch 110 and/or the plug-in load control device 120 may each be configured to turn on the respective light bulb 112, 122 in response to receiving an occupied command, and to turn off the respective light bulb in response to receiving a vacant command. The occupancy sensor 150 may operate as a vacancy sensor to turn off the lighting loads in response to detecting a vacancy condition. For example, the occupancy may not turn on the light bulbs 112, 122 in response to detecting an occupancy condition. Examples of RF load control systems having occupancy and vacancy sensors are described in greater detail in commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 8,009,042, issued Aug. 30, 2011, entitled RADIO-FREQUENCY LIGHTING CONTROL SYSTEM WITH OCCUPANCY SENSING; U.S. Pat. No. 8,199,010, issued Jun. 12, 2012, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CONFIGURING A WIRELESS SENSOR; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,228,184, issued Jul. 24, 2012, entitled BATTERY-POWERED OCCUPANCY SENSOR, the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
The daylight sensor 152 may be configured to measure a total light intensity perceived in the space in which the load control system is installed. The daylight sensor 152 may transmit digital messages including the measured light intensity to the load control devices, such as the dimmer switch 110, the plug-in load control device 120, and/or the motorized window treatment 130, via the RF signals 104 for controlling the electrical loads, which may include the intensities of the respective light bulbs 112, 122 and/or the position of the covering material 134, in response to the measured light intensity. Examples of RF load control systems having daylight sensors are described in greater detail in commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 8,410,706, issued Apr. 2, 2013, entitled METHOD OF CALIBRATING A DAYLIGHT SENSOR; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,451,116, issued May 28, 2013, entitled WIRELESS BATTERY-POWERED DAYLIGHT SENSOR, the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
The load control system 100 may further comprise a gateway device 160 (e.g., a bridge) configured to enable communication with a network 162. The network 162 may be a wireless and/or wired local area network (LAN). The gateway device 160 may be connected to a router (not shown) via a wired digital communication link 164 (e.g., an Ethernet communication link). The router may allow for communication with the network 162, e.g., for access to the Internet. The gateway device 160 may be wirelessly connected to the network 162, e.g., using Wi-Fi technology.
The gateway device 160 may be configured to transmit the RF signals 104 to the dimmer switch 110, the plug-in load control device 120, and/or the motorized window treatment 130 (e.g., using the proprietary and/or non-proprietary protocols) for controlling the respective light bulbs 112, 122 and/or the position of the covering material 130 in response to digital messages received from external devices via the network 162. The gateway device 160 may be configured to receive the RF signals 104 from the dimmer switch 110, the plug-in load control device 120, the motorized window treatment 130, the remote control device 140, the occupancy sensor 150, and/or the daylight sensor 152, and to transmit digital messages via the network 162 for providing data (e.g., status information) to external devices. The gateway device 160 may operate as a central controller for the load control system 100, or may simply relay digital messages between the control devices of the load control system and the network 162.
The load control system 100 may further comprise a network device 170. The network device 170 may be a smart phone (e.g., an iPhone® smart phone, an Android® smart phone, or a Blackberry® smart phone) a personal computer, a laptop, a wireless-capable media device (e.g., MP3 player, gaming device, or television), a tablet device (for example, an iPad® hand-held computing device), a Wi-Fi or wireless-communication-capable television, or any other suitable Internet-Protocol-enabled device. The network device 170 may be operable to transmit digital messages in one or more Internet Protocol packets to load control devices, wearable wireless device 180, gateway device 160, and/or other network devices. The network device 170 may be operable to transmit digital messages via RF signals 106 either directly or via the network 162. For example, the network device 170 may transmit the RF signals 106 to the gateway device 160 via a Wi-Fi communication link, a Wi-MAX communications link, a Bluetooth® communications link, a near field communication (NFC) link, a cellular communications link, a television white space (TVWS) communication link, or any combination thereof. The load control system 100 may comprise other types of network devices configured to communicate via the network 162, such as, a personal computer, a laptop, a wireless-capable media device (e.g., MP3 player, gaming device, or television), a tablet device (for example, an iPad® hand-held computing device), a Wi-Fi or wireless-communication-capable television, or any other suitable Internet-Protocol-enabled device. Examples of load control systems operable to communicate with network devices on a network are described in greater detail in commonly-assigned U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013/0030589, published Jan. 31, 2013, entitled LOAD CONTROL DEVICE HAVING INTERNET CONNECTIVITY, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
The network device 170 may have a visual display 172, which may comprise a touch screen. The touch screen may have a capacitive touch pad displaced overtop the visual display 172, such that the visual display may display soft buttons that may be actuated by a user. The network device 170 may comprise a plurality of hard buttons, e.g., physical buttons (not shown), in addition to the visual display 172.
The network device 170 may execute a product control application for allowing a user of the network device 170 to monitor and/or control the lighting control system 100. In response to actuations of the displayed soft buttons or hard buttons, the network device 170 may transmit digital messages. The digital messages may be sent to the gateway device 160 through the wireless communications described herein. The network device 170 may transmit digital messages to the gateway device 160 via the RF signals 106 for controlling the load control devices, such as the dimmer switch 110, the plug-in load control device 120, and/or the motorized window treatment 130. The gateway device 160 may be configured to transmit RF signals 106 to the network device 170 in response to digital messages received from the dimmer switch 110, the plug-in load control device 120, the motorized window treatment 130, the remote control device 140, the occupancy sensor 150, and/or the daylight sensor 152 (e.g., using the proprietary protocol) for displaying data (e.g., status information) on the visual display 172 of the network device 170.
The operation of the load control system 100 may be programmed and configured using the network device 170. An example of a configuration procedure for a wireless load control system is described in greater detail in commonly-assigned U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0265568, published Sep. 18, 2014, entitled COMMISSIONING LOAD CONTROL SYSTEMS, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
The load control system 100 may comprise a wearable wireless device 180, such as a smart watch (e.g., an Apple® watch, and/or a Samsung® Galaxy Gear smart watch) for controlling electrical loads and/or electronic devices. The load control system 100 may comprise another type of wearable wireless device 180, such as an activity tracking device (e.g., such as a FitBit® device, a Misfit® device, and/or a Sony Smartband® device), smart clothing (e.g., OMsignal® smartwear, etc.), and/or smart glasses (e.g., such as Google Glass® eyewear). The wearable wireless device 180 may be operable to transmit digital messages in one or more Internet Protocol packets to network device 170, load control devices, gateway device 160, and/or other wearable wireless devices. The wearable wireless device 180 may be operable to transmit digital messages to network device 170, load control devices, gateway device 160, and/or other wearable wireless devices (e.g., via RF signals 106) directly and/or via the network 162. For example, the wearable wireless device 180 may communicate directly with network device for controlling load control devices and/or electrical loads. The wearable wireless device 180 may transmit RF signals 106 to the network device 170, load control devices, gateway device 160, and/or other wearable wireless devices via a Wi-Fi communication link, a Wi-MAX communications link, a Bluetooth® communications link, a near field communication (NFC) link, a cellular communications link, a television white space (TVWS) communication link, or any combination thereof.
The wearable wireless device 180 may comprise a wrist band 182 to enable the wearable wireless device 180 to be worn on the wrist of the user. The wearable wireless device 180 may be paired with the network device 170. The wearable wireless device 180 may communicate with the network device 170 using a short-range wireless communication technology (such as Bluetooth® technology), e.g., via RF signals 108. The network device 170 may be configured to transmit digital messages via the RF signals 106 (e.g., directly to the gateway device 160 and/or to other devices on the network 162) in response to digital messages received from the wearable wireless device 180. The network device 170 may transmit digital messages to control the wearable wireless device 180 in response to digital messages received via the RF signals 106 (e.g., directly from the gateway device 160 and/or from other devices on the network 162).
The wearable wireless device 180 may comprise a touch-responsive visual display 184. The wearable wireless device 180 may have a capacitive touch pad displaced overtop the visual display 184. The visual display 184 of the wearable wireless device 180 may be substantially smaller than the visual display 172 of the network device 170. The smaller visual display 184 of the wearable wireless device 180 may provide less space for enabling user control than the larger visual display 172 of the network device 170.
The wearable wireless device 180 may execute a wearable control application for allowing a user of the wearable wireless device 180 to monitor and control the lighting control system 100. The wearable wireless device 180 may be configured to display on the visual display 184 soft buttons that may be actuated by a user. The wearable wireless device 180 may also comprise a dial 186, which may be rotated by a user. The dial may be used to scroll through displayed options on the visual display 184. The wearable wireless device 180 may transmit digital messages (e.g., to the network device 170, via the network 162, or directly to load control devices) in response to actuations of the soft buttons displayed on the visual display 184 and/or rotations of the dial 186. In response to the digital messages received from the wearable wireless device 180, the network device 170 may transmit digital messages to the gateway device 160 via the RF signals 106 for controlling the dimmer switch 110, the plug-in load control device 120, and/or the motorized window treatment 130. The network device 170 may be configured to transmit RF signals 108 to the wearable wireless device 180 in response to digital messages received from the gateway device 160 for displaying data (e.g., status information) on the visual display 184 of the wearable wireless device 180. The wearable wireless device 180 may also, or alternatively, receive digital messages from the gateway device 160 directly.
The load control system 100 may comprise one or more other types of load control devices, such as a dimming ballast for driving a gas-discharge lamp; a light-emitting diode (LED) driver for driving an LED light source; a dimming circuit for controlling the intensity of a lighting load; a screw-in luminaire including a dimmer circuit and an incandescent or halogen lamp; a screw-in luminaire including a ballast and a compact fluorescent lamp; a screw-in luminaire including an LED driver and an LED light source; an electronic switch, controllable circuit breaker, or other switching device for turning an appliance on and off; a controllable electrical receptacle or controllable power strip for controlling one or more plug-in loads; a motor control unit for controlling a motor load, such as a ceiling fan or an exhaust fan; a drive unit for controlling a motorized window treatment or a projection screen; motorized interior or exterior shutters; a thermostat for a heating and/or cooling system; a temperature control device for controlling a setpoint temperature of an HVAC system; an air conditioner; a compressor; an electric baseboard heater controller; a controllable damper; a variable air volume controller; a fresh air intake controller; a ventilation controller; hydraulic valves for use radiators and radiant heating system; a humidity control unit; a humidifier; a dehumidifier; a water heater; a boiler controller; a pool pump; a refrigerator; a freezer; a television or computer monitor; a video camera; an audio system or amplifier; an elevator; a power supply; a generator; an electric charger, such as an electric vehicle charger; and/or an alternative energy controller.
In addition, the load control system 100 may comprise other types of input device, such as temperature sensors; humidity sensors; radiometers; cloudy-day sensors; pressure sensors; smoke detectors; carbon monoxide detectors; air-quality sensors; motion sensors; security sensors; proximity sensors; fixture sensors; partition sensors; keypads; kinetic or solar-powered remote controls; key fobs; cell phones; smart phones; tablets; personal digital assistants; personal computers; laptops; timeclocks; audio-visual controls; safety devices; power monitoring devices (such as power meters, energy meters, utility submeters, utility rate meters, etc.); central control transmitters; residential, commercial, or industrial controllers; or any combination of these input devices.
The network device 200 may display a load control adjustment screen 220 for controlling an electrical load via a load control device. For example, the load control adjustment screen 220 may be a lighting zone adjustment window for controlling a zone of lighting. The zone of lighting may include one or more controlled lighting loads, such as the light bulb 112 of the load control system 100 shown in
Though shown as a vertical slider control 222, the slider control 222 may be horizontally arranged, or circular. The load control adjustment screen 220 may comprise a raise button 226 and/or a lower button 228. Actuations of the raise button 226 and the lower button 228 may respectively increase and decrease the intensity of the controlled lighting load by a predetermined amount of change in the light caused by the phone, ΔLPHONE. For example, the actuation of the raise button 226 and the lower button 228, respectively, may change the intensity of the controlled lighting load by 1% to provide fine tune adjustment. Though shown as soft buttons, the raise button 226 and/or the lower button 228 may be physical hard buttons.
As shown in
The network device 200 may display a load control adjustment screen 250 for controlling an electrical load via a load control device. For example, the load control adjustment screen 250 may be a shading zone adjustment window for controlling a zone of shading. The zone of shading may include one or more motorized window treatments, such as the motorized window treatment 130 of the load control system 100 shown in
Though shown as a vertical slider control 252, the slider control 252 may be horizontally arranged, or circular. The load control adjustment screen 250 may comprise a raise button 256 and/or a lower button 258. Actuations of the raise button 256 and the lower button 258 may respectively open and close the motorized window treatments by a predetermined amount. For example, the actuation of the raise button 256 and the lower button 258, respectively, may change the opening of the motorized window treatments 10%, to provide fine tune adjustment. Though shown as soft buttons, the raise button 256 and/or the lower button 258 may be physical hard buttons.
As shown in
One or more of the segments of the of the linear intensity meter 342 may be highlighted (e.g., made brighter or a different color) to indicate the intensity of the lighting zone 340. For example, when the lighting zone 340 is off (e.g., controlled to an intensity of 0%), none of the segments of the linear intensity meter 342 may be highlighted as shown in
As shown in
The user may be able to actuate the touch-responsive visual display 320 when the load control adjustment screen 330 is being displayed. For example, the user may be able to actuate the touch-responsive visual display 320 when the load control adjustment screen 330 is being displayed in order to adjust a parameter (e.g., the intensities) of one or more of the lighting zones. The user may be able to actuate the touch-responsive visual display 320 adjacent to one of the lighting zones to adjust the parameter (e.g., the intensity) of that lighting load. For example, the user may be able to actuate the touch-responsive visual display 320 within a predetermined distance of the intensity meter 342, the zone name 344, the lights-off icon 346, and the lights-on icon 348 of the lighting zone 340 in order to control that lighting zone. Actuations of the left side of the touch-responsive visual display 320 adjacent to the lighting zone 340 (e.g., on the lights-off icon 346) may decrease the intensity of the controlled lighting load. Actuations of the right side of the touch-responsive visual display 320 adjacent to the lighting zone 340 (e.g., on the lights-on icon 348) may increase the intensity of the controlled lighting load. In other words, the left and right sides of the touch-responsive visual display 320 adjacent to the lighting zone 340 may operate as lower and raise buttons, respectively, for the controlled lighting load.
The touch-responsive visual display 320 of the wearable wireless device 300 may be smaller than a visual display of a network device (e.g., a smart phone). Because the touch-responsive visual display 320 of the wearable wireless device 300 may be smaller than a visual display of a network device (e.g., a smart phone), actuations of the left and right sides of the touch-responsive visual display 320 adjacent to the lighting zone 340 may cause greater changes in the intensity of the controlled lighting load than the fine tune adjustment provided by the network device (e.g., smart phone). For example, actuation of the visual display of the wearable wireless device may adjust the intensity of the controlled lighting load by a greater percentage than the fine tune adjustment provided by the network device. The greater changes in the intensity of the controlled lighting load may provide quick adjustment of the intensity of the lighting load between, for example, 0% and 100%. For example, actuations of the left and right sides of the touch-responsive visual display 320 adjacent to the lighting zone 340 may adjust the intensity of the controlled lighting load to one of a plurality of preset intensities. The preset intensities may, for example, be 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% to correspond to the maximum intensity of each segment of the linear intensity meter 342 shown in
In response to an actuation to increase a parameter (e.g., the intensity) of the controlled lighting load, the parameter (e.g., intensity) may be adjusted to a preset parameter (e.g., intensity) that may cause a segment (e.g., the next segment) on the linear intensity meter 342 to be highlighted. For example, if the intensity is between 26% and 50% and the touch-responsive visual display 320 is actuated to raise the intensity of the lighting load, the intensity of the lighting load may be controlled to 75% and three of the segments of the linear intensity meter 342 may be highlighted, as shown in
Also, or alternatively, there may be multiple preset parameters (e.g., intensities) for controlling the lighting load within a single segment of the intensity) meter 342. For example, the linear intensity meter 342 may have four segments, but the lighting load may be controlled to more preset intensities, for example, at 0%, 12.5%, 25%, 37.5%, 50%, 62.5%, 75%, 87.5%, and 100%.
The linear intensity meter 342 may have a different number of segments. For example, the linear intensity meter 342 may have three segments. For example, the preset intensities may be 0%, 33%, 66%, and 100%. The linear intensity meter 342 may have five segments. For example, the preset intensities may be 0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100%.
To provide fine tune adjustment of the controlled lighting load from the wearable wireless device 300, the user may press and/or hold the lighting zone 342 on the touch-responsive visual display 320 to highlight the entire zone. The user may rotate (e.g., after pressing and/or holding the lighting zone 342) the dial 312 to adjust the parameter (e.g., intensity) of the lighting load by smaller amounts (e.g., in 1% steps). The touch-responsive visual display 320 may display a numeral indicating the resulting intensity of the lighting load when controlled by the dial 312.
The intensity of the controlled lighting load may be adjusted by a predetermined amount of change in the lighting level caused by the watch, ΔLWATCH, e.g., rather than controlling the intensity of the lighting zone 340 to preset intensities. The intensity of the controlled lighting load may be adjusted by a predetermined amount in response to actuations of the left and right sides of the touch-responsive visual display 320. For example, actuations of the left and right side of the touch-responsive visual display 320 adjacent to the lighting zone 340 may respectively decrease and increase the intensity of the controlled lighting load by the predetermined amount ΔLWATCH. The predetermined amount ΔLWATCH may be a substantial portion of the total dimming range of the controlled lighting load. For example, the predetermined amount ΔLWATCH may be 25% to correspond with the spacing between the intensities indicated by the segments of the linear intensity meter 342 as shown in
As shown in
The lighting zone 350 may comprise a switched lighting load. The status indicator 352 may be highlighted to indicate that the controlled lighting load is on (as shown in
The load control adjustment screen 330 may display additional electrical loads, such as additional lighting zones and/or motorized window treatments. For example, the user may scroll through the lighting zones on the load control adjustment screen 330 by swiping (e.g., swiping up and down) on the touch-responsive visual display 320, and/or by rotating the dial 312.
The load control adjustment screen 460 may display multiple shade zones, such as shade zones 470, 480 as shown in
One or more of the segments of each of the linear position meters 472, 482 may be highlighted to indicate the position of the covering material of the respective shade zones 470, 480 (e.g., in a similar manner as the linear intensity meter 342 is highlighted to indicate the intensity of the lighting zone 340). For example, when the shade zone 470 is fully closed (e.g., at 0% open), each of the segments of the linear position meter 472 may be unhighlighted. When the shade zone 470 is between, for example, 1% and 25% open, the segment of the linear position meter 472 closest to the fully-closed icon 476 may be highlighted as shown in
As shown in
The user may be able to actuate the touch-responsive visual display 420 when the load control adjustment screen 460 is being displayed (e.g., adjacent to one of the shade zones). For example, the user may be able to actuate the touch-responsive visual display 420 when the load control adjustment screen 460 is being displayed in order to adjust the parameter (e.g., the positions) of the motorized window treatments. The user may be able to actuate the touch-responsive visual display 420 within a predetermined distance of the position meter 472, the zone name 474, the fully-closed icon 476, and the fully-open icon 478 of the shade zone 470 in order to control the shade zone. Actuations of the left side of the touch-responsive visual display 420 adjacent to the shade zone 470 (e.g., on the fully-closed icon 476) may lower the position of the covering material of the controlled motorized window treatment. Actuations of the right side of the touch-responsive visual display 420 adjacent to the shade zone 470 (e.g., on the fully-open icon 478) may raise the position of the covering material of the controlled motorized window treatment. For example, the left and right sides of the touch-responsive visual display 420 adjacent to the shade zone 470 may operate as lower buttons and raise buttons, respectively, for the controlled motorized window treatment.
Actuations of the left and right sides of the touch-responsive visual display 420 adjacent to the shade zones 470, 480 of the wearable wireless device 400 may cause greater changes in the positions of the covering materials of the controlled motorized window treatments than the fine tune adjustment provided by the network device (e.g., smart phone) to provide quick adjustment of the positions of the covering materials between, for example, fully closed and fully open. For example, actuations of the left and right sides of the touch-responsive visual display 420 adjacent to the shade zone 470 may adjust the position of the covering material of the controlled motorized window treatment to one of a plurality of preset positions. The preset positions may be, for example, 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% open to correspond to the maximum position of each segment of the linear position meter 472 shown in
In response to an actuation to raise the position of the covering material, the position may be adjusted to the preset parameter (e.g., position) that causes the next segment on the respective linear position meter 472, 482 to be highlighted. For example, if the position of the shade zone 480 is between 26% and 50% open and the touch-responsive visual display 420 is actuated to raise the position of the covering material, the position of the covering material may be controlled to 75% open and three of the segments of the linear position meter 482 may be highlighted as shown in
To provide fine tune adjustment of the parameter (e.g., positions) of the covering materials of the controlled motorized window treatments from the wearable wireless device 400, the user may press and hold the respective shade zone 472, 482 on the touch-responsive visual display 420 to highlight the entire zone, and/or the user may rotate the dial 412 to adjust the position of the covering material by smaller amounts (e.g., in 1% steps). The touch-responsive visual display 420 may display a numeral indicating the resulting position of the motorized window treatment when controlled by the dial 412.
While the load control adjustment screens 330, 460 shown in
Configuration category 502 may provide the title of the configuration category that the network device 500 may provide. For example, the network device 500 may provide a configuration category 502 of favorite load control devices, most used load control devices, connected and/or disconnected load control devices, load control devices newly added to the load control system, etc. The user may select the configuration category 502 from one or more predetermined configuration categories. For example, the user may select the configuration category 502 from a drop down list button 516.
The network device 500 may display one or more configuration results. For example, as shown in
The control circuit 604 may store information in and/or retrieve information from the memory 606. The memory 606 may include a non-removable memory and/or a removable memory. The non-removable memory may include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of non-removable memory storage. The removable memory may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a memory card, and/or any other type of removable memory.
The wearable wireless device 600 may communicate with other devices via a communication circuit 602. For example, the wearable wireless device 600 may communicate with a network device, a load control device, another wearable wireless device, and/or a gateway device using one or more protocols or frequencies. The communication circuit 602 of the wearable wireless device 600 may communicate with a network device, another wearable wireless device, and/or a gateway device for controlling one or more load control devices. The wearable wireless device 600 may include one or more communication circuits 602 for communicating with different devices on different protocols and/or frequencies. For example, the communication circuit 602 may include a communication circuit configured to communicate with a gateway device on a protocol or frequency and another communication circuit configured to communicate with a network device on another protocol or frequency.
The communication circuit 602 may be capable of performing wired and/or wireless communications. The communication circuit 602 may include a transmitter, receiver, and/or a transceiver. For example, the communication circuit 602 may include an RF transceiver for transmitting and receiving RF signals via an antenna or other communications module capable of performing wireless communications. The communication circuit 602 may be in communication with the control circuit 604. The communication circuit 602 may be capable of performing communications via different communication channels (e.g., communication protocols, communication frequencies, etc.). For example, the communication circuit 602 may be capable of communicating via WI-FI®, WIMAX®, BLUETOOTH®, near field communication (NFC), a proprietary communication protocol, such as CLEAR CONNECT™, ZIGBEE®, Z-WAVE, and/or the like. The communication circuit 602 may comprise an RF transmitter for transmitting RF signals, an RF receiver for receiving RF signals, an IR transmitter for transmitting IR signals, or an IR receiver for receiving IR signals.
The control circuit 604 may be in communication with an indicator light 612. The indicator light 612 may turn on and/or off to provide indications to a user, such as whether the wearable wireless device 600 is on or off, whether the wearable wireless device 600 has been enabled or disabled, whether the wearable wireless device 600 is in a programming mode, and/or the like. The control circuit 604 may receive audio data via one or more microphones (not shown) for capturing audio and may store the audio data in memory 606.
The control circuit 604 may be in communication with a display 610 (e.g., a visual display, such as an LED display) for providing information to a user. The display 610 and the control circuit 604 may be in two-way communication, as the display 610 may include a touch screen module capable of receiving information from a user and providing such information to the control circuit 604. For example, the display 610 may be a touch-responsive visual display having a touch sensitive element (e.g., a capacitive touch pad) displaced overtop the visual display. The touch sensitive element may allow the wearable wireless device 600 to display soft controls (e.g., soft buttons) that may be actuated by a user. The wearable wireless device 600 may be configured to provide a plurality of different soft controls to the user on the display 610 to allow the user to monitor and/or adjust operating characteristics and parameters of a load control system (e.g., the load control system 100 shown in
The wearable wireless device 600 may include another input circuit 608 from which user inputs may be received at the control circuit 604. The input circuit 608 may include one or more buttons (e.g., soft buttons) from which user inputs may be received. The input circuit 608 may include a dial (such as dial 186, shown in
The wearable wireless device 600 may include one or more position determining circuits 614. The position determining circuit 614 may be capable of determining the position and/or movement of the wearable wireless device 600. Position determining circuit 614 may include a global positioning system (GPS) circuit, a gyroscope, and/or an accelerometer. The GPS circuit may be capable of receiving GPS information. The control circuit 604 may be capable of determining the GPS coordinates of the wearable wireless device 600 based on the GPS information received via the GPS circuit. The gyroscope may identify an orientation of the wearable wireless device 600. For example, the control circuit 604 may be capable of determining the orientation of the wearable wireless device 600 based on the orientation information received via the gyroscope. The accelerometer may identify an acceleration of the wearable wireless device 600. The accelerometer may be used (e.g., used by the control circuit 604) to detect magnitude and/or direction of the acceleration of the wearable wireless device 600, such as in the form of a vector, an orientation of the wearable wireless device 600, and/or vibrations of the wearable wireless device 600.
Each of the modules of the wearable wireless device 600 may be powered by a power source 616. The power source 616 may include, for example, DC power source, such as a battery. The power source 616 may generate a supply voltage VCC for powering the modules of the wearable wireless device 600.
The control circuit 702 may store information in and/or retrieve information from a memory 706. The memory 706 may include a non-removable memory and/or a removable memory. The non-removable memory may include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of non-removable memory storage. The removable memory may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a memory card, or any other type of removable memory.
The network device 700 may include one or more communication circuits 710 for transmitting and/or receiving information from other devices. For example, the network device 700 may communicate with a wearable wireless device, another network device, a load control device, and/or a gateway device using one or more protocols and/or frequencies. The communication circuit 710, for example, may include a communication circuit configured to communicate with a gateway device on a protocol or frequency and another communication circuit configured to communicate with a network device or a wearable wireless device on another protocol or frequency. The communication circuit 710 may perform wireless and/or wired communications. Communication circuit 710 may be in communication with control circuit 702 for transmitting and/or receiving information. The communication circuit 710 may include a transmitter, receiver, and/or a transceiver. For example, the communication circuit 710 may include an RF transceiver for transmitting and receiving RF signals via an antenna, or other communications module capable of performing wired and/or wireless communications. For example, the communication circuit 710 may be capable of communicating via WI-FI®, WIMAX®, BLUETOOTH®, cellular communication, near field communication (NFC), a proprietary communication protocol, such as CLEAR CONNECT™, ZIGBEE®, Z-WAVE, and/or the like.
The control circuit 702 may be in communication with a display 708 (e.g., a visual display, such as an LED display) for providing information to a user. The display 708 and the control circuit 702 may be in two-way communication, as the display 708 may include a touch screen module capable of receiving information from a user and providing such information to the control circuit 702. For example, the display 708 may be a touch-responsive visual display having a touch sensitive element (e.g., a capacitive touch pad) displaced overtop the visual display. The touch sensitive element may allow the network device 700 to display soft controls (e.g., soft buttons) that may be actuated by a user. The network device 700 may be configured to provide a plurality of different soft controls to the user on the display 708 to allow the user to monitor and/or adjust operating characteristics and parameters of a load control system (e.g., the load control system 100 shown in
The network device 700 may include one or more position determining circuits 714. The position determining circuit 714 may be capable of determining the position and/or movement of the network device 700. Position determining circuit 714 may include a global positioning system (GPS) circuit, a gyroscope, and/or an accelerometer. The GPS circuit may be capable of receiving GPS information. The control circuit 702 may be capable of determining the GPS coordinates of the network device 700 based on the GPS information received via the GPS circuit. The gyroscope may identify an orientation of the network device 700. For example, the control circuit 702 may be capable of determining the orientation of the network device 700 based on the orientation information received via the gyroscope. The accelerometer may identify an acceleration of the network device 700. The accelerometer may be used (e.g., used by the control circuit 702) to detect magnitude and/or direction of the acceleration of the network device 700, such as in the form of a vector, an orientation of the network device 700, and/or vibrations of the network device 700.
Each of the modules of the network device 700 may be powered by a power source 712. The power source 712 may include an AC power supply or DC power supply, for example. The power source 712 may generate a supply voltage VCC for powering the modules within the network device 700.
The control circuit 804 may store information in and/or retrieve information from the memory 802. The memory 802 may include a non-removable memory and/or a removable memory. The non-removable memory may include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of non-removable memory storage. The removable memory may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a memory card, and/or any other type of removable memory.
The gateway device 800 may communicate with other devices via a communication circuit 806. The gateway device 800 may include one or more communication circuits. The gateway device 800 may communicate with a network device, a load control device, another gateway device, and/or a wearable wireless device using one or more protocols and/or frequencies. For example, one communication circuit may communicate with a wearable wireless device and another communication circuit may communicate with a network device. The communication circuit 806 may be capable of performing wired and/or wireless communications. The communication circuit 806 may include a transmitter, a receiver, and/or a transceiver. For example, the communication circuit 806 may include an RF transceiver for transmitting and receiving RF signals via an antenna, or other communications module capable of performing wireless communications. The communication circuit 806 may be in communication with controller 804. The communication circuit 806 may be capable of performing communications via different communication channels. For example, the communication circuit 804 may be capable of communicating via WI-FI®, WIMAX®, BLUETOOTH®, near field communication (NFC), a proprietary communication protocol, such as CLEAR CONNECT™, ZIGBEE®, Z-WAVE, and/or the like.
Each of the modules of the gateway device 800 may be powered by a power source 808. The power source 808 may include, for example, an AC power source or a DC power source, such as a battery. The power source 808 may generate a supply voltage VCC for powering the modules of the gateway device 800.
The load control device 900 may communicate with other devices via the communication circuit 904. The communication circuit 904 may be in communication with controller 902. The communication circuit 904 may be capable of performing wired and/or wireless communications. The communication circuit 904 may include an RF transceiver for transmitting and receiving RF signals via an antenna, or other communications module capable of performing wired and/or wireless communications. For example, the communication circuit 904 may be capable of communicating via WI-FI®, WIMAX®, BLUETOOTH®, near field communication (NFC), a proprietary communication protocol, such as CLEAR CONNECT™, ZIGBEE®, Z-WAVE, and/or the like.
The control circuit 902 may store information in and/or retrieve information from the memory 906. The memory 906 may include a non-removable memory and/or a removable memory. A load control circuit 908 may receive instructions from the control circuit 902 and may control the electrical load 914 (e.g., by controlling the amount of power provided to the load) based on the received instructions. The load control circuit 908 may receive power via a hot connection 910 and a neutral connection 912. While the load control device 900 may include four terminals as shown in
Although features and elements are described above in particular combinations, each feature or element may be used alone or in any combination with the other features and elements. The methods described herein may be implemented in a computer program, software, or firmware incorporated in a computer-readable medium for execution by a computer or processor. Examples of computer-readable media include electronic signals (transmitted over wired or wireless connections) and computer-readable storage media. Examples of computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, a read only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), removable disks, and optical media such as CD-ROM disks, and digital versatile disks (DVDs).
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/228,361, filed Apr. 12, 2021; which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/518,374, filed Jul. 22, 2019, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,980,099 issued Apr. 13, 2021; which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/017,463, filed Jun. 25, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,362,661, issued Jul. 23, 2019; which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/830,425, filed Dec. 4, 2017 now U.S. Pat. No. 10,009,988, issued Jun. 26, 2018; which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/061,411, filed Mar. 4, 2016 now U.S. Pat. No. 9,839,101 issued Dec. 5, 2017; which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/129,352, filed Mar. 6, 2015, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62129352 | Mar 2015 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 17228361 | Apr 2021 | US |
| Child | 17946110 | US | |
| Parent | 16518374 | Jul 2019 | US |
| Child | 17228361 | US | |
| Parent | 16017463 | Jun 2018 | US |
| Child | 16518374 | US | |
| Parent | 15830425 | Dec 2017 | US |
| Child | 16017463 | US | |
| Parent | 15061411 | Mar 2016 | US |
| Child | 15830425 | US |
