Identification of load control devices

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10098208-B2
Application number	US-201715424161-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 3, 2017
Priority date	Mar 12, 2013
Publication date	Oct 9, 2018
Grant date	Oct 9, 2018

Abstract

A load control system may include a load control device for providing power to an electrical load and a control device that may send instructions to the load control device for providing the power to the electrical load. The control device may communicate with the load control device using a link address assigned to the load control device. The load control device may provide power to the electrical load in a manner that causes the electrical load to indicate the link address assigned to the load control device. The link address may be identified by a user or a user device. The identified link address may be associated with a load control device identifier that may identify a physical location of a load control device that is assigned the link address. A user may control a load control device at a physical location by sending instructions via the link address.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus configured to instruct a load control device to indicate an address assigned to the load control device,
wherein the address comprises a number of digits, and
wherein the load control device is configured to control an amount of power provided to a lighting load, the apparatus comprising:
a communication circuit configured to communicate instructions; and
a controller configured to:
instruct the load control device to control an intensity of the lighting load to indicate the address assigned to the load control device, wherein to indicate the address comprises to indicate each digit of the address by at least one of:
to instruct the load control device to increase or to decrease the intensity of the lighting load for a period of time to indicate the digit, or
to instruct the load control device to flash the lighting load between increased and decreased intensities one or more times to indicate the digit; and

associate the address with a load control device identifier to define an association between the address and the load control device identifier, wherein the address is used to communicate the instructions to the load control device.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the controller is further configured to instruct the load control device to indicate the address a number of times.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
receive a video of the lighting load;
detect, within the video, one or more intensities of the lighting load; and
identify the digits of the address assigned to the load control device based on the detected one or more intensities of the lighting load.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the load control device is included in a group of load control devices that comprises other load control devices, wherein each of the other load control devices in the group is assigned a respective address, and wherein the controller is further configured to instruct each of the other load control devices in the group to control an intensity of a corresponding lighting load in a manner that identifies the respective address assigned to the load control device.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the controller is further configured to instruct each of the load control devices in the group to indicate the respective address in a same period of time.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the instructions are configured to control the lighting load.

7. A load control device for controlling an amount of power provided to a lighting load, the load control device comprising:
a communication circuit configured to receive instructions; and
a controller configured to:
receive a command to indicate an address assigned to the load control device for controlling the lighting load, wherein the address comprises a number of digits;
in response to the command, control an intensity of the lighting load to indicate the address assigned to the load control device, wherein to indicate the address comprises to indicate each digit of the address by at least one of:
to increase or to decrease an intensity of the lighting load for a period of time to indicate the digit, or
to flash the lighting load between increased and decreased intensities one or more times to indicate the digit; and

receive, via the communication circuit, the instructions from a control device via the address, wherein the address is associated with a load control device identifier.

8. The load control device of claim 7 , wherein the controller is further configured to indicate the address a number of times.

9. The load control device of claim 7 , wherein the communication circuit comprises a transceiver configured to receive, from at least one of a user device or the control device, the command.

10. The load control device of claim 7 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
store the address prior to receiving the command to indicate the address; and
identify the command as being sent to the load control device based on storing the address prior to receiving the command.

11. The load control device of claim 7 , wherein the controller is further configured to control the lighting load according to the instructions.

12. A method for indicating an address assigned to a load control device, wherein the address comprises a number of digits, and wherein the load control device controls an amount of power provided to a lighting load, the method comprising:
instructing the load control device to control an intensity of the lighting load to indicate the address assigned to the load control device, wherein to indicate the address comprises to indicate each digit of the address by at least one of:
instructing the load control device to increase or to decrease the intensity of the lighting load for a period of time to indicate the digit, or
instructing the load control device to flash the lighting load between increased and decreased intensities one or more times to indicate the digit;
identifying the address assigned to the load control device; and
associating the address with a load control device identifier to define an association between the address and the load control device identifier, wherein the address is used to communicate instructions to the load control device.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the address is identified and associated with the load control device identifier by a user device.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein the load control device comprises a driver, and wherein the address is identified and associated with the load control device identifier by a control device.

15. The method of claim 12 , wherein instructing the load control device to control the intensity of the lighting load to indicate the address comprises instructing the load control device to indicate the address a number of times.

16. The method of claim 12 , further comprising controlling the lighting load according to the instructions.

17. The method of claim 12 , further comprising: storing the address at the load control device prior to instructing the load control device to control the intensity of the lighting load; and instructing the load control device to control the intensity of the lighting load using the stored address.

Assignees

• Lutron Electronics Co

Inventors

• Gajurel Rupesh
• Raghuram Sandeep Mudabail
• Baker Rhodes B
• Courtney Brian Michael

Classifications

• H05B37/0272 Primary

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H05B33/0845

  Electricity · mapped topic

• G08B5/38 Primary

  using flashing light · CPC title

• H05B47/1965

  using handheld communication devices · CPC title

• H05B47/198

  Grouping of control procedures or address assignation to light sources · CPC title