Distributed building control system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9612585-B2
Application number	US-201313971194-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 20, 2013
Priority date	May 28, 2013
Publication date	Apr 4, 2017
Grant date	Apr 4, 2017

Abstract

An example of a building automation system utilizes intelligent system elements, some of which are lighting devices having light sources, and some of which are utility building control and automation elements. Some utility building control and automation elements include a controllable mechanism for use in control of some aspect of the building other than lighting. Another intelligent system element may include either a user interface component and be configured as a building controller, or include a detector and be configured as a sensor. Each intelligent system element includes a network communication interface, processor, memory and programming to configure the intelligent system element as a lighting device, utility building control and automation element, controller or sensor. At least one of the intelligent lighting devices is configured as a building control and automation system server. Several examples, however, implement the overall control using distributed processing.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A building control and automation system for a premises, comprising:
intelligent system elements, including:
intelligent lighting devices each including a light source,
intelligent utility building control and automation elements each including a controllable mechanism and associated drive electronics, and
either a user interface component configured as a controller, or a sensor including a detector;

wherein each respective intelligent system element further includes:
(a) a communication interface configured to enable communication via a link of a data communication network at the premises;
(b) a processor coupled to the light source, the drive electronics, the user interface component or the detector and coupled to communicate via the communication interface and the network link;
(c) a memory accessible to the processor; and
(d) programming in the memory which configures the processor to control operations of the respective intelligent system element as a lighting device, a utility building control and automation element, a controller or a sensor;

an instance of server programming stored in the memory of one of the intelligent lighting devices for execution by the processor of the intelligent lighting device, which configures the intelligent lighting device to implement a building control and automation system (BCAS) server function with respect to an overall building control and automation function of the system and related server communications with others of the intelligent system elements, via the data communication network, including for lighting and for other utility building control and automation functions; and
further comprising another instance of server programming stored in the memory of another one of the intelligent lighting devices for execution by the processor of the other intelligent lighting device, the server instances configuring the one and the other of the intelligent lighting devices to operate in a distributed fashion to implement the BCAS server function with respect to the overall building control and automation function of the system and related server communications on a distributed basis via the data communication network, including for lighting and other utility building control and automation functions.

2. The building control and automation system of claim 1 , further comprising client programming, stored in memories of intelligent system elements other than the intelligent lighting device configured to implement the BCAS server function, for execution by processors of the other intelligent system elements to configure each of the other intelligent system elements to implement a client function with respect to the overall building control and automation function and related client communications with the building control and automation system server function implemented by the instance of the server programming.

3. The building control and automation system of claim 1 , further comprising client programming stored in memories of intelligent system elements other than the intelligent devices configured to implement the BCAS server function, for execution by processors of the other intelligent system elements to configure each of the other intelligent system elements to implement a client function with respect to the overall building control and automation function and related client communications with the building control and automation system server function implemented by the instance of the server programming.

4. The building control and automation system of claim 1 , wherein the overall building control and automation function implemented by the instance of server programming includes one or more of:
a non-lighting central building control and automation function of the system;
communication of the system with an external wide area communication network;
communication of the system with an external building control and automation service provider;
collection and/or distribution of element configuration data during intelligent system element commissioning operations.

5. The building control and automation system of claim 1 , wherein the utility building automation and control system elements include elements each of which is an element from the group consisting essentially of: controllable heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) elements; fire or safety alarm elements; security system elements; access control elements; or commercial system elements.

6. The building control and automation system of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the intelligent system elements:
includes a user interface component and is configured as a building controller; and
functions as an input to the intelligent lighting device acting as a server to cause the server instance to responsively adjust the overall building control and automation function.

7. A building control and automation system, comprising:
intelligent system elements, including: intelligent lighting devices each including a light source, and intelligent utility building control and automation elements each including a controllable mechanism and associated drive electronics;
wherein each respective intelligent system element further includes:
(a) a communication interface configured to enable communication via a link of a data communication network available to the intelligent lighting devices;
(b) a processor coupled to the light source or the drive electronics and coupled to communicate via the communication interface and the network link;
(c) a memory accessible to the processor; and
(d) programming in the memory which configures the processor to control operations of the respective intelligent system element as a lighting device a utility building control and automation element; and

programming in the memory of a respective one of the intelligent lighting devices which configures the processor to control operations of other intelligent lighting devices and controllable intelligent building control elements;
wherein, when the respective intelligent lighting device has a building control and automation job to perform using resources of others of the intelligent system elements, the programming further configures the processor of the respective intelligent lighting device to implement distributed processing functions, including functions to:
query other intelligent system elements and receive responses from the other intelligent system elements as to whether or not the other intelligent system elements have processing or memory resources available for the processing job;
based on the responses, allocate portions of the processing job to a plurality of the other intelligent system elements;
send data and instructions to each intelligent system element of the plurality of the other intelligent system elements, for performing an allocated portion of the processing job;
receive from at least some of the plurality of the other intelligent system elements results of the performance of the allocated portions of the processing job;
process the received results to determine an overall result of the processing job; and
perform a building control and automation action based on the overall result of the processing job.

8. The building control and automation system of claim 7 , wherein the other intelligent system elements are others of the intelligent lighting devices.

9. The building control and automation system of claim 7 , wherein the utility building control and automation system elements include elements each of which is an element from the group consisting essentially of: controllable heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) elements; fire or safety alarm elements; security system elements; a

Assignees

• Abl Ip Holding Llc

Inventors

• Aggarwal Januk
• Rogers Jason
• Rains Jr Jack C
• Ramer David P

Classifications

• H05B47/105

  in response to determined parameters · CPC title

• H04L12/6418

  Hybrid transport · CPC title

• H05B47/19

  via wireless transmission · CPC title

• G05B2219/2642

  Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house · CPC title

• H04L12/2816

  Controlling appliance services of a home automation network by calling their functionalities (arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station; in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom H04Q9/00) · CPC title