Lighting element-centric network of networks

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9980351-B2
Application number	US-201313964564-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 12, 2013
Priority date	Aug 12, 2013
Publication date	May 22, 2018
Grant date	May 22, 2018

Abstract

A lighting system utilizes intelligent system elements, such as lighting devices, user interfaces for lighting control or the like and possibly sensors. The system also has a data communication network. Some number of the intelligent lighting system elements, including at least two of the lighting devices, also support wireless communication with other non-lighting-system devices at the premises. Each such element has a communication interface system configured to provide a relatively short range, low power wireless data communication link for use by other non-lighting-system devices at the premises in proximity to the respective intelligent system element. Also, in such an element, the processor is configured to control communications via the communication interface system so as to provide access to the data network and through the data network to the wide area network outside the premises for non-lighting related communications of the other non-lighting-system devices.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A lighting system, comprising:
a data network configured to enable data communication within a premises and to provide data communication access to a wide area network extending outside the premises; and
intelligent lighting system elements, including:
lighting devices each comprising a light source, and
either a user interface device configured for lighting control or a lighting-related sensor including a detector,

each of the intelligent lighting system elements comprising:
a communication interface system, including at least one communication interface, configured to enable communication via a link to the data network; and
a processor coupled to communicate via the communication interface and the data network link and configured to control a lighting related operation of the respective intelligent lighting system element, wherein:
for each respective one of a plurality of the intelligent lighting system elements, including at least two of the lighting devices:
the communication interface system of the respective intelligent lighting system element is further configured to:
provide a small cell of wireless coverage via a relatively short range, low power wireless data communication link, separate from the link to the data network, for use by a plurality of other intelligent non-lighting-system devices within the relatively short range of the small cell wireless coverage provided by the respective intelligent lighting system element at the premises, and
set the relatively low power of the small cell wireless data communication link sufficiently low so as to avoid the undue interference with relatively short range wireless data communication links provided by other intelligent lighting system elements when a number of the other intelligent lighting system elements in an area of the premises increases, the plurality of other intelligent non-lighting-system devices:

each comprising a processor and a memory;
each being not commissioned or configured to operate as elements of the lighting system for regular lighting related functions or lighting system related communications; and
each being located within an area defined by the small cell of wireless coverage provided via the relatively short range, low power wireless data communication link of the communication interface system of the respective intelligent lighting system element;

the communication interface system of the respective intelligent lighting system element includes:
a first communication interface configured to support data communication over the link to the data network; and
a second communication interface configured to provide the relatively short range, low power data communication link;

the processor of the respective intelligent lighting system element is configured to control communications via the communication interface system of the respective intelligent lighting system element to provide access to the data network and through the data network to the wide area network outside the premises for non-lighting related communications of the plurality of other intelligent non-lighting-system devices via the relatively short range, low power data communication link; and
the plurality of the intelligent lighting system elements together provide wireless coverage within the premises for all the pluralities of other intelligent non-lighting-system devices within an area formed by combining the small cells of wireless coverage provided by the plurality of the intelligent lighting system elements.

2. The lighting system as in claim 1 , wherein at least one of the intelligent lighting system elements is further configured to communicate data to/from one of the other intelligent non-lighting-system devices and to perform a processing operation to support an operation of the processor of the one other intelligent non-lighting-system device.

3. The lighting system as in claim 2 , wherein the at least one of the intelligent lighting system elements comprises a plurality of the intelligent lighting system elements configured to perform the processing operation to support the operation of the processor of the one other intelligent non-lighting-system device in a distributed processing manner using processing and/or memory resources of each of the plurality of the intelligent lighting system elements.

4. The lighting system as in claim 3 , wherein the plurality of the intelligent lighting system elements configured to perform the processing operation in the distributed processing manner comprises:
first and second ones of the intelligent lighting system elements; and
first and second instances of server programming stored in respective memories of the first and second intelligent lighting system elements for execution by processors of the first and second intelligent lighting system elements, which configure the first and second intelligent lighting system elements to operate in a distributed processing fashion to implement a server function with respect to the operation of the processor of the one other intelligent non-lighting-system device and to perform server communications with a client executing on the processor of the one other intelligent non-lighting-system device.

5. The lighting system as in claim 1 , wherein said plurality of the intelligent lighting system elements include at least two intelligent lighting system elements of the plurality in each of a plurality of service areas of the premises configured to provide relatively short range, low power wireless data communication links for use by other intelligent non-lighting-system devices in each of the service areas of the premises.

6. The lighting system of claim 1 , wherein:
the small cell is one of a plurality of zones of wireless coverage within a room of the premises, and
each of the plurality of zones are adjacent to one another within the room.

7. A lighting system, comprising:
a data network configured to enable data communication within a premises and to provide data communication access to a wide area network extending outside the premises; and
intelligent lighting system elements, including:
lighting devices each comprising a light source, and
either a user interface device configured for lighting control or a lighting-related sensor including a detector,

each of the intelligent lighting system elements comprising:
a communication interface system, including at least one communication interface, configured to enable communication via a link to the data network; and
a processor coupled to communicate via the communication interface and the data network link and configured to control a lighting related operation of the respective intelligent lighting system element,

wherein:
for each respective one of a plurality of the intelligent lighting system elements, including at least two of the lighting devices:
the communication interface system of the intelligent lighting system element is further configured to:
provide a small cell of wireless coverage via a relatively short range, low power wireless data communication link, separate from the link to the data network within the premises, for use by a plurality of other intelligent non-lighting-system devices within the small cell of wireless coverage provided by the respective intelligent lighting system element at the premises in accordance with a wireless data communication standard, and
set the relatively low power of the small cell wireless data communication link sufficiently low so as to avoid the undue interference with relatively short range wireless data communication links provided by other intelligent lighting system elements when a number of the other intelligent lighting system elements in an area of the premises increases,
the plu

Assignees

• Abl Ip Holding Llc

Inventors

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

Classifications

• H04W4/70 Primary

  Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC] · CPC title

• H05B47/105

  in response to determined parameters · CPC title

• H05B47/18

  via data-bus transmission · CPC title

• H04W4/90

  Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS] · CPC title

• H04W4/80

  Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication · CPC title