Sensor clip and method of using

Abstract

The present system provides a sensor clip system that can be clipped to luminaires of a plurality of shapes and sizes and method of using the sensor clip. Some of the sensors are upward looking (into the luminaire) while others are downward looking (away from the luminaire); and thus face in substantially opposite directions. The sensor clip is adjustable in one, two or three dimensions to be able to easily fit with different sized and shaped luminaires, such that the upward looking sensors may face the incoming light and downward looking sensors face away from the light. The sensor clip system may also provide attenuation of the luminous intensity of the emitted light coming out of the luminaires and extends the longevity and usability of the embedded sensor.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]The present application claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 29 / 569,839, entitled Sensor Clip, filed Jun. 30, 2016, and the benefit of U.S. Patent Application 62 / 490,388, entitled Sensor Clip, filed Apr. 26, 2017, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties for all purposes.FIELD[0002]The present system and method relates to a mechanism for positioning one or more sensors relative to direct and indirect light from one or more luminaires.BACKGROUND[0003]Lighting control systems switch and dim luminaires as they set up light scenes and manage them in space and time. Most of the large lighting control systems are predominantly digitally based systems that allow luminaires to be addressed individually and provide great flexibility. Their user-friendly features include easy programming and operation along with a simple installation process. Lighting control systems can be integrated a...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The present system provides a sensor clip that can be attached to a variety of luminaires with different shapes. The clip contains multiple sensors that can detect and measure different colors and intensities of light. The clip also has an attenuation chamber to reduce high light levels before the light reaches the sensors. A dampening and filtering screen can be used to adjust the light intensity and extend the life of the sensors. The sensor clip also performs filtering operations on the incoming light to remove non-visible elements like infrared and ultraviolet. These features make the sensor clip more versatile, robust, and useful in a variety of lighting environments.

Problems solved by technology

Further, the electrical emissions around the luminaires can impact close proximity sensors.

These sensor system designs are limited and need to be refreshed at a very high rate, as the luminaire design and capabilities are constantly updated.

Sensors, by definition, are sensitive instruments and high luminous intensities can easily overload these delicate sensors.

The high lux level being measured by the sensor can create erroneous readings leading to inaccuracies in the collected data.

Furthermore, some filters such as an Integrated IR filter (e.g., infrared cut-off filter) present on the front of the sensor can be easily degraded by high lux levels, leading to a lower lifetime of the sensor in different applications.

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