Systems and methods for connecting and controlling configurable lighting units

Abstract

In some embodiments, configurable lighting devices, connectors, controllers, and methods for layout detection are provided. Appropriately connected configurable lighting devices form an assembly of configurable lighting devices that can be removably connected to each other and rearranged. A connector is provided that forms a mechanical and electrical connection between the configurable lighting devices so that current and control signals can be transmitted without requiring a direct connection between each configurable lighting device and the controller. The controller or a device connected to the controller is configured to perform layout detection so that a pleasing visualization can be presented on the assembly, which is presented using at least the detected layout. When the configuration of the configurable lighting device changes, the layout detection is automatically updated.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to the field of lighting, and more particularly to features associated with configurable lighting devices including connectors for connecting the lighting devices, layout detection, and visualization based on external stimuli. Background Art

[0002] Light emitting structures are worth making, including those that can be configured in a variety of shapes and forms. A lighting fixture is a device for lighting that has at least a light source, electrical and mechanical components for operating the light source and distributing the light produced, and components for managing the heat it produces overall.

[0003] Lighting design is the part of architecture and interior design that generally teaches how to place different types of lighting fixtures in a room or space so that the overall lighting best serves the purpose of the space.

[0004] Light emitting diode (LED) technology enables new ways to form and design light. For example, LEDs can be formed to emit specific colors of light, such as red, blue, green, amber. By mixing these primary colors to varying degrees, lighting fixtures can be formed that produce light of varying warmth, which enhances the shine and sparkle of colorful artwork or clothing, or interacts with the human visual system in a way that adapts to the time of day or to the specific health needs of the user.

[0005] At the microscopic level, LEDs are a form of semiconductor. Therefore, they can be integrated with other microelectronic devices, such as digital microprocessors that can execute software instructions. Therefore, lighting fixtures using LEDs can be controlled to a very fine degree via internal and external logic commands. Finally, LEDs are small solid-state components. They can be mounted in structures, and lighting fixtures can be designed into new shapes and forms. Summary of the invention

[0006] In one aspect, a lighting system is provided, comprising an assembly formed by a plurality of configurable lighting units, the configurable lighting units being removably coupled together using one or more connectors, the plurality of configurable lighting units forming one or more continuous shapes, the one or more continuous shapes being reconfigurable by rearranging the plurality of configurable lighting units; each of the one or more configurable lighting units having one or more connectable sub-portions, the connectable sub-portions comprising at least a hole for receiving a corresponding connector of the one or more connectors; each of the one or more connectors being insertable into a first hole of a first configurable lighting unit and a second hole of a second configurable lighting unit, the connectors comprising: one or more mechanical connections cooperating with the first hole or a structural feature of the first hole so as to couple the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit; and one or more electrical connections for achieving current between the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit; and a power source connectable to a configurable lighting unit of the assembly, the plurality of configurable lighting units being electrically coupled together by the one or more connectors, so that when powering each of the plurality of configurable lighting units, it is not necessary to connect more than one configurable lighting unit to the power source.

[0007] In another aspect, at least one of the one or more connectors includes circuitry for enabling data transfer between two or more configurable lighting units.

[0008] In another aspect, the one or more mechanical connections are formed by frictional engagement of the connector with the first or second aperture, and the structural features resist shear movement of the connector and allow movement along an insertion axis perpendicular to the shear movement.

[0009] In another aspect, the first aperture and the second aperture each include one or more protrusions adapted to apply a force between the connector and the first aperture and the second aperture to increase the frictional engagement to resist removal of the connector from the first aperture or the second aperture along the insertion axis.

[0010] In another aspect, the one or more mechanical connections are configured to resist shear forces in the plane of the connectable subportions up to a threshold of irreversible damage of the mechanical connection or the respective connectable subportions.

[0011] On the other hand, the one or more mechanical connections are each configured to allow a user to reversibly separate two or more connected configurable lighting units in response to a separation force perpendicular to the plane of the connectible sub-portions, wherein the separation force is greater than a resistance formed by the engagement of the one or more mechanical connections with the structural features of the first hole or the second hole.

[0012] In another aspect, the data transmission includes signals instructing one or more lighting units in the assembly to change one or more drive currents that are passed to one or more light emitting diodes in one or more configurable lighting units.

[0013] In another aspect, the data transmission includes a signal encoding audio acquired by the sensor.

[0014] In another aspect, the data transmission includes a signal encoding motion detection by perturbing an expected radiation pattern.

[0015] On the other hand, the one or more mechanical connections are actuated by an attractive magnetic force that pulls the rigid body from the first configurable lighting unit into the hole of the second configurable lighting unit, and the one or more mechanical connections are combined with the attractive magnetic force to provide a stable physical connection between the two or more configurable lighting units.

[0016] In another aspect, when a magnetic force that is zero or below a designed threshold acts on the rigid body, the rigid body is retained within the first lighting unit by the spring.

[0017] In another aspect, the actuating establishes one or more electrical connections by coupling two or more conductive materials that allow for electrical flow between the two or more configurable lighting units.

[0018] In another aspect, the actuating establishes a connection for data transmission by combining two or more conductive materials.

[0019] On the other hand, the one or more mechanical connections are formed by attractive magnetic forces between one or more magnets, the magnets being configured to move between discrete compartments within each configurable lighting unit, and the one or more magnets applying a magnetic force through each configurable lighting unit, each configurable lighting unit being formed from a material having substantially the same magnetic permeability as air, such that an attractive force is formed between two or more configurable lighting units that are in close proximity to each other.

[0020] In another aspect, the one or more configurable lighting units are manufactured to include at least one of plastic, copper, wood, and aluminum.

[0021] On the other hand, the one or more mechanical connections are formed by inserting an auxiliary component of material into two female connectors at the connectible sub-portions of the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit; and the auxiliary component includes a compressible component that provides a restraining force to resist separation forces when combined.

[0022] In another aspect, the auxiliary component is a printed circuit board that provides the one or more electrical connections and one or more data connections between two or more configurable lighting units in addition to the one or more mechanical connections.

[0023] In another aspect, the compressible member comprises a bent metal sheet that elastically deforms when compressed such that the compressible member locks into a suitable recessed portion of a corresponding aperture of a corresponding configurable lighting unit.

[0024] In another aspect, each configurable lighting unit is a substantially flat surface of transparent or translucent material shaped as a polygon; and wherein each side of the polygon is a flat sub-portion forming the two or more connectable sub-portions.

[0025] In another aspect, the polygon is an equilateral triangle.

[0026] In another aspect, the transparent or translucent material is polymethyl methacrylate or polycarbonate.

[0027] In another aspect, light is injected into the substantially planar surface by a plurality of light emitting diodes; and the light is diffused by scattering throughout the material of the planar surface; and a portion of the scattering causes the light to exit the substantially planar surface into the environment.

[0028] In another aspect, the scattering is caused by adding microscopic surface defects on the substantially flat surface of each configurable lighting unit.

[0029] In another aspect, the plurality of light emitting diodes includes light emitting diodes that generate light of different colors.

[0030] In another aspect, the polygon is a rectangle.

[0031] In another aspect, each connector is configured to further include circuitry to sequentially transmit electrical current and control signals between groups of coupled configurable lighting units.

[0032] In another aspect, the sequential transmission of the electrical current and the control signal is used to transmit the control signal to and from a controller that is directly coupled to only one of the configurable lighting units.

[0033] In another aspect, the sequential transmission of the current and control signals is used to transfer power from a controller housing a power supply, the controller being directly coupled to only one of the configurable lighting units.

[0034] In another aspect, the controller further comprises a visualization unit configured to generate a control signal comprising lighting characteristic instructions for presenting one or more visualization effects across the entire assembly, the one or more visualization effects being based at least on the detected layout of the assembly. The control signal, when conducted to each configurable lighting unit, causes each configurable lighting unit to modify one or more lighting characteristics provided by the corresponding configurable lighting unit.

[0035] In another aspect, the controller includes one or more interactive physical elements that, when actuated, initiate or modify presentation of the one or more visualization effects.

[0036] In another aspect, the controller includes a network interface coupled to one or more remote computing systems; and wherein upon receiving one or more electronic instructions from the network interface, the controller initiates or modifies presentation of the one or more visualization effects.

[0037] On the other hand, a method for performing layout detection by a controller of an assembly connected to configurable lighting units is provided, the method comprising: obtaining an integer array based on data indicating connection characteristics between individual configurable lighting units of the assembly, wherein the individual configurable lighting units of the assembly are arranged into a continuous shape through a set of one or more physical connections, so that any two possible assemblies that are geometrically different without translation or rigid body rotation produce different integer arrays, and so that any two possible assemblies that are geometrically the same after translation or rigid body rotation produce the same integer array; storing the integer array in a data structure, the data structure being encapsulated in a non-transitory computer-readable medium residing on the controller or communicating with the controller.

[0038] On the other hand, the data about how the individual configurable lighting units are connected is provided as an array of index pairs indicating (i) which two configurable lighting units in the assembly are connected together and through which sides of the respective configurable lighting units they are connected together, wherein the index portions representing the configurable lighting units are unique within the assembly, and wherein the index portions representing the sides of the configurable lighting units are ordered in such a way that the ordering is reversed upon a mirror transformation in a plane orthogonal to the plane of the configurable lighting units.

[0039] On the other hand, the ordering of the index portions representing the sides of the lighting unit is of increasing index as adjacent sides are traversed in a clockwise manner until all sides have been traversed.

[0040] In another aspect, the index portions representing the sides of the lighting unit are ordered in a manner of increasing indices as adjacent sides are traversed in a counter-clockwise manner until all sides have been traversed.

[0041] In another aspect, the array of index pairs is represented as a matrix.

[0042] In another aspect, an index representing the configurable lighting units within an assembly is assigned during manufacturing and stored in the non-transitory computer-readable medium.

[0043] In another aspect, an index representing the configurable lighting units within an assembly is specified as part of a logic initialization process for the assembly and stored in a non-volatile or volatile computer readable memory.

[0044] In another aspect, the portion of the index representing the side of the configurable lighting unit coupled to another lighting unit is transmitted across the physical connection as a set voltage that is mapped to an ordered index by one or more logic rules executed on a processor.

[0045] On the other hand, the portion of the index representing the side of the configurable lighting unit that is coupled to another configurable lighting unit is transmitted as a data string through a physical connection in the set of one or more physical connections, which is mapped to an ordered index by one or more logic rules executed on a processor.

[0046] In another aspect, the array of integers is updated in real-time or near real-time as one or more new configurable lighting units are added to the assembly or one or more configurable lighting units are removed from the assembly.

[0047] In another aspect, updating the array of integers is triggered by polling the one or more connections of the assembly to discover that the one or more connections have changed from a previous polling condition.

[0048] In another aspect, updating the array of integers is triggered by an interrupt signal transmitted from a particular connection point that is changed by adding or removing a configurable lighting unit.

[0049] In another aspect, each of the physical connections is formed by one or more bridge portions of one or more printed circuit boards adapted to transmit data between different configurable lighting units in the assembly.

[0050] On the other hand, each of the physical connections is formed by one or more rigid bodies that are inserted from the first configurable lighting unit into a hole in the second configurable lighting unit, each rigid body forming at least one conductive contact for data transmission between the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit.

[0051] On the other hand, the integer array is wirelessly transmitted to a device having a display interface screen; and the integer array is inversely converted into coordinates for a graphical representation on the screen or on a projection of individual configurable lighting units in the assembly, wherein the graphical representation is geometrically identical to the assembly excluding translation, scaling, and rigid body rotation.

[0052] In another aspect, the wireless transmission is performed via a Wi-Fi protocol.

[0053] On the other hand, in response to adding the configurable lighting unit to the assembly, a new interrupt signal is generated by the added configurable lighting unit and transmitted to the controller via a portion of the set of one or more physical connections that form a communication path from the added configurable lighting unit to the controller.

[0054] On the other hand, in response to removing the configurable lighting unit from the assembly, a new interrupt signal is generated by the configurable lighting unit that was previously connected to the removed configurable lighting unit and conducted to the controller through a portion of the set of one or more physical connections that forms a communication path from the configurable lighting unit that was previously connected to the removed configurable lighting unit to the controller.

[0055] In another aspect, the display interface screen includes one or more interactive visual elements that, when interacted with, cause the controller to generate control signals in response to one or more changes in visualizations presented on the assembly by the one or more configurable lighting units in cooperation with each other.

[0056] In another aspect, a lighting device is provided that provides a plurality of linked lighting components that are automatically controlled based on an audio signal, the lighting device comprising: an audio receiver configured to provide a digital audio representation based at least on the audio signal; a plurality of linked lighting components linked in a physical arrangement, each of the plurality of linked lighting components configured to emit individually controllable light that can be individually controlled based on one or more received lighting activation instructions; a geometry monitoring unit configured to maintain an electronic representation of the physical arrangement based on sensed rearrangements of or changes to the physical arrangement, the electronic representation comprising at least links indicating geospatial relationships between the linked lighting components of the plurality of linked lighting components; an audio receiver configured to provide a digital audio representation based at least on the audio signal; a plurality of linked lighting components linked in a physical arrangement, each of the plurality of linked lighting components configured to emit individually controllable light that can be individually controlled based on one or more received lighting activation instructions; a geometry monitoring unit configured to maintain an electronic representation of the physical arrangement based on sensed rearrangements of or changes to the physical arrangement A video visualization unit configured to provide a plurality of lighting activation instructions generated based on the digital audio representation, the plurality of lighting activation instructions comprising a set of timing instructions representing at least one of: (i) color coordinates; (ii) intensity levels; and (iii) desired geometric locations of the lighting activations; a geometric association unit configured to, for each lighting activation instruction, select a single connected lighting component among the plurality of connected lighting components based at least on querying the electronic representation of the physical arrangement; and a lighting controller unit for individually controlling each of the connected lighting components based on the plurality of lighting activation instructions so that a geometric visualization effect is displayed in coordination on one or more of the plurality of connected lighting components.

[0057] On the other hand, the lighting device also includes an audio-visual conversion unit, which is configured to map or transform the multiple lighting activation instructions into one or more drive current instructions, and the one or more drive current instructions are included in one or more control signals for controlling each of the multiple connected lighting components, and the one or more drive current instructions are processed by each of the multiple connected lighting components to modify the characteristics of the emitted light.

[0058] In another aspect, the mapping or transformation is provided by reference to a lookup structure, and the audio-visual conversion unit is further configured to, upon determining that the mapping or transformation is not represented in the lookup structure, perform interpolation between at least two nearby color coordinates present in the lookup structure.

[0059] On the other hand, the mapping or transformation utilizes a calibration sequence whereby an auxiliary device is utilized to record spectra for one or more given drive current settings, the recorded spectra being used for downstream processing to produce a reference structure for mapping or transforming the plurality of lighting activation instructions into the one or more drive current instructions.

[0060] On the other hand, the geometric monitoring unit is also configured to periodically determine a geometric center of the physical arrangement, which is used to designate a single connected lighting component as a center device, and the electronic representation of the physical arrangement uses the designation of the center device as a reference index value to identify the connected lighting components based on the corresponding degree of spacing from the center device.

[0061] In another aspect, the audio visualization unit is configured to generate path-based lighting activation instructions, wherein the plurality of lighting activation instructions include at least a geometric pattern that visually represents a path traversed through the one or more coupled lighting components.

[0062] In another aspect, the physical arrangement is expressed in a coordinate system selected from the group consisting of two-dimensional Cartesian coordinates, three-dimensional Cartesian coordinates, polar coordinates, cylindrical coordinates, and spherical coordinates.

[0063] In another aspect, the physical arrangement is represented in a connected graph system selected from the group of connected graph systems consisting of an adjacency matrix, an adjacency list, and a distance matrix.

[0064] In another aspect, the geometry monitoring unit is further configured to maintain a coordinate dictionary based at least on the connection map system, the coordinate dictionary being queried by the geometry association unit when selecting the single connected lighting component.

[0065] In another aspect, the coordinate dictionary is modified by input signals received from an interface device.

[0066] In another aspect, the coordinate dictionary is simulated and output on a display interface.

[0067] In another aspect, the physical arrangement is approximated by an ellipsoidal shape determined by calculating at least a covariance of coordinate elements of the plurality of coupled lighting components.

[0068] In another aspect, the position of the coupled lighting component is represented by a projection onto a major axis of the ellipsoid.

[0069] In another aspect, the audio visualization unit is further configured to generate a second set of lighting activation instructions adapted to produce a lighting transition pattern in response to the determined audio transition pattern extracted from the digital audio representation.

[0070] In another aspect, the physical arrangement includes at least global geometric data applied to an assembly formed by the plurality of coupled lighting components.

[0071] In another aspect, the audio signal is a mechanical wave received by a sensor, and a digital audio representation is generated by converting the audio signal into a digital format selected from the group of digital formats consisting of WAV, MP3, MPEG and AIFF.

[0072] In another aspect, the plurality of coupled lighting components includes at least two wirelessly interconnected lighting components.

[0073] In another aspect, the plurality of coupled lighting components includes at least two physically interconnected lighting components.

[0074] In another aspect, each coupled lighting component of the plurality of coupled lighting components includes at least one controllable lighting element and a plurality of physical interconnections for connecting to the one or more coupled lighting components.

[0075] In another aspect, the physical arrangement is stored as geometric metadata.

[0076] On the other hand, a method for controlling multiple connected lighting components based on an audio signal is provided, the method comprising: providing a digital audio representation based at least on the audio signal; emitting individually controllable light by the multiple connected lighting components, the connected lighting components being provided in a physical arrangement, each of the multiple connected lighting components being configured to emit individually controllable light and controllable based on one or more received lighting activation instructions; maintaining an electronic representation of the physical arrangement based on sensed rearrangements or changes to the physical arrangement, the electronic representation comprising at least links indicating geospatial relationships between the connected lighting components; providing multiple lighting activation instructions generated based on the digital audio representation, the multiple lighting activation instructions comprising a set of timing instructions representing at least one of the following: (i) color coordinates; (ii) intensity levels; and (iii) a desired geometric position for the lighting activation; for each lighting activation instruction, selecting a single connected lighting component from the multiple connected lighting components based at least on a query of the electronic representation of the physical arrangement; and individually controlling each connected lighting component based on the lighting activation instruction, the combined lighting activation instructions causing a geometric visualization effect to be displayed collaboratively on one or more of the multiple connected lighting components.

[0077] In another aspect, a computer readable medium is provided that includes machine readable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method for controlling a plurality of connected lighting components based on an audio signal, the method comprising: providing a digital audio representation based at least on the audio signal; emitting individually controllable light by the plurality of connected lighting components, the connected lighting components being provided in a physical arrangement, each of the plurality of connected lighting components being configured to emit individually controllable light and controllable based on one or more received lighting activation instructions; maintaining an electronic representation of the physical arrangement based on a sensed rearrangement or change to the physical arrangement, the electronic representation at least comprising a link indicating a geospatial relationship between connected lighting components; providing a plurality of lighting activation instructions generated based on a digital audio representation, the plurality of lighting activation instructions comprising a set of timing instructions representing at least one of: (i) color coordinates; (ii) intensity levels; and (iii) a geometric location desired for the lighting activation; for each lighting activation instruction, selecting a single connected lighting component from the plurality of connected lighting components based at least on a query of an electronic representation of the physical arrangement; individually controlling each connected lighting component based on the lighting activation instruction, the combined lighting activation instructions causing a geometric visualization effect to be displayed collaboratively on one or more of the plurality of connected lighting components.

[0078] In another aspect, a connector is provided for physically coupling two or more configurable lighting units, each of the two or more configurable lighting units having a corresponding hole for receiving the connector, the connector comprising: one or more mechanical connections for insertion into the corresponding holes to provide a stable physical coupling between the two or more configurable lighting units for a threshold damage or force level prior to separation; one or more electrical connections for enabling current flow from a first configurable lighting unit of the two or more configurable lighting units to other configurable lighting units, the first configurable lighting unit receiving power directly or indirectly from a power source; and wherein each configurable lighting unit in an assembly of electrically coupled configurable lighting units is configured such that no more than one configurable lighting unit needs to be connected to a power source when powering the two or more configurable lighting units.

[0079] In another aspect, the connector includes circuitry for enabling data transfer between the two or more configurable lighting units.

[0080] In another aspect, the data transmission is a digital signal modulation as a power line communication transmission adapted to operate in conjunction with one or more electrical connections between two or more coupled configurable lighting units.

[0081] In another aspect, the data transmission is a digital signal modulation transmitted through a bidirectional serial pin of the connector, the bidirectional serial pin being physically distinct from the one or more electrical connections.

[0082] In another aspect, the data transmission includes a signal indicative of one or more unique identifiers, each unique identifier identifying a connectable sub-portion of the two or more configurable lighting units at which the coupled two or more configurable lighting units are connected.

[0083] On the other hand, the data transmission includes signals instructing one or more lighting units in the assembly to change one or more drive currents, and the one or more drive current signals are passed to one or more light-emitting diodes in two or more connected configurable lighting units.

[0084] In another aspect, the data transmission includes a signal encoding audio acquired by the sensor.

[0085] In another aspect, the data transmission includes a signal encoding motion detection by perturbing an expected radiation pattern.

[0086] On the other hand, the one or more mechanical connections are actuated by an attractive magnetic force that pulls the rigid body from the first configurable lighting unit into the hole of the second configurable lighting unit, and the one or more mechanical connections are combined with the attractive magnetic force to provide a stable physical connection between the two or more connected configurable lighting units.

[0087] In another aspect, the rigid body is retained within the first lighting unit by the spring when zero or below a designed threshold magnetic force acts on the rigid body.

[0088] In another aspect, the actuating establishes the one or more electrical connections by coupling two or more conductive materials that allow for electrical flow between the two or more configurable lighting units.

[0089] In another aspect, the actuating establishes a connection for data transmission by combining two or more conductive materials.

[0090] On the other hand, the one or more mechanical connections are formed by attractive magnetic forces between one or more magnets, the magnets being configured to move between discrete compartments within each configurable lighting unit, and the one or more magnets applying a magnetic force through each configurable lighting unit, each configurable lighting unit being formed from a material having a magnetic permeability substantially the same as that of air, such that an attractive force is formed between two or more configurable lighting units that are in proximity to each other.

[0091] In another aspect, the two or more configurable lighting units are manufactured to include at least one of plastic, copper, wood, and aluminum.

[0092] On the other hand, the one or more mechanical connections are formed by inserting an auxiliary component of material into two female connectors at the connectible sub-portions of the two or more configurable lighting units to be combined; and the auxiliary component includes a compressible component that provides a restraining force to resist separation forces when combined.

[0093] In another aspect, the auxiliary component is a printed circuit board that provides the one or more electrical connections and one or more data connections between two or more configurable lighting units in addition to the one or more mechanical connections.

[0094] In another aspect, the compressible member comprises a bent metal sheet that elastically deforms when compressed such that the compressible member locks into a suitable recessed portion of a corresponding aperture of a corresponding configurable lighting unit.

[0095] In another aspect, each configurable lighting unit is a substantially flat surface of transparent or translucent material shaped as a polygon; and wherein each side of the polygon is a flat sub-portion forming the two or more connectable sub-portions.

[0096] In another aspect, the polygon is an equilateral triangle.

[0097] In another aspect, the transparent or translucent material is polymethyl methacrylate or polycarbonate.

[0098] In another aspect, light is injected into the substantially planar surface by a plurality of light emitting diodes; and the light is diffused by scattering throughout the material of the planar surface; and a portion of the scattering causes the light to exit the substantially planar surface into the environment.

[0099] In another aspect, the scattering is caused by adding microscopic surface defects on the substantially flat surface of each configurable lighting unit.

[0100] In another aspect, the plurality of light emitting diodes includes light emitting diodes that generate light of different colors.

[0101] In another aspect, the polygon is a rectangle.

[0102] In another aspect, the connector is configured to not only provide electrical current, but further includes circuitry to sequentially transmit electrical current and control signals between groups of coupled configurable lighting units.

[0103] In another aspect, the sequential transmission of the electrical current and the control signal is used to transmit the control signal to and from a controller that is directly coupled to only one of the configurable lighting units.

[0104] In another aspect, the sequential transmission of the current and control signals is used to transfer power from a controller housing a power supply, the controller being directly coupled to only one of the configurable lighting units.

[0105] In another aspect, the connector is configured to be coupled to a power source.

[0106] According to one aspect, a configurable planar lighting device is provided, comprising: one or more substantially planar light emitting structures, each of the one or more substantially planar light emitting structures being configured to provide lighting to an environment.

[0107] According to one aspect, a lighting kit is provided, comprising a plurality of configurable lighting units configured to be removably coupled together using one or more connectors to form one or more continuous shapes, wherein the one or more continuous shapes can be rearranged by rearranging the plurality of configurable lighting units. Each of the one or more configurable lighting units has one or more connectable sub-portions, wherein the connectable sub-portions include at least a hole for receiving a corresponding connector of the one or more connectors. Each of the one or more connectors can be inserted into a first hole of a first configurable lighting unit and a second hole of a second configurable lighting unit, and the connector includes: one or more mechanical connections that cooperate with structural features of the first hole or the second hole to couple the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit; and one or more electrical connections that enable current flow between the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit. The plurality of configurable lighting units are electrically coupled together by the one or more connectors, so that when powering each of the plurality of configurable lighting units, it is not necessary to connect more than one configurable lighting unit to a power source, and the power source can be connected to one configurable lighting unit in the assembly.

[0108] According to one aspect, a plurality of configurable lighting units are provided, which are configured to be removably connected together using one or more connectors to form one or more continuous shapes, and the one or more continuous shapes can be rearranged by rearranging the plurality of configurable lighting units; each of the one or more configurable lighting units has one or more connectable sub-portions, and the connectable sub-portions include at least a hole for receiving a corresponding connector of the one or more connectors; each of the one or more connectors can be inserted into a first hole of a first configurable lighting unit and a second hole of a second configurable lighting unit, and the plurality of configurable lighting units are electrically connected together through the one or more connectors, so that when powering each of the plurality of configurable lighting units, it is not necessary to connect no more than one configurable lighting unit to a power source, and the power source can be connected to one configurable lighting unit in the assembly.

[0109] According to one aspect, a lighting system is provided, which has an assembly formed by a plurality of configurable lighting units, the plurality of configurable lighting units being removably coupled together using one or more connectors to form one or more continuous shapes, the one or more continuous shapes being re-arranged by rearranging the plurality of configurable lighting units. Each of the one or more configurable lighting units has one or more connectable sub-portions, the connectable sub-portions comprising at least a hole for receiving a corresponding connector of the one or more connectors. Each of the one or more connectors is insertable into a first hole of a first configurable lighting unit and a second hole of a second configurable lighting unit. The connectors include: one or more mechanical connections, which cooperate with the structural features of the first hole or the second hole to couple the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit; and one or more electrical connections, which enable current flow between the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit, the one or more electrical connections enabling a power source to be connected to the power source of only one configurable lighting unit in the assembly to power the plurality of configurable lighting units in the assembly.

[0110] According to one aspect, a lighting system is provided, which has a plurality of configurable lighting units, wherein the plurality of configurable lighting units are removably connected together using one or more connectors to form one or more continuous shapes, and the one or more continuous shapes can be rearranged by rearranging the plurality of configurable lighting units; each of the one or more configurable lighting units has one or more connectable sub-parts, and the connectable sub-parts are used to engage with corresponding connectors of the one or more connectors; each connector of the one or more connectors includes: one or more mechanical connections, which cooperate with the structural features of the connectable sub-parts to connect the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit; and one or more electrical connections, which realize current flow between the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit.

[0111] According to one aspect, a method for controlling multiple connected lighting components based on an audio signal is provided, the method comprising: providing a digital audio representation based at least on the audio signal; emitting individually controllable light through the multiple connected lighting components, the connected lighting components being connected so as to form a continuous shape, each of the multiple connected lighting components being configured to emit individually controllable light and being controllable based on one or more received lighting activation instructions; maintaining an electronic representation of the continuous shape based on sensed rearrangement or changes occurring to the components, the electronic representation comprising at least a link indicating a geospatial relationship between the connected lighting components; providing multiple lighting activation instructions generated based on the digital audio representation, the multiple lighting activation instructions comprising a set of timing instructions; for each lighting activation instruction, selecting a single connected lighting component of the multiple connected lighting components based at least on querying the electronic representation; and individually controlling each connected lighting component based on the lighting activation instruction, the combined lighting activation instructions causing a geometric visualization effect to be displayed collaboratively on the one or more connected lighting components of the multiple connected lighting components.

[0112] According to another aspect, each of the one or more substantially planar light emitting structures is adapted to be connected to another of the one or more substantially planar light emitting structures.

[0113] According to another aspect, at least one of the one or more substantially planar light emitting structures comprises a light guide.

[0114] In various other aspects, the present disclosure provides corresponding systems and apparatus, as well as logical structures (such as sets of machine-executable coded instructions) and methods for implementing such systems, apparatuses.

[0115] Systems, devices, components may be provided individually or together as a kit. Pre-built structures may also be provided.

[0116] In this regard, before explaining at least one embodiment in detail, it should be understood that, when implemented, the embodiments are not limited to the construction details and the arrangement of parts set forth in the following description or shown in the following drawings. In addition, it should be understood that the words and terms used herein are for descriptive purposes and should not be considered as limiting.

[0117] Numerous other features and combinations of the embodiments described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art after reading this disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0118] In the accompanying drawings, embodiments are shown by way of example. It should be expressly understood that the description and drawings are for illustrative purposes only and as an aid to facilitate understanding.

[0119] By way of example only, embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0120] Figure 1 is an example illustration of the relationship between subjective sensing of a space and lighting design, wherein the factors uniformity, position of light, and brightness are jointly considered, according to some embodiments.

[0121] Figure 2 is a top plan view of an example illustration of an embodiment of a planar lighting unit according to some embodiments.

[0122] Figure 3 is an illustration of a two-dimensional lighting fixture comprising a plurality of triangles, showing four apparent planar triangles, three of which have been bonded by their sides, with the fourth triangle bonded to the bottom side of the assembly, according to some embodiments. It can be assumed that the assembly is subject to gravity with a non-zero force in the plane of the triangles.

[0123] Figure 4 is a partial perspective view showing at the top details of a magnetic lock pulled out by magnetic force when complementary structures are moved into proximity, according to some embodiments.

[0124] Figure 5 is a perspective view of a magnetic lock including a post added to the protrusion to provide further mechanical rigidity, according to some embodiments.

[0125] Fig. 6A is a side plan view of a hole according to some embodiments.

[0126] Figure 6B is a top plan view of a hole according to some embodiments.

[0127] Figure 7is a partial perspective view of a magnetic lock structure including an electrical connection through a spring pin, according to some embodiments.

[0128] Figure 8 is a partial perspective view of another embodiment that integrates electrical and mechanical connections with a spring to hold a block in a retracted position without oppositely polarized magnets attracting the block, according to some embodiments.

[0129] Fig. 9 is a partial perspective view of another embodiment having a magnet within the body of a lighting unit that is free to roll to discrete positions according to some embodiments. The magnet is electrically connected and provides an electrical connection at each discrete position.

[0130] Fig.10 is a partial perspective view of a tetrahedron assembled by complementary polarized three-dimensional magnetic connectors according to some embodiments. The shading of the flat magnets indicates polarization.

[0131] Fig.11 is an example representation of magnet polarization and configuration that allows all connections including tetrahedrons without magnetic repulsion, according to some embodiments. The dashed lines represent the sides that are in contact. When the sides are joined, whether to produce a planar assembly or an assembly with panels inside or outside the plane of the page, only oppositely polarized magnets are in direct proximity, resulting in a net attractive magnetic force.

[0132] Fig.12 is a perspective view of an exemplary lighting unit having a PCB bridge for electrical and mechanical connection between the illustrated panel and an adjacent panel, according to some embodiments.

[0133] Fig.13 is a schematic diagram of an example embodiment of a PCB bridge for electrical and mechanical connection between the illustrated panel and an adjacent panel according to some embodiments. This embodiment creates four independent connections, where different shading represents non-overlapping layers in the circuit.

[0134] Fig.14 Included are example illustrations of two lighting unit assemblies with their corresponding adjacency matrices below the figure, according to some embodiments. The two assemblies are mirror images of each other.

[0135] Fig.15A , Fig. 15B and Fig. 15C Example graphs of lighting unit assemblies and side indices are provided, with the side indices following a clockwise index order (except for the rightmost graph) according to some embodiments. A chiral adjacency matrix is ​​given below each graph.

[0136] Fig.16is an exemplary schematic diagram of the pin connections at any given side of a lighting unit and how they connect to a microcontroller in an assembly, according to some embodiments.

[0137] Fig.17 is an example schematic diagram of a representation of the pin connections at any given side of a lighting unit and how they connect to a microcontroller in assembly, according to some embodiments.

[0138] Fig.18 is an interface illustration for producing visually pleasing and calming dynamic changes in space and time for a particular embodiment of a lighting unit assembly, according to some embodiments.

[0139] Fig.19 is a block diagram illustrating system components according to some embodiments.

[0140] Fig. 20 is a second block diagram schematic diagram illustrating components of another example system according to some embodiments.

[0141] Fig.21 is a schematic diagram of a system for processing sound, according to some embodiments.

[0142] Fig. 22 is a schematic diagram of a system for processing sound, according to some embodiments.

[0143] Fig.23 is a schematic diagram of a system for processing sound, according to some embodiments.

[0144] Fig.24 is a diagram of a spectrogram of a short piece of music, according to some embodiments.

[0145] Fig.25 is a diagram of an assembly that is a union of individually addressable panels of an LED lighting unit, wherein each panel has a polygonal shape and is joined to adjacent panels by wired connections, according to some embodiments. Fig.25 Also shown are diagrams, matrices, and workflows.

[0146] Fig.26 is a workflow diagram of a presentation mechanism according to some embodiments.

[0147] Fig. 27 is a workflow diagram of a presentation mechanism according to some embodiments.

[0148] Figure 28A-Figure 28D Illustrations of various computing devices are provided according to some embodiments.

[0149] Fig.29 Example components of a kit of systems are shown, according to some embodiments.

[0150] Fig. 30A An example controller is shown, according to some embodiments.

[0151] Fig. 30B Shown are two configurable lighting units coupled together, according to some embodiments.

[0152] Fig. 30B Shown are two configurable lighting units coupled together, according to some embodiments.

[0153] Fig.31 An example setup of a configurable lighting panel with a controller is shown in accordance with some embodiments.

[0154] Fig.32A , Fig.32B , Fig.32C are example screenshots of using an interface of a mobile device, according to some embodiments.

[0155] Fig.33 and Fig.34 Shown are example continuous / adjoining shapes that are possible by arranging and / or rearranging configurable lighting units according to some embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0156] Embodiments of methods, systems, and apparatus are described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0157] Conventional applications of LEDs have been intentionally limited in size, form, and electrical constraints to fit in with incandescent lighting technology. Furthermore, LEDs have been limited to producing a constant type of white light without any of the variability and ingenious control described in some embodiments herein. This is known as retrofit LED lighting, and has the advantage of reduced electrical energy consumption compared to incandescent or fluorescent technology.

[0158] However, the constraints imposed preclude several beneficial lighting designs. As a result, some advanced LED lighting products are beginning to emerge that employ a wider range of capabilities. Examples include color-adjusting bulbs controlled via a touch screen interface, or pendant lights that gradually and automatically change from cool white light to warm white light as the day progresses from noon to evening. The various embodiments described in detail below are further improvements and variations on the way LED lighting technology can be used for personalized or novel lighting needs beyond typical retrofit purposes.

[0159] In various embodiments described herein, innovative systems, devices, methods, and computer-readable media are described in which configurable lighting units can be constructed so that they are very easy to assemble into larger lighting fixture assemblies, and the individual lighting units are configurable in that their orientation, position, and connection to each other can be rearranged by the user. The lighting fixture assembly is designed to be easy to connect, and connectors can be used between the configurable lighting units so that the configurable lighting units are interconnected and can share power, data (e.g., control signals) with each other or with a central controller. The central controller may include various computing devices and / or power delivery units, such as one or more layout detection units, effect rendering units, network interface units (e.g., for connecting to devices such as Apple Homekit TM Device networking device communication), etc. Configurable lighting units may be described herein as lighting panels, lighting units, lighting devices, etc.

[0160] Once assembled, the layout of the lighting fixture assemblies becomes automatically determined for subsequent programmed control. The layout allows visualizations and effects that would not otherwise be possible (further improved by external stimuli such as audio input from a microphone), and the layout can be maintained by a data structure stored locally or externally in a data store.

[0161] Applicants have further developed a layout determination mechanism that can handle "hot swapping" of components - when a new configurable lighting unit is added to the assembly, the layout detection automatically recognizes it as new and begins interacting with the outside, eliminating the need for human intervention. Similarly, when it is determined that a configurable lighting unit has been removed, the layout detection automatically updates and presents the effect that such a panel is no longer included. Various embodiments further describe how to distribute light in an apparently flat body, but the embodiments should not be considered limited to flat bodies (e.g., the body may have textures, light guides, incorporated waveguides, etc.).

[0162] Some described embodiments are designed and configured to enable an ordinary user to assemble a two-dimensional lighting fixture shaped into any irregular or regular polyhedron by combining individual panel blocks or units without any training or certification in electrical safety. For example, the shape can be a hexagon consisting of six equilateral triangles that are combined together at two of their three sides (edges).

[0163] Other shapes and designs are possible, and may be desirable in various circumstances, and the shapes and designs need not be static after setup. In various embodiments, the light panels, corresponding connections, and control technology are designed to dynamically adapt to changes in the shape and design of the entire assembly (in some cases, allowing "hot swapping" where configurable light panels are removed / added to the assembly while the assembly is powered). Although triangles are described in various embodiments, other shapes (e.g., squares) have been further developed by the applicant, and many of the principles apply equally to other shapes (e.g., various polyhedrons).

[0164] In the example where the lighting panel is a triangle, each triangle can in turn emit light produced from multiple LEDs, which can have different colors. The triangles can also be controlled individually. For example, one triangle emits red light at high intensity, while another triangle in the assembly emits blue light at a lower intensity. The inherent combinatorial nature of building geometric structures like this means that many different shapes can be built using even a small number of blocks.

[0165] The flexibility of the combination enables ordinary users to design the shapes of lighting fixture assemblies (or rearrange them) that meet their specific needs, rather than being limited to shapes set by manufacturers. The shapes include mostly vertically extending shapes, so that sunrise or sunset can be simulated based on the hue of light and the spatial quality of varying light intensity; it includes complex shapes such as hearts, pyramids, bird silhouettes, flags and other abstract expressions, all of which enable users to express themselves and design ideas.

[0166] Building such a dynamic and flexible system is technically challenging because the structure, control and power interconnection are not previously known compared to traditional fixed shapes / designs. For example, these configurable lighting units need to be able to stably connect to each other from a mechanical perspective, and also want to share power, data, electrical signals, etc.

[0167] Therefore, methods and processes are needed to assist in providing sufficient current and transmitting the provided control signals in the lighting assembly. For example, in some embodiments, a single configurable lighting unit is connected to a control / power supply. The control / power supply can be configured to provide power / control signals to the configurable lighting unit to which it is connected, and then transmit the control signals and power throughout the lighting assembly through a series of connectors (providing mechanical, electrical and / or data connections) and joints. The connector has a specific design whereby the connector can (1) connect the configurable lighting units together so that they can withstand impact and movement (e.g., shear forces) in a first direction, and (2) be able to be removed from the configurable lighting unit by applying a sufficiently strong force in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction (e.g., pulling the connector "out" of the configurable lighting unit). The units can be separated by applying a threshold damage or force level. The threshold damage or force level can depend on the angle or direction of the impact or applied force. The threshold damage or force level can depend on the type of impact or applied force. The threshold damage or force level can withstand impact and movement in a first direction (e.g., shear force), but can also be achieved by applying a sufficiently strong force in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction to separate the configurable lighting unit (e.g., by pulling the connector "out" of the configurable lighting unit).

[0168] With respect to (1), the connectors need to be able to resist breakage, and thus the first threshold for resisting shear forces should be high, given that the configurable lighting unit may be used and placed in a variety of different environmental settings. With respect to (2), the connectors need to be able to resist pull-out forces up to a second threshold (e.g., so that the connectors are not too "loose" and are easily removed, but at the same time above the second threshold, the connectors should be removable from the configurable lighting unit so that they can be reused, moved to another part, moved to another lighting unit, etc. Thus, the threshold damage or force level may be defined by different thresholds.

[0169] The configurable lighting units may include one or more holes to receive connectors, and the configurable lighting units may also have "connectable" sub-portions (e.g., corners or midpoints of sides, or other areas) whereby the configurable lighting units are configured to securely attach to each other.

[0170] Since the control and power supply also provides control signals throughout the assembly, in some embodiments, it is directly connected to only one or more configurable lighting units, and the assembly is configured to execute an electronic method for performing layout detection via signals transmitted between the configurable lighting units.

[0171] In other words, the creation of pleasing lighting may also require that each configurable lighting unit understands its position within the larger structure / assembly in some sense. Indirect connections may need to be identified by sending one or more detection signals in the assembly. When a new configurable lighting unit is added to the assembly while the assembly is powered, the new configurable lighting unit may be configured to transmit a control signal (the control signal indicating the addition of the new configurable lighting unit) to be received by the control / power supply, and similarly, when a configurable lighting unit previously connected to another configurable lighting unit is detected to be removed, the configurable lighting unit may also be configured to transmit another control signal indicating the removal so that the layout detection model can be updated accordingly.

[0172] In the specific non-limiting example of simulating a sunrise, not only should the type of light emitted be transformed from a low intensity warm white to a high intensity cool white, the light emitted should also be changed so that lighting units higher in the vertical structure emit at a relatively increased intensity, while lighting units lower in the vertical structure emit at a relatively lower intensity. In this sense, layout detection is important in computer-based lighting effect determination. Compared to simple methods without layout detection, more diverse and complex lighting effects can be presented by configurable lighting units working in conjunction with a controller. The layout detection model, which is stored in various data structures and maintained periodically or in response to detected stimuli, provides a geometric basis for generating dynamic visual effects, whereby the configurable lighting units are interactable visual elements that work together to present dynamic visual effects.

[0173] Thus, another aspect of the invention is a method by which the act of assembling a lighting fixture triggers a simultaneous layout detection which in turn generates an abstract representation of where each unit sits (or where it sits) in the larger assembly. Without this method, the individual units remain just individual components, like individual light bulbs in a room. Using this method, the units become part of a larger structure that is more than the sum of its parts. Two light bulbs in a room are two light sources that simply add up to double the lighting. Two lighting units combined in the manner described above become a distinct lighting fixture in which each unit understands its place in the other unit and so the lighting fixture is more than a light source that illuminates twice as well.

[0174] There are many possible abstract representations of the assembled luminaire produced by layout detection. There are highly granular representations, such as an array of Cartesian coordinates for each individual lighting unit. However, granular representations may not be suitable for creating logical instructions. The simulated sunrise above only requires information about where a particular configurable lighting unit is located on the vertical axis of the assembly. Another example is a cardioid lighting fixture that is used to pulse light from the center outward.

[0175] This lighting design requires information about where each unit is located on a radial axis, with the origin being at the geometric center of the assembly. Thus, part of the present invention is a method of deriving a meaningful geometric representation given a detected lighting fixture layout, which is key in the execution of an original lighting design.

[0176] One such lighting design is the simultaneous visualization of audio through light of varying intensities and colors that moves through a lighting fixture assembled by the user in one of many possible shapes. For example, as music plays to set a mood or create an atmosphere, the lighting fixture is evolving, pulsating, or flowing with colored light that adapts to the music and further enhances the feel of the music. Another example is the visualization of audio produced by speech or other ambient noise. Light corresponding to human presence or action can make a space come alive and more comfortable in it so as to catch the eye of a potential customer and become a memorable experience. In order to fully visualize the many different features of audio, the different geometric representations discussed above are needed to enable the many ways in which light evolves in an assembled lighting fixture that is known but in otherwise arbitrary shapes.

[0177] For purposes of illustration, imagine the following set of examples: A person in her home assembles twenty separate configurable lighting units into a creative shape, say a horizontal ripple across a wall, in less than two minutes. The lighting fixture assembly is connected to a power / control system via a wall plug and to a cell phone or laptop via Wi-Fi, all in less than a minute. A presentation program is selected by pressing a button or by voice command. Through a separate music system, a rhythmic music tune is played, which produces an audio wave. The lighting fixture begins pulsing an intense red light from left to right on a background of low-intensity white light, in sync with the beat of the music.

[0178] The situational awareness of the various configurable lighting units, the ease of assembly of the lighting fixture / assembly, the specific way the assembly is geometrically characterized, and how the audio is mapped to the evolution of light throughout the lighting fixture are all technical factors involved in creating this different artistic experience. The different aspects can be used alone or together, and the various elements can function independently of each other. Such illustrative embodiments are given in the following description.

[0179] The lighting design of a space involves many factors of light. Lighting designer Richard Kelly defines the key variables of lighting design. In addition to the brightness of a space, lighting design should also consider the distribution of light in the space, the spectral characteristics of the light, and the "direction of the main apparent optical area relative to the viewing plane." It has been found that the subjective perception of a space (including the sense of size) depends on some of these variables.

[0180] Light Generation and Distribution Hardware

[0181] Figure 1 1 is a diagram 100 showing how bright a space is, how evenly the light is distributed, where the light source is located, and the qualitative dependence of its occupants on the perception of the size of the space. In the early 21st century, it was determined that the human eye contains intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells that do not contribute to vision, but rather regulate circadian rhythms. The cells can be activated only by blue light and inhibit the production of melatonin (which induces sleepiness in mammals). Daylight at noon during the day is rich in blue light, while daylight at the end of the day shifts to red light wavelengths. These are the photorhythm states that human biology has evolved to.

[0182] A growing body of research suggests that artificial lighting can disrupt these rhythms to the detriment of an individual’s health. Individual differences in what constitutes optimal lighting are foreseeable, with so-called human-centric lighting design having been heralded as a paradigm shift in how the human occupants of a space and their direct and indirect needs should determine the way lighting is conducted. In few places is this as evident as in nursing facilities, where elderly men and women with increasingly prevalent health conditions are cared for. Evidence suggests that lighting can beneficially modulate disease symptoms through spectral changes during the day or through brightness and spatial dynamics that provide clear guidance on how to safely move through a space and avoid falls. In spatial design, therefore, the combination of spatial and spectral properties of lighting is a powerful blend that is tailored not only to the basic function of lighting but also to the well-being of its occupants.

[0183] An example of this is the difference in lighting for a lunch restaurant and a dinner restaurant. The lighting for the former is typically activating and formal, obtained through bright lighting that contains a greater amount of blue light wavelengths and typically comes from lighting fixtures high above the restaurant patrons. The lighting for the latter is typically relaxing and intimate, obtained through dim lighting that contains more red light wavelengths and typically comes from lighting fixtures closer to the patrons, such as pendant lights directly above the table or lamps on the table.

[0184] Other lighting applications that have recently received similar considerations in terms of human factors (which are not only about brightness control) are lighting in schools, care facilities and street lighting. The above are all examples of lighting that is more than just a form of spatial lighting. Rather, the location and spectrum of this lighting contribute to the atmosphere of the space, its functionality and the well-being of the people who live in it.

[0185] A light emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor that emits light in a narrow wavelength band when a direct current (DC) passes through the pn junction of the diode. The material composition of the LED determines the band structure and therefore the spectrum of the emitted light, among other things. Examples of LED compositions are gallium arsenide (GaAs), gallium phosphide (GaP), and gallium nitride (GaN). LEDs exist in a variety of visible light outputters, such as purple, blue, green, amber, red, and outputters of invisible light, such as ultraviolet (UV). Most commercial LED lamps produce white light, which is a mixture of light of different wavelengths. The conventional characteristics of white light are its correlated color temperature (CCT) and some indicators of the ability of the light to accurately render color; these indicators include the color rendering index (CRI), the color quality scale (CQS), and the gamut area index (GAI).

[0186] The CCT of white light quantifies the degree of red light component versus blue light component, where lower values ​​of CCT mean that more red light is present, thus resulting in a warmer, more fire-like appearance of the light. By way of example, the light of a typical candlelight is approximately 1800K, the light from the sun during sunset is approximately 2500K, and the light at noon on a cloudy day is close to 10000K. One way to obtain a mixture of white light is through a combination of materially different LEDs that produce visually different light that is mixed in a secondary optic such as a lens, or through scattering by small particles or structural irregularities in the material through which the light from the LED travels before illuminating the space.

[0187] Another way to obtain a white light mixture is by coating a blue or violet LED with an inhomogeneous phosphor that absorbs part of the light before emitting the lower energy, longer wavelength light, and then reducing the total energy by relaxation of the atomic vibrational degrees of freedom in the phosphor. The latter approach is more common in commercially available LED lamps due to the simpler structure, although examples of the former approach also exist, particularly in the form of so-called red-blue-green (RGB) lamps.

[0188] A known complication in the field of RGB lamps and lighting in general is that LEDs made of different materials react differently to heat. LEDs are known to lose more of their luminous output to non-radiative relaxation modes as temperature increases. Some types of LEDs lose more than others, with GaP LEDs being particularly susceptible to reduced luminous flux as temperature increases. Some approaches involve feedback loops to eliminate any noticeable drift in color coordinates. Emitting a relatively narrow spectrum is part of the reason for the high efficiency of LEDs relative to traditional incandescent lighting, which emits a very broad spectrum through thermal radiation that includes a large number of invisible wavelengths.

[0189] Since LEDs are semiconductors, they are typically mounted on a printed circuit board (PCB) in the lamp. The PCB is also the basis for electronic devices such as microcontrollers (MCUs) and processors. Therefore, the hardware of LED lamps can be relatively easily expanded to include computing devices. This is the hardware basis for connected LED lamps or smart lighting. The MCU can embody simple logic to change the current that drives multiple LEDs in the lamp. In lamps containing LEDs with different spectra (such as RGB lamps) or in lamps containing various white light LEDs with different CCTs, the different relative currents to the LEDs in turn result in a changing mixed spectrum. In the former case, the light becomes color-adjustable, while in the latter case, the white hue can change, similar to how daylight changes during a day.

[0190] The signal to the MCU may in turn be derived from a wireless signal received by an integrated antenna, or may be received via a wired connection. The antenna must be tuned to receive or transmit the signal of interest at the appropriate range with minimal energy loss. Characteristics such as antenna length and shape and how the antenna is electrically or mechanically connected to the electrical or mechanical parts of the lamp must be designed to ensure optimal performance. In addition, most jurisdictions around the world specify which frequency bands a device is allowed to transmit in. Antenna designs that produce strong harmonic frequencies at some multiple or fraction of the intended frequency are not acceptable in commercial products.

[0191] Through computer simulations and tests in anechoic chambers, these characteristics for transmission can generally be achieved at conventional frequencies (900 MHz and 2.4 GHz), as long as the lamp or lighting fixture is not too small or is not in close proximity to conductive material parts (thus a barrier to electromagnetic waves). However, regardless of the method of receiving the signal, the control of multiple types of LEDs means that the control aspect is not just binary control (such as an on / off switch), or one-dimensional control (such as a standard dimmer switch). This attribute defines the challenge of providing users with an intuitive interface to interact with the lamp or lighting fixture, as traditional light switches are not sufficient to transmit more complex signals. In order to achieve a lighting design for a space that takes into account the above variables, the control challenge is even further increased, as multiple devices must change over time or be triggered by any of a number of possible situations.

[0192] Part of the solution is to design software that can construct controls and communicate with lighting fixtures. As with the underlying technology of the World Wide Web (WWW), the communication of data and signals benefits from a design that is layered in increasing abstraction layers. At a low level, signals are treated as binary electrical signals, while at a higher level, commands are described in units that are closer to human understanding of the system. The advantage of introducing an abstraction layer is that it simplifies the development of new features, security, or enhanced hardware as long as the communication interface between the layers remains the same. This is an example of software modularity, which is generally considered a necessary feature of high-quality software. One of the more well-known abstraction layer designs is the Open System Interconnection (OSI) model, which defines seven layers for device communication. At each layer, developers will introduce different specific software methods to handle the specific tasks of that layer. For any given layer available in the public domain, there are several different methods, which are either fully disclosed to the public or as confidential specifications within a company or organization. Each method can be different in terms of their security, energy efficiency, memory efficiency, fastness, and fault tolerance.

[0193] Due to the modularity described above, it is still possible to choose various combinations of software communication methods in product or service development and still have an application that performs the same main function, varying only to a certain degree with respect to certain properties.

[0194] Specifically, the abstraction enables very different devices at the lower levels of data communication to exchange data through common methods at higher levels. For example, a device that registers motion in a room through passive infrared radiation (IR), when triggered, can use the popular Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) to transmit the low-level signal as a message in the form of JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) at the physical layer to the Internet, which is received by the mobile device through the standard way of transmitting data over the Internet, and then through layers in the software design of the mobile device, trigger a physical mobile device signal, thereby alerting the owner to the motion detected by the IR signal.

[0195] Developers of both the mobile device and the motion sensor do not have to disclose the lower-level details of the communication. Developers follow open standards at a higher level for transmitting data. Therefore, for many application innovations involving one or more devices, the specific details of data communication are not dependent on the low-level details of the software or hardware design of either device by design.

[0196] This characteristic of modern device communication is the actual basis for the innovation of connected wearable devices that record some biometric characteristics of the person carrying the device, as well as some state variables of the space that the person lives in. The biometric characteristics can be, for example, heart rate, skin temperature, neural fluctuations, sleep state. Through physical sensors, the biometric characteristics trigger low-level electrical signals, which are transmitted upwards in software design to increasing abstraction layers until the sensor data exists in a form that can be received by the upper software layer of a second device (for example, an LED light).

[0197] The same software technology is part of an innovation that converts video signals into lighting of a specific hue, saturation or brightness that amplifies the content on a display. In that case, the control signal comes not from another hardware device but from a digital stream of data that is converted into an action picture in the television. The application shows that at the appropriate level of abstraction, all data can be received and interpreted by software as lower-level signals, whether they are instructions to set the color of a given pixel on a television or instructions to assign what color and intensity to a light fixture or multiple light fixtures at some preconfigured location in a home, bar, outdoor area or other public or private place. Other applications include connecting physical hardware to data streams from social media. One example is CheerLights. TM , which enables any LED light with a specific software architecture to be able to TM The online message receives the control signal.

[0198] Some embodiments describe configurable LED luminaires that can meet one or more of the above-mentioned lighting design goals through novel hardware and software designs.

[0199] In some embodiments, the system is capable of spectral, light center trajectory, dynamics and / or full 2D-slot-tessellation spatial configurations. The system is not limited to configuring spectral, or modestly certain spatial configurations.

[0200] In some embodiments, a multi-component configurable LED lamp is provided.

[0201] Some embodiments are based on a substantially flat light emitting structure. The flat structure is a light guide having an area for introducing light. The light can be conducted through the light guide. Throughout the light guide, some elements or microstructures are introduced to extract light from the light guide and generate illumination. The surface area for introducing light is typically smaller than the surface area for extracting light, with the difference being between 10 and 1000 times.

[0202] The light guide may be made of a material such as polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polycarbonate (PC), or similar polymers that are fully or partially transparent to visible light.

[0203] The polymer material has a refractive index greater than 1, typically between 1.4 and 1.5. Because this refractive index is greater than the refractive index of the surrounding air, light guided within the light guide may undergo total internal reflection (TIR).

[0204] This may mean that light will not leave the light guide to reach the air unless the angle of incidence exceeds a critical value obtained from Snell's law. Therefore, the light guide is able to guide light from the light source in a highly restricted light diffusion if desired. This means that even if the curvature of the light guide is below a certain critical threshold, light will be guided into the environment without significant light loss.

[0205] To generate ambient illumination, light may be extracted or outcoupled from the light guide. The extraction is performed such that all or some of the plurality of light rays are redirected to an extent greater than the critical angle of incidence derived from Snell's law and the material properties of the light guide.

[0206] The simplest approach in concept is to randomly incorporate small reflective particles (such as titanium dioxide) uniformly throughout the lightguide. Light travelling close to the particles will therefore enhance scattering and change its route through the lightguide, and in particular some of the light will be conducted at an angle relative to the interface between the lightguide and the surrounding air that allows light to escape from the lightguide. As long as the particles are small, the distribution of the particles can be designed so that when light is introduced into the lightguide, the panel will appear to be uniformly illuminated to a human observer. Another method of extracting light from the lightguide uses surface roughening, for example by laser, screen printing, etching or scratching.

[0207] By adding structural elements to the surface of the light guide, which disrupt the otherwise uniform surface, the probability of extracting light is increased. Direct extraction is possible when the light strikes the interface because the angle of incidence is greater than a critical value due to the surface roughening. The rough surface can also reflect the light due to TIR over angles, so that when it next hits the interface between the light guide and the environment, the angle exceeds the critical value and the light is extracted into the environment and thus contributes to lighting. The surface can be modified in a determined way to more finely control the extracted light. Due to the determined and specific placement and shape of the structures added to the light guide, properties such as extraction efficiency, degree of extraction as a function of distance from the light source, as well as properties such as the angle of the extracted light, are easier to design.

[0208] At a portion of the perimeter of the light guide, a reflective tape or other component can be applied so that light that was not extracted from the light guide during its conduction from the light source all the way to the end of the light guide is reflected back into the light guide, making an extraction event possible again. This can be considered a recycling event, where the light emitted from the light source is allowed to travel through the light guide again. The reflectivity of the tape can be very high, above 95%, or even above 99%. The reflection can be diffuse in nature and completely reflective. Another possible solution is that the edge is constructed to increase the probability of TIR at the edge, thereby achieving a similar result to the reflective tape without the added components. However, this does change the visual appearance of the edge unless it is hidden from view by some opaque structural element (such as an aluminum frame).

[0209] In one embodiment, multiple LEDs with different CCTs are used as light sources so that relative changes in the driving currents produce different tones of white light.

[0210] In another embodiment, different colored LEDs are used, or in other words, LEDs with different narrow spectra are used, so that the color can be adjusted by relative changes in the drive current. In these embodiments, the outcoupling must also take into account the spatial variability of the visually different light. For example, if one portion of the surface element couples out more red light than green and blue light, another portion couples out more blue light than red and green light, and another portion couples out more green light than red and blue light, then the illuminated surface will appear very non-uniform in color. In some applications, this is a desirable effect because it can add additional dynamics to the lighting. In some applications, this is an undesirable effect; for example, color uniformity is one of the criteria for Energy Star certification defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

[0211] The longer the distance the light rays travel before they are outcoupled, the more mixed they will become. One embodiment introduces light on the thin side of the light guide and emits it from an orthogonal surface that is quite long, the travel distance is relatively long compared to embodiments where light is introduced to the panel on the opposite side of the emission surface.

[0212] The closer different LEDs are placed, the shorter the travel distance must be to achieve a given degree of mixing. Thus, in an exemplary embodiment, visually distinct LEDs are placed close to each other and the light is allowed to travel a short distance in the light guide panel with reduced, minimal, or no outcoupling. In this way, the color uniformity perceived by a human observer can be optimized (e.g., maximized).

[0213] Due to the above-described features of the light guide, the light guide can be made relatively thin. The light source is an LED package, which is optionally composed of multiple visually distinct LED semiconductors and has a light emitting surface that can be several millimeters in its shortest dimension. The light guide should fully (e.g., completely) cover the light emitting surface of the LED to effectively utilize the generated light. In order to be able to physically connect the light guide to other components required to manage the heat of the LED, or to cover the electronic components required to supply DC to the LED in a safe manner, the light guide can be at least 2 to 10 mm thicker than the shortest dimension of the light emitting surface.

[0214] Extracting light from the panel in other ways or as reviewed above does not require increasing the thickness of the panel because it is based on particles or structural changes that are at least an order of magnitude smaller than the panel or LED package. Therefore, the form factor of the lighting fixture can be very thin, only a few millimeters if necessary.

[0215] The geometry of the lighting fixture can in principle be any two-dimensional structure. An example embodiment is an equilateral triangle. An equilateral triangle is a simple two-dimensional structure of the symmetry group D3 and is the most symmetrical of all triangles. An equilateral triangle is a constituent surface that is a solid in several three dimensions; in particular, three of the five Platonic solids are composed of equilateral triangles. Larger three-dimensional structures, such as the sphere of metrology are also the product of equilateral triangles joined at the edges. Since the 60 degree angle in an equilateral triangle is a simple fraction of 360 degrees, a surface can be tessellated with equilateral triangles, in other words, the triangles are sheets without overlaps or gaps.

[0216] Together, these properties make the equilateral triangle a versatile building block for constructing larger structures, either flat or three-dimensional. Figure 2An example of an embodiment is shown in , where at an exemplary lighting fixture 200, there are one or more connectors 2002, LEDs 2004, connecting ribs 2006, and light guides / diffusers 2008. Any regular or irregular polyhedron may also be used in various embodiments. Other implementations are possible, and these components are shown only as examples. For example, there may be more LEDs 2004, connectors 2002 may operate in different locations, may have other shapes, etc. Lighting devices other than LEDs 2004 may also be used.

[0217] The square belongs to the D4 symmetry group, and the 90 degree angle also allows tessellation of the surface. The square is a surface element in the cube, which is one of the five Platonic surfaces. The pentagon belongs to the D5 symmetry group. However, the 108 degree angle of the regular pentagon is not a fraction of 360 degrees, so it cannot be used to tessellate the surface.

[0218] Surface elements of the dodecahedron, the last of the five Platonic solids. A regular hexagon can be constructed from six equilateral triangles, so any structure composed partly or entirely of hexagons can be constructed from multiple equilateral triangles. By combining regular polyhedra, many three-dimensional structures can be created when joined at the edges, such as the traditional shape of a soccer / football ball.

[0219] Light extraction unit of the light guide

[0220] As described herein, light emitted into a light guide panel must be redirected, either completely or partially, to exit the panel and serve as illumination for the environment. Regardless of the underlying physical process by which the light is redirected, these points may be referred to as extraction points.

[0221] As any unit of light leaves the panel, less light remains in the panel to be emitted at subsequent extraction points. Therefore, the amount of light extracted can vary across the panel, with more light extracted near the LED light source. Some lighting applications require non-uniformity to be below a set threshold for functional or aesthetic reasons.

[0222] Assume that the form factor of the light guide panel is set, as well as the placement of the light sources and their luminous flux. The variables in the design (in some cases, the only variables) are the coordinates and properties of the extraction points. In the more common case, the properties of the extraction points are the same across the panel, and the variable to be optimized (in some cases, the only variable) is the placement of this set of extraction points in order to obtain the desired level of uniformity.

[0223] In the example of a light guide panel in the form of an equilateral triangle, with light sources in the vertices of the triangle and high reflective bands at the sides of the flat panel, the distribution of the extraction points is a non-trivial inverse problem. Similar complexity applies for most structures. The square presents a problem that can be solved by simple geometry. The goal is an apparently uniform light surface from the light guide panel. In physical terms, the luminosity at any surface element of the light guide panel should deviate from the average luminosity of the entire light guide panel by no more than some small relative or absolute threshold.

[0224] In equation form, the objective function is:

[0225]

[0226]

[0227] where S is the set of points defining the surface that should be illuminated and M(s) is the luminosity at a given surface element s.

[0228] The standard unit for luminance is lux and is easily measured by equipment or modeled in optical software.

[0229] The purpose of this method is to minimize the objective function L by adjusting the distribution of extraction points given the shape of the panel and the placement of the light sources. Given the distribution of extraction points, standard optical simulation tools can be applied to determine the luminosity function.

[0230] So-called ray tracing methods simulate light as multiple rays that are conducted through a medium in a discrete manner. Ray tracing involves constructing an approximate solution to Maxwell's equations. For some materials that include small diffractive elements, the optical properties of a given material can be calibrated prior to simulation.

[0231] Once a sufficiently accurate method has been calibrated to calculate the value of the objective function given a configuration of extraction points, the configuration is iteratively optimized using a zero-order or first-order method. One embodiment uses a genetic approach. It proceeds as follows.

[0232] Multiple configurations are randomly initialized. The configurations are mathematically represented as feature vectors, known as genes for a given configuration. An objective function is calculated for each configuration. The best performing configurations are transformed by a finite set of genetic operators. Genetic operators typically include: mutation, which randomly perturbs a given configuration while retaining the majority of the configurations; crossover, which combines the two best performing configurations in some way, such as taking the first half of the genes of one configuration and combining it with the second half of the genes of another configuration.

[0233] Through iterations, the population of configurations moves toward a solution that minimizes the objective function. Genetic methods are complexly parallel, which can make them run quickly (e.g., in some cases, very quickly). A related stochastic optimization method is simulated annealing. It randomly modifies configurations and accepts a new configuration if and only if the objective function decreases or increases by less than a random number generated at each computation.

[0234] As the optimization proceeds, the threshold that is allowed to increase is gradually reduced or annealed. This structure allows the method to escape from shallow local minima on the path to the global minimum. Both methods are done without calculating gradients, so they are zero-order methods. First-order methods usually require fewer iterations than zero-order methods, but they require an exact or approximate calculation of the gradient of the objective function. Maxwell's equations can be differentiated analytically or numerically, which produces gradients. Therefore, gradient descent optimization or gradient descent with inertia optimization can be used to find the minimum of the objective function.

[0235] Structure and electrical connections, 3D and 2D

[0236] The previous sections describe the construction of example embodiments of a single flat lighting fixture. Each unit is constructed to allow multiple individual units to be conveniently assembled into large lighting fixtures. Due to the unique properties of the equilateral triangle, as previously described, a variety of two-dimensional and three-dimensional structures can be fabricated.

[0237] This section describes a number of embodiments that allow lighting units to be conveniently and safely custom assembled into larger lighting fixtures.

[0238] Figure 3 300 is an illustration of a two-dimensional lighting fixture composed of a plurality of triangles 3002. In addition, it is also assumed that the assembly is subject to gravity 3006, which may have a non-zero force vector in the plane of the triangles. Thus, if one of the triangles 3004 is attached to a wall, while the other triangles 3002 are not attached, there may be a force (e.g., gravity) that separates the triangles from each other. From a mechanical perspective, the weight of various configurable lighting panels is an important consideration. Suitable connectors may be required that, on the one hand, can avoid accidental damage when subjected to forces in certain directions, while at the same time being relatively easy to remove.

[0239] In other words, Figure 3 The structure in is not at a stable point without further restraint. Without loss of generality, the method is described in terms of two triangles joined together. For a person skilled in the art, the method described below can be easily applied to a lighting fixture composed of more than two triangles, or to a lighting fixture assembled from lighting units shaped as squares, rhombuses, rectangles, parallelograms, pentagrams, hexagons, or any regular or irregular polygons.

[0240] A convenient locking mechanism may be utilized, or, in some embodiments, a tight friction fit may be utilized so that the connector between lighting panels can resist shear forces while also being easily removable if pulled along the axis used for insertion / removal with sufficient force. Since the forces experienced between lighting panels in normal use (rather than when inserting / removing the connector) may be in multiple directions, this may be used to provide a sufficiently stable connection while providing a removable connection.

[0241] Magnetic forces have been used in LED lighting to allow one component to be separated from another. The modular structure thus obtained allows individual components that break down or fail earlier than other components to be replaced rather than replacing the entire fixture. However, these innovations do not electrically or mechanically couple lighting devices to each other to form a larger lighting device, but the structure is meant to enable an electrician to easily replace one functionally different component from a group of other functionally different components.

[0242] Many of these modular units expose portions of the lamp's high voltage structure during the removal of specific components. Therefore, personnel trained in electrical safety must complete the task of replacing the relevant components. Another application of magnetism in LED lighting is to enable continuous and adjustable placement of lamps on live tracks. This application requires the bonding function of magnetism to achieve mechanical reliability and safe electrical conduction to power the LED package. However, it does not combine multiple lamp units together into a functionally and structurally new unit.

[0243] Prior work on mechanical and electrical attachment of individual lighting units into a larger lighting device has used edges with mutual protrusions and recesses and alignment holes into which a device can be inserted for mechanical attachment. This embodiment allows for relatively continuous joining of the visual lighting portions of the lighting unit. However, it requires a separate device to mechanically join those portions. In addition, the end sides of the assembled lighting unit may have the protrusions and recesses and holes required for joining, which in some applications can take away from the desired appearance of the product unless the entire luminaire is mounted in a custom frame that covers the end sides.

[0244] One embodiment separates the PCB on which the LEDs are mounted from the PCB on which the electrical drivers are placed by a distinct cube heat sink. On the four orthogonal sides of the cube, the means for electrically and mechanically attaching multiple cubes are depicted. The electrical connection is depicted as a double-sided male connector that connects two female connectors on two sides of the cube that are approached together, and the mechanical connection is depicted as a snap between the modules that creates a binding force to combine the two cubes when aligned with a slot on the side of another cube. Some embodiments include this scheme to include a wireless module within the cube heat sink.

[0245] Some embodiments utilize magnetic forces to join flat panels in an electrically safe and convenient manner without having structure at the end sides that would remove from the desired minimal and uniform visual appearance, or complicate assembly for the user.

[0246] Some embodiments include an equilateral triangle with the LED light source located in the vertices of the triangle. Electrical and magnetic connectors are also placed on both sides of the vertices. Figure 4 , another example embodiment 400 associated with a lighting panel 4002 is shown.

[0247] This embodiment solves the mechanical connection problem. On one side, the magnet 4004 is mounted on a solid block, which can be made of plastic, non-magnetic metal or wood, just to name a few examples. The polarization of the magnet is such that the entire surface pointing outward relative to the other parts of the lighting unit has the same sign, such as positive polarization.

[0248] Thus, the inwardly facing portion of the magnet is negatively polarized, since magnetic monopoles are virtually non-existent. The block on which the magnet is mounted is attached to the frame of the lighting unit 4002 by means of a spring. The structure of the spring may take any standard form, such as a helical spring, a flat helical tension spring, or a leaf spring, to name three specific examples.

[0249] exist Figure 4 In the retracted position, the force required to bend the projections connecting the block to the frame achieves an equilibrium position of the block subject to normal gravity. On the opposite side of the block structure at the apex is a recess of complementary size to the above block. A magnet is mounted at the innermost portion of the recess, the same or similar size as the magnet mounted to the above block.

[0250] The polarisation of this magnet is opposite to that of the magnet on the block. In the example given above, this means that the magnet in the recess is negatively polarised towards the outside. In this embodiment of the invention, there are no moving parts within the recess.

[0251] When two lighting units are placed near each other and the apexes are clearly or perfectly aligned, the magnetic attraction between the positively polarized magnets of the block and the negatively polarized magnets within the recess creates a force that pulls the two lighting units together and the block out of its retracted position and into the recess.

[0252] The block can fill the notch, or leave some empty space between the block and the bottom of the notch, meaning that the two magnets are not in physical contact. In this configuration, the connector is already actuated.

[0253] Actuation can be performed under the following force conditions: first, the magnetic force is greater than the spring force plus the gravity applied to the block to maintain it in the retracted position, which is the magnetic force that pulls the block toward the magnet in the recess at intervals equal to or slightly greater than the depth of the recess. Under these conditions, the block can begin to insert itself into the recess without any additional force applied by the user. Second, as the block moves into the recess, the attractive magnetic force should continue to be greater than the force from the spring to pull the block deeper. Since the magnitude of the magnetic force increases inversely as the distance decreases according to Hooke's law, and the spring force increases linearly at small deviations from equilibrium, the second condition holds true as long as the first condition applies to any meaningful spring design. Third, when the block is extended a distance from its retracted position, a force equal to the magnetic attraction will appear, which will define the equilibrium position of the block in the fully actuated state of the magnetic block.

[0254] The origin of the reaction force can be the exchange repulsion that prevails between molecular species, or it can be the result of the spring having been extended to the point where the force increases rapidly in a nonlinear manner.

[0255] When the block enters the notch and reaches its fully actuated state, the configuration locks the pair of lighting units in a position such that the lighting units remain attached under shear forces in the plane of the lighting units and under shear forces perpendicular to the plane of the lighting units. In addition, the magnetic forces prevent the lighting units in the plane of the units from separating under moderate separation forces. Altogether, this means that the magnetic locking mechanism provides significant rigidity to a pair of combined lighting units that are expected to be subjected to gravity or other force disturbances under normal use of the assembly.

[0256] By optimizing the spring constant, the depth of the notch, the magnitude of the magnetic moment, and the point at which the spring extends into the highly nonlinear region, the mechanical properties of the locking mechanism can be tuned for ease of use, as well as robustness to shear and separation forces.

[0257] Qualitative guidance includes that the magnetic force in the fully actuated state should not exceed the limit that one would conveniently apply to separate a pair of lighting units, and that the depth of the block into the recess should be sufficient to provide resistance to shear forces. However, little additional resistance is provided above a certain depth, and the structural challenge of accommodating a large block in the vertex without much loss of illuminated surface places practical limits on the optimal block size. In fact, by providing room for some out-of-plane shear forces, the connected pair of lighting units becomes more convenient to separate, as the user can slightly bend the two units relative to each other to reduce the magnetic forces.

[0258] Figure 5Another embodiment of a magnetic locking mechanism 500 is shown in FIG. This mechanism has some similarities to the above. Both sides of the apex have different parts of the lock that are formed when a pair of aligned lighting units are brought together. One side includes a rod 5002 that retracts into the apex and is held in place by a spring 5004 (a coil spring in this embodiment). The rod contains a magnetic component that is specifically polarized facing outward.

[0259] On the other side of the lock is a recess within which a physically rigid magnet 5006 is disposed with the magnetic polarization opposite that of the rod. In order to provide very strong resistance to separation forces in the plane of the lighting unit, Figure 5 The embodiment in comprises a protrusion into which the rod 5002 can be attached. This means that in the fully actuated state the rod is locked to the other lighting unit by an additional non-magnetic mechanism (thus making the force required for detachment very high). Only when the elastic structure controlling the relative position of the protrusion and the plane of the lighting unit is pressed, the rod moves out of the hole and allows the user to detach the lighting unit with reasonable force.

[0260] The embodiments described herein address the mechanical connection between the lighting units and share the property of magnetic force pulling the lock into position to provide rigidity to the assembly.

[0261] Fig. 6A and Figure 6B Another embodiment is provided, illustrated in 600A and 600B, which shows the hole of the lighting unit in more detail. The exemplary hole 6002 has a reduced profile through flanges 6004 and 6006, which helps to keep the male connector part in place. These flanges 6004 and 6006 allow the fasteners of the male connector and the female hole to connect freely and prevent movement in one direction. In some embodiments, a cutout 6010 is provided so that the user can easily interact with the male connector located in the hole 6002 (for example, the user can slide the connector and apply force on it to remove it from the hole 6002). Protrusions 6008 are shown (there can be more or less, but four are shown), and in some embodiments, these protrusions 6008 can include conductive materials (for transmitting power or data).

[0262] In some embodiments, the projections 6008 have spring properties that help bias their positioning and orientation toward an upward position. When the hole 6002 receives the male connector, the male connector presses down on the projections 6008, so that the projections 6008 push upward on the male connector and hold the male connector against the flanges 6004 and 6006 to provide fixation in the shear direction and the insertion / removal direction. The spring tension on the projections 6008 can be set so that when a force above the separation threshold is applied, the projections 6008 can be removed from the male connector, and the male connector can therefore be removed from the hole 6002.

[0263] Another embodiment uses Figure 5 The same mechanism, and also provides an electrical connection. The block that enters the recess is equipped with an electrical connection point, such as a so-called spring pin connector. Receiving connection points are also constructed inside the recess so that once they establish contact with the spring pins, electrical signals can be conducted between the two lighting units. Figure 7 An illustration 700 of this embodiment is given in FIG.

[0264] Figure 7 The middle two pins in the connector are spring pins that make the electrical connection; the outer two pins are magnets. The spring pin connector is spring loaded (the spring is shown as 7002) so that compression of the pin is a necessary but not sufficient condition for electrical conduction. Additional safety is provided to the structure so that when the spring pins are exposed, the risk of accidental electric shock is reduced to safety certification standards (e.g., Underwriters Laboratories Inc. TM Electrical connectors may also take other forms, such as compression connectors. Compression connectors share the feature with spring pin connectors that compression is required to enable the connector to transfer power. Other connectors that do not require any compression or other actuation are also possible, such as a two-piece connector that is similar in concept to the connectors used in vacuum cleaners, floor lamps, and battery chargers that plug into a wall socket.

[0265] While feasible, these connectors would create a noticeable protrusion on the lighting unit which would be an undesirable feature of the product aesthetics and use in the application.

[0266] exist Figure 8 Another embodiment of a combined electrical and mechanical connection using springs and spring pins is given in FIG. 800 of FIG. 801. In this case, the spring pins (or other electrical connectors) are located at the ends of the block and the magnets are located in the middle portion 8002. The springs 8004, 8006 that hold the block in the retracted position in the absence of an attractive magnetic force have a spiral shape. The basic action is similar to Figure 7The optimization considerations for magnetic size, block size and spring constant described with respect to the previous embodiment also apply here.

[0267] The above described embodiments have magnetic structures on the exterior of the product. The described embodiments are also limited to the assembly of a pair of lighting units, where the planes of the two units are aligned. In other words, a three-dimensional assembly is not possible. Fig. 9 In FIG. 9 , a diagram of an embodiment of realizing a three-dimensional assembly 900 is given. In the frame of the lighting unit, a hollow space is formed, in which a cylindrical magnet is placed. The hollow space is in the shape of three partially overlapping cylinders, the diameter of which is equal to or slightly larger than the diameter of the cylindrical magnet.

[0268] This structure allows the magnet to roll within the hollow space according to the gravity and magnetic forces it is subjected to. By shaping the hollow space as described above, the position of the magnet within the space has three stable points under typical force conditions. When another lighting unit with the same structure comes within range of the former, the magnet in the other lighting unit will attract the magnet in the given lighting unit. The two magnets roll into a stable point where the two magnets are as close as possible.

[0269] The attractive force provides a mechanical connection of the two lighting units that provides rigidity for shear forces and separation forces in the plane of the two lighting units. Unlike the locking embodiment, the rigidity for shear forces is expected to be lower because no mechanical interlocking occurs. An advantage of this embodiment is that with a relatively small space for accommodating the mechanical connection components, the assembly can be made three-dimensional because the two sides can be joined at an angle.

[0270] Furthermore, the surface can be completely free of any surface protrusions or indentations, since the magnets are hidden within the frame due to the attractive force originating from the magnetic field caused by the magnets. In order for the magnetic field to reach outside the frame, the following design factors should be considered simultaneously: the size of the magnetic moment, the width of the membrane separating the two magnets in the two lighting units, and the magnetic permeability of the material of which the frames of the lighting units are made.

[0271] Considerations include: the larger the magnetic moment, the more significant magnetic potential there will be at a distance from the magnet, which means that the membrane width can be larger. The greater the magnetic permeability of the material, the greater the difference in the field line travel compared to free air; this is not at all relevant for predicting what will happen when the material changes, because the shape will also change. However, if the magnet is completely enclosed in a high permeability material such as nickel, iron or an alloy such as Mu metal, the magnetic field outside the enclosure is expected to be significantly reduced. If the magnet is completely enclosed in a material with a magnetic permeability equal to or close to air, such as plastic, copper, wood and aluminum, the magnetic field is undisturbed or moderately perturbed, and therefore a pair of lighting units are relatively separated (on which there is still enough magnetic force to lock the two units), which is very close to the hypothetical situation where the magnet is suspended in free space.

[0272] Fig. 9 The embodiments in are designed to jointly consider the selection of frame material, magnetic moment and membrane width in order to obtain the appropriate attractive force between the pair of lighting units.

[0273] The internal magnet in the previous embodiment may alternatively be designed to also provide an electrical connection. Fig. 9 The illustration in includes copper connectors, both of which contact corresponding connectors on adjacent lighting units on the outside, and an internal connector wrapped around the magnet. The internal connector around the magnet is connected to the electronics within the lighting unit.

[0274] The external connection point has one side facing inwards that connects to the copper surrounding the magnet. When the magnet rolls to a new position due to external magnetic forces and gravity, electrical transmission is achieved through another set of external copper connectors, while the other two contact surfaces do not transmit electricity.

[0275] In various embodiments where one or more contacts are formed so that electricity can be conducted between two bonded cells, data can also be transmitted. Data transmission is accomplished in a serial manner (or otherwise) by any data encoding method available in the literature.

[0276] One such method is amplitude modulation, in which the amplitude of the electrical signal is modulated between two discrete values, which the receiving processor or other computing device maps to a binary value that is part of a binary string that encodes the data. Another such method is frequency modulation, in which the frequency of the electrical signal is modulated between two discrete values, which the receiving processor or other computing device maps to a binary value that is part of a binary string that encodes the data.

[0277] Data can be transmitted over connections that also transmit power between the units, which is essentially the same approach known in the literature as power line communication (PLC). Data can be transmitted over connections dedicated to the data signals themselves. This requires adding additional pins and conductive wires to the structure, but it can simplify the logic instructions that must be executed to interpret the data signals.

[0278] The rate at which data can be sent over this connection is in the same range as serial connections used in the literature for computer hardware, and can be in the range of 300 bits per second to 115,200 bits per second. At a microscopic level, the connection may contain defects or mismatches, which in turn can cause noise in the signal. Standard digital signal processing methods can be used to reduce the effect of this on any pin structure that is able to make reasonable physical contact. Therefore, for any of the embodiments described, it can be assumed that the data is not altered while being transmitted over the connection.

[0279] In some embodiments, parallel communication methods may also be used.

[0280] The ability to transfer data between two connected units in the assembly means that a microprocessor or other computing device connected to the assembly at any connection point can send or receive a stream of data to or from any unit in the assembly. If the computing device is additionally connected to an antenna, it can receive data from an external source not connected to the assembly by a cable and transfer that data or a portion thereof throughout the assembly, or vice versa, where data generated in the assembly is sent to an external device.

[0281] Another embodiment of a magnetic mechanical connection is a connection with exposed magnet strips. Each magnet is mounted to the frame so that it only exposes the side with one magnetic polarization. This solution has the same characteristics as described above and in Fig. 9 The embodiment shown in has similar characteristics: rigidity for separation force and shear force, but the shear force is less than the embodiment including the moving block. Fig.10 In the application, a diagram 1000 of this embodiment is shown, in which four lighting units in the shape of equilateral triangles have been assembled into a tetrahedron. To make this possible, magnets can be mounted on the lighting units so that the polarization is appropriate and there is no net repulsive magnetic interaction in any configuration that is part of the intended use.

[0282] Each corner connection 10004, 10006 is shown with opposing pairs of magnets at each vertex. The opposite pairs are used for magnetic attraction (pairs 10008 and 10010).

[0283] exist Fig.11 , a representation 1100 is given of how the six magnets at each vertex are polarized and how they are mounted on each side. Fig.11 Each bracket in contains three elements, which represent the polarizations of three magnets that are both part of the same vertex and on the same side; the order of the elements within the brackets is such that the leftmost element represents the topmost magnet, the middle element represents the middle magnet, and the rightmost element represents the bottommost magnet.

[0284] The description of elements on the left or right, or magnets on the top or bottom, is arbitrary; the salient feature of the abstract representation is that the representation is ordered, and maps to ordered magnetic structures via a monotonic, and thus order-preserving, function. Furthermore, the signs are also arbitrary, and only the relative polarizations are important.

[0285] Given this representation, the symmetric properties of the design that enable the construction of a tetrahedron by combining any set of sides without any side experiencing a net repulsive force are as follows: First, the three magnets on any side and at the vertex are polarized in an alternating manner from left to right in the representation. Second, the magnetic polarization of the vertex is maintained under rotation about a vector perpendicular to the plane of the lighting unit. In other words, each side is identical to the other. Third, the magnetic polarization of the vertex reverses under rotation about a vector in the plane of the lighting unit. In other words, two units can be combined by a net attractive magnetic force, regardless of whether a planar or three-dimensional assembly is desired. Fig.11 The dashed lines in indicate which vertices are in magnetic contact.

[0286] In another embodiment, the electrical and mechanical connections are formed by an auxiliary material piece that is inserted into two female connectors on both sides of the bond. In an exemplary embodiment, the auxiliary piece is a PCB bridge and is composed of a small printed circuit board so that it can transmit power and optional data between the two bonded panels.

[0287] Female connectors can be placed in any position and in any number on a side, but to obtain symmetry with respect to mechanical forces, one connector can be located in the middle of a side. Since the bridge is only a few millimeters thick, it requires very little space to integrate. However, it does require the user to adopt an extra step in the assembly process. Fig.12 Embodiment 1200 is shown in FIG.

[0288] As shown in the example of 1200, the concave portion of the connectable portion of the panel may have a corresponding hole 12002, which is designed to receive the male portion of the connector. As shown, there may be one or more protrusions that help ensure a stable connection between one or more panels. For example, in addition to providing mechanical stability, the protrusions may be spring-loaded clips that are also used to transmit power and / or data. The protrusions help bias the male connector portion tightly in the hole 12002.

[0289] The dimensions of the hole 12002 and the corresponding male connector portion can be set so that a friction fit can be established, with the hole 12002 having an opening in one direction (e.g., the insertion / removal axis) and a solid structural feature in another direction. In some embodiments, the protrusion is designed to increase resistance to accidental removal when shear forces are encountered, while facilitating removal by providing a slight resistance when the user intentionally pulls or inserts the male connector on the insertion / removal axis. Since the forces encountered by the assembly that are not intentionally caused by the user may be in multiple directions, this configuration can be beneficial to increase the ease of reassembly and reconfiguration of the assembly, while providing some measure of stable connection between panels when the user does not actively remove or rearrange the panels.

[0290] For example, an electrical connection can be made by a bent metal sheet on an exposed copper pad on a printed circuit board. The metal contact bends in a way that is flexible to compression. When the PCB bridge is inserted into the female connector of the panel, the metal contact partially deforms and makes electrical contact with the metal pad in the female connector. The reverse is also possible (e.g., metal pad on the male connector, metal metal on the female connector). The same connection is made on the other panel, thereby electrically connecting the two panels. Due to the compression of the metal contact, a restraining mechanical force is also generated by the application of the PCB bridge, which prevents the panels from separating under gravity or other reasonable disturbance forces. Similar to the embodiment including the interlocking block, the PCB bridge makes the structure rigid for shear forces in and out of the plane. In other embodiments, the PCB bridge is reinforced with a structural component that further strengthens the bridge to make it stable against bending and torsion forces, otherwise bending and torsion forces will irreversibly damage the thin plate. In the case of a reconfigurable panel, it is important to resist the strength of shear forces that may cause bending, twisting, and unintentional movement. If the panel is unstable or strongly connected, the entire assembly or part thereof may fall and / or be damaged. A damaged panel may cause various safety issues (electrical risk, hazard risk).

[0291] One example of a structural component is a plastic ridge or ridges bonded to the PCB that are perpendicular to the sides of the lighting unit when bonded, or parallel to the sides of the lighting unit when bonded, or both parallel and perpendicular to the sides of the lighting unit when bonded. Another example of a structural component is a plastic shell that, in addition to increasing the width and thus the rigidity of the bridge, covers all but the metal pads and is not visible or touchable by the user. The electrical connections of one embodiment of the PCB bridge are Fig.13 Shown in. Fig.13 Circuit layout 1300 is shown. This embodiment creates four conductive connections.

[0292] In this embodiment four connections are provided to the structure: power, ground, a series connection and a layout detection pin (described in detail below). Other embodiments are envisioned in which fewer pins are used to provide a structure having the same set of characteristics as listed above. Other embodiments are envisioned in which the physical layout of the conductive traces is different. There may be two separate channels, shown using different shading at 13002 and 13004.

[0293] As described, in some embodiments, the same structure and connection components can be utilized to perform multiple tasks. For example, a protrusion that helps to properly bias the connector within the hole can be conductive and designed to not only ensure a strong mechanical connection, but also for transmitting power and / or data. In addition, the mechanical properties of the connector and the hole can be highly resistant to shear forces parallel to the connecting portion of the panel, but only slightly resistant to forces along the insertion / removal axis. In the presence of only some resisting force (e.g., up to a threshold), a connection that is strong enough (but not too stringy) can be made to ensure a stable connection, but also allows the user to easily remove and insert without the help of tools (such as screws, latches, etc.). Therefore, the force threshold can depend on the direction of the force (e.g., parallel).

[0294] Layout detection, hardware and software

[0295] Given a physical assembly of multiple lighting units mounted on a wall, ceiling, or other planar structure, the assembly should be mapped to a visual representation suitable for a screen (e.g., a touch screen on a smartphone, a tablet, a screen suitable for a laptop or desktop computer). The purpose of this mapping is that it enables a convenient way to control many variables of the lighting fixture in order to create, select, or configure one of many different lighting setups. The assemblies can be arranged in a continuous shape.

[0296] Without a clear representation of the structure, the user would have to address each triangle individually through a numerical or tabular representation of each lighting unit, without information about how the individual units are geometrically assembled into a whole. To achieve this, data should be passed from the physical layer of hardware components that transmit basic electrical signals to progressively higher abstraction layers, ultimately allowing data to be understood in units, which simplifies communication at higher abstraction levels between the panel assembly and auxiliary devices such as mobile phones, wearable wristbands, motion detectors, or touch screens on digital data streams of video, music, or social media content.

[0297] This section describes innovative hardware and software aspects aimed at solving the problems described.

[0298] The basis of any method of building a virtual representation of a given physical structure requires that each lighting unit has a unique identifier (ID). This unique ID can be assigned during manufacturing and stored in non-volatile memory as part of the lighting unit construction. This requires that the ID is globally unique because it is not known at manufacturing time which lighting unit can be combined with which other lighting unit.

[0299] Alternatively, the embedded software may determine the number of lighting units and assign a local unique ID upon power up and initialization. Thus, without loss of generality, it may be assumed that each lighting unit in any given assembly of multiple lighting units carries a unique ID that may be retrieved by the software from a non-volatile or volatile memory that is either an individual lighting unit, or part of the entire assembly of lighting units.

[0300] At the coarsest level of granularity, the method involves: (1) for a given physical assembly of multiple lighting units, constructing an abstract representation of how the units are connected. (2) sending a digital instance of the abstract representation to a device with a processor and a screen, such as a smartphone, laptop, or desktop computer, via a wireless or wired connection. (3) Software running on the processor of the receiving device interprets the abstract representation and turns it into a two-dimensional graphical representation of the physical assembly. The primary quality metric for this method is the visual similarity of the graphical representation compared to the physical assembly. A secondary quality metric is the size of the abstract representation when digitally stored or transmitted.

[0301] This method will be described by way of example. Fig.14 is a graphical representation 1400 of two assemblies and their correlation matrix.

[0302] exist Fig.14 , a diagram of assembly 14002 is given on the left side. The unique IDs are arbitrarily set to 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 without loss of generality. Below the figure is the corresponding adjacency matrix 14006. The matrix is ​​constructed so that the elements in the first row represent whether the lighting unit with ID 0 is connected to the lighting unit with ID 0, 1, 2, 3 or 4, respectively. For this representation, the connection with itself is not defined, so it is set to empty by definition. If there is a connection, the corresponding matrix element is set to the unit value. The matrix elements can take values ​​from any binary representation, such as true (TRUE) and false (FALSE), up arrows and down arrows, filled disks and empty rings, 1 and 0, etc. The adjacency matrix is ​​a concept related to graph theory. Equivalent representations of the adjacency matrix can be envisioned, in particular adjacency lists. The disadvantage of using the adjacency matrix as an abstract representation of the physical assembly is that it is invariant to symmetric operations (translation, rotation, mirroring). The first invariance is not a problem for the problem at hand, as long as the graphical representation is not intended to visualize the position of the physical assembly relative to other objects in the room or other space.

[0303] In case the user can rotate the graphical representation via a touch interface (a simple operation commonly employed in contemporary applications of touch screen interfaces), rotational invariance is not a problem. Alternatively, the lighting unit may contain an accelerometer that determines the direction of the gravity vector. The assumed orientation of the graphical representation will then be such that the gravity vector points downwards on the screen. Invariance to in-plane mirroring operations is also not a problem, since the graphical representation is identical under this operation as well. The most problematic invariance is mirroring orthogonal to the plane of the assembly. In Fig.14 The right side of Fig.14 A mirror image of the assembly on the left.

[0304] This is a unique physical assembly; due to mirror invariance, it still has the same adjacency matrix 14006. Therefore, if the abstract representation is the adjacency matrix, then it is possible that the physical assembly looks like Fig.14 , while the graphical representation looks like Fig.14 This would confuse the user and therefore fail to meet the main quality criteria defined above. A possible solution is to enable the user to mirror the graphical representation by pressing a button or performing some touch or slide command different from the rotation touch or slide command. However, this adds a non-negligible input required from the user, which is rarely used in contemporary applications of touch screen devices.

[0305] In order to break the invariance of mirror symmetry operations, certain features must be added to the representation that are not invariant to the mirror image. One of these features is chirality or handedness, a general concept commonly used in molecular structure, particle physics, and abstract topological theory. Fig.15A , Fig. 15B and Fig. 15C Shown in Fig.14 1500A, 1500B and 1500C are the same physical assemblies as provided in . In examples a, b and c, for each lighting unit, an arbitrary but different index has been assigned to each side of the triangle. Furthermore, the assignment is made according to convention, which creates a clockwise motion from a to b to c.

[0306] The abstract representation of the physical assembly is given by a matrix that is very similar to the adjacency matrix and is therefore called a chiral adjacency matrix. Fig.15A , Fig. 15B and Fig. 15C The first row in the chiral adjacency matrix on the left indicates that lighting unit 0 is connected to lighting unit 2 via side index c in lighting unit 0. For example, the third row of the same matrix indicates that lighting unit 2 is connected to lighting unit 0 via its side index b, to lighting unit 1 via its side index c, and to lighting unit 3 via its side index a. Fig.15A , Fig. 15B and Fig. 15CThe physical structure in the middle is mirrored, but uses lighting units that follow a clockwise index order. However, the two abstract representations are similar because, in particular, the connectivity of lighting units 2 and 3 makes it impossible to Fig.15A , Fig. 15B and Fig. 15C The abstract representations of the leftmost and middle assemblies are the same. Fig.15A , Fig. 15B and Fig. 15C In the rightmost figure in FIG, the leftmost drawing has been mirrored, including the side indices. The abstract matrix representation is the same, but the clockwise index order is destroyed. In other words, as long as the software on the receiving device performs a clockwise index chirality transformation, the graphical representation of the physical assembly will destroy the invariance of the mirror image, thereby maintaining the chirality and not requiring the user to perform a manual mirror transformation as envisioned above. The representation remains invariant to rotation and translation. However, as mentioned above, these invariance issues are less of a concern for the main quality indicators.

[0307] A different way to obtain a graphical representation given a physical assembly is to use a camera or other light-sensitive component on a smartphone, laptop or desktop computer. By holding the camera up to the physical assembly, a sequence is initiated in which the lighting units are switched on and quickly off in the same order as the unique identifiers. Since the smartphone application's software has access to the unique IDs, the recorded optical changes provide a mapping between the placement of the lighting units and their IDs. As long as the optical arrangement remains relatively fixed during the sequence, the recorded data also provides enough information to derive the orientation and relative position of the lighting units. Feature detection methods can be applied to determine where the illuminated features exist in the image at a given time.

[0308] One embodiment of a hardware design at the physical layer for practicing the described innovations for layout detection and graphical representation is as follows. Each side of each panel is equipped with the following output pins: power, ground, bidirectional serial communication, and a dedicated layout detection pin. See Fig.13 , circuitry on a PCB in one such embodiment. The power pins provide current from a power source (such as the grid or a battery) to all panels in order to drive DC across the pn junctions of the LEDs, as well as power any digital hardware portions of the structure.

[0309] Power is connected in parallel across the entire lighting unit assembly. The ground pin provides a standard connection to an electrical ground reference point. The serial bidirectional pin enables data to be transferred between lighting units. The data can transmit control commands across the lighting assembly to adjust the relative drive currents by, for example, pulse width modulation (PWM) methods or other current modulation methods. The serial connection can also transmit other data in digital form between panels.

[0310] Examples of such applications include: audio signals detected by a microphone connected to the assembly to a receiver which optionally interprets the meaning of the audio signals via natural language processing (NLP) software; motion signals detected by a motion sensor (a motion sensor uses passive infrared or microwave signals to scan a room in order to determine if there is sufficient body movement to be detected by the radiation), which is then interpreted by the software to determine if the motion should trigger a change in lighting or another event (such as an alarm sent to a remote device); audio signals to a speaker which interprets the digital signals sent over the serial connection as vibrations of a membrane which are perceived as sound, which can be used to equip a space with local sound and audio, which together with light signals can provide guidance to people occupying the space.

[0311] Other applications are envisioned in which the digital signal is sent through a serial connection to auxiliary hardware physically attached to the lighting assembly. The layout detect pin sends an electrical signal representing the unique side index described above. The electrical signal may, for example, differ in voltage between the sides and be mapped to an abstract index via a lookup table stored in non-volatile memory. For example, a voltage of -5mV detected by a microprocessor by any means known in the art may be understood to mean side "a" of a triangular lighting unit. Fig.16 and Fig.17 The pin connection hardware is shown in Fig.16 , microcontroller 16002 is shown together with communication interface 16004, which communicates with each panel 16006, 16008 and 16010. Fig.17 An alternative example is shown in where, rather than having a receiver / transmitter at each panel, layout detection can be inferred by the MCU since the signals from each panel 17006, 17008, and 17010 can be multiplexed together.

[0312] In addition to the above methods, the same function of transmitting the side index can be performed using a reduced number of pins. Specifically, the layout detection method can be implemented by applying multiplexing relays to send signals between lighting units, which enable the index to be interpreted in software. In addition, the number of pins can be further reduced by combining power with communication. Adding digital signals to harmonic or partial harmonic currents is known in the art and has been applied to power line communication (PLC).

[0313] The same or similar signal processing techniques can be applied to the present invention in order to reduce the number of hardware pins while increasing the logical processing of power signals in software. In addition, if wireless power and wireless communication are used for serial communication, layout detection, and power transmission between lighting units, the number of pins can be further reduced to one or zero. In embodiments where a PCB bridge is not used but blocks or embedded cylindrical magnets that are magnetically attracted into recesses are used, the same hardware techniques are used to electrically connect the lighting units so that data and layout information can be transmitted between the units. Regardless of the method of connecting power and data to and from the lighting unit and any auxiliary devices, as long as the transmitted data conforms to the chiral convention described above, the physical layout can be detected and accurately mapped to the graphical user interface, except for the limitations described in the above section.

[0314] The described method allows for the dynamic addition of lighting units to already existing assemblies and the apparently instantaneous updating of the graphical representation. When a new lighting unit is connected via any of the above-mentioned physical connections, the associated Fig.15A , Fig. 15B and Fig. 15C Together they describe the chiral adjacency matrix.

[0315] The action of updating the matrix can be triggered by a change in the signal received through the layout pins that is detected. The status of the layout pins can be polled periodically by a microprocessor somewhere in the assembly. A clock in the processor enables the software to poll the layout pins for changes every second, every 100 milliseconds, every tenth of a millisecond, or any time interval set as to simplify the present invention to practice. Too frequent polling, and the processor being too active, may slow down other operations or require the processor to consume far less power than optimally. If the physical connections between the lighting units are indeed formed as expected, too frequent polling and updating of the graphical representation will be lagging and may confuse the user.

[0316] Alternatively, the action of updating the matrix can be triggered by an interrupt signal sent by a layout pin when it receives a non-zero signal. The interrupt signal is received by the processor and any current events being processed are interrupted in favor of the matrix update routine. The advantage of the interrupt method is that the state of the pin does not have to be polled periodically, thus saving processor power. The disadvantage of the interrupt method is that it requires more complex logic to be implemented.

[0317] Specifically, the priority of interrupts must be handled appropriately so that the control logic does not create conflicting commands or corrupt digital memory when running or attempting to run multiple processes simultaneously. Input and output methods described in the art can be used in embodiments of the present invention to handle these types of operations to update the graphical representation of the physical assembly.

[0318] Non-limiting illustrative embodiments

[0319] The following section describes non-limiting examples of embodiments of the present invention and how their application can solve the above-mentioned lighting design problems.

[0320] The configurable (e.g., highly configurable) nature of the lighting units enables a user to build a custom lighting fixture that can, in turn, adopt multiple (e.g., a large or very large number) of states. For example, in a lighting fixture consisting of ten lighting units, wherein each vertex has one red, one green, and one blue LED light string, wherein the drive current to each light string is independently controlled, and wherein each vertex in the lighting units is controlled independently of all other vertices, and each lighting unit is controlled independently of every other unit, and the drive current for each LED light string is discretized into 255 unique values, the total number of optical appearances is equal to a value that is over two hundred digits when represented in a base 10 number system.

[0321] The variation not only concerns the properties of the emission spectrum, but also the spatial characteristics of the light emission. This enables a plurality of functionally and visually different lighting states, and equally important temporal transitions between the functionally and visually different lighting states.

[0322] Given the physical assembly and its associated abstract representation via the hardware and software designs described above, automatic variation of the hue, saturation, and intensity of light on a lighting unit assembly can be achieved in a variety of ways.

[0323] The lighting setting of any given lighting unit can be represented as a vector of three elements, each element representing either hue, saturation and brightness, or RGB values, or CYMK values, in embodiments where the entire surface of the lighting unit adopts a uniform or nearly uniform color, each element representing either hue, saturation and brightness, or a bijective transformation between different color representations, so the choice of mathematical representation is non-limiting for the application to be described. Simple dynamic lighting patterns are obtained by independently and randomly selecting the three elements of the vector for each lighting unit at some preset or random frequency.

[0324] This embodiment produces a random (or seemingly random, pseudo-random, or patterned) visual appearance in which the lighting units switch between color and brightness appearances in a non-continuous manner.

[0325] Another embodiment designates one lighting unit in a given assembly as the source, which selects three elements as described above. The other lighting units acquire the values ​​of their corresponding vectors through a diffusion process. The lighting units directly adjacent to the source unit adopt the same vector value as the source, after a preset hysteresis. The lighting units directly adjacent to the lighting unit directly adjacent to the source unit successively adopt the same vector value as the source, after an additional hysteresis. This process continues until all lighting unit parts of the assembly have acquired the visual appearance of the source.

[0326] This embodiment still produces a non-continuous transition between points in the selected color space. In order to make the process continuous for a human observer, the transition between two color points of any lighting unit obtained in either of the two ways described so far is in some embodiments done by continuous stepping of an interpolation function. The interpolation function can be linear, or it can be a polynomial function or a spline interpolation. The stepping speed of the interpolation function from the start to the end point is a designed parameter. In some embodiments, the selected vector elements are constrained, thus reducing the degrees of freedom for dynamic exploration. The constraint can be, for example, that the brightness remains unchanged. In these embodiments only the hue and saturation change.

[0327] Constraints may be, for example, that hue and brightness are constrained to certain set values. In these embodiments, only the saturation of a given color is changed, which is suitable for applications where only a set class of colors (such as red, green, blue, purple) is required. Constraints may be, for example, that only points on the black body curve are selected, thereby limiting the color space explored to white light. In some embodiments, the source lighting unit does not jump between points in the color space, but instead continuously switches between nearby points in the color space. This also makes the transition in color and brightness, or in color or brightness, appear smooth to a human observer.

[0328] The selection of the method for smoothly exploring the color space can be a selection from a portion of points stored in volatile memory, either selected by the user through a touch screen interface or through a preset number of options. The method can also be a random walk, where each new point is selected by a small random adjustment to the current point. The method of spatially transferring the vector settings from one lighting unit to an adjacent lighting unit can also follow any of a number of selected or preset methods. Another method uses the coordinates of the graphical representation of the assembly to calculate the principal components of the physical assembly with the largest eigenvalues. The spatial coordinates of the lighting units in the assembly are then projected onto the dominant principal component. This operation sorts the lighting units according to their position along the dominant principal component.

[0329] This order is used to sort the moment a given panel acquires source color.Common to these embodiments is that they generate all or some aspects of the visual appearance in a random manner in order to produce a lighting design that is visually pleasing, calming, exciting, or appealing to the human eye. Fig.18 These types of color changes are shown in Fig.18 , a diagram 1800 of different protocols is shown in various screenshots 18002, 18004, 18006, and 18008. Each of these shows different options for controlling visualizations suitable for the user. For example, the user can select colors from a palette, specify colors for specific panels, provide paths through which transition effects can occur, provide a color "wheel" through which assemblies cycle, etc. As shown in the screenshots, layout detection can be advantageously used to present assemblies on a user's graphical user interface or in a manner that is advantageous for the generation and control of visualization effects.

[0330] The variation of lighting may follow a protocol without a random component, but rather simulate a specific type of lighting or embody some set function where random variation is undesirable. Such an illustrative embodiment is given next.

[0331] Illustrative embodiments include simulated sunrises and sunsets. The transitions in daylight experienced by humans include changes in where the light primarily comes from in the sky and the characteristics of the spectrum. At night, the sun is low and in line with one's eyes, and it has an amber or red appearance because of the increased Rayleigh scattering implied by the molecular composition of the lower layers of the atmosphere, which eliminates almost all blue light. At noon of the day, the sun produces light at high intensity from a height far above one's eyes, with more blue light in the light mix. The description includes changes in the intensity, spectrum, and trajectory of the light. These are all properties that can be recreated in an integrated manner with arbitrary precision in the current innovation. By mounting the lighting units with non-zero changes at least along the vertical axis of the space, the light trajectory can be adjusted because the relative coordinates of the lighting units are known.

[0332] The change in color coordinates and brightness is controlled by adjusting the drive current of multiple visually distinct LEDs in the lighting unit in the manner described above. The rate of change between the spatial and spectral start and end points can be controlled either by virtual time or by real world time obtained from an auxiliary device or from an interface of an application program interface to a clock available on the WWW (such as a highly accurate reference atomic clock).

[0333] Another illustrative embodiment includes wayfinding in an emergency. It is conceivable to use moving light to guide people in an emergency (e.g., a fire). In some other approaches, this is a strip of LEDs attached to the lower portion of a floor or wall, where each LED is switched on and off so that it creates the appearance of light moving in one direction along the strip.

[0334] The contrast between the LEDs that glow when powered on and the dimmer LEDs when powered off creates the appearance of motion. In some approaches, it is contemplated that the advantages of contrast between LEDs of different spectra are used. The background light that contrasts with the apparent moving light can be white light, and the apparent moving light can be red light. A potential advantage of this configuration is that the white background light provides general illumination, while the red moving light creates the appearance of motion, thereby aiding in wayfinding. Other examples of background and moving lights can be conceived, as long as the color contrast is high enough. Some embodiments include changes in the intensity, spectrum, and light trajectory of the light (characteristics that can be varied in an integrated manner in some embodiments).

[0335] Illustrative embodiments include high brightness surfaces to regulate seasonal affective disorder (SAD) or other health conditions. Levels of the hormone serotonin in the brain are dependent on proximity to sunlight, specifically as light levels increase, serotonin levels increase.

[0336] This relationship has been used to create specialized lights and rooms for individuals experiencing SAD. With the described lighting fixture, due to its high surface area, adjustable spectrum, and ability to be programmed to an individual, it can be used for this application when needed, but reconfigured for general lighting, mood lighting, etc. when the therapeutic application is completed. Due to software integration of the lighting fixture, adjustments can also be done automatically based on real-time biometric data transmitted using a wearable device.

[0337] These devices measure characteristics of the person wearing it, such as heart rate, heart rhythm, brain waves, walking speed, blood pressure, eye movements, arm movements, breathing rate and rhythm. Through the software abstraction described in the background technology, the exact nature of the data measurement method is not limited to the described application. As long as the biometric related data is transmitted in a standard format at a higher abstraction layer, the processor controlling the lighting unit can obtain the value and map the measured biometric to the desired lighting state through a preset table or learned parameter function, which can either enhance the good health state of the human body in space or regulate potentially harmful health states through the visual perception produced by the assembly of lighting units. In addition to hue, saturation and brightness, the visual perception can also include vertical, horizontal and other spatial changes.

[0338] Illustrative embodiments include visual enhancement of rhythm or emotional audio signals. Audio signals can create a rhythmic feel and evoke emotions in specific cultural situations. Lighting has similar capabilities. The present invention implements embodiments where a digital audio signal and optional metadata related to audio type, beats per minute, artist, user keywords, or other classifications are obtained by a control processor.

[0339] Through the table, genres and beats per minute can be mapped to dynamic or static lighting states. For example, songs that are considered sad in a particular cultural context, such as Adele's "Turning Tables", Takanashi Yasuharu's "Utsusemi", or Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata", can be classified by the metadata field, namely the mood of the song, with cells with higher saturation diffused between lighting cells at a rate proportional to the beats per minute, visually represented by a light blue light and emotionally reinforced. For example, a song that contains transitions between slow sections and fast, intense and exciting sections, such as "This Love" by Pantera, "Montana" by Frank Zappa, or "Summer violin concerto" by Vivaldi, can be recorded by a method of inferring changes in rhythm or amplitude, changing brightness and hue as the audio changes, particularly to further emphasize the transitions in the song. In some embodiments, the method can be a discrete Fourier transform of a subset of the digital audio channels to infer rhythm and beat, or a predictive method such as a decision tree, neural network, or support vector machine, which is a learning method for inferring subjective sound properties from relative or absolute properties of digital audio channels. The audio signal in this embodiment is obtained from a software interface, but it is contemplated that it can also be obtained from an auxiliary microphone that records audio changes in the space where the lighting assembly is installed.

[0340] Fig.19 19 is a schematic block diagram 1900 depicting components of a system according to some embodiments.

[0341] A lighting device may be provided in which there is a controller device 1901 which provides various command and control signals to each configurable lighting unit 1912, 1914, 1916, 1918, 1920. In this example, only one of the configurable lighting units 1912 is connected to the controller device 1901.

[0342] The controller device may include various units, which may be implemented by physical circuits, systems on chips, field programmable gate arrays, microprocessors, computer-readable media, etc., and these units include a controller unit 1902, a power delivery unit 1904, a layout detection unit 1906, an effect rendering unit 1908, a networking unit 1910, and a data storage 1950. These units cooperate with each other to provide various lighting effects across configurable lighting units 1912, 1914, 1916, 1918, 1920, such as visualization, transitions, selected activation of individual lighting units, etc.

[0343] There may be many more configurable lighting units, and configurable lighting units 1912, 1914, 1916, 1918, 1920 are shown as examples. These configurable lighting units may be removably coupled together using one or more connectors, with the plurality of configurable lighting units forming one or more continuous shapes that may be reconfigured by rearranging the plurality of configurable lighting units. These continuous shapes may be aesthetically pleasing shapes, and users may seek to rearrange, move, add, remove lighting units as they see fit. The system allows for flexible implementation of shapes, and in some embodiments, is designed for "hot swapping" of lighting units. Each lighting unit 1912, 1914, 1916, 1918, 1920 and controller device 1901 may be connected to each other via a dedicated connector specifically designed to provide (1) mechanical stability, (2) power conduction, and / or (3) signal conduction. Each lighting unit 1912, 1914, 1916, 1918, 1920 may be individually controlled to modify the characteristics of the lighting provided. For example, the lighting may be changed from lighting level, color, effects (eg, flashing), and the like.

[0344] The connectors may be male or female, or a combination of both. In some embodiments, lighting units 1912, 1914, 1916, 1918, 1920 each have a corresponding hole that mates with a connectable subsection, and each lighting unit may have multiple connectable subsections to allow for flexibility in placement of the connections. The connectors are designed to mate with the structural features of the holes so that they are stable, most importantly in the shear direction (or directions other than the insertion and / or removal direction), and secondarily provide a degree of resistance in the insertion / removal direction (e.g., by biasing protrusions).

[0345] The connector provides a removable connection. Not all embodiments require a physical connection per se. For example, a magnetic connection through the air is possible, with power, data, etc. transmitted by induction or other wireless means. However, it is useful to have the removable connection resist only a certain force threshold before allowing release of the connection, so that the user can operate the removal with their free hand without the assistance of the device, or remove latches, complex fasteners, etc. This is useful in situations where fast setup and transport is important (e.g., in nightclubs, mobile assemblies, stage sets).

[0346] The power delivery unit 1904 can be an AC source or a DC source and provides power to a portion of the lighting units (one is shown here), which then conducts the power to the other lighting units through their interconnections. Control signals are also conducted accordingly so that the lighting units can cooperate to present a pleasing visual effect. The power transmission unit 1904 can determine the amount of power drawn from the power source, and in some embodiments, can actively control the drive current provided to the lighting elements of one or more lighting units. Various aspects of the power flow can be controlled, such as the total current, total voltage, total power, etc. The power delivery unit 1904 can also be configured to operate in various sleep modes to save power.

[0347] The layout detection unit 1906 may operate in cooperation with the data storage 1950 to maintain one or more data structures that hold representations of how the system detects that the configurable lighting units are oriented or coupled to one another. The layout may be maintained for a period of time using a data structure that utilizes representations other than rotations, translations, etc. (e.g., in any case other than rotations, translations, etc.) to reduce overall processing and memory requirements (in some cases, constrained by the available storage in the memory 1950). The layout detection unit 1906 may receive various stimuli conducted through various interconnections, such as interrupt signals indicating that a unit has been added or removed, and these interrupt signals may be generated by the unit itself or by neighboring units that have detected a change. The layout detection unit 1906 may also maintain a graphical representation of specific interconnections between the marked edges / vertices of the lighting units so that it may utilize computer-based pathfinding techniques in sending signals to one or more lighting units to maintain one or more valid communication paths (or identify potential loops). In some cases, the layout detection unit 1906 may be considered a geometry monitoring unit or engine.

[0348] For example, the layout may be maintained as a linked list data structure suitable for storing a graph, or as a specially configured matrix that is periodically updated based on modifications to the layout. In a specific example, the layout detection unit 1906 may be configured to perform derivation of integer arrays based on data indicating connection characteristics between individual configurable assemblies through a set of one or more physical connections, such that any two possible assemblies that are geometrically different without regard to translation or rigid body rotation produce different integer arrays, and such that any two possible assemblies that are geometrically the same after translation or rigid body rotation produce the same integer array.

[0349] The layout and physical arrangement may also be represented by adjacency matrices, adjacency lists, distance matrices, etc., and a coordinate dictionary based on at least the connected graphics system is maintained. The coordinate dictionary is very useful in identifying the specific lighting unit to which the command is to be sent.

[0350] In some embodiments, lighting units have identifiers assigned to them by layout detection unit 1906. Vertices or edges of the units may also be identified. In other embodiments, lighting units are provided with hard-coded identifiers at the time of manufacture. In some embodiments, connectors may be assigned identifiers or have hard-coded identifiers at the time of manufacture. For example, these identifiers may indicate capabilities available with respect to the lighting units or connectors.

[0351] An automatic graph traversal method may be utilized to identify adjacent sides, connectors, etc. For example, the ordering of the index portion of the sides representing the lighting units may be of increasing indices as the adjacent sides are traversed in a clockwise (or counterclockwise) direction until all sides are traversed. In the case where there are a large number of lighting units (e.g., 30+), the traversal of the interconnects is non-negligible. A data string mapped to an ordered index by one or more logic rules executed on a processor may be used to communicate layout modifications and / or connector moves. A polling method may be used to periodically compute updates.

[0352] The effects rendering unit 1908 can collaborate with the layout detection unit 1906 to generate one or more visualizations whereby the visualizations utilize the detected layout to produce effects that, in some embodiments, are more complex than the naive effects of the layout. For example, knowledge of the layout can be used to set the bounds of a particular visual effect, determine the center of mass, etc. On the other hand, in a naive approach, all visualizations must radiate outward from the controller because a naive controller would not know where the lighting ends or where the edges / vertices are. Similarly, some visualizations utilize physical features of the shapes produced by the lighting unit (e.g., effects that "wrap around" edges, reflections at edges, and travel around the edges of an entire shape).

[0353] The network unit 1910 can communicate with various computing devices having a graphical user interface (e.g., to control a visualization), or with various networked computing devices (e.g., servers, cloud-based controllers, etc.). For example, the network unit 1910 can be used in an art exhibition where information from one geographic area is used to control lighting provided in a remote geographic area as an artistic effect.

[0354] Fig. 20 2000 is another exemplary schematic block diagram, with configurable lighting unit 1918 removed and configurable lighting unit 1920 newly added to the system, and an additional sound detection unit 2002 connected to lighting unit 1914.

[0355] With respect to the addition and removal of configurable lighting units, the nearest neighbor from which the connection was removed (lighting unit 1916) may initiate a signal indicating the change, or the new lighting unit may send a signal announcing its presence (lighting unit 1920). In other embodiments, the system may simply wait until a new poll is performed to identify the removal or addition of a unit.

[0356] In this example, a sound detection unit 2002 is provided. The sound detection unit 2002 may be a separate connector that may be indirectly connected to the controller device 1901 through sequential coupling between lighting units, but in other embodiments, the sound detection unit 2002 may be incorporated into the controller device 1901.

[0357] The sound detection unit 2002 may have a connected audio receiver (e.g., a microphone) configured to provide a digital audio representation (or, in some cases, analog) based at least on an audio signal. The audio signal may be an ambient sound, a voice, music, etc. Other stimuli may be considered, and examples are not limited to sound (e.g., security camera footage, infrared motion detection). The audio receiver need not be directly connected to the sound detection unit 2002. For example, a remote audio receiver may be used as long as the signal can be presented to the sound detection unit 2002 (e.g., using a panel connected to a ballpark to present a visualization based on the detected noise level).

[0358] In the audio control example, the lighting units may be interconnected lighting components that are interconnected in a physical arrangement. The audio detection aspect may be combined with the electronic representation of the physical arrangement such that a link indicating the geospatial relationship between the interconnected lighting components of the plurality of interconnected lighting components is used to generate an audio visualization. In this embodiment, the effect rendering unit 1908 may also be configured as an audio visualization unit configured to provide a plurality of lighting activation instructions generated from the digital audio representation.

[0359] The lighting activation instructions include a set of timing instructions that represent at least one of: (i) color coordinates, (ii) intensity levels, and (iii) desired geometric locations for lighting activation, which are then used to select a single interconnected lighting unit for presenting a lighting effect that is generated in coordination with or in response to a received audio signal.

[0360] An improved auditory and visual experience may be provided to the user by the additional sound detection unit 2002. In the case where the controller device 1901 and the sound detection unit 2002 are not the same device, the controller device 1901 may be configured to identify a communication path between the controller device 1901 and the sound detection unit 2002 and to prioritize communications along such a path to reduce potential latency in sound detection and effect presentation. Various calibrations and sequences may be used to ensure that the sound detection unit operates correctly in response to various sound spectra.

[0361] The sound detection unit 2002 operates periodically in the center or other geometric points (e.g., centroids, intersections, etc.) of the geometric shape of the physical arrangement, alongside the layout detection unit 1906, and can generate various effects that take advantage of the representation of the physical arrangement as a reference index value to identify, for example, interconnected lighting components based on their respective degrees of separation from the central device. As a specific example, path-based lighting activation instructions can be generated, wherein a plurality of lighting activation instructions include a geometric pattern that at least visually represents a path traversed through one or more interconnected lighting components. In determining various geometric features, heuristic methods (e.g., approximating the structure as an ellipsoid) can be utilized to reduce computational processing requirements.

[0362] Sound visualizations and transition patterns at expected transition patterns can be generated, and these patterns can be layered on top of existing visualizations to provide an improved auditory experience. For example, visualizations can be responsive to information obtained about a particular frequency range, and rather than having a single effect at once, multiple effects can be layered on top of each other through multiple sets of lighting activation instructions, each of which interacts in potentially additive, subtractive, or transformational ways.

[0363] The method and system described above specifically for actually implementing the visualization of audio and music requires several logical processing steps:

[0364] First, represent the audio in an abstract and compact way suitable for digital processing; second, represent the geometry of the lighting assembly; and third, map the audio representation to light variations on the assembly geometry in such a way that a human observer perceives the co-variations of audio and light as harmonious. In addition to how light is perceived, these steps require an understanding of how a typical human observer perceives audio and how audio manifests itself physically.

[0365] In the following section, the problem and the method invented to solve the problem are described in detail.It should be understood that the method can be applied to lighting devices other than the lighting panels described above.

[0366] Thus, the audio visualization method described below is not limited to lighting panels and may be applicable to other lighting devices. Applicants have developed both technologies, and while each is independently innovative, Applicants have also found that the combination of configurable lighting units with audio visualization technology is a particularly interesting application of the technology. Thus, there are embodiments in which configurable lighting units are controlled according to audio visualization.

[0367] In some embodiments, a controller of a configurable lighting unit may include an audio detection and visual presentation module. In other embodiments, a separate audio detection module and a visual presentation module may be connected to an assembly (e.g., through a hole in a configurable lighting unit) (e.g., using one of the connectors described herein or another type of connector), and the entire assembly is able to utilize the audio detection and visual presentation functionality. For example, a separate module is connected to a first configurable lighting unit that is not directly connected to the controller. A communication path may be formed from various interconnections within the assembly so that the controller and the audio module collaborate with each other to present a visualization in response to an audio stimulus or other stimulus.

[0368] Situation sensing method for audio visualization by lighting device

[0369] The described embodiments provide a lighting device adapted to provide a plurality of interconnected lighting components that are automatically controlled based on an audio signal, and corresponding systems, methods, and computer-readable media. The lighting device controls a plurality of interconnected lighting components that are interconnected in a physical arrangement. Each of the plurality of interconnected lighting components is configured to emit individually controllable light. The lighting components are controllable based on one or more received control signals and based on the geometry of the plurality of interconnected lighting components. The lighting components cause one or more visual effects based on the audio signal. The lighting components are controllable to provide a discernible effect and a visually distinct output through the visual effect.

[0370] The device and / or controller circuit is configured to map segments of varying audio to segments of varying light output along a dimension of the light spectrum and a dimension of the spatial arrangement of the light sources.

[0371] Applicants have created physically modular lighting fixtures that can be rearranged by one or more users, with the modular lighting fixtures being consistently arranged in a variety of geospatial patterns.

[0372] Specifically, the applicant has designed and developed a control platform that includes electronic circuits specifically configured to generate control instructions that, when processed by modular lighting devices, control the modular lighting devices to emit lighting with various patterns and features. In some embodiments, the control platform can be controlled based on instructions received from a computing device having a processor, memory, and storage, for example.

[0373] In some embodiments, the control platform is configured to operate as a standalone dedicated device, wherein the control platform, while being capable of receiving a signal indicative of a modification of a control mode, operates in a standalone manner, wherein a particular group of modes is loaded into a memory and conducted, for example, based on a cycling display of modes in the group of modes. The described dedicated device may operate without guidance from any external computing device.

[0374] In U.S. Pat. No. 7,228,190, an apparatus is described that computes at least one characteristic of audio in a digital audio file and uses the characteristic as input to a program that, once executed, generates at least one lighting control signal based in part on the input audio characteristic. In contrast, some embodiments described herein provide how to map audio along the dimensions of a spectrum in a consistent manner.

[0375] US Patent No. 7,228,190 does not specifically address the problem of determining which lighting device to control based on its spatial or other characteristics. The light output is simply defined as one or more light emitting devices present at some undefined absolute or relative position in space.

[0376] Some patents, such as US Pat. No. 7875787, discuss the elements of assigning spatial quality to light sources given a certain audio quality. However, these examples are limited to visualization, which is only important for the description of musical properties such as chromaticity, and use computer screens.

[0377] Audio Visualization Technology and Methods

[0378] Some embodiments of the present application are configured to more generally approach spatial dimensions and utilize spatially configurable LED light sources.

[0379] Each lighting fixture exists in a spatial relationship to all other lighting fixtures, and therefore, the system is defined as situational sensing. Various modules, including a rendering module and a geometry module, are utilized in the context of a larger audio and light processing system, and various types of audio analysis and light displays are possible. The lighting fixtures may be physically connected to each other, wirelessly connected, or indirectly logically connected, for example, through a server or other interface.

[0380] In addition to the above, in the context of modular and / or geospatially provided lighting fixtures, providing visualization and other responses allows further visualization effects and controls beyond those provided by traditional solutions. Specifically, effects can include specific implementations of audio and audio transitions, which in turn produce corresponding light transitions.

[0381] Conventional methods may provide that audio at a specific point in time is used to define the light output at the specific point in time. However, in some embodiments described herein, the system is configured to encode a transition from current to another light state rather than to a specific light state.

[0382] Technical challenges involved in controlling the lamps include, among other things, synchronization errors, which are particularly relevant if the audio source is derived from a microphone. Geospatial control is challenging given the signaling and an unknown set of geospatial parameters, which may be further exacerbated by the fact that the modular units are not provided in any predefined or static form. In particular, as a user rearranges the modular lighting units, the controller may be required to periodically update and / or maintain the electronic representation of the geospatial parameters.

[0383] These geospatial parameters may require further processing to determine various geometric properties of the electronic representation, such as edges, centroids, vertices, clusters, etc.

[0384] In producing the desired visualization, the controller may require a computer-generated path based on, for example, geospatial attributes such as neighboring (adjacent or within a particular proximity) lighting modules, determining lighting modules that are on the "edge" of a particular pattern, determining lighting modules that are clustered together, and so on.

[0385] The paths may be used for various modes of lighting, such as lighting that radiates across the paths to display dynamic visualizations, etc. These visualizations may be provided in accordance with or based at least in part on the audio signal or its characteristics. The visualizations may include activation of lighting modules, modification of lighting characteristics, generation of lighting transition effects in response to audio transition effects, etc.

[0386] The generation of the visualization is computationally intensive, and in some embodiments, simplified representations and other computational methods are utilized to reduce the computational resources required to generate the visualization. In some embodiments, pre-processing of the electronic representation of the geospatial state of the lighting module may be performed to reduce real-time requirements on processing power. In some embodiments, the determination of the electronic representation of the geospatial state is performed periodically. In some embodiments, the determination of the electronic representation of the geospatial state is performed only once, such as at power-up.

[0387] In physical terms, audio is a mechanical wave in which the pressure deviates from the equilibrium pressure in a given medium. Therefore, audio waves are characterized by their frequency, amplitude and phase. The human ear receives audio waves, and the pressure oscillations are then interpreted by the brain as sound. Human perception is limited to waves with a frequency range of 20 Hz to 20 kHz, with individual differences depending on general health, genetic factors, age or damage to the internal parts of the ear.

[0388] The ability to perceive audio at a given frequency depends on amplitude. The joint dependence of human hearing on frequency and amplitude can be described by the hearing curve; for example, the perception of audio with amplitudes less than 10 dB is limited to frequencies between 250 Hz and 8 kHz. Most sounds, such as music and speech, consist of multiple overlapping audio waves of different frequencies, relative amplitudes, and phases that vary over time. It is this mixing of waves that creates sounds that carry information, such as speech, or makes two instruments playing the same note sound distinctly different.

[0389] A specific form of mixing is obtained when the waves have frequencies that are different but constrained to be multiples of some fundamental frequency. When perceived by a human observer, this produces a harmony of sound rather than a chaotic mix of audio. Another special type of mixing is two waves of almost the same frequency.

[0390] Human hearing has been found to exhibit frequency masking, in which the ability of a human observer to distinguish between two sounds played simultaneously and in close frequency is considerably impaired relative to the case when the sounds are played separately. A third aspect of human hearing is that sounds of different frequencies played after each other are found to be more likely to be perceived as different if the frequencies are at the lower end of the human hearing frequency range than at the upper end.

[0391] This subjective feeling about the composition of equally spaced sounds in terms of frequency or pitch has been quantified using the Mel scale. These three examples illustrate that while sound in the physical sense is a mixture of mechanical waves, this mixture undergoes complex transformations when it is perceived by a human observer. This often allows the analysis and study of the perception of speech, music, and other complex audio to be done using another set of entities and attributes rather than the raw wave attributes. For music, these attributes include, but are not limited to, pitch, intensity, timbre, tempo, and chroma. The study of how sound is perceived is known as psychoacoustics.

[0392] Light is similar to sound in that, in a physical sense, it consists of multiple waves of varying frequencies and intensities. The light waves that ordinary human observers can perceive are electromagnetic waves in relatively narrow frequency intervals (430THz to 770THz) or in terms of wavelength (390nm to 700nm).

[0393] To the average human observer, different frequencies are perceived as different colors, and different amplitudes are seen as different intensities. Changes in the structure of the eye caused by aging, retinal damage, or genetic conditions can lead to individual differences between human observers. Like sound, the perception of light by a human observer involves complex transformations, as physical waves trigger physiological responses, first in the eye (specifically the retina) and then in the brain (specifically the visual cortex). For example, the perception of the energy of light depends on the frequency, with green-yellow light being optimal under lighting conditions, so-called optical vision.

[0394] There are several mathematical representations of perceived color, including but not limited to red-green-blue (RGB) coordinates, hue-saturation-lightness (HSL), cyan-magenta-yellow-black (CMYK), whereby perceived color is represented as a point in a mathematical space. At a higher level of abstraction, color, like music, is associated with emotions and psychological states. The association between emotions and color has been discussed in fields as diverse as marketing, branding, interior design, overall health, and drug testing. In laboratory studies, popular associations are not always replicated, and the underlying causes of any statistically significant association may be cultural, evolutionary, or individually developed, and therefore will vary between populations with different tendencies in the determinants.

[0395] Given the similarities between light and sound, the co-variation of sound and light over time can amplify, enrich, or otherwise modulate a human observer's perception of a given setting, space, or event. This association can be used for entertainment, relaxation, learning, healing, and business. Specific examples of associated music and lighting can be found in stage performances, where live musical performances occur together with manual, semi-automatic, or fully automatic stage lighting intensity, color, and contrast control to amplify portions of intense audio or to focus the audience's attention on a single instrument or artist's solo.

[0396] Home entertainment systems are another application where sound and light are linked to provide simultaneous changes in audio and light displayed on a computer or television screen, or as a simple liquid crystal display (LCD) screen portion of a home stereo system.

[0397] The conversion of audio into light, which produces a visual output, can be accomplished in a semi-automatic or fully automatic manner using analog electronics, or analog electronics and mechanical devices that power mechanical or electronic components with one or more components of the sound portion of the audible spectrum. The audio is passed through multiple audio filters to produce multiple signals that quantify the intensity of the sound in various frequency intervals or sub-bands.

[0398] The resulting signals are used to drive multiple electronic components which produce visually distinct outputs.

[0399] For example, signals from three ordered audio subbands can be used to drive three electron guns in a color television cathode ray tube. In addition, the audio signals can control the horizontal and vertical synchronization signals of the cathode ray tube, which thus produce a changing band or rectangular pattern of colors on the television screen.

[0400] Other devices for displaying changing colors have been disclosed, but have the common feature that they display the visual output as a projection on a spatially rigid screen or surface. In some inventions, stereo sound is used as input.

[0401] The audio is encoded into two distinct signals, arbitrarily named left and right, which when sent to two spatially separated audio speakers give the illusion of multi-directional audio sources to a human observer. The two synchronized audio signals are processed by audio filters in a manner similar to that described in the previous inventions. The multiple audio signals are converted into control signals for a visual output device, but in these inventions also include the creation of two-dimensional coordinates that specify the center of a colored dot or other geometric shape that can change with the audio, including its horizontal position, to indicate the relative audio strength in the left and right audio channels.

[0402] Devices for producing visual output use multiple interconnected electronic components, such as potentiometers, zener diodes, capacitors, to embody the mathematical transformation from a sound input signal to a light output signal. This obscures the nature of the mathematical transformation, limits the types of transformations that can be encoded given a fixed budget of electronic components, and limits the ways in which the user can configure changes to the transformation after the circuit is built.

[0403] The input sound signal is initially mathematically decomposed using a Fourier transform, which describes the audio as a finite or infinite linear combination of fundamental waves or basic sounds of a set type, each of which is at a different frequency. The linear combination can be analyzed for a reference sound library to extract which scales, octaves, notes or other entities defined in music theory exist in the received sound at a given point in time. In some embodiments, the extracted scale or octave is used to define a color, where hue and saturation can be set as functions of the scale and octave, respectively. If multiple colors are created from multiple sounds at a given point in time, they can be combined into a single color by superimposing them. The spatial arrangement for the display can be to color a single image, or if stereo input is used, to color two spatially separated images.

[0404] Another spatial arrangement that has been considered is a structure consistent with a twelve-tone circle based on the chromatic scale in music theory. It has been envisioned to display these visualizations on a screen, such as an LCD. These methods are implemented in part by software (which executes on a processor) that encodes the mathematical transformations.

[0405] Other variations of music visualization are based on audio properties with a smaller granularity than changes in frequency or intensity, such as music tune metadata derived from some audio representation or retrieved from a database. This metadata can be genre, mood, or beats per minute (BPM). Color, intensity, or a set of screen coordinates are defined as a function of the music tune metadata. The visual display can be used for decorative purposes, or as a means to summarize music properties in an image or visualization.

[0406] Some embodiments described herein enable a person or machine to search for music tunes similar to a given tune (as defined by the less granular music tune metadata) by visual similarity rather than by sorting and browsing multiple columns of tabular data. These visualizations already compress the audio variations in time and therefore cannot display dynamic light visualizations while the music tune is playing or performing.

[0407] The audio visualizations described so far are intended to be displayed on a single screen or device. Some devices may map the visualization onto a set of single lighting devices (such as light emitting diode (LED) bulbs placed somewhere in three-dimensional space) or a mesh system of single lighting devices.

[0408] The audio is processed using a Fourier transform in a manner similar to the above to extract a set of features, where the audio is obtained from a microphone or by retrieving a digital audio file. The audio features are mapped to a set of lighting control signals, where the mapping method is programmable software executed on one or more processors on a separate computing device or a portion of the light bulbs. The control signals are sent to the lighting devices via wired or wireless signals, where the control signals can be multi-parameter, including intensity and color. Embodiments include transforming audio of a specific frequency range into a specific color emitted by a specific light bulb in the network, or some combination thereof.

[0409] It is envisioned that programming of the audio to light mapping is accomplished through a graphical user interface (GUI) that enables a user to select a particular mapping function from a list, or where the mapping function is set by some metadata associated with the audio (such as a genre classification).

[0410] Some embodiments described herein are provided as operations that are part of a process of converting audio into visualizations on a set of lighting devices, such as LED bulbs or panels. The process can control the way audio features are mapped to light sources in terms of their spectra and their positions in three-dimensional space. Embodiments described herein can provide users with the ability to spatially and optically configure lighting devices without detailed program input.

[0411] Some embodiments described herein are provided as operations that are part of a method of deriving and using spatial situation data of individual lighting devices when creating visualizations of audio. As described herein, some embodiments relate to the processing of audio to light conversion, and illustrative embodiments are provided as non-limiting examples of the manner in which the enhancement of audio and light is experienced by a human observer.

[0412] Data flow and processing

[0413] In order to automatically construct a mapping of sound to multiple lights in an arbitrary but known spatial arrangement, multiple logical steps involving multiple intermediate data structures are implemented. In this section, the logic and data flow are outlined in terms of a set of processing units or modules and their interdependencies with the data sent and received. The details of each unit or module will be introduced in subsequent sections. The processing unit or module includes computer hardware or physical parts or components of a computer (which are tangible physical objects).

[0414] like Fig.21 As shown in the example of , the method can have two inputs, namely an audio source 301 and data defining the physical arrangement of the lighting device 303. In some embodiments, the audio source 301 is in the form of a mechanical wave of varying air pressure 211 received by a microphone or generally a sensor 112, the sensor 112 being configured to receive audio of at least a certain frequency and amplitude within which the music or sound is perceptible to a human observer, such as 20 Hz to 20 kHz or 250 Hz to 8 kHz. In some embodiments, the audio source 301 can be received from a digital audio representation 213 via connection 406, such as Fig. 22 As part of the method operation, the transformation may convert the digital audio representation 213 into an audio source 301 .

[0415] Digital formats include, but are not limited to, standard formats WAV, MP3, MPEG, AIFF. The digital audio representation 213 is received from a sending device 312, which has access to or includes a digital music database, such as, but not limited to, a computer, a smartphone, a router. The transmission can be made via a wireless connection 405, such as, but not limited to, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, LTE. In some embodiments, the digital audio representation is received from the sending device via a wired connection 405, such as, but not limited to, Ethernet, power line communication (PLC), or a standard or proprietary serial communication port or pin.

[0416] In some embodiments, the physical arrangement of the lighting fixtures is represented as a plurality of three-dimensional Cartesian coordinates of the center of each lighting fixture (or any other consistently defined point of each lighting fixture).

[0417] The Cartesian coordinates are stored in memory and transmitted between modules as part of an array of integers or floating point numbers, where at least one element in the array can be matched to a unique identifier of a lighting fixture.

[0418] In some embodiments, the physical arrangement of lighting devices is represented as a connected non-directional graph, where each edge between any two given nodes indicates that the two corresponding lighting devices are spatially connected or spatial neighbors. Mathematically, the graph can be represented as an adjacency matrix, an adjacency list, or a distance matrix.

[0419] These entities are stored in memory and transmitted between modules as arrays of integers or floating point numbers. These arrays can be received via a connection between the physical arrangement and the processing unit 401, where the wireless connection includes but is not limited to Bluetooth TM 、Zigbee TM , Wi-Fi, LTE, and wired connections include but are not limited to Ethernet, PLC, standard or proprietary serial ports or pins.

[0420] The physical arrangement representation may also include global geometric data that applies to the entire assembly. For example, in some embodiments, the array defines an up-down orientation for the entire assembly, such as from sensing gravity or manually configured via an auxiliary device (such as a laptop, a smartphone with a touch screen interface or keyboard input).

[0421] Depending on the format of the received audio data, the data undergoes an initial transformation into a digital representation of an audio wave 104. In some embodiments, the representation is a discrete description of amplitude variations over time 203, which is the standard digital representation of audio in computers, compact discs, digital phones, usually but not necessarily obtained through pulse code modulation (PCM). Thus, the audio is described as a finite number of ordered frames.

[0422] Each frame is an element in an array of integers or floating point numbers that represents the amplitude of the audio wave at the point in time corresponding to a given frame. The sampling rate of this representation quantifies the number of amplitude samples (or frames) per second. Typical sampling rates suitable for high-fidelity audio include 44.1kHz, 48kHz, 24kHz.

[0423] The smaller the sample rate, the more compact the audio representation, because the continuous mechanical audio wave is given a sparser discrete representation. For example, the size of the array of integer or floating point amplitudes for audio of one second duration (or the number of frames therein) is 44100, 48000, and 24000, respectively, for these three sample rates.

[0424] A lower sampling rate also means more noise in the representation compared to the original audio. Specifically, a sampling rate of a given value cannot resolve parts of the audio mechanical wave at frequencies above the sampling rate. Thus, sampling rates below 20kHz, such as 5kHz or 1kHz, result in the absence of high-pitched notes or sounds in the discrete representation 203.

[0425] Since the expected audio is composed of multiple waves of different amplitudes, frequencies and phases, a wave transform 101 is applied to the discrete representation 203. The integer or floating point array received from the pre-processing module 104 is used as input to the transform, and a new representation is obtained based on a finite set of orthogonal basis functions and time-dependent multiplication factors. The multiplication factors are stored in an array as a set number of integers or floating point numbers.

[0426] Depending on the details of the wave transform, the multiplication factors may be complex numbers. Thus, in addition to the real-valued components of the multiplication factors, the array may also contain elements defining the imaginary components of the complex numbers. In some embodiments, the integer or floating point size of the complex numbers is used in subsequent modules instead of the multiplication factors. Thus, an array may be defined whose elements are equal to the sum of the real-valued elements of the power 2 and the imaginary elements of the power 2.

[0427] The sum of the basis functions (each multiplied by a corresponding factor) produces an approximate mathematical representation of the input amplitude wave 104 at any given time. With a reasonable transformation setup and deliberate choice of the basis functions, the approximate audio representation is highly similar to the input; the details of the transformation will be given in subsequent sections. The exact method of waveform transformation may vary between embodiments, but the size of the multiplication factors stored in the integer or floating point array defined above can be varied over time and visualized as, for example, an audio spectrum.

[0428] Fig.24 An example of an audio spectrogram 2400 of a short piece of music is shown in , where frequency in Hz (y-axis) is shown as 24002 and time is shown on the x-axis as 24004. The magnitude of the multiple multiplication factors at a given time represents the magnitude of a standard audio wave or multiple standard audio waves, and the multiple multiplication factors are an exact or approximate decomposition of the mixing of the audio waves into a set of standard sounds. Based on the size of the multiplication factors, the audio activation array 202 is calculated and sent, where their calculation details and array sizes are given in a later section.

[0429] Representations of this nature provide analytical advantages over PCM representations because the audio components of an audio mixture are approximately or completely decomposed. In some embodiments, the sound conversion module calculates secondary summary metrics of the audio stream processed so far, such as but not limited to an estimate of the BPM, which is also transmitted as an array.

[0430] According to an embodiment, depending on the format of the representation of the physical arrangement of the lighting devices, the representation is converted to a graph adjacency matrix, a distance matrix between lighting devices, or a similar representation in the geometry module 103. Various geometric data 205 can be further derived for the physical assembly, details of which are given in the following sections. In some embodiments, these calculations are performed only once during the initial setup, and the resulting array of integer or floating point data is stored in the memory 311 so that it can be retrieved during the processing of the audio 204.

[0431] In some embodiments, the physical arrangement can be changed dynamically by intentional rearrangement or by functional failure or damage to one or more individual lighting devices. In order to detect these changes and recalculate the geometric data, the method polls the various devices for their status 401, including their geometric data. If a change in status is found between two consecutive time points, the geometry module 103 is triggered and the data is updated in the memory.

[0432] The audio activations 202 and geometry data 204 of the physical assembly are input to the rendering module 102 as integer or floating point arrays. The transmission means may be within a shared memory on a common device having a processor or similar circuitry for executing the different modules; the transmission may also be done over a wireless or wired connection. Through a number of algorithms described in the following sections, a set of light activations 201 is derived. The light activations represent what color coordinates at what intensity each individual lighting device in the assembly 303 should assume at that given point in time.

[0433] The color coordinate system may be RGB, HSL, CMYK, or any other transformation of a color space, by which a color specified may be represented and stored in memory as an integer or floating point array, typically (but not necessarily) having three elements per array. A set of arrays including light activations is transmitted to module 111, which converts the specified color and intensity into a drive current for each individually controllable light emitting diode (LED) in a plurality of lighting devices.

[0434] The drive current can be obtained by standard pulse width modulation (PWM) of an alternating current (AC) power source 302, which is connected to the physical assembly 303 by wires or by wireless transmission of power. The power source 302 can be a direct current (DC) from a battery or a photovoltaic solar cell panel. In this case, the modulation in 111 can be completed with a DC-DC converter, for example. The mapping from color to drive current can be completed by a lookup table stored in a non-volatile or non-temporary memory, which is calibrated during the manufacture of each lighting device.

[0435] The lookup table is represented as an array of integer or floating point arrays, where at least one element in the array is an array with color coordinates and at least one element of the array is an array of drive currents for one or more LEDs within the lighting device. In the event that the received array 111 is not contained in the lookup table, an interpolation between at least two nearby color coordinates present in the lookup table is done. The lookup table may also include a temperature variable, since it is known that an LED emits less light for a given drive current as the temperature of the diode increases. The mapping may also be derived dynamically through a calibration sequence, where the auxiliary device records the spectrum of settings for a given drive current and sends the information back to the system.

[0436] Other methods of mapping color to current are contemplated. In some embodiments, the color to current conversion module 111 is executed on the microprocessor portion of each lighting device in the physical assembly. The transmission 403 of the light activated array is either done through a wireless connection, such as but not limited to Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Zigbee, or other wireless communication. TM or Z-Wave TM , either through a wired connection, such as but not limited to Ethernet, PLC, or a standard or proprietary serial port or pin.

[0437] The embodiments described so far process audio as a continuous data stream in real time or near real time. This means that the sound conversion module 101 has no information about sounds that are not yet coming, but only about current and possibly past audio data. In the case where the audio data is a digital representation of a musical tune, the entire audio stream is stored in a database 312, which can be remote and accessed via an Internet connection, or stored in a local disk or digital memory.

[0438] In some embodiments, the condition is used to perform batch processing of the entire digital audio data before visualizing the digital audio data, see Fig.23 The audio activations 215 are stored in memory 313 as an array as described above so that when the audio is played and rendering is completed simultaneously, these data are retrieved as a stream of integer or floating point arrays 202. Batching enables other algorithms to be employed in the sound conversion module 101, as described in the following sections.

[0439] A variation of this embodiment involves calculating and storing the light activations 201 in memory as an array of integers or floating point numbers and retrieving them as a stream along with playing the audio. This embodiment eliminates the ability to dynamically change the geometry of the physical assembly while a given musical tune is playing.

[0440] In order to achieve the desired joint changes in perceived audio 211 and perceived light 212 to a human observer, the audio stream and the light stream must be simultaneous or nearly simultaneous. This presents different challenges for the embodiments described so far. Fig.21 In the embodiment of , which relies on microphone or sensor 112 receiving audio as it is played, all data processing and transmission until the lighting device 303 changes its state must be less than some threshold of lag that will be perceived as noticeable or disruptive to a human observer.

[0441] Synchronization errors have been studied for multimedia such as video. In one particular study, lags below 80ms were not detected by human observers, with detection probability increasing until a lag of 160ms, where the detection probability was close to 100%. It should be noted that the experiment involved synchronization errors in lip movements in video associated with detected audio.

[0442] The light waves generated from the physical assembly in the current embodiment are expected to have a lower resolution than a computer screen, which suggests that a delay of 80 ms is a conservative value for acceptable processing time. Fig. 22 and Fig.23 In an embodiment, simultaneity is in principle easily achieved where the audio streams 213 and 214 to an audio source 301 (such as a speaker or headphones) are processed by the same processing unit or similar electronic circuit that processes the light activation stream 201 to the physical assembly 303.

[0443] In these embodiments, the streaming mechanism will perform the transmission of the light activation and the transmission of the audio data to the audio source immediately after each other or close enough in execution that the synchronization error remains below an acceptable threshold. In other embodiments, different processors handle the light activation and the audio data to be played by the audio source.

[0444] This includes situations where a computer or smartphone that retrieves digital audio from a local or remote database sends the data to a computer running Fig. 22 and Fig.23 The processing unit of the method described in the present invention is controlled by a detailed program sent externally to a third party speaker system by the current method.

[0445] As long as the processing time of the digital audio stream in the third-party speaker system and the current method is fast enough, no significant synchronization errors will occur. If one of the two independent audio processing algorithms is much slower than the other, the fastest of the two can be programmatically lagged behind by a set amount.

[0446] Sound conversion module

[0447] The sound conversion module 101 calculates a set of quantities to describe the key features of the audio at a given point in time. In some embodiments, the calculation portion of the sound conversion module is completed independently of a specific physical lighting assembly 303.

[0448] In addition, the sound pre-processing module 104 processes various audio formats that can be input to the system and converts them into PCM representations. Therefore, the sound conversion module can also be independent of the specific input format of the audio.

[0449] The sound pre-processing module 104 uses the published standard digital audio format specifications to convert various input formats into a consistent output format. Input formats include but are not limited to: WAV, MP3, MPEG, AIFF, AU, TTA, Opus TM , Vorbis TM 、Musepack TM , AAC, ATRAC. Conversion means that any file headers are stripped away, leaving only the audio data. The output can be a raw header-free PCM representation of the audio at the specified sample rate.

[0450] The output is thus stored as an array of integers or floating point numbers, where each element represents the audio amplitude at a corresponding point in time. The initial conversion may mean that there is no loss of audio fidelity compared to the input file. However, in some embodiments, the sound preprocessing also includes resampling the audio, in particular reducing the sampling rate. Methods and implementations published in the field of signal processing can be used for this task.

[0451] Two example methods may be used in different embodiments: simple down sampling, which keeps only a portion of the array's discrete amplitudes; decimation, which keeps a portion of the array's discrete amplitudes after transforming or filtering them to mitigate temporal aliasing distortion. A reduction in the sampling rate means a reduction in audio fidelity. At this stage of processing, the audio signal is not meant to be converted into mechanical waves to interact with human hearing, but rather as input to audio visualization.

[0452] Therefore, conventions regarding sampling rates for audio storage and retrieval do not necessarily translate. Through calibration, lower sampling rate values ​​can be used for some audio, such as values ​​of 1kHz, 2kHz, 5kHz, 10kHz. Lower sampling rates mean that high frequency sounds are removed from the representation. In particular, for but not limited to music containing a defined beat, this loss of data varying at high audio frequencies is not as important for a meaningful visual representation of the audio as it would be perceived by a human observer.

[0453] Some digital audio data encodes stereo. In this case, each time point is represented by two or more amplitude values ​​in the integer or floating point array described above. Stereo sound is a means of creating a sense of audio directionality when interacting with human hearing. In some embodiments, the sound preprocessor converts any stereo input to a mono output. This is done by summing and uniformly scaling two or more integers or floating point numbers representing the signal at each time point. In other embodiments, two or more audio streams are processed independently, and two arrays of PCM representations of the audio are sent to the sound conversion module.

[0454] In embodiments where the audio input is obtained by a microphone or sensor that interacts with the mechanical audio waves, the sensor includes an analog-to-digital conversion. Any microphone can be used to capture the vibrations of the mechanical audio waves at frequencies and amplitudes that at least encompass the meaningful human hearing range, such as 20 Hz to 20 kHz, or 250 Hz to 8 kHz, and above -10 dB for frequencies at least around 4 kHz, but higher lower limits are acceptable for frequencies higher or lower than this; the human audiogram provides a detailed range of audible sounds.

[0455] Typically, the membrane of the microphone moves along or resonates with the changing pressure of the mechanical wave, and the movement of the membrane is converted into changing current and voltage by a generating element attached to the membrane. The electrical changes are converted into a digital and discrete representation of the amplitude changes at a set sampling rate. An array of integers or floating point numbers is thus obtained. The same considerations regarding the selection of the sampling rate for the digital audio format described above apply to embodiments using microphones.

[0456] There are many wave transforms available, with applications in physics and signal processing, among others. They decompose a continuous or discrete function of one or higher dimensions into a finite or infinite linear combination of wave basis functions. The type of basis functions and the mathematical method of deriving scalars in the linear combination to each basis function differ between the methods. For the transform of the discrete PCM representation of audio amplitudes, the signal is discrete and one-dimensional along the time axis. The Discrete Time Fourier Transform (DTFT) decomposes a series of amplitude values ​​x[n], which exist in the time domain, into a set of complex coefficients in the frequency domain, such as obtained from a sound preprocessor.

[0457]

[0458] By inverse transforming, the signal can be obtained again. The signal constructed by inverse transforming can be an approximate representation in the case where the coefficient sequence X is truncated, or in other words using a reduced number of set frequencies ω when the above equation is calculated.

[0459] The finite set of frequencies can be conceptualized as the centers of a set of frequency bins. Since the audio signal varies over time, the coefficients also vary. A variation of the DTFT that solves this problem is the Short-Time Fourier Transform (STFT).

[0460]

[0461] The variable m is a sequence identifier of a discrete time variable, and W is a window function that assumes its maximum value is zero and approaches zero symmetrically as the function's independent variable increases or decreases. The exact function form can be calibrated, and common types are rectangular functions, trigonometric functions, cosine functions, Welch functions, Gaussian functions, and Hann functions. STFT summarizes the signal in the frequency domain at a given time point m into the signal properties in the time domain near m rather than in the entire time range.

[0462] The finite set of times for which coefficients exist can be conceptualized as a set of time windows. The sampling rate x of the signal defines the highest resolution of the time windows. However, the transform can be configured so that it further reduces the resolution and thus makes the number of time windows less than the number of frames in the input audio signal.

[0463] Performing arithmetic and logical operations on a microprocessor or central processing unit in order to perform the wave transform as mathematically defined above can be accomplished as follows: (1) A segment of consecutive elements from the integer floating point number array sent from the pre-processing module is retrieved and stored in a memory. (2) Each element in the segment is multiplied by a floating point number defined by a window function; the floating point number may be one. (3) Each element in the array thus obtained is multiplied by a set of complex numbers defined by a fundamental wave, where the wave is defined as a multiple of the frequency ω; the value thus obtained is added to a single complex number which is stored in the memory as an element of the array. (4) Another set of complex numbers is defined by another frequency, and the array defined above is appended with the numbers obtained by repeating the third step. (5) The previous step is repeated for a set number of different frequencies, and an array of complex numbers is obtained, where the number of elements is equal to the set number of different frequencies or frequency windows.

[0464] The coefficients of the wave transform are formally complex numbers with a real part and an imaginary part. In the current application, the magnitude of each basis function is of interest, while the phase is not. The absolute value (or modulus or magnitude) of the complex coefficient is a real number and can be displayed as equal to the expected magnitude. The magnitude of the coefficients over time and frequency can be visualized using a spectrogram, which is a form of heat map where the element (x, y) is plotted against |X(x, y)| 2 The amplitude is stored as an array of integers or floating point numbers with the number of elements equal to the set number of different frequencies or the number of frequencies. Fig.24An example of a spectrogram obtained from a short music clip of the music artist Justin Bieber is given.

[0465] In this visualization, rhythmic beats, harmonics, or portions of decreasing or increasing overall audio intensity are apparent. Highly saturated shaded areas represent large elements at the corresponding time and frequency in the amplitude array, while areas of no or weak saturation represent elements equal to or close to zero at the corresponding time and frequency in the amplitude array.

[0466] Another wave transform of interest is the Constant Q Transform. It is related to the STFT, but specifies a series of frequency bins that vary in width and spacing. Specifically, the size of the frequency bins increases as the frequency increases. This complicates the actual calculation of the transform. It also provides reduced resolution at higher frequencies.

[0467] As mentioned above, this matches the resolution of human hearing in terms of frequency. Other wave transforms can be envisioned as long as they represent the time-varying amplitude signal as a finite set of time-varying coefficients of a set of basis functions in the frequency domain. Other transforms include, but are not limited to, Laplace transforms, Mellin transforms, Z transforms, and cosine transforms.

[0468] In some embodiments, the absolute value of the amplitude itself is not of interest, but rather the relative value of the amplitude compared to a reference is of interest. A transformation that reflects this is amplitude normalization.

[0469]

[0470] The choice of reference can be: (1) a constant calibrated once and applied to all frequency and time windows, in other words N(ω, m) = N. (2) several constants calibrated once and applied to different frequency windows, but to all time windows, in other words N(ω, m) = N(ω). (3) one variable varies with time according to some function, but applied uniformly over all frequency windows, in other words N(ω, m) = N(m). (4) several variables vary with time according to some function and applied to different frequency windows. The second normalization method is suitable for scaling the amplitude to better respond to human perception of sound intensity.

[0471] As discussed above, human hearing is more sensitive to amplitude at certain frequencies (e.g., 4kHz) than at the outer limits of hearing (e.g., 100Hz and 10kHz). Therefore, increasing the scaling of the digital representation of audio in a frequency window close to frequencies of excellent human hearing relative to the digital representation of audio in a frequency window close to frequencies of poor human hearing is a step toward a representation of the audio that is closer to how it is perceived, rather than with respect to its physical properties. The third and fourth normalizations are useful when absolute musical or audio volume differences are meaningless for visualization. For example, for an embodiment where audio is received through a microphone, a sudden increase in volume may uniformly increase the amplitude.

[0472] Since there is a practical upper limit to how intense the displayed light in the visualization can be, or the wavelength of the light used, a uniform increase in amplitude can ultimately mask any changes in the light visualization. The function that controls the time dependence of the normalization can be a total value or summary statistic of the amplitudes observed so far. In some embodiments, the summary statistic is the maximum non-normalized amplitude found between all frequency bins, or for each frequency bin itself up to a given point in time. In some embodiments, the summary statistic is the maximum value multiplied by a decay function as described above. The decay has the effect of reducing the normalization function over time unless a new high amplitude value is encountered again.

[0473] The latter structure controls the likelihood of a uniform decrease in amplitude, which lowering the volume of the music will produce. In embodiments where the audio is received as a digital audio file and processed in batches, the normalization can be calculated with knowledge of the entire track. Functional forms similar or identical to those listed above can be envisioned, but with parameter values ​​chosen with full knowledge of what audio variations (such as maximum amplitude) exist in the audio.

[0474] The normalized amplitude at a given time point m In this embodiment, they are referred to as audio activations 202 and are sent to the rendering module. They are represented as an array of integers or floating point numbers, where the size of the array at a given point in time m is equal to the set number of frequency bins. Over time, the element values ​​are updated in memory to reflect changes in the input audio, normalization, or both. The array can also be appended to a larger array of arrays, which can be the case for batch processing of data streams.

[0475] In embodiments where audio is received via a microphone, there may be noise in the signal from ambient sounds, such as engine noise, conversations, or other human vocalizations. Random noise can be partially eliminated by discarding high frequency components of the audio signal.

[0476] This is a simple filter applied in the current method embodiment because the Fourier transform decomposes the input signal into windows of different frequencies. For audio and music with the most prominent features at lower frequencies, such as a defined drum beat, the loss of higher frequency data is not a problem for meaningful visualization. For audio and music that is not applicable, such as an operatic soprano aria, a filter that completely discards high frequency data is detrimental to visualization. More advanced methods for noise removal may involve auxiliary microphones placed in the space so that they primarily pick up ambient noise rather than music.

[0477] The noise audio is then subtracted from its initial microphone acquired signal, either in its raw amplitude variation representation, or after wave transform.

[0478] As described above, the perception of sound and music can be described in units other than ordered categories of frequency or pitch. In this regard, the audio activations defined above are a set of ordered categories. For music containing unique chord progressions, vocal harmonies, or varying but recurring percussion, the units that best represent the way the music is perceived may involve multiple well-separated and distinct audio frequency bands. A set of basis functions in a wave transform, such as the exp(-inω) functions in a Fourier transform, can be linearly combined to form a new basis that represents the input audio; this is similar to how a single vector can be represented in different ways if a Cartesian coordinate system is rotated.

[0479] One way to derive new linear combinations of the basis functions (or in other words, rotations of the functional coordinate system) is by analyzing the principal components of the covariance of different magnitudes in the original basis. This is only possible in embodiments that include a complete batch of audio (or at least a batch of significant segments of audio). The typical process of obtaining the rotation begins with the rotation of the function as described above for a set number of frequency bins ω∈{ω1,ω2,...,ω N} and time window m∈{m1,m2,...,m k} for a set of amplitudes X(ω, m). Calculate the covariance of the amplitudes over time in the frequency window:

[0480]

[0481] The function avg1 calculates the average amplitude over the entire time range for a given frequency window.

[0482] For example, if two frequency bins contain amplitudes that generally increase and decrease in unison, the covariance value will be greater than zero. For example, if two frequency bins contain amplitudes that vary completely randomly relative to each other, the covariance value will not differ significantly from zero. The principal components of the covariance are orthogonal linear combinations of the frequency bins, such that the set of linear combinations typically contains a few elements through which disproportionate amounts of audio variation occur in music or audio.

[0483] In other words, the dominant sound theme in the analyzed music tune or audio clip, which is expected to include a plurality of specific frequencies, is mainly represented as variations along a single principal component. The actual calculation of the principal component can be performed by first transforming C(ω i ,ω i ) is represented as a matrix (or array of arrays of integers or floating point numbers). The equation above defines how to calculate each element of the matrix by processing the multiplication factors stored in the array as defined in the previous paragraph.

[0484] This includes, in particular, calculating the deviation of an array element for a given frequency window from its average over all time windows. Methods in numerical matrix algebra, which are implemented as operations on finite groups on arrays of integers or floating point numbers, can be used to determine the eigenvectors of a matrix, usually sorted by their corresponding eigenvalues. Once the eigenvectors are obtained, the amplitudes X(ω, m) are linearly transformed and a new set X(π, m) is obtained, where instead of frequency bins, the values ​​are split over main windows. The number of main windows can be the same as the number of frequency bins. The number of main windows can be smaller than the number of frequency bins, where main windows with associated eigenvalues ​​less than a certain threshold are discarded. The main window amplitudes can be normalized as described above and converted into audio activations passed to the rendering module.

[0485] An array of integers or floating point numbers is thereby obtained, where each element represents the activation of the corresponding dominant sound at a given point in time. Other methods can be envisaged to derive the transformation to an informed set of basis functions.

[0486] The actual calculation of the wave transform must be fast when executed as a set of logic and arithmetic commands on a central processing unit, microprocessor or other electronic circuit. If this condition fails, the synchronization error will exceed the acceptable threshold. The actual method of calculating the Fourier transform is implemented by the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT).

[0487] As defined in the previous paragraph, the summations involved in computing the coefficients in the frequency domain mean that the computational effort increases quadratically as the size of the problem increases. In other words, as the number of elements in the array of integer or floating point numbers (which describes the amplitude and audio amplitude of each frequency bin, as described above) increases, the number of operations performed on the central processing unit, microprocessor or other electronic circuit increases quadratically. Various FFT methods have been formulated and published (Cooley-Tukey is the most common) that exhibit no worse than N·log N computational effort increases as the size of the input array increases.

[0488] Most FFT methods are exact in the sense that they do not involve any arithmetic approximation to the transform equations. In finite precision implementations, numerical errors accumulate as the number of operations on integer or floating point array elements increases. However, benchmark studies have concluded that FFTs (particularly Cooley-Tukey) are also "very stable" to such errors. Therefore, in some embodiments, an FFT algorithm is used to compute the coefficients rather than using direct numerical computation of the equations defined algebraically by the array elements as described in the previous paragraph. Otherwise, the normalization and linear transformations and their implementation are the same as above.

[0489] Audio activation provides a compressed representation of a potentially complex audio stream. In some embodiments, it is useful to derive summary statistics of the audio that numerically represent the coarser characteristics of the audio. A common metric in music is beats per minute (BPM). In embodiments that rely on batch processing of entire digital audio files, an advanced and accurate method (which finds the beginning of the audio and its periodicity across the tune) can be implemented to derive the BPM. In embodiments that process audio in real time, the method can only use shorter fragments of past or current amplitude data. A beat is characterized by its high relative intensity and that it spans a short amount of time.

[0490] Thus, in some embodiments, time points that meet the following two criteria may be classified as containing a beat: (1) the total amount of audio energy, as defined by the sum of all amplitudes (or magnitudes) of the original audio wave, exceeds some set threshold of the average energy in the temporal neighborhood of the given time point; and (2) the point is an energy peak as determined by a peak detection method. Peak detection can be implemented as a nested condition on the positive difference between the energy of a given point and the energies of points in the immediate vicinity of that point. The intervals between consecutive beats are calculated and accumulated as the audio is processed.

[0491] A summary static, such as the modulus or median, of the accumulated beat intervals is calculated. The BPM is estimated from the summary intervals. This method sometimes fails to identify the beat if many instruments are active in that portion of the audio. Accuracy can be improved by limiting the above calculations to a lower frequency window, since rhythmic beats tend to be at lower frequencies relative to other instruments. The BPM is represented as an integer or floating point value that is transmitted to the rendering module along with the audio activations.

[0492] Another example rough characterization of music is its genre, e.g., pop, rock, hip-hop, grunge, grindcore, deep house. In embodiments that rely on audio from a remote or local database 312, the genre can be encoded as metadata for the digital file. If this is done, that information can be retrieved and passed directly to the rendering module.

[0493] In the absence or retrieval of this metadata, it can be predicted from the output of the conversion done in the sound conversion module or from the PCM representation of the audio. Methods of varying accuracy and precision exist.

[0494] In some embodiments, an audio-based classification method is used, and the predicted type class defined as a string or integer exponent is also sent to the rendering module.

[0495] Geometry and physical assembly

[0496] The physical lighting assembly 303 consists of one or more individually addressable lighting devices. The term "addressable" means that for each lighting device there is an associated unique identifier, and can be implemented as an integer value, for example. It is assumed that the lighting devices are adjustable at least in terms of their luminous flux, and in some embodiments, are adjustable with respect to the spectrum they emit. This means that one or more lighting devices can emit different colors, but not necessarily every possible color in the visible spectrum.

[0497] The lighting device can have a variety of form factors and produce light distributions with different angular distributions. This includes, but is not limited to, custom lighting fixtures such as omnidirectional bulbs, parabolic reflector lamps with directional light distributions generally described in terms of beam angle, linear light pipes by themselves or mounted in partially reflective dark lights, decorative bulbs (such as candelabra lamps that produce mostly omnidirectional light), flat or curved shapes (or shapes and structures that convert the distribution of light emission into highly varying patterns). The light source can be an incandescent lamp, a halogen lamp, a fluorescent lamp, or from a light emitting diode (LED). Some embodiments use the latter because the emitted spectrum can be relatively easily adjusted therein.

[0498] In some embodiments, the assembly is a union of individually addressable panels of LED lighting units, wherein each panel has a polygonal shape and is joined to adjacent panels by wired connections, see Fig.25 303 in diagram 2500 of , which shows example connections and related geometric determinations (e.g., steps 25002, 25004, 25006). The wired connection includes at least data transmission via an Ethernet connection, a PLC, or a serial port or pin. The connection can also transmit power and provide mechanical support. In this embodiment, each lighting panel has a unique identification and the identification of the panel connected to it can be obtained. Therefore, it is possible for the geometry module 103 to query a given lighting assembly 303 for its connection graph 1031. The graph can be mathematically represented as an adjacency matrix, an adjacency list, or an exhaustive representation of any equivalent non-directional graph.

[0499] In a more specific embodiment, the panels are mechanically and electrically connected, either by a rigid block inserted from one panel into another panel by attractive magnetic forces, or by a printed circuit board auxiliary piece connecting two or more panels, as described in the previous section. The wired connection thus comprises a bidirectional pin formed by a conductive connection between a rigid block of one panel and a corresponding recess of the other panel, or by a conductive trace portion of a bridge piece of a printed circuit board. The connection map thus obtained is the same as or simply derived from the layout detection method as previously defined. Light is emitted from an apparently flat panel into the environment by scattering the light incident into the panel when the light encounters microscopic particles or surface defects that are part of the panel.

[0500] In computer memory, the adjacency matrix and adjacency list are stored as an array of integer values ​​or an array of arrays of integer values, where the values ​​represent either Boolean variables indicating the presence or absence of a connection between the devices, or pairs of connected lighting device identifiers. In this embodiment, it is assumed that each lighting device part of the assembly is connected to at least one other lighting device; in other words, the degree is at least one.

[0501] According to these examples, the graph is connected. The maximum degree is determined by the physical structure of each lighting fixture. If each lighting fixture is in the form of a triangle with one connector on each side, the maximum degree is 3; if each lighting fixture is in the form of a square with one connector on each side, the maximum degree is 4. The geodesic distance between any two nodes in the graph (i.e., the number of vertices on the shortest path between the two nodes) can be calculated and placed in the form of a distance matrix 1032.

[0502] From the graph representation, two-dimensional coordinates can be derived by standard trigonometry. The coordinates will therefore be defined in the local coordinate system of the assembly. The coordinates can be incorporated into a coordinate dictionary, where each entry is keyed on the unique identifier of the lighting fixture. In computer memory, the coordinate dictionary is stored as an array of arrays, where at least one value of the array enables the array to be matched to a specific lighting fixture defined by its unique identifier, and the other values ​​in the array are integers or floating point numbers defining Cartesian coordinates in the local coordinate system of the assembly.

[0503] In some embodiments, the assembly is a union of lamps or lighting fixtures that are not directly connected by wired connections. They can alternatively be wirelessly connected to each other in a mesh network, or to a central control hub in a star network, where the wireless communication protocol can be, but is not limited to, Bluetooth. TM 、Zigbee TM And Wi-Fi. Wireless connections can determine the distance or proximity between individual lighting fixtures.

[0504] Instead of a graph adjacency matrix, a matrix with elements representing proximity in the Euclidean sense, or a distance matrix, is obtained. By agglomerating into clusters, a connectivity graph can be derived that defines in a consistent sense whether two lighting fixtures are neighbors. A coordinate dictionary as defined above in terms of arrays of integer or floating point arrays can also be obtained from this data. It should be noted that the accuracy of the geometric properties derived in this way may be lower than in embodiments using a wired data connection.

[0505] This may be due to inaccuracies in converting the network's node-to-node connection strength or transmission speed to distance, which may originate from physical barriers that make the connection strength or transmission speed lower than would result from spatial separation alone. For most applications described in the following sections, this reduced accuracy is expected to still allow meaningful visualization, although some inconsistencies in each embodiment cannot be ruled out.

[0506] It is also envisaged that the coordinate dictionary is manually input to the method through a touch screen interface or keyboard input. The user can provide integers or floating point numbers comprising the coordinate dictionary array by manually enumerating them on a keyboard connected to the memory, or by using interaction of the touch screen and simulation of a physical lighting assembly on the screen to define relative coordinates.

[0507] This process requires greater manpower by the personnel installing the physical lighting assemblies, and precludes dynamic changes to the assemblies after initial setup.Also in this case, alternative geometric representations (such as connectivity graphs and distance matrices) may be computed.

[0508] From any of the above light sources, the geometric data obtained from any of the above methods is used to construct a plurality of geometric metadata 205, which is then stored in a memory for retrieval 204 by the rendering module 102 in order to spatially map the audio activations to the physical lighting assemblies in a varied, meaningful or artistic manner. The following sections describe specific geometric metadata and methods of deriving such data. It should be understood that the enumeration is not exhaustive and other types of geometric metadata are contemplated.

[0509] Through coordinates The arithmetic mean of the geometric center of the physical lighting assembly is calculated from the coordinate dictionary:

[0510]

[0511] For planar assemblies, the coordinates are two-dimensional; for non-planar physical assemblies, the coordinates are three-dimensional. The coordinates of illuminants are represented in memory as arrays of arrays of integers or floating point numbers, as defined above, and the geometric center is calculated by arithmetic addition, one for each geometric axis, over all illuminants of the coordinate array elements, followed by division by the total number of elements being added.

[0512] After performing these operations on the processor, an array containing integers or floating point numbers with the coordinates of the geometric center is obtained. The lighting device with the coordinates closest to the geometric center is designated as the center device. The other devices in the assembly can be assigned indices based on the spacing of the other devices of the assembly from the center. In some embodiments, the index is assigned by determining the number of edges or the geodesic distance on the shortest path from the center device to a given device.

[0513] There are processing operations for computing the shortest path between two nodes in a graph by a set of logical and arithmetic operations on an array representation of the graph's connectivity that can be executed on a processor; these algorithms include, but are not limited to, Dijkstra's method. In some embodiments, the graph of lighting devices is relatively small (less than a thousand nodes) and sparse, which means that a relatively small number of logical and arithmetic operations are required to find the shortest path. Therefore, computing these paths in the connectivity graph requires a relatively small amount of time on typical available processing components and electronic circuits.

[0514] The indices may be arranged in a dictionary where the key is the number of edges from the central device, where index zero refers to the central device itself, and the value associated with each key is an array of lighting device identifiers. In some embodiments, the dictionary is stored in memory as an array of arrays, where at least one element may be matched to an integer or floating point value representing a distance relative to the central device, and an array of integers or floating point numbers is associated with the element, where each element of the array may be matched to the set of unique lighting device identifiers. The dictionary is referred to as an out-of-center dictionary 1033. A variation of this method is to define the central device as a graph center or Jordan center. A graph center is defined as the node whose maximum shortest path to all other nodes is the smallest. All other calculations remain unchanged.

[0515] The physical assembly can be approximated as an ellipsoid (if it is three-dimensional) or an ellipse (if it is two-dimensional). The method of determining the ellipsoidal or ellipse shape is performed by calculating the covariance of three or two coordinate elements on the M lighting devices.

[0516]

[0517] For the case of three-dimensional coordinates, this produces a 3 by 3 matrix, and for the case of two-dimensional coordinates, this produces a 2 by 2 matrix. The matrices are calculated throughout the device for each of the two or three spatial dimensions by a finite set of arithmetic and logical operations applied to arrays in memory (which represent the coordinate matrices), all of which are executed on a processor or similar electronic circuit.

[0518] The eigenvectors of the matrix can be shown as axes of an ellipsoid or ellipse, where the eigenvector associated with the largest eigenvalue is the major axis (or in other words, the vector defining the maximum extension line in space through the physical lighting assembly). The eigenvalue problem is solved digitally by the method operations performed on the processor. An array of two or three integers or floating point numbers, respectively comprising two or three elements, is thus obtained, and there is an integer or floating point number associated with each vector, which represents the eigenvalue. Each lighting device coordinate is projected onto the major axis of the ellipsoid or ellipse.

[0519] The array of lighting device identifiers is sorted by the sign and value of the corresponding projected coordinates. The sorted array of lighting device identifiers can be understood as the spatial arrangement of the devices from one outer edge to the other outer edge of the physical assembly when viewed as a single lighting device. The device with the most negative value is the first element in the list and is named the major axis root device. In the same manner as above, each other device can be assigned an index based on the number of edges in the shortest path to the major axis root device in the connecting graph.

[0520] The dictionary thus obtained is referred to as the major axis dictionary 1034. In some embodiments, the dictionary is stored in memory as an array of arrays, where at least one element can be matched to an integer or floating point distance relative to a major axis root device, and an array of integers or floating point numbers is associated with that element, which can be matched to the set of unique lighting device identifiers.

[0521] A variant of the long axis dictionary is obtained by further splitting the devices along the eigenvector with the second largest eigenvalue. The coordinates are projected onto the second eigenvector as well as the first eigenvector. The values ​​are grouped into a set number of groups that cluster as sharply as possible around certain values. For example, if the projected coordinates on the second eigenvector cluster tightly around any of the three values, the devices can be divided into three clearly parallel channels along the long axis. Ideally, the number of devices in each of the three clusters should be similar, otherwise the lengths of these channels will be different.

[0522] However, if this condition holds, a dictionary can be constructed that is keyed on two indices: the channel identifier and the number of edges in the shortest path to the major axis root device of that same channel. The dictionary thus obtained is called the major axis channel dictionary. In some embodiments, the dictionary is stored in memory as an array of arrays, where at least one element can be matched to a unique group index and at least one other element can be matched to an integer or floating point distance relative to the major axis root device in the device group associated with the given group index, and with the union of the two types of matching elements, there is an associated array of integers or floating point numbers that can be matched to the group of unique lighting device identifiers.

[0523] The physical assembly may consist of distinct clusters of individual devices. For example, the devices may be spatially organized so that they visually approximate the shape of a dumbbell, i.e., two large groups of devices with only small and spatially confined device assemblies between the two groups. For example, the devices may be spatially organized so that they form concentric rings of increasing diameter.

[0524] For example, the devices may be organized so that they form an octopus-like shape, with a center of numerous clustered devices and multiple devices forming long, narrow branches from the center. Other spatial arrangements may be envisioned in which, to a human observer, the individual devices form a larger structure that may in turn be composed of loosely connected substructures or clusters; human visual perception has been shown to readily detect patterns and shapes in the overall combination of visually distinct components.

[0525] Based on a coordinate dictionary or graph connectivity, various clustering algorithms can be used to group devices so that their assignment to groups corresponds to spatial groupings that are intuitive to a human observer. Clustering methods and implementations thereof for execution on a processor or similar electronic circuit include, but are not limited to, k-means clustering, summary clustering, spectral clustering, Ward clustering, DBSCAN clustering.

[0526] Clustering methods may require parameters to control how they perform grouping, and some methods are poorly suited to finding clusters of non-spherical shapes or clusters that are only moderately separated. The choice of method requires testing or other automatic or manual configuration means. Since lighting fixtures are represented at most by three-dimensional coordinates, and the number of fixtures is small (less than one thousand) in typical applications, the computational effort of executing a clustering algorithm is relatively small on a processor with access to memory where arrays of integers or floating-point numbers representing the coordinates of the fixtures are available.

[0527] Once the grouping is obtained, any previous method of assigning an ordering of devices within the group, such as spacing indices to center devices in the group, or spacing indices to major axis root devices in the group, can be accomplished. In some embodiments, the dictionary so obtained is stored in memory as an array of arrays, where at least one element can be matched to a unique group index defined by the clustering method, and at least one other element can be matched to an integer or floating point distance relative to some root device in the group of devices associated with the given group index, and for the union of both types of matching elements, there is an associated array of integers or floating point numbers that can be matched to the group of unique lighting device identifiers.

[0528] In some applications, users spatially arrange individual lighting fixtures in a very specific way to mimic some graphic or shape of cultural or personal significance, and where the user desires to specifically define a root or center fixture as the origin for the order in which the other fixtures are sorted. Users may also wish to manually group fixtures to mimic a specific shape or graphic when illuminated. One could envision a grouping that presents a heart symbol shape when illuminated, with the presence or absence of such a shape in the overall physical arrangement.

[0529] In some embodiments, a user may define such groupings or root devices through a touch screen interface.A coordinate dictionary obtained from a physical lighting assembly as described above enables a graphical simulation or rendering of the physical assembly on a screen.

[0530] For example, a user can interact with the simulation or reproduction by touch or voice commands to define a group of custom arrangements. It increases the amount of work required by the user at installation, but enables specific arrangements to be made as needed. In some embodiments, the system can access relative coordinates of culturally significant shapes from an external or local database.

[0531] A match search may be run against the actual coordinates of the physical lighting assemblies, and if a match is found within a certain threshold, metadata on the significant nodes may be accessed and used to determine the grouping and the root or central device. The representation in memory of integer or floating point arrays based on manually defined groups may be structurally identical to previous representations using a clustering algorithm to derive lighting device groups.

[0532] For completeness, some embodiments randomly assign groups or orders or root devices or other geometric variables or any number of them. This is useful in cases where the exact spatial arrangement is considered irrelevant to the desired visualization, or where the random nature of the varying light is a desired feature. Furthermore, the assignment can vary over time in a deterministic or random manner, which results in an additional dynamic quality to the visualization.

[0533] The specific embodiments described above categorize or group individual devices in a physical lighting assembly based on some geometric property of the entire assembly. Other categorization and grouping methods are contemplated. The common quality is that the ordering or grouping enables audio-to-light mapping in a rendering module that is spatially aware of where each device exists within the larger assembly, so visualization can be done on larger visual units and in the form of meaningful spatial groupings perceived by a human observer, rather than just on single devices of fixed structure and size.

[0534] An illustrative embodiment of the complete visualization is provided herein. In some embodiments, the mathematical representation is a dictionary keyed on two indices (group and sequence), where each key is associated with a list of device identifiers, where the list can contain one or more elements, and the group and sequence indices can take one or more values.

[0535] This general form of the dictionary is referred to as geometric metadata 205. It is stored in digital memory, or first sent to a separate device and there stored in memory 311 for subsequent retrieval by rendering module 102. In some embodiments, the dictionary is transmitted and stored as an array of integer or floating point arrays where at least one element can be matched to a unique group index and at least one other element can be matched to an integer or floating point order within the group, and for the union of both types of matching elements there is an associated array of integer or floating point numbers that can be matched to the group of unique lighting device identifiers.

[0536] In some embodiments, the geometry module 103 repeatedly polls 401 the physical lighting assembly 303 for changes.

[0537] When a change to the graph connectivity or coordinate dictionary is detected (either because the user intentionally removes the device during audio visualization or because the device fails due to electrical or mechanical failure), the geometry module can trigger the following event, namely recalculating the geometry metadata 205 and updating its representation in memory so that the geometry metadata 204 accessed by the rendering module 102 correctly reflects the physical arrangement available for control at that time.

[0538] The duration between polling events can be configured to balance the available computing resources and the urgency of mapping the light to the current arrangement. Values ​​such as 10 times per second, 4 times per second, 1 time per second, 12 times per minute have been contemplated.

[0539] Rendering Module

[0540] The rendering module 102 receives audio activations 202 from the sound conversion module 101 for any given point in time, and may access geometric metadata constructed by the geometry module 103 that describes some or all of the geometric relationships of the physical lighting assembly 303. The rendering module computes a set of light activations 201 that, after conversion into electrical control commands 111 in the manner described above, result in a specific lighting output from the physical lighting assembly 303. The light activations may be mathematically represented as a dictionary that associates each unique lighting device identifier with a color coordinate and an intensity; other mathematical representations are contemplated. For example, the rendering module 102 includes or controls physical computer hardware to generate discernible effects and lighting visualizations using the light activations 201.

[0541] The dictionary is stored in memory as an array of arrays of integers or floating point numbers, where at least one element can be matched to a unique identifier of a lighting device, and for each such element there is an associated array of integers or floating point numbers that fully defines the spectral output of the lighting device once processed by the conversion module 111. Since the rendering module has information about the current sound and light source geometry, more varied visualizations are possible. The geometric metadata enables the creation of situational awareness of the light output. In other words, a given piece of music (or, in general, audio) can be made to correspond to a specific set of optical outputs from a specific set of relative spatial locations (or situations).

[0542] The physical lighting assembly consisting of multiple lighting devices located at unique locations in space has an additional degree of freedom available to display audio visualization. In addition, this additional degree of freedom means that the total number of configurations that the light wave 212 can adopt is very high.

[0543] Due to spatial situational awareness, transitions between configurations over time can include geometric transformations of light sources that produce meaningful visualizations of audio or audio transitions to a human observer, where perceptions of abstract concepts of sound and vision can be considered (e.g., shape, speed, mood, intensity, similarity, etc.). Thus, highly customized audio visualizations can be made that are tailored to specific, collective, or individual needs and preferences.

[0544] As described herein, human perception of sound and light is complex, and there are no universal preferences that can be applied across cultures, age groups, or individuals without some or significant loss in fidelity.A non-limiting example of a rendering module algorithm is described next.

[0545] Without loss of generality, assume that the audio activation is an array containing elements corresponding to N frequency bins at any given point in time, the array being obtained by any of the methods described in the previous section. Without loss of generality, assume that the physical lighting assembly consists of M individually addressable lighting devices.

[0546] For the following description, the light output from any given lighting device is represented as three values ​​ranging from 0 to 255, where the relative values ​​define a point in the RGB color space and the magnitude of the three values ​​defines the intensity; as described above, other color spaces may be used. Without loss of generality, assume that the audio activations are updated at a rate of F times per second and the light activations are updated at a rate of G times per second.

[0547] In one embodiment of the rendering algorithm, the calculation starts with the average audio intensity at a given time point t:

[0548]

[0549] The summation is performed on the processor by adding all integers or floating point numbers in the audio activation array at a given point in time, divided by the total number of elements, which is equal to the number of frequency bins (or primary bins, or other type of division of the audio decomposition).

[0550] The average audio intensity can be transformed into a color point by interpolating along the intersection of the color space. In other words, the average audio intensity selects a value along a certain color spectrum S(x), where x is the interpolation variable. Examples of color spectrums include:

[0551] Blue-Green-Red: At low values ​​of the interpolation variable x, the blue element of the RGB vector is 255 or close to its maximum value, and the green and red elements are zero. For increasing x, the blue element decreases monotonically, while the green element increases monotonically. At intermediate values ​​of x, the green element reaches 255 or close to its maximum value, while both the blue and red elements are zero or close to zero. For further increases in x, the green element decreases monotonically and the red element increases monotonically, until at high values ​​of x the red element reaches 255 or close to its maximum value, while both the blue and green elements are zero or close to zero. For higher values ​​of x, the RGB elements remain constant at the maximum value for red and zero or close to zero values ​​for the blue and green elements.

[0552] Blue-Red: At low values ​​of x, the blue element of the RGB vector is 255 or close to its maximum value. Unlike the blue-green-red spectrum, where the green element is zero for all values ​​of x, the opposite is true for the red element, which increases as the blue value decreases with increasing x. As a result, at intermediate values ​​of x, the output color is purple, a color that does not exist in the blue-green-red spectrum as defined above. For higher values ​​of x, the RGB elements remain constant at the maximum value for red, and zero or close to zero values ​​for the blue and green elements.

[0553] Sunset: A blackbody radiator produces light along a one-dimensional segment of color space, ranging from deep red at low surface temperatures to cool white at high temperatures, and warm white at temperatures in between. As the sun sets, it produces light very close to that of a blackbody radiator cooling down from high temperatures. The RGB elements can therefore be set so that at low values ​​of x, the color point corresponds to a cool white color similar to sunlight when the sun is high in the sky, and as the value of x increases, the RGB elements shift to correspond to colors similar to a setting sun until a deep red is reached.

[0554] The elements in the light activation array are set equal to the color point obtained by using the average audio intensity as an interpolation variable to any one of the color spectra defined above or any other one-dimensional intersection of the color space.

[0555] At the next time step, the new average audio intensity is calculated and the visualization is updated.

[0556] With this rendering method, the audio changes produce uniform color changes at a constant intensity across the object lighting assembly. This is a simple rendering that does not use situational awareness.

[0557] exist Fig. 6A , Figure 6B In another embodiment of the rendering mechanism shown in , the calculation starts with the calculation 1022 of the average audio intensity for each sub-band.

[0558]

[0559] Where w is the subband index and |Ω(w)| is a disjoint subset of the audio activation indices of a set size |Ω(w)|. These subsets can be divided so that low frequency audio activations are grouped together, mid frequency audio activations are grouped together, and high frequency audio activations are grouped together. This division can be understood as the bass, midrange, and treble of music or audio.

[0560] The summation is performed on the processor by adding all integers or floating point numbers in the audio activation array at a given point in time, under the logical condition that the array element is part of a defined subdivision of a subband; the sum value is numerically divided by the total number of elements in the corresponding subband.

[0561] Get an array of integers or floating point numbers of size equal to the number of subbands. The major axis channel dictionary (part of the geometry metadata 204) assigns each lighting fixture a group and an order within the group, as defined in the section above.

[0562] The average audio intensity of the low frequency subband is used to control the light output of the lighting device in one of the geometric groups; the average audio intensity of the mid-frequency subband is used to control the light output of another geometric group; and the average audio intensity of the high frequency subband is used to control the light output of the geometric groups other than the first two groups. For each group, 1021 color points are selected from the spectrum S(x), where the interpolation variable is the normalized group index. For example, if a blue-green-red spectrum is used, the low frequency group can be assigned blue, the mid-frequency group can be assigned green, and the high frequency group can be assigned red.

[0563] The intensity of a single lighting device D in group g is assigned 1023 based on its order index k, and the average audio intensity of the subband associated with the group is defined by the following formula:

[0564] I(D, t) = [1 + exp(k - γ·E g (t))] -1

[0565] When executed on a processor or similar electronic circuit, the equation encodes the following relationship: If a lighting fixture in a given group at a given time has a low order index, the average audio intensity of the associated sub-band can be any value between relatively low and relatively high in order to assign a high intensity to the lighting fixture. If a lighting fixture in a given group at a given time has a high order index, the total audio intensity of the associated sub-band can be relatively high, rather than relatively low, in order to assign a high intensity to the lighting fixture; otherwise the intensity is set to a low value.

[0566] The reason for these logical relationships is that if the exponent value in the above equation is positive, that is, the order exponent is greater than the scaled audio intensity, then the function calculates to a value close to zero; if the exponent value is negative, that is, the order exponent is less than the scaled audio intensity, then the function calculates to a value close to 1.

[0567] Other forms of sigmoid functions may be used with the same effect, such as but not limited to the Gompertz function and the hyperbolic tangent. The parameter γ is calibrated and, in some embodiments, depends on the maximum value of the order index in the given geometry metadata. Given the intensities so defined and the colors as previously defined, a light activation 201 is constructed which describes, for each lighting fixture, which RGB element is to be displayed. In memory, it is stored as an array of arrays of integers or floating point numbers, where at least one element can be matched to a unique lighting fixture identifier and to each such element, an array of integers or floating point numbers is associated with the element which uniquely defines a point in the color space and the light intensity, which in some embodiments may be an array of three elements, see for illustration Fig. 6A , Figure 6B 201 of them.

[0568] Using this rendering method, three channels along the longest geometric axis of the physical lighting group and piece 103 will display bars in different colors that move up and down according to the intensity of the pitch of the music; for example, a rhythmic beat created with a bass drum will primarily produce a rhythmic movement of colored light up and down in one of the channels of the multiple lighting devices, while a soprano aria will produce a movement and intensity of another color of light in another of the channels of the multiple lighting devices. This rendering method takes advantage of situational awareness, specifically what shape the lighting devices as a whole create, and how each device is positioned relative to the overall shape.

[0569] In another embodiment, each audio activation is assigned to a unique lighting fixture. This assignment is done by sequential indexing, in other words, The light output of the lighting device having the order index k is determined. The order index may be calculated as described above and stored in a dictionary, for example based on its relative distance from the geometric center.

[0570] Based on the ordinal index, a color is assigned to each device by using it as an interpolation variable for any spectrum, such as but not limited to the spectrum defined above.

[0571] In some embodiments, the intensity is set for a given lighting device by an associated audio activation after a transformation through a monotonically increasing function. In the event that there are more lighting devices than audio activations (i.e., M>N), one or more audio activations are assigned to multiple lighting devices. In the event that there are fewer lighting devices than audio activations (i.e., M<N), multiple audio activations are assigned to the same lighting device, and the average of the audio activations is used to assign the intensity of the light. With this rendering method, portions with high audio intensity result in high light intensities of multiple colors, and portions with high audio intensity only in a subset of frequency subbands result in high light intensities only in some portions of the physical lighting assembly, where the color and position within the assembly is determined by which subband is engaged.

[0572] Using this rendering method, a segment containing a progression of pitches will only illuminate a portion of the lighting device, but to a human observer the light will appear to spatially expand outward in the overall shape of the physical lighting assembly and reach higher pitches as it progresses.

[0573] In another embodiment, Figure 7 As shown in , the average audio intensity is calculated as above, and the color is obtained by interpolating along the color spectrum 1025 (e.g., blue-red as defined above). The light intensity is obtained by linearly mapping the average audio intensity to the light intensity. At the current time t, only the root device defined in the geometric metadata is assigned this color and light intensity. The root device can be determined by any of the methods described above, for example, the minimum distance to the geometric center of the physical lighting assembly. The geometric metadata 204 also includes an out-of-center dictionary that assigns an order to each device based on the geodesic distance between a given lighting device and the root device. The color and intensity associated with the lighting device with an order index greater than the root device are assigned 1026 as follows:

[0574] At time t, set the color of the lighting fixture with order index k to the color at time tt s The color of the lighting device at sequential index k-1, where the previous color is retrieved from memory as an array of integers or floating point numbers.

[0575] At time t, the intensity of the lighting device with order index k is set to the intensity at time tt s The intensity of the lighting device at order index k-1 at position 1 is multiplied by a factor such as, but not limited to, 1.0, 0.9, 0.8 or 0.75.

[0576] In the above definition, s is the time between updates of lighting activations, ts =1 / G. The color arrays for each of the multiple lighting devices of different order indices are merged 1027 into a single array. In the array, at least one element may be matched to a unique lighting device identifier, and for each such element, a color array as defined above may be associated. With the corresponding intensities, the light activations are calculated 1029, and an integer or floating point array is sent to the physical lighting assembly 103. The memory is updated 1028 with the array defining the new color set so that this array can be retrieved at the next point in time. In this embodiment, the audio at a given point in time instantaneously determines the color and intensity of only a single lighting device.

[0577] However, with a set time lag, the audio determines the color of the devices that spatially unfold from the root device. The geometric metadata encodes how the visualization will transition between consecutive time points. In this embodiment of the rendering module, extended periods of high audio intensity will color the entire physical lighting assembly with the color associated with the high intensity in a manner where the light appears to a human observer to be transitioning or radiating from a source at the center of the physical lighting assembly.

[0578] On the other hand, audio consisting of rapid periods of high intensity with relatively low intensity sections in between, such as in a musical tune with a well-defined drum beat, will produce a progression of light in the physical lighting assembly as a ring of color that appears to a human observer to move radially outward from the source device. Thus, transient audio changes over longer periods of time are reflected in the light pattern and the transition of the light pattern. The lag time t s It can be equal to the time between audio activation updates. The lag time can also be an integer multiple of the time between audio activation updates in cases where the frequency of audio activation updates is considered to produce too fast an updating visualization. The lag time can be set manually by the user, or can be calibrated and set during manufacturing.

[0579] The lag time can also be set by an auxiliary metric that the sound conversion module passes to the rendering module. For example, BPM quantifies the general speed of the audio, so the lag time can be set to decrease as the BPM increases, and vice versa.

[0580] This rendering method exploits situational awareness, first as to what is a meaningful source node from which an expanding ring of color and light will appear to emanate.

[0581] Second, situational awareness resides in how color and intensity shift over time across physical lighting assemblies, specifically such that lighting fixtures inherit color and intensity from spatially nearby fixtures.

[0582] Pseudocode presentation example

[0583] To further illustrate the above and Fig. 27 The embodiments shown in , as well as summarizing the other embodiments described above, pseudocode is provided in Code Examples 1 to 3, and are described in detail below.

[0584] The pseudo code in Example 1 represents a high-level software routine that first determines how to put the lighting device assembly together by calling a lower-level routine that senses the physical connections between the different lighting device parts of the assembly. The connection array is converted to geometric metadata, which can include several types of data structures. As described above, the visualization is run by executing logic at set time intervals for each iteration. The pseudo code does not specify exactly how to implement the timing of each iteration, but it can be a hysteresis function that pauses execution so that the total time of each iteration is equal to the desired duration.

[0585] A segment of audio in basic PCM format is retrieved from a lower level routine that calls the sensor. If the audio was obtained as a digital file, then this line is replaced with a function that retrieves and converts the digital audio segment. The audio segment is subjected to a wave transform. In the example embodiment, this involves a call to an optimized FFT routine, but as described above, other wave transforms are possible. The audio activations are normalized in one of the ways described previously in order to better map the physical wave properties obtained from the wave transform to psychoacoustic features that are relevant to a human observer.

[0586] Based on the set of audio activations and available geometry metadata, one of many possible rendering routines is run to obtain light activations. They specify color coordinates and intensities for each device in the assembly. This data is stored in a data structure as an integer or floating point number. The data structure is then passed to a lower level routine that executes logic that ultimately adjusts the drive current of multiple LEDs in the various lighting devices.

[0587] The command is repeated until some interrupt command is triggered, which can be generated by pressing a button in the control software interface or physically removing the sensor from the controller.

[0588] Example 2 shows pseudo code for a specific version of a function for computing geometric metadata that is part of the pseudo code in Example 1. This specific version creates an out-of-center dictionary.

[0589] The first step is to derive an average Cartesian coordinate from the connection array based on all devices represented in the connection array. This average represents the geometric center of the physical assembly. The Euclidean distance is calculated for all devices relative to this center. The second step is to find the device in the assembly that is closest to the geometric center, in other words, the device with the smallest Euclidean distance. As mentioned above, this is called the root device. The graph distance is then calculated between all devices and the device designated as the root device. This step can use any of the methods described in the previous section. The dictionary can be represented as a data array with the index of the device as an integer key and the associated graph distance as an integer value associated with the key. The root device distance value is equal to zero by definition.

[0590] In Example 3, pseudo code for one possible way to render audio activations onto a physical assembly is given. As input, the function receives a center-out dictionary, as described above. This is an array of integers or floating point numbers, where each value in the array is a function of how much the summarized audio consists of the audio for the associated subband or other output function of a subband or wave transform, as described previously.

[0591] The first step is to compute the total audio intensity, where the subband values ​​are averaged. Since the audio activations are normalized from the execution of the previous function, it can be assumed that they are in the range of 0 to 1 in most cases. The light intensity is computed as an integer or floating point number obtained by a linear mapping of the audio intensity. The mapping can be as simple as an identity transformation.

[0592] In this case, the color is composed of a piecewise linear function that maps the total audio activation number into a triplet of floating point numbers, each of which is in the range of 0 to 1. The exact shape of the function can vary between embodiments, but in the specific example of Example 3, the function works as follows: at very low audio intensities, the floating point number corresponding to blue is close to 1, while the other two numbers are zero or close to zero. As the audio intensity increases, the blue component in the triplet begins to decrease, while the green component increases, gradually changing the color to cyan. At intermediate audio intensities, the blue component has reached zero, while green is 1. As the audio intensity increases further, the green component decreases and the red increases, while the blue remains at zero. In other words, the color gradually changes to yellow and amber. Finally, at very high audio intensities, the color changes to red. This is one example, and many other examples can be envisioned as mentioned above.

[0593] Based on the calculated light intensity and color triplet, an RGB data array is calculated by multiplying the intensity by the color triplet and the floating point number by 255. Using the latter factor, it is assumed that this value is what the lighting device in the assembly interprets as the maximum drive current. Other values ​​may be used.

[0594] Each device in the assembly is assigned an RGB data array based on its degree of separation from the geometric center and the RGB data array in the previous iteration. Specifically, devices separated by one level from the root device are assigned an RGB data array calculated as described above, but for the audio activation at the previous time point (in other words, in the previous iteration of the while-loop in Example 1). For two levels of separation, the RGB data array is the value calculated as above, but two steps before the current time point; and so on. Only the root device is assigned an RGB data array calculated based on the audio intensity at the current time point.

[0595] The last step is to update the array of the previous RGB data array by prepending the current RGB data array. In the next iteration, the RGB data array is thus moved up one step in the array.

[0596] Example 1: Pseudocode for a top-level routine for processing audio acquired from a sensor in real-time and mapping it to a geometrically characterized physical assembly of a lighting fixture.

[0597] #Analyze and display the layout

[0598] connection_array = discover_device_connect()

[0599] geometry_metadata = compute_geometry_data(connect_array)

[0600] # Run the visualization until interrupted

[0601] When true:

[0602] # Retrieve the audio clip of the most recent time window

[0603] pcm_segment = sensor_retrieve(time_slot)

[0604] #Build normalized audio activations

[0605] audio_action = wave_transform(pcm_segment)

[0606] audio_motion_normalize = normalize(audio_motion)

[0607] #Map audio activations to light activations

[0608] light_motion = render(audio_motion_normalization, geometry_metadata)

[0609] Set_light(light_action)

[0610] if interrupt_receive() is true:

[0611] abort

[0612] Example 2: Pseudo code for specific geometric metadata that defines the distance of each fixture relative to its closest lighting fixture to the geometric center within a graph of multiple connected lighting fixtures. The returned data structure is called the out-of-center dictionary.

[0613] Function compute_geometry_data(connection_array):

[0614] # Derive distances from the centers of all devices

[0615] coordinates = calculate_coordinates(connect_array)

[0616] average_coordinates = calculate_average(coordinates)

[0617] For a device in multiple devices:

[0618] distance_to_center[device] = euclid(coordinate[device], mean_coordinate)

[0619] #Set the root device and the distance to all other devices and images

[0620] distance_min = minimum(distance_to_center)

[0621] root_device = objective_function_min(distance_to_center)

[0622] For a device in multiple devices:

[0623] map_distance[device] = calculate_map_distance(device,

[0624] root_device,

[0625] connection_array)

[0626] Return to Graph_Distance

[0627] Example 3: Pseudocode for a presentation method where the color and light intensity are set by the total audio intensity, and the mapping of color and light intensity to the device depends on their proximity to the geometric center, such that the closer they are, the more recent the point in the audio stream their values ​​correspond to. For example, a drum beat will produce a pulsating pattern that appears to conduct radially outward from the center of the assembly.

[0628] function render(audio_motion, geometry_data):

[0629] #Audio intensity as the average activation of all subbands

[0630] audio_intensity = calculate_average(audio_motion)

[0631] #Light intensity increases linearly with audio intensity

[0632] light_intensity = linear_interpolation(audio_intensity)

[0633] #Set RGB coordinates as a function of audio intensity

[0634] red = min(1.0, max(0.0, -1.0 + 2.0 * audio_intensity))

[0635] green = min(max(0.0, 2.0 - 2.0 * audio_intensity),

[0636] max(0.0, 2.0*audio_intensity))

[0637] blue = min(1.0, max(0.0, 1.0-2.0*audio_intensity))

[0638] rgb_coordinates = [red, green, blue]

[0639] #Set the RGB value for the current audio frame

[0640] RGB_Current = 255 * light_intensity * RGB_coordinate

[0641] #Transmit RGB values ​​from the center outwards

[0642] For a device in multiple devices:

[0643] If geometry_data[device] == 0 then

[0644] light_action[device]=rgb_current

[0645] Otherwise

[0646] light_action[device] = get_previous_rgb(geometry_data[device])

[0647] # Prepend array of previous RGB values ​​with current RGB values

[0648] update_previous_rgb(rgb_current)

[0649] Return Light_Action

[0650] Light-activated control example

[0651] In another embodiment, the audio activation is converted into parameters to random variables, which determine the evolution of the light pattern. In these embodiments, the light visualization and its evolution will reflect the audio in a more abstract sense than the proportional relationship between the audio activation and the light activation.

[0652] In one such embodiment, there are two colors (called background color and object color) that are picked as two different points from the color spectrum and stored in memory as two arrays of integers or floating point numbers that define a point in RGB space (or any other representation of color space). All lighting devices except one are assigned the RGB element corresponding to the background color. The remaining one lighting device is assigned the RGB element corresponding to the object color. The intensity is set to a constant for all lighting devices. Each time the light activation is updated, i.e., once every 1 / G seconds, the following logical and arithmetic operations are performed on a processor or similar electronic circuit.

[0653] The average audio intensity E(t) is calculated, which is executed on the processor as described above for another embodiment.

[0654] A positive random number v is extracted from a distribution such as a uniform, Gaussian or Poisson distribution. This is achieved following any algorithm known in the art to obtain pseudo-random or random numbers by a finite set of logical and arithmetic calculations on a processor.

[0655] If E(t) < v, the light activation is set to the same as the previous time point tt s The same as the light activation.

[0656] If on the other hand E(t) ≥ v, then a neighbor illuminator is randomly selected relative to the illuminator assigned the object color, where the neighbor information is available in the graph connectivity data computed by the geometry module and available in memory as an array of integers or an array of floating point numbers. The randomly selected illuminator is assigned the RGB element corresponding to the object color and at the previous time point tt s The lighting devices to which these RGB elements are assigned are set to correspond to the RGB elements of the background color.

[0657] This embodiment of the rendering module can produce a visualization of an apparent light object that moves through the physical lighting assembly in random directions at random speeds, where the speed at which the apparent light object moves is generally slow in portions of low audio intensity and generally fast in portions of high audio intensity.

[0658] The background color and the object color, or just one of the two, may also evolve randomly. The interpolation variables in a given spectrum may evolve so that steps toward higher values ​​are more likely if the audio is predominantly high pitched, and vice versa if the audio is predominantly low pitched. A related embodiment calculates the average audio intensity for each subband, and applies the same logic as above to multiple independent distinct light objects. In other words, it is the first integer or floating point number in the average audio intensity array for each subband that sets the transition probability of the first distinct light object, and the second integer or floating point number in the average audio intensity array for each subband, and the second integer or floating point number in the average audio intensity array for each subband that sets the transition probability of the second distinct light object, and so on for all elements in the average audio intensity array for each subband. In this embodiment, audio that is predominantly one tone will produce apparent motion of one light object at a high speed, while other distinct light objects transition between lighting devices at a low speed.

[0659] The above embodiments are specific forms of random walks, which are well-studied mathematical objects. Other specific variants of random walks can be used to control spatial or optical transitions of apparent light objects and backgrounds. Situational awareness is needed to make the evolution of light activations appear as a changing visualization to a human observer, where the same object moves against a background of colors, rather than randomly switching the colors of multiple individual lighting devices.

[0660] In some embodiments, the rendering module uses auxiliary indicators such as audio emotions or types obtained as described in the previous section. Audio emotions are mapped to colors, either from a lookup table whose list represents the association between emotions and colors, or from an interpolation of a specific spectrum, where the interpolated variables are ordered intensities of emotions or emotions. For a given musical tune, or at least a significant part of it, the expected mood is constant, and therefore the color is also constant as the tune, or at least a significant part of it, is played. The intensity variation over time can be set in a variety of ways, which are either the same as the embodiments described so far, or where the interpolated variables for a given color spectrum are instead adjusted intensities. In a specific embodiment, the average audio intensity E(t) is calculated. The intensity of light is obtained by linearly mapping E(t) to light intensity.

[0661] At the current time t, only the root device defined in the geometry metadata is assigned this intensity. The root device can be determined by any of the methods described above, for example, the minimum distance to the geometric center of the physical lighting assembly. In addition, the geometry metadata contains an out-of-center dictionary that assigns an order to each device based on the number of edges in the connectivity graph that separate a given lighting device from the root device on the shortest path between them.

[0662] The intensities of lighting devices with one (or more) order index from the root device are assigned as follows: at time t, the lighting device with order index k is set to the same intensity as the lighting device with order index k-1 at time tt s The intensity of is multiplied by a factor such as, but not limited to, 1.0, 0.9, 0.8, or 0.75. In the above definition, t s is the time between updates of lighting activations, t s =1 / G. In this embodiment, the audio at a given point in time determines the intensity of a single device. However, with a set time lag, the audio determines how the color intensity set by the mapping of the musical mood spreads out from the root device.

[0663] In another embodiment, the left and right parts of the stereo audio are processed in parallel by the sound conversion module by any of the methods described above, and two groups of audio activations are sent to the rendering module.The geometry metadata may be configured such that the lighting devices are divided into two groups.

[0664] These can be achieved by the user mounting the lighting device in a shape similar to a dumbbell, with two main clusters of the lighting device located above the left and right audio speakers, respectively. The audio activations derived from the left audio track are used in the rendering module to create light activations for the first geometric group; the audio activations derived from the right audio track are used in the rendering module to create light activations for the second geometric group. For a given group, the RGB elements and intensities can be set according to the above methods, for example by calculating the average audio intensity for a given audio track and mapping it to a color by interpolating along the color spectrum, and the intensity is set constant or set proportional to the average audio intensity.

[0665] The rendering method reflects the spatial quality of stereo audio in the spatial arrangement of the physical lighting assemblies.

[0666] Further non-limiting illustrative embodiments

[0667] The methods described herein for creating situationally aware audio visualizations may be implemented in many different ways with respect to computing, transmission, and display hardware.

[0668] In this section, illustrative embodiments are described with respect to hardware that can be used to construct a physical embodiment of the above-described example methods. Other exemplary hardware embodiments are contemplated.

[0669] Described above and in Fig.21 , Fig. 22 and Fig.23The data flows and processing shown in the example 2100 shown in the figure are an illustration of a system and corresponding processes 2200, 2300, which can be implemented following the design principle of separation of concerns (SoC), so that the sound pre-processing module 104 and the sound conversion module 101 do not require information about the physical lighting assembly 303, but only require information about the audio data, such as whether it is in the form of a mechanical wave 211 or a digital audio format 213.

[0670] Following the same principle, the geometry module 103 may be implemented to operate without any information about the audio, utilizing only information about the physical lighting assemblies 303. The rendering module 102 is a component that combines information about the audio and lighting components via the audio activations 202 and the geometry metadata 204 in order to derive lighting control commands. However, the audio activations and geometry metadata may be implemented to be considerably compressed relative to the original audio and geometry data, such that only necessary information in the form of integer or floating point arrays of relatively small size is transmitted between the modules.

[0671] Finally, the color to current module 111 is the only module that requires information about the electronic hardware of the individual lighting devices in the physical lighting assembly 303. Many illustrative hardware embodiments allow for this separation.

[0672] exist Fig.28A In the embodiment, a computing device 501 (e.g., a laptop, desktop computer, or smart phone) with a graphical user interface is connected to the Internet via a wired or wireless connection (e.g., Wi-Fi, LTE, or Ethernet). Through this connection 601, a digital audio file is retrieved.

[0673] The computing device includes at least a processor and a digital memory. The computing device executes the logic instruction portion of the pre-processing module, the sound conversion module, and the rendering module on its processor. The specific lighting device 502 is also connected to the computing device. This connection can be a wireless connection, in which the protocol can be Wi-Fi, low-power Bluetooth, or the like. TM or Zigbee TM , there may also be a wired connection, such as a PLC or serial port connection. Through this connection 602, the computing device sends a stream of integer or floating point arrays representing light activations; these arrays include at least one element, a key, which can be matched to a unique lighting device identifier, and an array encoding color and light intensity associated with the element.

[0674] Part of the lighting device is one or more microprocessors. They execute the logic of the color to current module to adjust the electrical configuration of each lighting device according to the elements in the light activation array after a match is made between the unique lighting device identifier and the matching element (or key) in the array sent from the computing device. The geometric configuration of the lighting device is also sent 603 to the computing device so that the geometry module is executed on the computing device. From a hardware perspective, this is a simple embodiment because it executes most of the modules on a single device.

[0675] exist Fig.28B In the embodiment, a computing device 501 (e.g., a laptop computer, a desktop computer, or a smart phone) having a graphical user interface is used to communicate with Fig.28A The embodiment described is connected to the Internet in the same manner. However, the computing device is only used to execute the pre-processing module and the sound conversion module. The audio activations thus obtained are sent 604 to a separate computing hub 503 as integer or floating point arrays.

[0676] The hub contains a processor and digital memory and can receive data from the computing device 501 via a wireless connection or a wired connection, where a wireless connection such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or the like can be used. TM 、Zigbee TM , Ethernet, serial port or PLC. The hub can be a smart home center, which is designed to be fixed in the home and therefore always close to the lighting equipment.

[0677] The hub is connected to the lighting device via a wireless or wired connection, where the protocol described above can be used. The hub executes the logic instructions of the geometry module and the rendering module and generates a stream of integer or floating point arrays representing light activations; these arrays include at least one element, a key, which can be matche...

Claims

1. A lighting system, comprising: an assembly formed of a plurality of configurable lighting units removably coupled together using one or more connectors to form one or more continuous shapes that are reconfigurable by rearranging the plurality of configurable lighting units; each configurable lighting unit of the plurality of configurable lighting units having one or more connectable sub-portions, the connectable sub-portions comprising at least an aperture for receiving a corresponding connector of the one or more connectors; Each of the one or more connectors is insertable into a first hole of a first configurable lighting unit and a second hole of a second configurable lighting unit, the connectors comprising: one or more mechanical connections that cooperate with structural features of the first aperture or the second aperture to couple the first configurable lighting unit to the second configurable lighting unit; and one or more electrical connections that enable electrical flow between the first configurable lighting unit and the second configurable lighting unit; and a power source connectable to one configurable lighting unit of the assembly, the plurality of configurable lighting units being electrically coupled together by one or more connectors such that the power source need only be connected to one configurable lighting unit in order to power the plurality of configurable lighting units, The one or more mechanical connections are actuated by attractive magnetic forces, the one or more mechanical connections combining with the attractive magnetic forces to provide a stable physical coupling between the at least two configurable lighting units, At least one of the one or more connectors includes circuitry for enabling data transmission between at least two configurable lighting units, the data transmission including a signal encoding audio acquired by a sensor for controlling lighting characteristics of a lighting unit of the lighting system.

2. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The one or more mechanical connections are formed by frictional engagement of the connector with the first or second aperture, and the structural features resist shear movement of the connector and allow movement along an insertion axis perpendicular to the shear movement.

3. The system according to claim 2, characterized in that The first hole and the second hole each include one or more protrusions adapted to apply a force between the connector and the first hole and the second hole to increase the frictional engagement to resist removal of the connector from the first hole or the second hole along the insertion axis.

4. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The one or more mechanical connections are configured to resist shear forces in the plane of the connectable sub-portions up to a threshold of irreversible damage of the mechanical connection or the respective connectable sub-portions.

5. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The one or more mechanical connections are each configured to allow a user to reversibly separate at least two connected configurable lighting units in response to a separation force perpendicular to the plane of the connectible sub-portions, wherein the separation force is greater than a resistance formed by the engagement of the one or more mechanical connections with the structural features of the first hole or the second hole.

6. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The data transmission includes signals instructing one or more lighting units in the assembly to change one or more drive currents that are passed to one or more light emitting diodes in the one or more configurable lighting units.

7. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The data transmission includes a signal encoding the detection of motion by perturbations to the expected radiation pattern.

8. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that The attractive magnetic force pulls the rigid body from the first configurable lighting unit into the aperture of the second configurable lighting unit, and the rigid body is retained within the first lighting unit by the spring when a magnetic force of zero or below a designed threshold acts on the rigid body.

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