Lighting configuration using panels with RFID tag

Abstract

A lighting system includes a wall device having a wall panel removably attached to a control unit of the wall device, with a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag attached to the wall panel. The lighting system also includes a luminaire including an RFID unit configured to read a wall device identifier of the wall device from the RFID tag when the RFID tag is within a threshold distance from the luminaire. A control unit of the wall device is configured to transmit a lighting control message including a wall device identifier, and the luminaire is configured to operate based on the lighting control message in response to determining that the lighting control message includes the wall device identifier.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to lighting solutions, and in particular to lighting configuration including on-board initialization of a lighting system using a wall plate with an attached radio frequency identification (RFID) tag. Background Art

[0002] A typical lighting system may have multiple luminaires and a fixed, line-powered wall station (e.g., a dimmer) that wirelessly controls the luminaires. Initializing or otherwise configuring a typical lighting system typically requires initialization software resident on a mobile device or computer. During initialization of the lighting system, linking the wall station to a specific set of luminaires to be controlled by the wall station may be time consuming and complex. For example, locating an identifier (e.g., a serial number) of a luminaire used to configure the wall station may be time consuming. Therefore, a solution that simplifies configuration of a lighting system may be desirable. Summary of the invention

[0003] In general, the present disclosure relates to lighting solutions, and in particular to lighting configurations that include onboard initialization of a lighting system using a wall plate with an attached radio frequency identification (RFID) tag. In an example embodiment, a lighting system includes a wall fixture having a wall plate that is removably attached to a control unit of the wall fixture, wherein a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag is attached to the wall plate. The lighting system also includes a light fixture that includes an RFID unit that is configured to read a wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag when the RFID tag is within a threshold distance from the light fixture. The control unit of the wall fixture is configured to transmit a lighting control message that includes the wall fixture identifier, and the light fixture is configured to operate based on the lighting control message in response to determining that the lighting control message includes the wall fixture identifier.

[0004] In another example embodiment, a method of configuring a lighting system includes removing a wall plate of a wall fixture from a control unit of the wall fixture, wherein an RFID tag is attached to the wall plate. The method also includes placing the wall plate together with the RFID tag within a threshold distance from a light fixture, the light fixture including an RFID unit configured to read a wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag. The method also includes reattaching the wall plate to the wall control unit, wherein the control unit is configured to transmit a lighting control message including the wall fixture identifier, and wherein the light fixture is configured to operate based on the lighting control message in response to determining that the lighting control message includes the wall fixture identifier.

[0005] These and other aspects, objects, features and embodiments will be apparent from the following description and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0006] Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily to scale, and in which:

[0007] Figure 1 Figure illustrates a wall fixture for controlling a light fixture according to an example embodiment;

[0008] Figure 2 and Figure 3 Figure shows a wall plate with a control unit detached from a wall unit according to an example embodiment. Figure 1 Wall mount device;

[0009] Figure 4 and Figure 5 FIG. 2 shows a wall plate with a control unit detached from a wall unit according to another example embodiment. Figure 1 Wall mount device;

[0010] Figure 6 FIG. 2 shows an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 A block diagram of a control unit of a wall device;

[0011] Figure 7 FIG. 2 shows an example embodiment of a Figure 1 A block diagram of a light fixture controlled by a wall device;

[0012] Figure 8 FIG. 2 shows an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 wall-mounted lighting system;

[0013] Fig. 9 FIG. 1 shows a wall plate having a wall fixture placed within a threshold distance from a light fixture according to an example embodiment. Figure 8 lighting systems; and

[0014] Fig.10 FIG. 2 shows a configuration according to an example embodiment Figure 8 Method of lighting system.

[0015] The accompanying drawings illustrate only example embodiments and therefore should not be considered to limit the scope. The elements and features shown in the drawings are not necessarily to scale, instead emphasis is placed on clearly illustrating the principles of the example embodiments. Additionally, certain dimensions or positions may be exaggerated to help visually convey such principles. In the various figures, reference numerals represent similar or corresponding, but not necessarily identical, elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] In the following paragraphs, specific embodiments will be described in more detail by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description, well-known components, methods and / or processing techniques are omitted or briefly described. In addition, mentioning various (multiple) features of an embodiment does not mean that all embodiments must include the mentioned (multiple) features.

[0017] Figure 1 FIG. 1 shows a wall device 100 for controlling a light fixture according to an example embodiment, and Figure 2 and Figure 3 Figure shows a wall plate with a control unit detached from a wall unit according to an example embodiment. Figure 1 In some example embodiments, the wall fixture 100 includes a control unit 102 and a wall plate 104 that is removably attached to the control unit 102. The wall plate 104 can be made of plastic, for example. The control unit 102 can include a user input interface 106 that a user can use to provide input to the control unit 102. For illustration, the user input interface 106 can include a button that a user can press to provide input to the control unit 102. For example, the user can use the user input interface 106 to turn a light fixture on and off, dim the light provided by the light fixture, change a scene setting, and / or change the color temperature of the light provided by the light fixture.

[0018] In some example embodiments, the user may provide one or more inputs to the wall device 100 using the user input interface 106 to initiate a network initialization mode for the lighting system including the wall device 100 and the luminaires. For example, in response to the user pressing one or more specific buttons of the user input interface 106, the wall device 100 may enter the network initialization mode and also send a command to the luminaires near the wall device 100 to enter the network initialization mode.

[0019] In some example embodiments, the control unit 102 may include a back plate 118 to which the wall plate 104 may be removably attached. The control unit 102 may be attached to an electrical box (not shown) using fasteners 116 and 118 that extend through holes in the brackets 306 and 308, respectively. The back plate 110 may be attached to the bracket 306 by fasteners 112 and may be attached to the bracket 308 by fasteners 114.

[0020] In some example embodiments, the wall plate 104 may have an opening 108 aligned with the user input interface 106 of the control unit 102 such that the user interface 106 is accessible through the opening 108. The wall plate 104 may include snaps (such as snaps 310, 312) aligned with receiving holes (such as holes 120, 122) of the back plate 110. The snaps 310, 312 may extend from a rear surface 304 of the wall plate 104 facing the control unit 102. For example, the snaps 310 and 312 may be aligned with the holes 120 and 122, respectively, such that the snap 310 is inserted into the hole 120 and the snap 312 is inserted into the hole 122 to securely attach the wall plate 104 to the back plate 110, and thereby to the control unit 102. When the wall plate 104 is attached to the back plate 110, the peripheral flange 314 of the wall plate 104 may be positioned around the perimeter of the back plate 110. The wall plate 104 may be removed from the control unit 102 , for example, by prying the wall plate 104 away using fingers or a small tool (eg, a flat-head screwdriver) at the notch 124 of the wall plate 104 .

[0021] In some example embodiments, the RFID tag 302 is attached to a rear surface 304 of the wall plate 104 facing the control unit 102. "RFID" as used throughout this application, including the claims, is intended to include standard radio frequency identification technology, near field communication technology, and other similar technologies. It can be readily appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure that the RFID tag 302 can be attached to the wall plate 104 using adhesive and / or mechanical means. The RFID tag 302 can include an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), such as a dual-port EDPROM, which contains a wall device identifier of the wall device 100. For example, it can be readily appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure that the wall device identifier can be a serial number of the wall device 100, a MAC address of the wall device 100, or another identifier. It can be readily appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure that the wall device 100 can control a light fixture paired with the wall device 100 based on the wall device identifier. For example, a lighting control message transmitted by the wall station 100 may include a wall station identifier, and a light fixture paired with the wall station 100 may operate based on the lighting control message in response to identifying the wall station identifier.

[0022] In some example embodiments, during the manufacture of the wall fixture 100, the wall fixture identifier can be stored in the RFID tag 302 at the factory. Alternatively or additionally, the wall fixture identifier can be stored in the RFID tag 302 after manufacture. For example, one of ordinary skill in the art can readily appreciate that the wall fixture identifier can be written to the RFID tag 302 by an RFID device (e.g., a handheld RFID writer device). As another example, in some alternative embodiments, the control unit 102 can include an RFID unit (e.g., a handheld RFID writer device) that can wirelessly write to the RFID tag 302. Figure 6 ), and the control unit 102 can write the wall device identifier to the RFID tag 302, for example, at the time of initial power connection, when the wall device 100 is powered on, or in response to user input.

[0023] In some example embodiments, if a user (e.g., a technician or homeowner) wants a particular light fixture to be controlled by the wall fixture 100 during network initialization or during subsequent configuration of the lighting system, the user can pair the particular light fixture with the wall fixture 100. To illustrate, the user can provide input to the wall fixture 100 via the user input interface 106 to initiate network initialization mode operation, and the wall fixture 100 can wirelessly broadcast a network initialization mode command in response to the user input. The user can then detach the wall plate 104 (i.e., the wall plate 104 together with the RFID tag 302) from the control unit 102 and move the wall plate 104 within a threshold distance of the light fixture. The light fixture that enters the network initialization mode in response to the network initialization mode command can include an RFID unit (e.g., Figure 7 ), when the RFID tag 302 is within the threshold distance, the RFID unit can read the wall device identifier from the RFID tag 302. For example, the user can keep the wall plate 104 within the threshold distance for at least a minimum period of time (e.g., 1 second, 3 seconds, 5 seconds, or 30 seconds).

[0024] In some example embodiments, a person of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the present disclosure may readily appreciate that, for example, the threshold distance from the light fixture may range from a few centimeters to a few feet (e.g., 10 feet), for example, depending on the RFID unit of the light fixture. Typically, the threshold distance is less than the installation distance between the wall fixture 100 and the light fixture, where the installation distance is the spacing between the wall fixture 100 and the light fixture after installation. The light fixture may provide an indicator signal (e.g., a flash) to indicate that the RFID unit of the fixture has read the wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag 302. For example, after providing the indicator signal, after a timeout period (e.g., 5 minutes or 10 minutes), or upon receiving a command from the wall fixture 100 to exit the network initialization mode.

[0025] In some example embodiments, after the light fixture provides the indicator signal, or after the wall plate 104 is held within a threshold distance from the light fixture for a minimum time period (e.g., 30 seconds or 1 minute), the user may reattach the wall plate 104 to the control unit 102 and provide user input to the wall unit 100 via the user input interface 106 to terminate the network initialization mode. Alternatively, the wall unit 100 may terminate the network initialization mode after the network initialization time period (e.g., 5 minutes, 10 minutes, or 30 minutes). The wall unit 100 may broadcast a network initialization mode termination command when terminating the network initialization mode. If the light fixture has successfully read the wall unit identifier from the RFID tag 302, the light fixture will respond to the lighting control message from the wall unit 100 in response to identifying the wall unit identifier in the lighting control message. For example, the light fixture may turn its light on, turn its light off, dim its light, etc. in response to the lighting control message wirelessly transmitted from the wall unit 100. In some example embodiments, the user may pair other light fixtures with the wall unit 100 in the same manner before terminating the network initialization mode or by re-entering the network initialization mode.

[0026] In some example embodiments, instead of or in addition to reading the wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag 302, during the onboarding initialization mode, when the wall plate 104 is within a threshold distance from the light fixture, the light fixture may write the light fixture identifier to the RFID tag 302. For example, the RFID unit of the light fixture may write the light fixture identifier to the RFID tag 302. When the wall plate 104 is reattached to the control unit 102, the control unit 102 may read the light fixture identifier from the RFID tag 302. For example, the RFID unit of the control unit 102 may wirelessly read the light fixture identifier from the RFID tag. It may be readily appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the present disclosure that after exiting the onboarding initialization mode, the wall fixture 100 may wirelessly transmit a lighting control message to a particular light fixture using the light fixture identifier (e.g., which includes the wall fixture identifier in the lighting control message).

[0027] In some example embodiments, because the RFID tag 302 may have a memory unit that may store multiple light fixture identifiers, before the wall plate 104 is reattached to the control unit 102, the wall plate 104 may be sequentially moved within a threshold distance from multiple light fixtures, each of which writes a corresponding light fixture identifier to the RFID tag 302. When the wall plate 104 is reattached to the control unit 102, the RFID unit of the control unit 102 may wirelessly read the light fixture identifiers of the multiple light fixtures from the RFID tag, thereby enabling the wall unit 100 to send a lighting control message to a specific light fixture. In response to identifying the light fixture identifier of a specific light fixture in one or more of the lighting control messages, the specific light fixture may operate based on the received lighting control message.

[0028] By using the wall plate 104 with the RFID tag 302 attached, the user can quickly and intuitively pair the light fixture with the wall device 100. By using the wall plate 104 with the RFID tag 302 attached to perform the lighting system configuration including the network initialization, the complicated steps of pairing the light fixture with the wall device can be avoided. By using the wall plate 104 with the RFID tag 302 attached to obtain the light fixture identifier of the specific light fixture, the wall device 100 and the light fixture can be paired in a manner that enables the wall device 100 to wirelessly control the specific light fixture.

[0029] In some alternative embodiments, the wall unit 100 including the wall plate 104 may have a plurality of wall panels 104 and 106, respectively, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Figure 1-Figure 3. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the peripheral shape of the wall plate 104 and the opening 108 may have a shape different from that shown. In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the RFID tag 302 may be attached to the wall plate 104 at a position different from that shown. In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the wall plate 104 may be attached to the control unit 102 in a manner different from that described. For example, instead of or in addition to the snaps 310, 312, one or more fasteners (e.g., screws and / or clips) may be used to attach the wall plate 104 to the control unit 102. In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, one or more components of the wall device 100 may be omitted or replaced by another component. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the RFID unit of the wall device 100 may be omitted. As another example, the fasteners 116, 118 may be omitted, and the wall device 100 may be attached to the electrical box using other means as may be readily understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art. In some alternative embodiments, the user input interface 106 may be a different type of user interface. For example, the user input interface 106 may include a touch screen instead of or in addition to buttons. In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, after the wall plate 104 is detached from the control unit 102, the user may provide input to the wall unit 100 to enter the network initialization mode. In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the user may provide input to the wall unit 100 to terminate the network initialization mode before reattaching the wall plate 104 to the control unit 102.

[0030] Figure 4 and Figure 5 FIG. 2 shows a wall plate with a control unit detached from a wall unit according to another example embodiment. Figure 1 The wall device 100. Figure 1 , Figure 4 and Figure 5 , the wall device 100 includes a control unit 102 and a wall plate 104, wherein when the wall plate 104 is attached to the control unit 102, the user input interface 106 can be accessed through the opening 108 of the wall plate 104, as described above with reference to Figure 1-Figure 3 As described above. Figure 1-Figure 3 As described, a user can use the user input interface 106 to provide input to the wall device 100, for example, to start the network initialization mode, terminate the network initialization mode, and control the light fixture paired with the wall device 100. Figure 4 and Figure 5 In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 , the wall plate 104 together with the RFID tag 302 can be used to Figure 1-Figure 3 The described approach pairs the wall station 100 with the light fixture by placing the wall plate 104 within a threshold distance from the light fixture.

[0031] In some example embodiments, compared to Figure 2 and Figure 3 In the embodiment of the wall device 100 shown in FIG. 1 , the wall device 100 may include a wall device 100 located at a position such as Figure 4 and Figure 5 , wherein the electrical contacts 402 are electrically connected to the RFID tag 302. In fact, in some example embodiments, the electrical contacts 402 may be ports of the RFID tag 302. For example, one of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the present disclosure may readily appreciate that the electrical contacts 402 may be used to serially read from and / or serially write to a memory device (e.g., an EEPROM) of the RFID tag 302 via a wired connection.

[0032] To illustrate, the control unit 102 may include a wire connector 404 having electrical contacts 502 that are aligned to contact the electrical contacts 402 when the wall plate 104 is attached to the back plate 110. For example, the electrical contacts 502 may be electrically connected to an RFID unit (e.g., Figure 6 ), and instead of or in addition to wireless reading and / or writing, the RFID unit of the control unit 102 can read from and / or write to the RFID tag 302 via the electrical contacts 502.

[0033] In some example embodiments, the control unit 102 may write the wall fixture identifier of the wall fixture 100 to the RFID tag 302 via the electrical contacts 502 that come into contact with the electrical contacts 402 when the wall plate 104 is attached to the control unit 102. Figure 1-Figure 3 When the RFID unit (eg, Figure 7 302). After the light fixture reads the wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag 302, the wall plate 104 can be reattached to the control unit 102. After exiting the network initialization mode as described above, the wall fixture 100 can use the lighting control message to control the light fixture. In response to identifying the wall fixture identifier, the light fixture can operate based on the lighting control message.

[0034] In some example embodiments, when the wall plate 104 with the RFID tag 302 is placed within a threshold distance from the light fixture during the onboarding initialization mode of the light fixture, instead of or in addition to wirelessly reading the wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag 302, the RFID unit (e.g., Figure 7 The RFID unit shown in FIG. 300 can wirelessly write the luminaire identifier to the RFID tag 302. Figure 1-Figure 3 In the described embodiment of the wall unit 100, instead of wirelessly reading the fixture identifier of the fixture from the RFID tag 302, after one or more fixtures have written their corresponding fixture identifiers to the RFID tag 302, the control unit 102 can read the fixture identifier from the RFID tag 302 via the electrical contacts 502, as described above with reference to Figure 1-Figure 3 After exiting the network initialization mode, the wall device 100 can send a lighting control message to a specific light fixture based on the light fixture identifier read from the RFID tag 302. In response to identifying the light fixture identifier of the specific light fixture in one or more of the lighting control messages from the wall device 100, the specific light fixture can operate based on the received lighting control message.

[0035] In some alternative embodiments, the wall unit 100 including the wall plate 104 may have a plurality of wall panels 104 and 106, respectively, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Figure 1 , Figure 4 and Figure 5 . In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the RFID tag 302 and the electrical contact 402 may be attached to the wall plate 104 at a different location than shown. In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, one or more components of the wall device 100 may be omitted or replaced by another component. In some alternative embodiments, the user input interface 106 may be a different type of user interface. In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, after removing the wall plate 104 from the control unit 102, the user may provide input to the wall device 100 to enter the network initialization mode. In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the user may provide input to the wall device 100 to terminate the network initialization mode before reattaching the wall plate 104 to the control unit 102.

[0036] Figure 6 FIG. 2 shows an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 A block diagram of a control unit 102 of a wall device 100 is shown. Figure 1-Figure 6In some example embodiments, the control unit 102 may include a processor 602 (e.g., one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers), a memory device 604 (e.g., one or more static random access memory devices, flash memory devices, and other types of memory devices), and a user interface module 606, and a communication interface module 608. The control unit 102 may also include an RFID unit 610. For example, the user interface module 606 may include the user input interface 106 described above. It can be easily understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art who has the benefit of the present disclosure that the user interface module 606 may also include a user display interface. The communication interface module 608 may include one or more transmitters, receivers, and transceivers, which are designed to transmit and receive wireless signals that comply with one or more communication standards or protocols such as Wi-Fi, BLE, ZigBee, UWB, cellular networks, etc. For example, the processor 602 may communicate with one or more lamps and / or network devices via the communication interface module 608.

[0037] In some example embodiments, the memory device 604 may be used to store executable software and data. The processor 602 may execute the software stored in the memory device 604 to control and perform the operations described herein for the wall device 100. For example, the processor 602 may process user input received from a user via the user interface module 606. For illustration, the processor 602 may enter and exit a network initialization mode and transmit lighting control messages to a light fixture in response to user input provided via the user interface module 606. The processor 602 may also display information via the user interface module 606. The processor 602 may control the RFID unit 610 to write to and / or read from the RFID tag 302. For example, the RFID unit 610 may wirelessly and / or via Figure 5 The electrical contacts 502 shown in FIG. 5 are for reading from and / or writing to the RFID tag 302 .

[0038] In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the control unit 102 may include a Figure 6 More or fewer components may be shown in FIG. For example, the RFID unit 610 may be omitted without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In some alternative embodiments, the RFID unit 610 may be omitted without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Figure 6 Some components of the control unit 102 shown in FIG. 1 may be integrated into a single component.

[0039] Figure 7 FIG. 2 shows an example embodiment of a Figure 1 A block diagram of a lamp 700 controlled by a wall device 100 is shown. Figure 1-Figure 7In some example embodiments, the lamp 700 may include a processor 702 (e.g., one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers), a memory device 704 (e.g., one or more static random access memory devices, flash memory devices, and other types of memory devices), and an optical module 706, and a communication interface module 708. The lamp 700 may also include an RFID unit 710. For example, the optical module 706 may include one or more light sources that emit light (e.g., LED light sources). The communication interface module 708 may include one or more transmitters, receivers, and transceivers that are designed to transmit and receive wireless signals that comply with one or more communication standards or protocols such as Wi-Fi, BLE, ZigBee, UWB, cellular networks, etc. For example, the processor 702 can communicate with the wall device 100 via the communication interface module 708.

[0040] In some example embodiments, the memory device 704 may be used to store executable software and data. The processor 702 may execute the software stored in the memory device 704 to control and perform the operations described herein for the light fixture. For example, the processor 702 may enter and exit a network initialization mode, process a lighting control message received from the wall device 100, control the lighting module 706 based on the received lighting control message, and so on. The processor 702 may also control the RFID unit 710 to wirelessly read from and / or wirelessly write to the RFID tag 302 of the wall plate 104 of the wall device 100.

[0041] In some alternative embodiments, the lamp 700 may include a plurality of Figure 7 In some alternative embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, Figure 7 Some components of the luminaire 700 shown in FIG. 7 may be integrated into a single component.

[0042] Figure 8 FIG. 2 shows an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 The lighting system 800 of the wall device 100, and Fig. 9 FIG. 8 shows a wall plate 104 having a wall fixture 100 placed within a threshold distance from a light fixture 804 according to an example embodiment. Figure 8 In some example embodiments, the lighting system 800 includes a wall device 100 and lamps 802, 804, 806 that can be paired with the wall device 100, so that the wall device 100 can control the lamps 802, 804, 806. For example, each of the lamps 802, 804, 806 can correspond to Figure 7The lighting system 800 may also include a network device 808 (eg, a router or gateway) that may be used for wireless communication between the wall device 100 and the lamps 802, 804, 806 for accessing and from the Internet or another network.

[0043] In some example embodiments, the wall plate 104 of the wall device 100 can be used to Figure 1-Figure 5 The wall unit 100 is paired with the light fixture in the manner described. Figure 1-Figure 9 , a user 902 (e.g., a technician or homeowner) may provide user input to the wall fixture 100 via the user input interface 106 of the control unit 102 indicating a network initialization mode, and the control unit 102 may enter the network initialization mode in response to the user input and also broadcast a network initialization mode command. In response to the network initialization mode command from the wall fixture 100, the light fixtures 802, 804, 806 may enter the network initialization mode. After providing the network initialization mode input to the wall fixture 100, the user 902 may remove the wall plate 104 from the control unit 102 and move the wall plate 104 together with the RFID tag 302 within a threshold distance of the light fixture 804. When the RFID tag 302 is within the threshold distance from the light fixture 804, the light fixture 804 may wirelessly read the wall fixture identifier of the wall fixture 100 from the RFID tag 302. For example, the wall station identifier may have been written to the RFID tag 302 during manufacture of the wall station 100, or, for example, written to the RFID tag 302 by the RFID unit 710 of the control unit 102 after manufacture. The light fixture 804 may provide an indicator signal (e.g., blinking a light provided by the light fixture 804) to indicate that the RFID unit 710 of the light fixture 804 has read the wall station identifier from the RFID tag 302 of the wall plate 104. The light fixture 804 may exit the onboarding initialization mode, for example, after providing the indicator signal, after a timeout period (e.g., 5 minutes or 10 minutes), or upon receiving a command from the wall station 100 to exit the onboarding initialization mode.

[0044] In some example embodiments, during an onboarding initialization mode initiated by the wall station 100, the user 902 may place the wall plate 104 within a threshold distance from the light fixture 802 before reattaching the wall plate 104 to the control unit 102. For example, the RFID unit 710 of the light fixture 802 may wirelessly read the wall station identifier of the wall station 100 from the RFID tag 302 in the manner described with respect to the light fixture 804. The user 902 may also place the wall plate 104 within a threshold distance from the light fixture 806 before reattaching the wall plate 104 to the control unit 102 after the wall plate 104 has been placed at the threshold distance from the light fixture 802 for a minimum period of time, or after an indicator signal is emitted by the light fixture 802. For example, the RFID unit 710 of the light fixture 806 may wirelessly read the wall station identifier of the wall station 100 from the RFID tag 302 in the manner described with respect to the light fixture 804.

[0045] In some example embodiments, the user 902 may reattach the wall plate 104 back to the control unit 102. For example, when the user 902 provides input to the wall unit 100 to terminate the network initialization mode, the wall unit 100 may exit the network initialization mode and may also broadcast a command indicating the end of the network initialization mode. After exiting the network initialization mode, the wall unit 100 may transmit a lighting control message including a wall unit identifier to control one or more of the light fixtures 802, 804, 806 that have been successfully paired with the wall unit 100 by reading the wall unit identifier of the wall unit 100 from the RFID tag 302.

[0046] In some example embodiments, during the onboarding initialization mode, instead of or in addition to reading the wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag 302, the RFID unit 710 of the light fixture 804 may write the light fixture identifier of the light fixture 804 to the RFID tag 302 when the wall plate 104 together with the RFID tag 302 is within a threshold distance from the light fixture 804. When the wall plate 104 is reattached to the control unit 102 of the wall fixture 100, the control unit 102 may read the light fixture identifier of the light fixture 804 from the RFID tag 302 attached to the wall plate 104. For example, the RFID unit 610 of the control unit 102 may read the light fixture identifier of the light fixture 804 from the RFID tag 302 wirelessly or via a wired connection over the electrical contacts 402. It may be readily appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the present disclosure that after exiting the onboarding initialization mode, the wall fixture 100 may wirelessly transmit a lighting control message including the light fixture identifier of the light fixture 804 to control the light fixture 804.

[0047] In some example embodiments, during the onboarding initialization mode, after the RFID unit 710 of the light fixture 804 has written the light fixture identifier of the light fixture 804 to the RFID tag 302, the user 902 may move the wall plate 104 within a threshold distance of the light fixture 802. Instead of or in addition to reading the wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag 302, the RFID unit 710 of the light fixture 802 may write the light fixture identifier of the light fixture 802 to the RFID tag 302 when the wall plate 104 along with the RFID tag 302 is within the threshold distance from the light fixture 802. When the wall plate 104 is reattached to the control unit 102 of the wall fixture 100, the control unit 102 may read the light fixture identifiers of the light fixtures 802 and 804 from the RFID tag 302 attached to the wall plate 104. For example, the RFID unit 610 of the control unit 102 may read the light fixture identifiers of the light fixtures 802 and 804 from the RFID tag 302 wirelessly or via a wired connection over the electrical contacts 402. It can be easily understood by those skilled in the art having the benefit of the present disclosure that after exiting the network initialization mode, the wall device 100 can wirelessly transmit a lighting control message including a light fixture identifier of the light fixture 802 to individually control the light fixture 802. It can be easily understood by those skilled in the art having the benefit of the present disclosure that the wall device 100 can also wirelessly transmit a lighting control message including a light fixture identifier of the light fixture 804 to individually control the light fixture 804. The wall plate 104 can also be used with respect to the light fixture 806 and other light fixtures of the lighting system 800 in the manner described with respect to the light fixtures 802 and 804 to obtain the light fixture identifier and individually control the light fixture 806 and other light fixtures.

[0048] In some example embodiments, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the lighting system 800 may include Fig. 9 and Fig.10 104. In some alternative embodiments, the lighting system 800 may include other instances of the wall fixture 100 without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In some example embodiments, the threshold distance required for the light fixtures of the system 800 to read and / or write to the RFID tag 302 attached to the wall plate 104 may vary from one light fixture to another. In some alternative embodiments, the network device 808 may be omitted without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In some alternative embodiments, the lighting system 800 may include other components without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0049] Fig.10 FIG. 2 shows a configuration according to an example embodiment Figure 8 The method 1000 of the lighting system 800. Reference Figure 1-Figure 10In some example embodiments, at step 1002, the method 1000 includes initiating an onboarding initialization mode. For example, the user 902 may provide one or more user inputs to the wall fixture 100 via the user input interface 106, and the RFID unit 710 of the light fixture 804 may be configured to read a wall fixture identifier of the wall fixture 100 from the RFID tag 302 during the onboarding initialization mode. At step 1004, the method 1000 may include removing a wall plate 104 of the wall fixture 100 from the control unit 102 of the wall fixture 100, wherein the RFID tag 302 is attached to the wall plate 104.

[0050] In some example embodiments, at step 1006, the method 1000 includes placing the wall plate 104 within a threshold distance from the light fixture 804, the light fixture 804 including the RFID unit 710, the RFID unit 710 configured to read the wall fixture identifier of the wall fixture 100 from the RFID tag 302. At step 1008, the method 1000 may include placing the wall plate 104 within a threshold distance of the light fixture 802, the light fixture 802 including the RFID unit 710 configured to read the wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag 302. At step 1010, the method 1000 includes reattaching the wall plate 104 to the wall control unit 102 of the wall fixture 100. The control unit 102 is configured to transmit a lighting control message including the wall fixture identifier of the wall fixture 100, and the light fixture 804 is configured to operate based on the lighting control message in response to determining that the lighting control message includes the wall fixture identifier of the wall fixture 100.

[0051] In some alternative embodiments, the method 1000 may include more or fewer steps than shown without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In some alternative embodiments, the steps of the method 1000 may be performed in a different order than shown without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0052] Although specific embodiments have been described in detail herein, these descriptions are by way of example. The features of the embodiments described herein are representative, and in alternative embodiments, certain features, elements and / or steps may be added or omitted. In addition, those skilled in the art may modify various aspects of the embodiments described herein without departing from the scope of the appended claims, the scope of which should be consistent with the broadest interpretation so as to cover modifications and equivalent structures.

Claims

1. A lighting system (800), comprising: A wall station (100) having a wall plate (104) removably attached to a control unit (102) of the wall station, wherein a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag (302) is attached to the wall plate; and a light fixture (700, 804) located remote from the wall fixture, comprising an RFID unit (710) configured to read a wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag (302) when a wall plate (104) having the RFID tag attached thereto is placed within a threshold distance from the light fixture (700, 804) during a network initialization mode, wherein said reading the wall fixture identifier associates the light fixture with the wall fixture, and Wherein after the network initialization mode, the control unit (102) of the wall device is configured to transmit a lighting control message including a wall device identifier via a communication interface module (608), and wherein the lamp is configured to operate based on the lighting control message in response to determining that the lighting control message includes the wall device identifier.

2. The lighting system of claim 1, wherein the RFID unit (710) is configured to read the wall device identifier from the RFID tag (302) during a network initialization mode entered in response to a network initialization command received by the luminaire.

3. The lighting system according to claim 1, wherein the RFID tag (302) is a near field communication tag.

4. The lighting system of claim 1, wherein the threshold distance is less than a mounting distance between the wall unit (100) and the light fixture (804).

5. The lighting system of claim 1, wherein the RFID unit is configured to write a luminaire identifier of the luminaire (804) to the RFID tag (302) when the RFID tag is within a threshold distance from the luminaire (804).

6. The lighting system according to claim 5, wherein the control unit (102) is configured to read the luminaire identifier of the luminaire (804) from the RFID tag (302) when the RFID tag is attached to the control unit (102).

7. The lighting system according to claim 6, wherein the control unit (102) is configured to read the luminaire identifier of the luminaire (804) from the RFID tag via a wired connection (402, 404, 502).

8. The lighting system of claim 1, wherein the control unit (102) is configured to write the wall station identifier to the RFID tag (302).

9. The lighting system according to claim 1, wherein the RFID tag (302) is attached to a surface (304) of the wall plate (104) facing the control unit (102).

10. The lighting system of claim 9, wherein the wall plate is attached to the control unit using one or more clips (310, 312).

11. The lighting system of claim 1 , further comprising a second lamp (802), the second lamp (802) comprising a second RFID unit (710), the second RFID unit (710) being configured to read the wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag (302) when the RFID tag is within a threshold distance from the second lamp, wherein the second lamp is configured to operate based on the lighting control message in response to determining that the lighting control message includes the wall fixture identifier.

12. A method (1000) of configuring a lighting system (800), the method comprising: removing (1004) a wall plate (104) of the wall station (100) from a control unit (102) of the wall station, wherein a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag (302) is attached to the wall plate; placing (1006) the wall plate with the RFID tag within a threshold distance from a light fixture (804) including an RFID unit (710), and when the light fixture is in a network initialization mode, the RFID unit reading a wall fixture identifier from the RFID tag, wherein the reading of the wall fixture identifier associates the light fixture with the wall fixture; and After the RFID unit reads the wall device identified by the RFID tag, the wall plate (104) is attached (1010) to the control unit (102), wherein after the network initialization mode, the control unit is configured to transmit a lighting control message including the wall device identifier via the communication interface module (608), and wherein the lamp (804) is configured to operate based on the lighting control message in response to determining that the lighting control message includes the wall device identifier.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising placing (1008) the wall plate (104) within a threshold distance of a second light fixture (802), the second light fixture (802) comprising a second RFID unit (710) configured to read the wall device identifier from the RFID tag (302).

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the RFID unit (710) is configured to write a luminaire identifier of the luminaire (804) to the RFID tag (302) when the RFID tag is within a threshold distance from the luminaire, and wherein the control unit (102) is configured to read the luminaire identifier of the luminaire (804) from the RFID tag when the wall plate (104) is attached to the control unit.

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