Operating device with a function expanding module

Abstract

The invention relates to an operating device comprising a switching regulator (23) for providing a voltage and a current for operating lighting means and comprising a controller (22) for controlling the switching regulator (23), wherein a module (M1..M3) selected from a plurality of different modules can be inserted into the operating device in order to expand or adapt the functional scope of the operating device. For this purpose, the operating device additionally has a first connection device (1) for connecting the operating device to a voltage source and / or for receiving at least one control signal and / or transmitting operating data from / to a device connected to the first connection device and a second connection device (2), which is connected to the controller (22) and which can be connected (1) to the first connection device by means of the selected module (M1..M3).

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to an operating device for lamps, in particular LEDs, and a module for extending or adapting the range of functions of the operating device.

[0002] EP 2 334 155 A1 discloses a solid-state lighting system. US 2008 / 136334 A1 discloses a system and a method for controlling lighting. US 2017 / 208669 A1 discloses a communication device and a lighting device comprising such a communication device. JP 2002 110376 A discloses a lighting apparatus. WO 2017 / 050706 A1 discloses a mobile device and methods for configuring and / or commissioning a lighting system and a lighting system device. GP 2 524 664 A discloses a function expansion module for a luminaire that can be connected to a voltage source by means of a connector, which module can be plugged between the connectors. The document EP 3 261 411 A1 discloses an operating device according to the preamble of the appended claim 1. The document US 2015 / 0092449 A1 discloses a modular operating module for luminaires with LED lamps.

[0003] Control gears primarily serve to provide the desired power supply for the light source, such as a light-emitting diode (LED or OLED) or multiple LEDs connected in series and / or parallel. Additional functions, such as dimming the light source, changing / adjusting the light color, compensating for input voltage fluctuations, measuring power consumption, or specifying the light intensity and duration in emergency lighting mode (I-SELECT), can be provided in the control gear.

[0004] The control of the operating devices in a lighting system can be achieved, for example, using the "1-10V" control system, in which the dimming value is controlled analogously with a voltage between one and ten volts without addressing; using the DSI control system, in which the switching function is implemented with a control signal transmitted via an individual control line without addressing; or according to the DALI (Digital Addressable Lighting Interface) standard / protocol, in which a random but then permanently assigned address is generated for each operating device or bus device for control in the bus system. For an operating device to be used in the respective control system, it often requires a corresponding interface.

[0005] The type and number of functions to be provided by an operating device, as well as the operating device's interface, depend on the specific application and the control system / protocol used. However, providing various operating devices with different functions or interfaces is complex, and universal operating devices with many functions are expensive. However, customers are often unwilling to pay for existing functions they do not use.

[0006] The invention is based on the object of providing devices and methods that mitigate the described problems. In particular, the object is to provide an operating device, a module, and a system that allow simple and cost-effective adaptation to different applications and control systems.

[0007] This object is achieved according to the features of independent claims 1, 6, 8 and 9. The invention is further developed by the features of the dependent claims.

[0008] According to the present invention, in an operating device having a switching regulator for providing a voltage and a current for operating the lighting means and a control device for controlling the switching regulator, a module selected from a plurality of different modules can be inserted into the operating device.

[0009] For this purpose, the operating device additionally has a first connection device for connecting the operating device to a voltage source and / or for receiving at least one control signal and / or for transmitting operating data from / to a device connected to the first connection device, and a second connection device that is connected to the control device and can be connected to the first connection device by means of the selected module. The control device is designed to process data received from the module inserted into the operating device via the second connection device.

[0010] This allows for cost-effective adaptation of the control gear to different applications and control systems by simply replacing the module. The modules can be installed or replaced by the manufacturer or the user.

[0011] The power supply for the components or circuits contained in the module can be provided via the operating device. For this purpose, the operating device has a circuit for generating or providing a supply voltage, with the second connection device being designed to deliver the supply voltage to a module inserted into the operating device.

[0012] The data exchange between the control device and at least one of the components contained in the module can take place by means of a serial data bus via the second connection device, wherein the data bus can be an I 2< C data bus (Inter-Integrated Circuit) or an SPI data bus (Serial Peripheral Interface).

[0013] The module to be used according to customer specifications can be irreversibly inserted into the control gear by the manufacturer or dealer. Alternatively, the module, which must be ordered separately by the customer, can be reversibly inserted into the control gear using a connector. For this purpose, the first connection device and / or the second connection device can be designed as connector sockets into which the plugs attached to the module and connected to the module's components are inserted.

[0014] If no function beyond simply providing the voltage or current is required, a module can be selected that only contains a bridge connecting parts of the first connection device to the second connection device. In particular, the module can be configured to connect terminals of the first connection device for connecting the operating device to a voltage source and / or terminals for receiving the control signal and / or for transmitting the operating data to the respective terminals of the second connection device.

[0015] In some applications, such as monitoring and controlling the total power consumption of a lighting system consisting of a plurality of luminaires and thus operating devices, information on the respective current power consumption is determined by the operating devices and sent to a central control device. According to the present invention, a module can have a determination device for determining performance data of the operating device during operation of the luminaires and / or in standby mode, wherein the module is designed to transmit the determined performance data to the control device via the second connection device.

[0016] The determination device can be designed to determine the power consumed and / or emitted by the operating device, the energy consumed and / or emitted by the operating device, the current consumed by the operating device and / or the power factor as performance data and to send the determined data to the control device or to output them via the first connection device.

[0017] Additionally or alternatively, the module may comprise a transmitting and receiving device for wireless data transmission, in particular according to the Bluetooth or NFC standard, to a base station of a wireless local area network, wherein the module is designed to transmit data received from the transmitting and receiving device to the control device via the second connection device or to send the data determined by the determination device to an external device.

[0018] Additionally or alternatively, the module can have an interface configured to convert control signals received from the first connection device and present in a format or standard foreign to the control device into control signals with a format or standard that can be processed by the control device. The received control signal or the converted control signal can be a DALI control signal, a DSI control signal, an I-SELECT control signal, a 0-10V control signal, or a 1-10V control signal.

[0019] According to the present invention, a system comprises one of the operating devices and modules described above.

[0020] The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. They show: Fig. 1 shows a simplified circuit of the operating device according to an embodiment according to the present invention, and, Fig. 2 shows a simplified circuit of the operating device with a module according to a first embodiment according to the present invention, Fig. 3 shows a simplified circuit of the operating device with a module according to a second embodiment according to the present invention and Fig. 4 shows a simplified circuit of the operating device with a module according to a third embodiment according to the present invention.

[0021] Components with the same functions are marked with the same reference numerals in the figures.

[0022] According to the present invention, the functionality and compatibility of the operating device can be adapted to the respective application by means of special modules. Fig. 1 shows a circuit of such an operating device that can be modified by a module. In the circuit shown, the module can be inserted into the operating device between an internal first connection device 1 and an internal second connection device 2. The first and second connection devices 1, 2 have sockets 3..8 and 9..18, respectively, into which plugs of the module (not shown) can be inserted.

[0023] The operating device is used to operate a light source (not shown) that can be connected to its output terminals 19, 20. This light source can comprise a light-emitting diode (LED, OLED) or several LEDs connected in series or parallel. It can be connected to a power supply, which can be a mains AC voltage of 230 volts, via the terminals L, N connected to the sockets 3, 4. Control signals and data can be received or output via the terminals A1, A2, B1, and B2, which are connected to the sockets 5, 6, 7, and 8, respectively, of the first connection device 1.

[0024] A circuit 21 for rectifying the input AC voltage and for power factor correction is connected to the sockets 9 and 10 of the second connection device 2, and a control device 22 which controls a switching regulator 23 fed by the circuit 21 is connected to the sockets 13..18.

[0025] The switching regulator 23 can be a flyback converter, a boost converter, a buck converter or a resonant converter and generates the voltages and currents required for the operation of the lighting device in a known manner under control by the control device 21.

[0026] The circuit 21 feeding the switching regulator 23 also generates an operating voltage for the control device 22 and the components contained in a module, wherein the operating voltage can be supplied to the module via the sockets 11 and 12.

[0027] Fig. 2 shows a circuit in which a module M1 is inserted into the control gear, which adds the function of an adjustable output current (I-SELECT) and a DALI interface to the control gear.

[0028] Module M1 is connected to the operating device via a connector and has connectors 24..29, which are in contact with sockets 3..8 of the first internal connection device 1, and connectors 30..36, which are in contact with sockets 9..14 and 17 of the second internal connection device 2. To connect circuit 21 to the mains voltage, connector 30 within module M1 is connected to connector 24 via one line, and connector 31 is connected to connector 25 via another line. In the example shown, sockets 15, 16, and 18 of the second connection device 1 are not contacted by the module, as they are not required for the function of the module M1 shown.

[0029] Module M1 has a first control circuit 37 and an interface 38, which are connected in parallel to connectors 32 and 33 for supplying them with the operating voltage. The first control circuit 37 serves to output a control signal via connector 36 to the control device 22, which indicates a value of the current to be delivered by the switching regulator 23 to the lamp. This current value depends on the value of a resistor that can be connected in parallel to terminals B1 and B2 and detected by the first control circuit 37 ("I-Select" function).

[0030] The control gear can be connected to a DALI bus via terminals A1 and A2. Interface 38, connected to terminals A1 and A2 via connectors 26 and 27, receives the control signals and messages transmitted on the DALI bus, converts these control signals and messages into a format readable by control device 22, and transmits them to control device 22 via connectors 34 and 35. The control signals can be dimming commands, status queries, or on / off commands.

[0031] The interface 38 also manages the addressing of the operating device within the DALI bus system and can be designed to send operating information output or queried by the control device 22 via the DALI bus.

[0032] With the M1 module inserted into the control gear, the control gear can be integrated into a DALI lighting control system, whereby the output current or the brightness of the light source (LED) can be adjusted using different resistors.

[0033] The one in the Fig. 3 The M2 module used in the control gear shown has, in addition to the described "I-Select" function, a power measurement function and a wireless data transmission function. Wireless data transmission is carried out by a Bluetooth transmitter 39, which is connected via a two-wire signal cable to the plugs 40 and 41 of the M2 module, which are in contact with the sockets 15 and 16. Data is transmitted serially between the Bluetooth transmitter 39 and the control device 22 via the two-wire cable, with a clock signal being sent on one line and a data signal on the other. This serial data bus can be an I 2< C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) data bus. With wireless data transmission, data for controlling, parameterizing, or addressing the control gear can be sent from an external device, and setting or measurement data can be queried.

[0034] The measured data may include the electrical power and / or energy consumed by the operating device, which is determined in module M2 by a detection device consisting of a measuring circuit 42 and a second control circuit 43 during control and / or standby operation. For this purpose, the measuring circuit 42 measures the voltage (mains AC voltage) present between the plugs 24 and 25 and the current flowing between the plugs 24 and 30 or 25 and 31. The second control circuit 43, coupled to the data bus, calculates the consumed power and / or energy from the measured values ​​and sends them to the control device 22 for processing / analysis or directly via the data bus to the Bluetooth transmitter 39.

[0035] The first control circuit 37, the second control circuit 43, and the Bluetooth transmitter 39 are connected in parallel to the connectors 32 and 33 and are supplied with the operating voltage by the circuit 21. Alternatively, the module M2 can have its own power supply circuit, which is connected to the connectors 24, 25 and supplies at least the detection device with energy in standby mode, in which no operating voltage is provided for the module M2 by the circuit 21.

[0036] Fig. 4 shows an operating device with an inserted module M3, which only enables the basic function of providing a voltage and a current for the operation of the lamp when the mains voltage is supplied or switched on at the terminals L and N. For this purpose, the module M3 has only one line leading from the plug 24 to the plug 30 and one line leading from the plug 25 to the plug 31.

[0037] The operating device is configured such that the functions that can be implemented with all modules M1..M3 are supported by the control device 22, or corresponding control sequences and parameters for the functions are already predefined. The type of module M1..M3 used in the operating device or its functions can be communicated to the control device 22 using DIP switches or other input devices. Alternatively, individual physical or electrical properties of the modules M1..M3 can be detected by the control device 22 to identify the module M1..M3 used. In particular, each possible function can be assigned a specific group of sockets 13..18 connected to the control device 22. The inputs / outputs of the control device 22 assigned to the sockets 13..18 can be inputs / outputs for analog and / or digital signals.

[0038] The M1..M3 modules can have labels indicating the type or functions of the respective M1..M3 module. The L, N, A1, A2, B1, and B2 connections can be designed as screw or spring-loaded terminals, in particular as PCB terminals. At least some of the L, N, A1, A2, B1, and B2 connections, or the cables to be connected to them depending on the M1..M3 module, are indicated by connection labels on the M1..M3 module at the respective connection position.

[0039] The functions provided by the M1..M3 modules are not limited to those described. Wireless data transmission can also be achieved, for example, using an NFC (Near Field Communication) or WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) transceiver. In addition, the M1..M3 modules can additionally or alternatively feature the "DSI" (Digital Serial Interface) digital interface for dimming electronic ballasts, or a "1-10V" or "0-10V" dimming control interface.

[0040] The control device 22, the first and / or second control circuits 37, 43 may be or comprise an integrated semiconductor circuit. It may be configured as a processor, a microprocessor, a controller, a microcontroller, or an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or as a combination of the aforementioned units.

Claims

1. Operating apparatus for operating one or more lamps, in particular LEDs, the operating apparatus having a first connection device (1) for receiving at least one control signal and / or for sending operating data from / to an apparatus which can connect to the first connection device; and the operating apparatus being designed so that a module (M1..M3) selected from a plurality of different modules can be inserted into the operating apparatus; characterized in that the operating apparatus comprises a switching regulator (23) for providing a voltage and a current for operating the one or more lamps; a control device (22) for controlling the switching regulator (23), and a second connection device (2) which is connected to the control device (22) and which can be connected to the first connection device (1) by means of the module (M1..M3) selected from the plurality of different modules which can be inserted into the operating apparatus, the control device (22) being designed to process data received from the selected module (M1..M3) via the second connection device (2) when the selected module (M1..M3) is inserted into the operating apparatus.

2. Operating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first connection device (1) is additionally designed to connect the operating apparatus to a voltage source.

3. Operating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the operating apparatus has a circuit (21) for generating or providing a supply voltage for the module (M1..M3) which can be inserted into the operating apparatus, and the second connection device (2) is designed to deliver the supply voltage to the module (M1..M3).

4. Operating apparatus according to claims 1 to 3, wherein the operating apparatus has a serial data bus connected to the control device (22) and the second connection device (2).

5. Operating apparatus according to claim 1, 2, 3 or 4, wherein the first connection device (1) and / or the second connection device (2) are designed as connector sockets.

6. Module for insertion into an operating apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 5, the module (M1..M3) being designed to connect terminals of the first connection device (1) for connecting the operating apparatus to terminals for receiving the control signal and / or for sending the operating data to respective terminals of the second connection device (2), characterized in that the module (M1..M3) has a determination device (42, 43) for determining power data of the operating apparatus during operation of the lamps and / or in standby mode, and the module (M1..M3) is designed to transmit the determined power data to the control device (22) via the second connection device (2).

7. Module according to claim 6, wherein the determination device (42, 43) is designed to determine, as power data, the power absorbed and / or output by the operating apparatus, the energy absorbed and / or output by the operating apparatus, the current absorbed by the operating apparatus, and / or the power factor.

8. Module for insertion into an operating apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 5, the module (M1..M3) being designed to connect terminals of the first connection device (1) for connecting the operating apparatus to terminals for receiving the control signal and / or for sending the operating data to respective terminals of the second connection device (2), characterized in that the module (M1..M3) has a transmitting and receiving device (39) for wireless data transmission, in particular according to the Bluetooth or NFC standard, to a base station of a wireless local network, and the module (M1..M3) is designed to transmit data received from the transmitting and receiving device (39) to the control device (22) via the second connection device (2).

9. Module for insertion into an operating apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 5, the module (M1..M3) being designed to connect terminals of the first connection device (1) for connecting the operating apparatus to terminals for receiving the control signal and / or for sending the operating data to respective terminals of the second connection device (2), characterized in that the module (M1..M3) has an interface (37, 38) which is designed to convert control signals received from the first connection device and present in a first format or according to a first standard into a control signal with a second format or standard and to transmit the converted signal to the control device (22) via the second connection device (2), the received control signal or the converted control signal being a DALI control signal, a DSI control signal, an I-SELECT control signal, a 0-10V control signal or a 1-10V control signal.

10. Module according to any of claims 6 to 9, wherein the module (M1..M3) is additionally designed to connect terminals of the first connection device (1) for connecting the operating apparatus to a voltage source to respective terminals of the second connection device (2).

11. System having an operating apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 5 and a module (M1..M3) according to any of claims 6 to 10.

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