Emergency luminaire for smart indication of emergency exit information, emergency exit-indicating device, system and method

Abstract

The invention is related to an emergency luminaire for indication of emergency exit information, further comprising a communication module that is configured to communicate with an emergency exit-indicating device; and a determination module that is configured to determine the emergency exit-indicating device's direction relative to the emergency luminaire based on the communication; and a display that is configured to display emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's direction. Moreover, the invention relates to an emergency exit-indicating device, further comprising a communication module that is configured to perform communication with at least one emergency luminaire allowing to determine the emergency exit-indicating device's distance and direction. Moreover, the invention relates to a corresponding method and a system thereof.

Description

[0001] The invention regards an emergency luminaire, an emergency exit-indicating device, a system comprising the emergency luminaire and the emergency exit-indicating device and a method for operating the system.

[0002] Emergency luminaires are widely used in buildings for guiding people inside the building towards emergency exits in case of an emergency. The emergency luminaires usually provide visually perceivable directional information, like displayed arrows, in order to guide the people inside the building along an escape route towards the direction of the emergency exit by following the visualized direction. Therefore, in case of an emergency that requires the people inside the building to quickly leave the building, the people orient themselves with the help of the emergency luminaires in order to leave the building.

[0003] Known solutions for emergency luminaires provide visually static emergency exit information. The visually static emergency exit information usually comprises displaying signs that comprise directional information for using the emergency luminaire as a signpost towards corresponding (closest) emergency exits. The term "static" here means that the relative alignment of the visual static emergency exit information relative to the emergency luminaire does not change.

[0004] In general, the position and / or alignment of emergency luminaires inadvertently changes over time. A possible scenario could be that mounting emergency luminaires is performed such that the alignment of emergency luminaires changes when external force is applied. This is specifically problematic for emergency luminaires that are mounted in a suspended manner, which allows easy rotation of the emergency luminaire. For example, the emergency luminaire may be mounted by wire ropes using just one attachment point. Such a mounting is particularly susceptible to undesired rotations around the mounting axis over time due to external force. In particular, external force may be caused by draught or cleaning activities at the emergency luminaire, to mention just a few examples. As a result, the direction information points to the wrong direction and persons inside the building are accordingly guided towards a wrong direction, such that safety of people inside the building is at risk in case that the evacuation of the building is necessary. Another possible scenario could be that renovation works inside the building were made. Consequently, the relative positioning of the emergency luminaire towards an emergency exit may have changed and an additional commissioning of the emergency luminaires or manual correction of its orientation would be required after renovation work.

[0005] Further, the environment inside the building may remarkably change during emergency. For example, in case of a fire, the fire may spread such that the usage of an emergency exit is not recommended or even not possible due to obstacles or toxic smoke development cause by the fire. As a result, the persons inside the building are guided towards a hazardous direction, such that safety of people inside the building is at risk.

[0006] In order to overcome the above mentioned problems, this disclosure provides an emergency luminaire, an emergency exit-indicating device, a method, and a system according to the enclosed independent claims. The invention is defined in the appended claims. Advantageous features of the present invention are defined in the corresponding subclaims.

[0007] The invention provides an emergency luminaire for indicating emergency exit information. The emergency luminaire comprises a communication module that is configured to communicate with an emergency exit-indicating device. The emergency exit-indicating device is a device which is mounted directly at or in close proximity to an emergency exit. Additionally, the emergency luminaire further comprises a determination module that is configured to determine the emergency exit-indicating device's direction relative to the emergency luminaire based on the communication established between the emergency luminaire and the emergency exit-indicating device. Additionally, the emergency luminaire further comprises a display that is configured to display emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's direction preferably by using arrows that are displayed pointing towards the emergency exit-indicating device.

[0008] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the safety of people can be increased during emergency. Independent from the orientation of the emergency luminaire, the displayed directional information always points towards the correct direction. Moreover, it is an advantageous effect that the displayed information of the emergency luminaire can dynamically be adapted to the ongoing emergency situation, because the displayed information can be adapted.

[0009] An emergency luminaire refers to luminaires that are to be operated during emergency. Emergency refers to any case, in which evacuation of people of an indoor and / or outdoor area is required. The emergency luminaire may comprise means for a Digital Addressable Lighting Interface (DALI) allowing to the emergency luminaire to be integrated within a DALI network and to use the control and communication functionality of a DALI network. Moreover, the emergency luminaire may comprise means for alternative control and / or communication protocols. Standardized wired protocols may be, yet not being limited to 0-10V DC, DMX, RDM, BACnet, LonWorks, KNX, X10, HomePlug or G.hn. Standardized wireless protocols may be but are not limited to ZigBee, 6LoWPAN, Z-Wave or EnOcean. The emergency luminaire further comprises means for being connected to standard mains networks. Moreover, the luminaire comprises means, like a power supply unit, allowing the emergency luminaire to be operated when the connection to the mains network is interrupted or disconnected. Hence, an internal stand-alone power supply unit, like a battery or a rechargeable battery may be comprised in the emergency luminaire for operating the emergency luminaire when the connection to the mains network is interrupted or disconnected. Furthermore, the emergency luminaire may comprise common means for an emergency luminaire, in particular means with respect to the housing, mounting, light source, circuit safety mechanisms or the circuit itself.

[0010] Emergency exit information refers to any information that could be helpful to people during evacuation. In particular, the emergency exit information may comprise visual information in the form of pictorial and / or written and / or general lighting cues. Pictorial cues advantageously provide directional information on an emergency exit, like an arrow pointing towards a direction of the emergency exit-indicating device. Moreover, pictorial cues may provide symbols that enhance the comprehensibility of the people, like a representation of a person running towards an exit. Written cues may provide readable information for enhancing the awareness of the people, like text that indicates that an emergency case is going on. General lighting cues may provide lighting information for enhancing the awareness of people, like the usage of signal colors.

[0011] The communication module communicates with an emergency device. The communication module may be any wireless module establishing communication with the counterpart that allows a determination of the relative direction between two communication participants. The two communication participants are the emergency luminaire and the emergency exit-indicating device. Additionally, the communication module may be any wireless module that allows a determination of the relative distance between two communication participants. Additionally, the communication module may be any wireless module that allows transmission and / or reception of information within a transmitted / received signal. Information may be added to a signal by common modulation techniques, in particular by Pulse Position Modulation (PPM), Pulse Amplitude Modulation (PAM), Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK), Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK), Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM), Frequency Shift Keying (FSK). For reasons of efficiency, the signal may be encoded by common encoding techniques, in particular by Linear Block Codes, Convolutional Codes, Turbo Codes, Low Density Parity Check Codes, LT and Raptor Codes, Polar Codes or Space-Time Coding. In particular, the communication module may be a Bluetooth, a Wi-Fi or a UWB module.

[0012] The determination module may determine the emergency exit-indicating device's direction relative to the emergency luminaire based on the communication as established by the communication module. The determination of the relative direction depends on the used communication module. For example, by using an ultra wideband (UWB) communication module, the direction can be obtained by determining the Angle of Arrival (AoA) based on the communication. In particular, the AoA can be determined by the phase difference of arrival of a signal at the at least two antennas for a possible half-circle or three antennas if a hemisphere is in question. In addition, an orientation of the antennas can be related to a reference plane to which an AoA can be related. The determination module may be a part of the communication module or a separate module. The determination module may particularly be realized on as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), an Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) or a Microcontroller (MCU).

[0013] The relative direction between the emergency luminaire and the emergency exit-indicating device can be specified using a directional vector that may be obtained by a reference angle and a reference plane. The reference angle may be an angle of reception of the received signal, which generally describes two distinct spatial angles, like the azimuth and elevation angle for spherical coordinates. Typically, the antennas within the emergency luminaire, which may be part of the communication module, are used for defining the reference plane as well as the reference angle. For example, the vector normal to the surface spanned by an antenna array comprising at least three antennas could be used to define the reference plane. Moreover, the determination of the AoA as previously defined could be used to define the reference angle. Additionally, the relative direction of the emergency luminaire and the emergency exit-indicating device may be projected onto a displaying surface of the display by the determination module. The displaying surface is a surface of the display, through which light is emitted. The display may comprise a plurality of distinct displaying surfaces, such that the projection can be made on any of the surfaces. Moreover, in case the displaying surface is curved, the projection can be made on a predetermined subarea of the displaying surface. The predetermined subarea may align with the subarea of the display wherein the relative direction is displayed. In case, the displaying surface is curved, the display may be configured to display the relative direction in within a predetermined subarea.

[0014] The display may display emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's direction. The display can be understood as being the light source of the emergency luminaire. In particular, the display may comprise a plurality of light sources. The display may be particularly realized as a Liquid Crystal display (LCD), a Light Emitting Diode (LED), an Organic LED (OLED), a Plasma display Panel (PDP) or a Quantum Dot display. The display may be formed in a cuboidal form, such that light is emitted through one or a plurality of side surface areas of the cuboidal form. The display may be formed in a cylindrical form, such that light is emitted through the cylindrical lateral surface.

[0015] An embodiment of the emergency luminaire of the present application further comprises the communication module that may communicate with a plurality of emergency exit-indicating devices. Furthermore, the determination module may determine an emergency exit-indicating device's distance and direction relative to the emergency luminaire for each of the plurality of emergency exit-indicating devices based on the communication.

[0016] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the relative distance and direction may be obtained for a plurality of emergency exit-indicating devices.

[0017] As mentioned in the foregoing embodiment, the determination module may determine an emergency exit-indicating device's distance and direction relative to the emergency luminaire for each of the plurality of emergency exit-indicating devices. The relative distance may be obtained with any measurement technique that allows determining the Euclidian norm between the position of the emergency luminaire and the emergency exit-indicating device. The determination of the relative distance depends on the used communication module. For example, by using a UWB module, the distance can be obtained by multiplying the corresponding Time of Flight (ToF) value determined based on the communication with the speed of light.

[0018] An embodiment of the emergency luminaire of the present application further comprises the determination module that may determine a nearest emergency exit-indicating device that is associated with a smallest emergency exit-indicating device's distance among the plurality of emergency exit-indicating devices.

[0019] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the nearest emergency exit-indicating device relative to the emergency luminaire can be determined.

[0020] An embodiment of the emergency luminaire of the present application further comprises the display that may display emergency information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's direction of the nearest emergency exit-indicating device.

[0021] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the safety of people is increased in an emergency situation.

[0022] A preferred embodiment of the emergency luminaire of the present application further comprises the determination module that may determine emergency exit-indicating devices to be neglected for determining the nearest emergency exit-indicating device by the determination module based on the communication.

[0023] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that emergency exit-indicating devices may be neglected.

[0024] As mentioned in the foregoing embodiment the determination module may determine emergency exit-indicating devices to be neglected for determining the nearest emergency exit-indicating device by the determination module based on the communication. Devices to be neglected can be any of the devices to which a communication may be established by the communication module. Advantageously, devices to be neglected are emergency exit-indicating devices that are located in a hazardous area, such that the risk of people is increased when guided towards this location. For example, if an emergency exit-indicating device is located at a position that is on fire, the emergency exit-indicating device is determined as a device to be neglected.

[0025] An embodiment of the emergency luminaire of the present application further comprises the determination module that may determine the nearest emergency exit-indicating device for non-neglected emergency exit-indicating devices based on the communication.

[0026] In a preferred embodiment of the emergency luminaire of the present application further comprises the communication module is an ultra wideband (UWB) communication module.

[0027] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the determination of the distance and direction can be determined more accurately.

[0028] An embodiment of the emergency luminaire of the present application further comprises the communication module that may communicate a communication request to the at least one emergency exit-indicating device.

[0029] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that it ensures coordinated communication between the emergency luminaire and emergency exit-indicating device, enhancing the responsiveness and reliability in guiding people during an emergency situation.

[0030] As mentioned in the foregoing embodiment, the communication module may send a communication request to the at least one emergency exit-indicating device. The choice of the communication request depends on the used communication module. For example, the ultra wideband (UWB) communication module broadcasts a poll request for initializing the communication for determining the distance. Moreover, the communication request may be a broadcasting signal or a response due to reception of a broadcasting signal.

[0031] An embodiment of the emergency exit-indicating device of the present application comprises a communication module that may perform communication with at least one emergency luminaire allowing to determine the emergency exit-indicating device's distance and direction relative to the emergency luminaire.

[0032] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the safety of people can be increased in emergency situations.

[0033] Advantageously, the emergency exit-indicating device is attached to an emergency exit or in close proximity, for example directly besides the door opening or above the door which is the emergency exit. The emergency exit-indicating device further comprises means for being connected to standard mains networks. Moreover, the emergency exit-indicating device comprises means, like a power supply unit, allowing the emergency exit-indicating device to be operated when the connection to the mains network is interrupted or disconnected or in case of mains failure. Hence, an internal stand-alone power supply unit, like a battery or a rechargeable battery may be comprised in the emergency exit-indicating device for operating the emergency exit-indicating device when the connection to the mains network is interrupted or disconnected. Furthermore, the emergency exit-indicating device may comprise common means for a transceiver module, in particular means with respect to the housing, mounting, circuit safety mechanisms or the circuit itself.

[0034] An embodiment of the emergency exit-indicating device of the present application comprises the communication module that may communicate information to at least one emergency luminaire based on which the emergency exit-indicating device is neglected.

[0035] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the emergency exit-indicating device can communicate to an emergency luminaire to be neglected.

[0036] The information based on which the emergency exit-indicating device is neglected may be any logical information that allows a determination that the emergency exit-indicating device shall be neglected. For instance, a bit value comprising two states can be used to represent emergency exit-indicating devices to be neglected or to be used. The information may be provided by external evaluation modules that evaluate whether an emergency device exit shall be neglected. Advantageously, devices to be neglected are emergency exit-indicating devices that are located in a hazardous area, such that the risk of people is increased when guiding people towards this location. For example, if an emergency device is located at a position that is on fire or close to a fire, the emergency exit-indicating device is determined as a device to be neglected. Hence, external evaluation modules may exemplarily be smoke detectors, gas detectors, water extinguisher or similar devices that may detect hazardous circumstances. An external control unit for escape route guidance may also provide the information. It is to be noted that the emergency exit-indicating device itself may be realized in form of the smoke detector or the like. However, it is also possible that the emergency exit-indicating device is only provided for allowing the emergency luminaire to determine the correct direction for visualizing an escape route.

[0037] An embodiment of the emergency exit-indicating device of the present application comprises an evaluation module that may evaluate if the emergency exit-indicating device is to be neglected.

[0038] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the device to be neglected can be evaluated by the emergency exit-indicating device.

[0039] An embodiment of the emergency exit-indicating device of the present application comprises the communication module that may be an ultra wideband (UWB) communication module.

[0040] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the determination of the distance and direction can be determined more accurately.

[0041] An embodiment of the emergency exit-indicating device of the present application comprises a communication module that may receive a communication request, by an emergency luminaire, based on which the communication module is triggered to communicate with the emergency luminaire.

[0042] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that it ensures coordinated communication between the emergency luminaire and emergency exit-indicating device, enhancing the responsiveness and reliability in guiding people in an emergency situation.

[0043] An embodiment of the method of the present application comprises a step of establishing a communication between at least one emergency luminaire and at least one emergency exit-indicating device. Furthermore, the method comprises a step of determining the emergency exit-indicating device's direction relative to the location of the emergency luminaire based on the communication. Furthermore, the method comprises a step of displaying emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's direction.

[0044] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the safety of people can be increased during emergency. Moreover, it is an advantageous effect that the displayed information of the emergency luminaire can dynamically be adapted to the ongoing emergency situation.

[0045] An embodiment of a system of the present application comprises at least one of any of the embodiments of the emergency luminaire of the present application. Furthermore, the system of the present application comprises at least one of any of the embodiments of the emergency exit-indicating device of the present application.

[0046] An advantageous effect of the foregoing embodiment is that the safety of people can be increased during emergency. Moreover, it is an advantageous effect that the displayed information of the emergency luminaire can dynamically be adapted to the ongoing emergency situation.

[0047] In the following, preferred embodiments of the present application shall be described in more detail based on the corresponding figures. Figure 1 is a schematic view of an emergency luminaire and an emergency exit-indicating device. Figure 2 is an alternative schematic view of an emergency luminaire and an emergency exit-indicating device. Figure 3 is a schematic view of a system comprising an emergency luminaire, an emergency exit-indicating device and a central unit. Figure 4 is a schematic view of a room with a plurality of emergency luminaires and two exits. Figure 5 is a schematic view of a room with a plurality of emergency luminaires and two exits, wherein one exit is to be neglected. Figure 6 is a schematic view of a u-shaped room with a plurality of emergency luminaires and two exits. Figure 7 is a flow chart of a first method. Figure 8 is a flow chart of a second method. Figure 9 is a flow chart of a third method.

[0048] Figure 1 is a schematic view of an emergency luminaire 1 and an emergency exit-indicating device 2. The emergency luminaire 1 comprises a determination module 11, a display 12, a communication module 13 and a control module 14. The communication module 13 is electrically connected via an internal data exchange link to the determination module 11 to provide information over the data exchange link. The determination module is electrically connected via an internal data exchange link to the display 12 to provide information over the data exchange link. The internal data exchange link may be any one of Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C), Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI), Universal Asynchronous Receiver / Transmitter (UART), Controller Area Network (CAN), Universal Serial Bus (USB), General Purpose Input / Output (GPIO), Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) or Ethernet. The control module electrically connected to the communication module 13, the determination module 11 and the display 12, which is not illustrated due to reasons of comprehensibility. Therefore, the control module 14 controls the functionality of each component of the emergency luminaire 1. In the following, additional means are described that are not illustrated in Figure 1 due to reasons of comprehensibility. The emergency luminaire 1 comprises means for a Digital Addressable Lighting Interface (DALI) allowing the emergency luminaire 1 to be integrated within a DALI network and to use the control and communication functionality of a DALI network. The emergency luminaire 1 further comprises means for being connected to standard mains networks. Moreover, the emergency luminaire 1 comprises a rechargeable battery, allowing the emergency luminaire to be operated when the connection to the mains network is interrupted or disconnected. Furthermore, the emergency luminaire comprises common means for an emergency luminaire, in particular means with respect to the housing, mounting, light source, circuit safety mechanisms and the circuit itself.

[0049] The emergency exit-indicating device 2 comprises an evaluation module 21, a communication module 22 and a control module 23. The evaluation module 21 is electrically connected via an internal data exchange link to the communication module 22. The control module 22 is electrically connected to the communication module 22 and the evaluation module 21, which is not illustrated due to reasons of comprehensibility. Therefore, the control module 23 controls the functionality of each component of the emergency exit-indicating device 2. In the following, additional means are described that are not illustrated in Figure 2 due to reasons of comprehensibility. The emergency exit-indicating device 2 further comprises means for being connected to standard mains networks. Moreover, the emergency exit-indicating device 2 comprises a rechargeable battery, allowing the emergency exit-indicating device to be operated when the connection to the mains network is interrupted or disconnected. Furthermore, the emergency exit-indicating device 2 may comprise common means for a transceiver module, in particular means with respect to the housing, mounting, circuit safety mechanisms or the circuit itself. The communication module 13 and the communication module 22 form a bilateral data exchange link.

[0050] The communication between the emergency luminaire 1 and the emergency exit-indicating device 2 is established via the data exchange link formed by the communication module 13 and the communication module 22. The communication module 13 and the communication module 22 are UWB modules.

[0051] The determination module 11 is configured to determine the emergency exit-indicating device's 2 direction relative to the emergency luminaire 1 based on the UWB communication. The direction is obtained by determining the Angle of Arrival (AoA) based on the received signal via the data exchange link of the communication module 13 and the communication module 22. In particular, a signal received by the communication module 13 is received by an antenna array that is not illustrated, such that the AoA can be determined by the phase difference of arrival of the signal at the antenna array. In addition, a plane that is spanned by the antenna array can be determined as a reference plane to which an AoA can be related. The relative direction, as determined by the determination module 11 is projected, by the determination module 11, on the displaying surface, which is a surface of the display 12 through which light is emitted. The projection is an orthogonal projection. Therefore, by the projection of the foregoing relative direction a projected relative direction is obtained by the determination module 11. The determination module 11 may particularly be realized on as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), an Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) or a Microcontroller (MCU).

[0052] Furthermore, the determination module 11 is configured to determine the emergency exit-indicating device's 2 distance relative to the emergency luminaire 1 based on the ultra wideband (UWB) communication. The distance is obtained, by the determination module 11, by multiplying the corresponding Time of Flight (ToF) value, determined based on the communication, with the speed of light to obtain the Euclidian norm between the position of the emergency luminaire 1 and the emergency exit-indicating device 2.

[0053] The display 12 is configured to display emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's 2 projected relative direction. In particular, the display comprises a plurality of light sources which are not illustrated in detail. The display 12 may be particularly realized as a Liquid Crystal display (LCD), a Light Emitting Diode (LED), an Organic LED (OLED), a Plasma display Panel (PDP) or a Quantum Dot display. The display 12 is formed in a cuboidal form, such that light is emitted through one side surface area of the cuboidal form.

[0054] The functionality of the normal communication, as previously described, is fully incorporated by the communication, including the evaluation module 21. To avoid redundancy, it should be referred to the earlier detailed description for the functionality. However, additional or different functional features are described below which are specifically relevant in situations of an emergency.

[0055] The evaluation module 21 is configured to evaluate whether the emergency exit-indicating device 2 is to be neglected. This is, the evaluation module 21 is a smoke detector. When the evaluation module 21 senses a presence of smoke, which is typically an indicator of fire, the evaluation module 21 triggers an alarm to alert people in the vicinity by an auditory tone. Moreover, when the evaluation module 21 senses presence of smoke, the evaluation module 21 provides emergency information to the communication module 22 via the internal data exchange link.

[0056] Moreover, when the communication module 22 receives an emergency information by the evaluation module 21, the communication module 22 is further configured to communicate information to the emergency luminaire 1 based on which the emergency exit-indicating device 2 is neglected. For instance, a bit value comprising two states can be used to represent emergency exit-indicating devices to be neglected or to be used. Thus, based on this bit value, the determination module 11 is configured to determine that the emergency exit-indicating device 2 is to be neglected or to be used for determining the nearest emergency exit-indicating device by the determination module 11 based on the communication. As Figure 1 merely shows one emergency exit-indicating device 2, the nearest emergency exit-indicating device is the emergency exit-indicating device 2. As a result, the display 14 does not display emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's 2 projected relative direction in case the emergency exit-indicating device 2 is to be neglected.

[0057] Figure 2 is an alternative schematic view of an emergency luminaire 1 and an emergency exit-indicating device 2. The functionality of the embodiment, as previously described for Figure 1, is fully incorporated by the embodiment in Figure 2, including the external evaluation module 21. To avoid redundancy, it is referred to the earlier detailed description for the functionality. However, additional or different technical features are described below.

[0058] With regard to Figure 2, the emergency exit-indicating device 2 is missing the evaluation module 21. However, an external evaluation module 21 is connected, via a data exchange link, to the emergency exit-indicating device 2. The data exchange link may be any one of Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C), Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI), Universal Asynchronous Receiver / Transmitter (UART), Controller Area Network (CAN), Universal Serial Bus (USB), General Purpose Input / Output (GPIO), Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) or Ethernet. The communication module now provides additional means for the data exchange link used by the external evaluation module 21, which is indicated by the dashed line inside the communication module 22. As a result, the external evaluation module 21 can be placed at a different position as the emergency exit-indicating device 2.

[0059] Figure 3 is a schematic view of a system comprising an emergency luminaire 1, an emergency exit-indicating device 2 and a central unit 3. The functionality of the embodiment, as previously described for Figures 1 and / or 2, is fully incorporated by the embodiment in Figure 3. To avoid redundancy, please refer to the earlier detailed description for the functionality. However, additional or different technical features are described below.

[0060] Each of the emergency luminaire 1, the emergency exit-indicating device 2 and the central unit 3 is be directionally connected to each other via a data exchange link. The data exchange link between the emergency luminaire 1 and the emergency exit-indicating device 2 remains the same as before. The central unit 3 comprises means for a Digital Addressable Lighting Interface (DALI) allowing the central unit 3 to be integrated within a DALI network and to use the control and communication functionality of a DALI network. Thus, the directional data exchange links that are established between the central unit 3 and another communication participant is to be a DALI link. Moreover, the central unit 3 may comprise means for alternative control and / or communication protocols. Standardized wired protocols may be, yet not being limited to 0-10V DC, DMX, RDM, BACnet, LonWorks, KNX, X10, HomePlug or G.hn. Standardized wireless protocols may be but are not limited to ZigBee, 6LoWPAN, Z-Wave or EnOcean.

[0061] The central unit 3 is configured to determine a nearest emergency exit-indicating device that is associated with a smallest emergency exit-indicating device's 2 distance among the plurality of emergency exit-indicating devices 2. The central unit 3 provides the result of the nearest emergency exit-indicating device to the emergency luminaire 1 via the data exchange link. Moreover, the central unit 3 is configured to determine emergency exit-indicating devices 2 to be neglected for determining the nearest emergency exit-indicating device by the central unit 3 based on a communication of an evaluation module 21 to the central unit 3, similar to the communication sequence of the evaluation module 21 to the communication module 13 as explained in Figure 1 and 2. Moreover, the central unit 3 is configured to determine the nearest emergency exit-indicating device for non-neglected emergency exit-indicating devices. The result of the nearest emergency exit-indicating device 2 or the result of the emergency devices 2 to be neglected can be provided to the emergency luminaire via the data exchange link based on which the determination module 11 is configured to determine the nearest emergency exit-indicating device for non-neglected emergency exit-indicating devices 2 based on the communication or the display 12 is configured to display emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's 2 direction of the nearest emergency exit-indicating device.

[0062] Figure 4 is a schematic view of a room with a plurality of emergency luminaires 1 and two emergency exits. The emergency luminaires 1 are evenly distributed as schematically shown. The displayed arrows just represent the abstract functionality of the emergency luminaires 1, in particular the top view of the room, the emergency luminaires 1, Exit 1 and Exit 2 is provided for reasons of better comprehensibility. The functionality of the embodiment, as previously described for Figures 1 and / or 2, is fully incorporated by the embodiments in Figure 4. To avoid redundancy, it is referred to the earlier detailed description for the functionality. However, additional or different technical features are described below.

[0063] Figure 4 shows the indication of the emergency exit information indicating the nearest emergency exit-indicating device's direction in form of arrows. At Exit 1 and Exit 2 separate emergency exit-indicating devices 2 are mounted. Thus, the indication of the plurality of emergency luminaires 1 is aligned, such that the arrows are directed towards the nearest emergency exit-indicating device. Therefore, the emergency luminaires 1 on the most left side as well as the emergency luminaire 1 of in the middle of the bottom indicate arrows directed to the emergency exit-indicating device 2 attached to Exit 2. This is, the emergency exit-indicating device 2 attached to Exit 2 has a smaller Euclidian distance to said emergency luminaires 1 as compared to the emergency exit-indicating device 2 attached to Exit 1. Exactly the opposite relation applies for the remaining emergency luminaires 1 as now the emergency exit-indicating device 2 attached to Exit 1 is the nearest emergency exit-indicating device.

[0064] Figure 5 is a schematic view of a room with a plurality of emergency luminaires 1 and two exits, wherein one exit is to be ignored. The functionality of the embodiment, as previously described for Figures 1 and / or 2 and / or 4, is fully incorporated by the embodiments in Figure 5. To avoid redundancy, it is referred to the earlier detailed description for the functionality. However, additional or different technical features are described below.

[0065] Figure 5 shows that each emergency luminaire 1 indicates an arrow that is directed towards the emergency exit-indicating device 2 attached to Exit 1. That is, the evaluation module 21 detected presence of smoke in the region of Exit 2, such that the using exit 2 would be hazardous. Thus as previously described, the evaluation module 21 causes the realignment of the indication auf each emergency luminaire 1.

[0066] Figure 6 is a schematic view of a u-shaped room with a plurality of emergency luminaires (1L1, 1L2, 1L3, 1L4) and two exists.

[0067] In such rooms, the mere determination of a nearest emergency indicating device that is for instance positioned at Exit 1 would be disadvantageous.

[0068] Thus, the emergency luminaire 1L1 may be configured to determine whether the communication to the nearest emergency exit indicating device, located at Exit 1, is a line of sight (LoS) communication.

[0069] The emergency luminaire 1L1 may comprise a communication module that is configured to communicate with at least one other emergency luminaire. Moreover, the determination module may be configured to determine an emergency luminaire's distance and direction relative to the emergency luminaire 1L1 for each of the plurality of emergency luminaires based on the communication. Moreover, the emergency luminaire 1L1 comprises the display that is configured to display emergency exit information indicating the nearest emergency luminaire's direction.

[0070] Preferably, each of the modules comprised in emergency luminaire 1L1 could be configured as mentioned above, in case the it is determined that the communication to the nearest emergency exit indicating device is not a LoS communication.

[0071] In particular, the display of the emergency luminaire 1L1 is configured not to display emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit indicating device's direction, in case it is determined that the communication to the nearest emergency exit indicating device is not a LoS communication.

[0072] It should be noted that in case the emergency luminaire 1L1 communicates with merely one other emergency luminaire, the nearest emergency luminaire is said emergency luminaire, such that an additional determination of the nearest emergency luminaire is not necessary.

[0073] A further problem could occur, if an emergency exit, like Exit 1 is located between to emergency luminaires 1L2, 1L3. Based on the foregoing disclosure, the emergency luminaire 1L3 would display emergency information in form of an arrow that is directed to Exit 1. To solve this problem, the emergency luminaires may be able to synchronize each other.

[0074] For instance, emergency luminaire 1L3 may be configured to determine the direction of the emergency exit information displayed by its neighboring luminaires 1L2 and 1L4 defined by the two nearest emergency luminaires. The direction may be determined based on communication of the emergency luminaires 1L2, 1L3, 1L4. Consequently, the emergency luminaire 1L3 may be configured to display the emergency exit information in the determined direction, namely in the direction to which the emergency exit information is displayed by its neighboring luminaires 1L2 and 1L4.

[0075] The foregoing embodiment of this application as described with reference to Figure 6 does incorporate any features of the previously mentioned embodiments, if not stated differently. A repetitive description is avoided.

[0076] Figure 7 is a flow chart of a first method. It is shown a step S11 of establishing a communication, a step S12 of determining direction, a step S13 of displaying emergency exit information.

[0077] For step S11, it is referred to the detailed description above of the communication module 13 and the communication module 22 and their interaction, which completely describes the functionality of step S11 in its entirety. It should be noted, that the method step S11 is independent of the executing device.

[0078] For step S12, it is referred to the detailed description above of the determination module 11, which completely describes the functionality of step S12 in its entirety. It should be noted, that the method step S12 is independent of the executing device.

[0079] For step S13, it is referred to the detailed description above of the display 12, which completely describes the functionality of step S13 in its entirety. It should be noted, that the method step S13 is independent of the executing device.

[0080] Figure 8 is a flow chart of a second method. It is shown a step S21 of communicating communication request, a step S22 of establishing a communication, a step S23 of determining distance and direction, a step S24 of determining devices to be neglected, a step S25 of determining a smallest distance for non-neglected devices, a step S26 of displaying emergency exit information.

[0081] For steps S21 and S22, it is referred to the detailed description above of the communication module 13 and the communication module 22 and their interaction, which completely describes the functionality of step S21 and S22 in its entirety. Care should be taken to the fact, that step 21 merely comprises the communication of a communication request, wherein step S22 comprises the entire functionality for establishing the communication that is initiated by the communication request in step S21. It should be noted, that the method step S11 is independent of the executing device.

[0082] For step S23, it is referred to the detailed description above of the determination module 11, which completely describes the functionality of step S23 in its entirety. Care should be taken to the fact that step S23 differs from step S12 as being an extension of step S12 by comprising the entire functionality that is required to determine a distance of an emergency exit-indicating device 2 relative to an emergency luminaire 1. It should be noted, that the method step S23 is independent of the executing device.

[0083] Step S24 additionally comprises the entire functionality to determine devices to be neglected as described in detail within the description of Figures 1, 2 and 5. Step S25 additionally comprises the entire functionality to determine a smallest distance for non-neglected devices as described in detail within the description of Figures 1, 2 and 5. It should be noted, that the method steps S24 and S25 are independent of the executing device.

[0084] For step S26, it is referred to the detailed description above of the display 12, which completely describes the functionality of step S26 in its entirety. It should be noted, that the method step S26 is independent of the executing device.

[0085] Figure 9 is a flow chart of a third method. Figure 9 shows the steps of a step S31 of receiving a communication request, a step S32 of establishing a communication, a step S33 of evaluating devices to be neglected and a step S34 of communicating information for neglection.

[0086] For steps S31 and S32, it is referred to the detailed description above of the communication module 13 and the communication module 22 and their interaction, which completely describes the functionality of step S31 in its entirety. Care should be taken to the fact, that step 31 merely comprises the reception of a communication request, wherein step S22 comprises the entire functionality for establishing the communication that is initiated by the communication request in step S31 It should be noted, that the method steps S31 and S32 are independent of the executing device.

[0087] For step S33, it is referred to the detailed description above of the evaluation module 21, which completely describes the functionality of step S32 in its entirety. It should be noted, that the method step S33 is independent of the executing device.

[0088] For step S34, it is referred to the detailed description concerning the communication for neglection above of the communication module 22, which completely describes the functionality of step S34 in its entirety. It should be noted, that the method step S34 is independent of the executing device.

Claims

1. Emergency luminaire (1) for providing emergency exit information, comprising a communication module (13) that is configured to communicate with an emergency exit-indicating device (2); and a determination module (11) that is configured to determine the emergency exit-indicating device's (2) direction relative to the emergency luminaire (1) based on communication; and a display (12) that is configured to display emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's (2) direction.

2. Emergency luminaire (1) according to claim 1, wherein the communication module (13) is further configured to communicate with a plurality of emergency exit-indicating devices (2); and the determination module (11) is further configured to determine an emergency exit-indicating device's (2) distance and direction relative to the emergency luminaire (1) for each of the plurality of emergency exit-indicating devices (2) based on the communication.

3. Emergency luminaire (1) according to claim 2, wherein the determination module (11) is further configured to determine a nearest emergency exit-indicating device that is associated with a smallest emergency exit-indicating device's (2) distance among the plurality of emergency exit-indicating devices (2).

4. Emergency luminaire (1) according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the display (12) is configured to display emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's (2) direction of the nearest emergency exit-indicating device (2).

5. Emergency luminaire (1) according to claim 3, or claims 3 and 4, wherein the determination module (11) is configured to determine emergency exit-indicating devices (2) to be neglected for determining the nearest emergency exit-indicating device by the determination module (11) based on the communication.

6. Emergency luminaire (1) according to claim 5, wherein the determination module (11) is configured to determine the nearest emergency exit-indicating device for non-neglected emergency exit-indicating devices (2) based on the communication.

7. Emergency luminaire (1) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the communication module (13) is an ultra wideband (UWB) communication module.

8. Emergency luminaire (1) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the communication module (13) is further configured to communicate a communication request to the at least one emergency exit-indicating device (2).

9. Emergency exit-indicating device (2), comprising a communication module (22) that is configured to perform communication with at least one emergency luminaire (1) allowing to determine the emergency exit-indicating device's (2) distance and direction.

10. Emergency exit-indicating device (2) according to claim 9, wherein the communication module (22) is further configured to communicate information to at least one emergency luminaire (1) based on which the emergency exit-indicating device (2) is neglected.

11. Emergency exit-indicating device (2) according to claim 10, further comprising an evaluation module (21) that is configured to evaluate if the emergency exit-indicating device (2) is to be neglected.

12. Emergency exit-indicating device (2) according to any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the communication module (22) is an ultra wideband (UWB) communication module.

13. Emergency exit-indicating device (2) according to any one of the claims 9 to 12, further comprising the communication module (22) that is configured to receive a communication request, by an emergency luminaire (1), based on which the communication module (22) is triggered to communicate with the emergency luminaire (1).

14. Method comprising the steps of establishing (S11) a communication between at least one emergency luminaire and at least one emergency exit-indicating device; and determining (S12) the emergency exit-indicating device's direction relative to the location of the emergency luminaire based on the communication; and displaying (S13) emergency exit information indicating the emergency exit-indicating device's direction.

15. System, comprising at least one emergency luminaire (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 8; and at least one emergency exit-indicating device (2) according to any one of claims 8 to 13.

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