LED lighting fixtures

Abstract

This LED lighting fixture offers multiple complex LED control modes that mimic natural phenomena such as the flickering of fire and sunlight filtering through trees, allowing users to freely change modes and adjust detailed settings such as brightness and change speed according to their preferences. [Solution] The LED lighting fixture, which is capable of complex light intensity control that mimics natural phenomena, has an LED control system, which consists of an LED module, an LED drive circuit, a wireless communication-enabled microcontroller, and a power supply unit. Various LED control mode programs are written to the non-volatile memory of the wireless communication-enabled microcontroller, and the LED control mode and setting values ​​can be changed by sending commands to the LED control system from an LED control application on a smartphone.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a lighting fixture using a method for controlling the luminous intensity value of an LED that mimics natural phenomena, and particularly to means capable of changing a plurality of LED luminous intensity value control modes and detailed settings of the luminous intensity value by wireless communication.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, lighting fixtures using LEDs have become the main lighting commonly used. Since LEDs are light-emitting elements with low power consumption, long life, and no heat generation, they are also widely used as light sources for flammable casings such as wood and Japanese paper.

[0003] LED lighting can not only adjust the simple illuminance, but also be controlled by high-precision PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) etc. by using a microcomputer and an LED drive circuit. As a result, there are many LED lights that mimic the flickering of a fire etc.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

[0005] For example, in Patent Document 1, different light source control algorithms are applied to a plurality of LEDs in the casing, thereby reproducing the light source phenomenon peculiar to a Japanese candle.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] For example, in Patent Document 1, light source control algorithms including soot diffusion lighting control are applied to a plurality of LEDs in the casing, thereby reproducing the light source phenomenon peculiar to a Japanese candle.

[0007] This invention was made to solve these problems, and its purpose is to provide a lighting fixture that can flexibly respond to a wide variety of individual needs. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] To achieve the above objective, the LED lighting fixture of the present invention is characterized by supporting multiple LED control modes, transmitting control commands using a smartphone LED control application and BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) wireless communication, and allowing the LED control mode and detailed settings to be changed in the receiving LED lighting fixture.

[0009] Multiple LED control modes include simple light intensity adjustments as well as LED control that mimics natural phenomena such as flickering flames, sunlight filtering through trees, and the glow of a campfire. Furthermore, additional LED control modes can be added, modified, or updated, as long as the capacity of the system's non-volatile memory allows.

[0010] While changing the LED control mode can also be done using physical switches such as rotary switches, this is not the optimal method due to limitations in terms of fine-grained control, enclosure appearance, circuit size, and shape constraints.

[0011] To solve this problem, we adopted a method that allows control from a smartphone application and used BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) as the communication method so that it can be used in places without internet access, such as campsites deep in the mountains.

[0012] Furthermore, considering diverse uses such as viewing in places where there is no power supply, like balconies or outdoors, it is also equipped with a lithium battery. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] The LED lighting fixture of this invention supports multiple LED control modes, and controls them using a smartphone application. Control commands are sent using BLE wireless communication, and the LED lighting fixture that receives the commands can change the LED control mode and modify detailed settings. This allows for a variety of effects and provides a highly convenient LED lighting fixture. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0014] [Figure 1] (a) is an example of the appearance of an LED lighting fixture in an embodiment of the present invention, and (b) is an example of the appearance of an LED lighting fixture in an embodiment of the present invention when controlled only by BLE communication. [Figure 2] (a) is a block diagram of the control system for an LED lighting fixture, and (b) is a block diagram of the control system for an LED lighting fixture when controlled using only BLE communication. [Figure 3] This graph shows the temporal variation in luminosity values ​​when reproducing the flickering of a fire. [Figure 4] This graph shows the temporal variation in light intensity values ​​when recreating the effect of sunlight filtering through trees. [Figure 5] This graph shows the temporal variation in luminosity values ​​when recreating the flickering effect of a campfire. [Figure 6] This is an LED control flow using a physical switch. [Figure 7] This is an LED control flow using a smartphone app. [Figure 8] (a) is the LED mode selection screen of the LED control app, and (b) is the detailed settings operation screen of the same app. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0015] The embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, the housing of the LED lighting fixture is a wooden lantern, one type of LED is used, there are three control modes, and BLE is used as the communication method, but the invention is not limited to these.

[0016] Fig. 1(a) shows the housing of a wooden lantern, which is the appearance of the LED lighting fixture, and Fig. 1(b) shows the housing of the LED lighting fixture with the physical switch removed. There is a lamp shade covering the LED at the upper part of Fig. 1(a), and the LED control system is stored at the lower part. In Fig. 1(b), the control method is limited to command control by BLE communication, and the physical switch is removed to improve the appearance. Also, by reducing the physical switch, the housing can be miniaturized.

[0017] Fig. 2(a) is a block diagram of the control system of this LED lighting fixture, and Fig. 2(b) is the same block diagram when the physical switch is removed. This control system consists of a battery and its control circuit, a power supply unit including a battery control switch, a microcomputer unit including a microcomputer main body and a wireless communication antenna, an LED driving circuit, an LED main body, and a physical switch for switching the LED mode. Each LED control program is written in a non-volatile memory inside the microcomputer. The microcomputer and the LED mode switch, which is a physical switch, are connected. The microcomputer changes the LED control mode based on that signal and outputs a control signal (PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) signal) to be passed to the LED driving circuit. The LED driving circuit generates a control voltage according to the input control signal. The LED emits light at a level corresponding to that control voltage. In the case of Fig. 2(b), an LED control command is transmitted from a smartphone, and based on the received command, the LED control mode and its detailed setting values are determined inside the microcomputer. After determination, a control signal corresponding to those settings is output to the LED driving circuit, and the LED emits light.

[0018] Fig. 3 shows the time variation of the luminous intensity value in a mode imitating the flickering of fire. When expressing the flickering of fire by the variation of the luminous intensity value, a random number is generated within an arbitrary range, added to the basic value to determine the luminous intensity value, and that luminous intensity value is reflected on the LED and held for a certain period. By repeating this operation in an infinite loop, the flickering of fire is imitated.

[0019] Figure 4 shows the time variation of the light source in a mode that mimics sunlight filtering through the trees. When representing the sunlight filtering through the trees in terms of the variation of the light intensity value, random numbers are generated within an arbitrary range and added to the basic value to calculate the next light intensity value. The next light intensity value is compared with the previous light intensity value. If the next light intensity value is larger, it is incremented; if it is smaller, it is decremented to calculate the current light intensity value. The current light intensity value is reflected on the LED for each increment or decrement operation and held for a certain period. After that, the LED control update by increment or decrement is repeated until it becomes equal to the next light intensity value. After it becomes equal, a new next light intensity value is generated by a random number and the process is repeated again. By executing this flow in an infinite loop, it is possible to mimic sunlight filtering through the trees.

[0020] Figure 5 shows the time change of the light source in a mode that mimics the flicker of a campfire. When mimicking the flicker of a campfire, a random number within an arbitrary range of low values is added to the basic value, and the light intensity value is reflected on the LED and held for a certain period. This operation is repeated the number of times generated by the random number (low emission phase). After that, a random number of high values is added to the basic value, and the light intensity value is reflected on the LED and held for a certain period. This operation is repeated a number of times less than that in the low emission phase (high emission phase). By executing the flows of these low emission phase and high emission phase in an infinite loop, it is possible to mimic the flicker of a fire such as a campfire.

[0021] Figure 6(a) shows the flow of the process when using a physical switch such as a rotary switch. In this case, after the power is turned on, the state of the physical switch is interpreted as an LED mode switch signal inside the microcontroller, and the LED is controlled based on the corresponding LED control mode.

[0022] Figure 6(b) shows the processing flow when using wireless communication such as BLE without using a physical switch. In this case, there is a smartphone side and an LED lighting fixture control system side. The processing flow is as follows: First, the power of the LED lighting fixture is turned ON. Then, the system checks whether it is in app mode or not by checking the status of the physical switch or the terminals of the microcontroller, and transitions to app mode. If it is not in app mode, it transitions to the switch switching mode shown in Figure 6(a). After transitioning to app mode, it waits for commands from the smartphone side as needed, and when a command is received, it determines the corresponding LED control mode and changes the detailed settings based on the content of the command, and then controls the LED according to the corresponding LED control mode. After the app is launched on the smartphone side, it performs the app operations described later, and sends commands as needed after the operations are completed. Note that if the physical switch is changed during operation and a mode other than app mode is selected, it transitions to the physical switch switching mode, but it is possible to return to app mode if the state of the physical switch is changed back to app mode.

[0023] Figure 7(a) shows the control mode selection screen of the smartphone application. The user selects the LED control mode from the menu on the screen using touch operation. Selectable LED modes include the "flickering fire mode," "sunlight filtering through trees mode," and "sparkle mode" described in this invention, as well as a normal lighting mode in which only the luminance value can be changed. After selecting the LED mode, a command is sent with the selected LED control mode and initial settings. Then, the user transitions to the detailed settings screen for the corresponding LED control mode shown in Figure 7(b). This screen displays a list of configurable items, and the setting value can be changed using slider operation, pull-down menus, or direct numerical input. Examples of items include brightness, flicker width, and lighting speed. Changing an item value triggers the sending of a command. [Explanation of symbols]

[0024] 1 LED lighting fixture (with physical switch) 2. Shade section 3. Control system unit for LED lighting fixtures (with physical switch) 4 LED mode selector switch 5. Battery switch 6. USB-C connector for battery charging 7. USB-C connector for power supply 8 LED lighting fixtures (without physical switches) 9. Control system unit for LED lighting fixtures (without physical switches) 10 Power supply section 11. Wireless communication compatible microcontroller section 12 LED driver circuit 13 LED modules 14 Wireless communication equipment 15 LED Mode Selection Screen 16 LED Mode 1 17 LED Mode 2 18 LED Mode 3 19. LED Mode Detailed Settings Screen 20 LED Mode Setting Item 1 21 LED Mode Setting Item 2 22 LED Mode Setting Item 3

Claims

1. A lighting fixture using an LED control method in which a control command transmitted via wireless communication is received by a wirelessly capable microcontroller unit, and the LED control mode and detailed LED settings are changed according to the command.

2. A lighting fixture using the LED control method according to claim 1, which includes a wireless communication application for LED control that allows specifying settings such as the LED control mode and luminous intensity value (including the duty cycle for PWM control), random number generation range, and delay time by menu touch operation on the screen, slider operation, or direct input, and transmitting the contents via wireless communication.

3. A lighting fixture using the LED control method according to claim 1, which includes an LED control mode that mimics the flickering of a flame by generating random numbers within an arbitrary range, adding them to a base value to calculate a luminous intensity value, and reflecting this value on the LED and holding it for a certain period of time, and executing this flow in an infinite loop.

4. A lighting fixture using the LED control method described in claim 1, which includes an LED control mode that mimics sunlight filtering through trees by executing this flow in an infinite loop. The method involves generating a random number within an arbitrary range, adding it to a base value to calculate the next luminous intensity value, comparing it to the previous luminous intensity value, incrementing it if the next luminous intensity value is larger, and decrementing it if it is smaller to calculate the current luminous intensity value. The current luminous intensity value is reflected in the LED after each increment or decrement operation and held for a certain period of time. After that, the LED control update by incrementing or decrementing is repeated until it becomes equal to the next luminous intensity value, and after the equality is reached, a new next luminous intensity value is generated using a random number and the series of processes is repeated again.

5. A lighting fixture using the LED control method described in claim 1, which includes an LED control mode that mimics the flickering of a campfire by repeating the low-luminosity phase and high-luminosity phase in an infinite loop. This operation is repeated a number of times equal to the number of random numbers generated (low-luminosity phase). Subsequently, a random number with a high value is added to the base value, and this luminosity value is reflected in the LED and held for a certain period. This operation is repeated a number of times less than the low-luminosity phase (high-luminosity phase).

Images