Lighting Unit Bus-Voltage Modulation for Flicker-Reduced VLC
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing lighting systems with multiple LED elements face complexity in coordinating VLC protocol communications due to the need for individual control of each LED controller, leading to increased difficulty and potential flicker effects.
Innovation Solution
A lighting unit with a voltage modulator that modulates a common bus voltage to control the light output of all LED elements uniformly, eliminating the need for separate coordination of individual LED controllers and reducing flicker by using non-zero voltage levels that do not significantly differ.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If individual LED controllers are used to control each lighting element for VLC communication, then communication accuracy can be improved, but device complexity and coordination difficulty increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the control of multiple LED elements into a single unified control mechanism. Instead of controlling each LED element individually through separate LED controllers, the invention uses a single voltage modulator that controls a common bus voltage supplied to all LED elements. This combining approach maintains VLC communication accuracy while dramatically reducing coordination complexity and control overhead.
Solution Approach 2:
The common bus voltage serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides power to all LED elements and carries the VLC modulation signal for communication. The voltage modulator performs both voltage regulation and signal modulation functions, making the system more universal and reducing the need for separate control mechanisms for each LED element.
2Reliability
If separate control of each LED controller is implemented for VLC protocol, then communication reliability improves, but flicker effects increase due to coordination challenges
Solution Approach 1:
By merging all LED element controls into a single voltage modulator controlling a common bus voltage, the system eliminates the flicker effects that arise from coordinating multiple separate LED controllers. The unified control ensures synchronous operation of all lighting elements, maintaining communication reliability while preventing flicker artifacts.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If bus voltage is modulated between minimum and maximum non-zero voltages, then flicker effect is reduced, but communication data capacity may be limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by modulating the bus voltage between minimum and maximum non-zero voltage levels. This parameter modulation approach reduces flicker effects while maintaining sufficient voltage variation to encode communication data. The non-zero voltage levels ensure continuous light output to minimize flicker, while the voltage variations still carry adequate information for VLC communication.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Ensures consistent light output and reduces flicker effects while simplifying VLC protocol communications across multiple LED elements within a lighting unit.
Implementation Method 1
at least one lighting element configured to receive the bus voltage for powering one or more LED elements
Implementation Method 2
the one or more LED elements; and an LED controller coupled in series with the one or more LED elements, wherein the LED controller configured to control an average current flowing through the one or more LED elements
Data Source
AI summary
A mechanism for performing a communication using a visible light communication (VLC) protocol. The mechanism proposes to modulate a bus voltage provided to all lighting elements (comprising LED elements) of a lighting unit, so that the magnitude of light emitted by all lighting elements is modulated according to a same modulation scheme. A lighting system having a plurality of lighting elements is also proposed.