Lighting Controller Power-State Recovery for Wireless Reachability
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing lighting systems with connected power switching devices via wireless networks face issues where power interruption to lighting devices prevents control when the power switching device is switched to a mode without power, rendering the lighting device unreachable via the network.
Innovation Solution
A controller that determines the connection between a lighting device and a power switching device through various signals, including temporal correlations and user inputs, and transmits control commands to switch the power switching device to a powered mode when necessary, ensuring the lighting device remains reachable for control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If the power switching device is switched to the second mode (unpowered) to save energy or control power consumption, then power consumption is reduced, but the lighting device becomes unreachable via the network and cannot be controlled
Solution Approach 1:
The controller proactively checks the power mode of the power switching device before attempting to control the lighting device. If the device is in the second mode (unpowered), the controller first transmits a power switching control command to switch it to the first mode (powered) before transmitting lighting control commands, ensuring the lighting device is reachable and can be controlled.
Solution Approach 2:
The controller obtains signals indicating the current mode of the power switching device and uses this feedback information to determine the appropriate control strategy. Based on the feedback about the power mode, the controller dynamically adjusts its control approach - either directly controlling the lighting device or first switching the power mode before control.
2Ease of operation
If the controller automatically switches the power switching device to the first mode to ensure controllability, then controllability is maintained, but the system complexity increases due to additional control logic and commands
Solution Approach 1:
The controller integrates multiple functions into a single device - it can control both the power switching device and the lighting device, and it manages both control commands through a unified control logic. This merging reduces the need for separate control systems and simplifies the overall architecture despite the enhanced functionality.
Data Source
AI summary
A controller for controlling a lighting system is disclosed. The lighting system comprises a lighting device configured to receive lighting control commands from the controller via a wireless network, and a separate power switching device configured to receive, via the wireless network, power switching control commands from the controller to switch between a first mode wherein a load connected to the power switching device is powered, and a second mode the load connected to the power switching device is unpowered. The controller comprises a transmitter configured to transmit the lighting control commands to the lighting device and configured to transmit the power switching control commands to the power switching device, one or more inputs configured to obtain one or more first signals indicative of that the lighting device is connected to the separate power switching device as the load, and to obtain a second signal indicative of a current mode of the power switching device, and a processor configured to determine that the lighting device is connected to the power switching device based on the one or more first signals, to transmit a lighting control command to the lighting device to control the lighting device, and, if the power switching device is in the second mode, to transmit a power switching control command to the power switching device to switch the power switching device to the first mode.