Lighting Device Grouping for Diagnostic Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing lighting control systems, such as the Philips Hue system, lack diagnostic capabilities to inform users why no lights turn on when the 'on' button is pressed, making it difficult to identify and resolve control issues.
Innovation Solution
A control system that partitions lighting devices into groups based on power on/off-related behavior, using input and output interfaces to receive and provide diagnostic information, including speech output, to determine the cause of control problems, such as power outages or switched-off wall switches or power strips.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If lighting devices are controlled remotely without grouping, then simple control is maintained, but diagnostic capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments lighting devices into groups based on their power on/off behavior patterns. This segmentation enables the system to track which devices share common power sources or control circuits, providing diagnostic information about potential power outages or control issues without requiring complex centralized monitoring of each individual device.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors power on/off behavior of lighting devices and uses this feedback to dynamically form groups and provide diagnostic information. When a control problem occurs, the system uses the grouped information to determine likely causes and communicate diagnostics to the user, enabling proactive problem resolution.
2Productivity
If no diagnostic information is provided, then system simplicity is maintained, but user troubleshooting efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system provides feedback to users in the form of diagnostic information when control problems occur. By monitoring power on/off behavior and comparing it against expected patterns, the system can identify likely causes such as power outages, switched-off wall switches, or power strips, and communicate this information to help users resolve issues faster.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs self-diagnosis by automatically monitoring its own control operations and the power state of lighting devices. When a problem is detected, the system generates diagnostic information about the likely cause without requiring user intervention to investigate, enabling the system to serve itself in providing troubleshooting guidance.
3Reliability
If lighting devices are not grouped by power behavior, then device independence is maintained, but problem diagnosis capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides lighting devices into segments (groups) based on their power on/off behavior characteristics. This segmentation allows the system to treat groups as functional units for diagnostic purposes, improving control reliability by identifying patterns across multiple devices without requiring complex inter-device coordination or centralized management.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses changes in power behavior parameters (on/off timing, duration, sequence) to dynamically determine device groupings. By monitoring these parameter changes over time, the system can identify when devices share common power sources or control circuits, enabling reliable diagnosis without complex hardware modifications or system architecture changes.
Data Source
AI summary
A method comprises receiving (222,224,226,232,234,236) information identifying power on/off-related behavior (e.g. shutdown moment and/or elapsed time) from each of the plurality of lighting devices and partitioning the plurality of lighting devices in groups of lighting devices, e.g. Group1: L1+L2 and Group2: L3, based on the received information. Each of the groups comprises only lighting devices with similar power on/off-related behavior. The method further comprises controlling (242) the lighting device in response to a user command, determining that a problem has occurred when controlling the lighting device, and identifying the group that comprises the lighting device. The method also comprises determining a power on/off state of at least one other lighting device in the identified group, determining diagnostic information based the determined power on/off states, and providing (243) the diagnostic information to the user. The diagnostic information indicates a likely cause for the problem.