Moving Head Light Pan-Tilt Limits for Precise Target Illumination
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Solution Overview
Problem
Moving head light fixtures often illuminate unintended areas due to a lack of awareness of the installation environment, leading to inefficient lighting where parts of the environment are unnecessarily illuminated while the intended scene remains unlit.
Innovation Solution
A moving head light fixture with a control unit that enters a calibration mode to determine and set the minimum and maximum pan and tilt rotation angles, allowing the user to define the illumination area, and limits movement within these angles to ensure precise targeting of the desired area.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the moving head light fixture uses a large theoretical rotation range (0-540° pan, 0-270° tilt), then the light beam can be directed in many directions, but the fixture illuminates areas not related to the scene to be illuminated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent dynamically changes the rotation parameters (pan and tilt angle ranges) from the theoretical maximum range to a calibrated range that matches the actual installation environment. The control unit stores calibrated minimum and maximum angles for both pan and tilt axes, and constrains motor movements within these calibrated boundaries, thereby eliminating illumination of unnecessary areas while maintaining full coverage of the intended scene.
2Device complexity
If software tools control the moving head light fixture without awareness of the installation environment dimensions, then the control system is simple, but the fixture illuminates parts of the environment that should not be illuminated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a preliminary calibration process that must be performed before normal operation. During this calibration mode, the user manually positions the fixture to define the minimum and maximum pan and tilt angles that correspond to the boundaries of the intended illumination area. These calibrated angle values are stored in the control unit's memory, and subsequent normal operation is constrained within these pre-defined boundaries, preventing illumination of unwanted areas.
3Ease of operation
If the light fixture operates with fixed theoretical rotation limits, then the control logic is simple, but the fixture cannot adapt to different installation environments and target areas
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms the static, fixed rotation limits into dynamic, adaptable limits through a calibration mechanism. The system can switch between two operational states: calibration mode, where the user defines the appropriate angle ranges for the current environment, and normal operation mode, where movements are constrained within the calibrated ranges. This dynamic adaptation allows the same fixture to be precisely configured for different installation environments without changing the underlying control logic structure.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a moving head light fixture which comprises a base, a yoke connected to the base and configured to be rotated relative to the base around a pan axis, a head connected to the yoke and configured to be rotated relative to the yoke around a tilt axis, and a control unit configured to operate the moving head light fixture in a calibration mode used to determine a maximum needed rotation around the tilt and pan axis in order to illuminate a target area, and to operate in an operating mode in which the moving head light fixture illuminates the target area only within the maximum needed rotation, and to control the movement of the yoke around the pan axis and of the head around the tilt axis, wherein in the calibration operating mode the control unit is configured to determine a minimum pan rotation angle, a maximum pan rotation angle, a minimum tilt rotation angle, and a maximum tilt rotation angle, wherein the control unit is further configured, when operating in the operating mode, to limit a rotation of the yoke around the pan axis to pan rotation angles in a range between the minimum pan and the maximum pan rotation angle, and to limit the rotation of the head around the tilt axis to tilt rotation angles in a range between the minimum tilt and the maximum tilt rotation angle independent of a control signal provided to the control unit for controlling the movement of the yoke and the head.