Wireless Lighting Fixture Control via User Device Link
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing lighting control systems in buildings lack user control capabilities beyond physical switches, making it difficult to implement logical switches for controlling lighting devices through software due to challenges in associating users with specific lights or fixtures in a logical manner, particularly in determining user proximity and authorization.
Innovation Solution
Establishing a direct communication link between a user device and a lighting fixture within a structure, allowing the fixture to receive and respond to control information from the user device through a central controller, which enables user control of environmental parameters like lighting based on proximity or electronic calendar associations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If physical switches are used for user control of lighting, then user control capability is provided, but device complexity and installation requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces physical mechanical switches with a wireless communication-based control system. The lighting fixture communicates directly with a user's mobile device through wireless protocols (WiFi, Bluetooth, etc.), eliminating the need for physical switch installation while maintaining user control capability. This substitution of mechanical control with electronic/wireless control resolves the contradiction by providing ease of operation without the device complexity of physical installations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the lighting fixture universally controllable through multiple communication protocols and platforms. Instead of requiring dedicated physical switches for each lighting zone, the system allows control through any wireless device (smartphones, tablets, computers) using various communication standards. This multi-functionality approach provides user control capability while reducing the complexity of dedicated physical switch installations.
2Ease of operation
If logical switches in software are implemented for user control, then ease of operation is improved, but difficulty of detecting and measuring user proximity and authorization increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the lighting fixture continuously communicates with the user's mobile device to verify proximity and authorization status. The system uses feedback from wireless communication signals, device location data, and user authentication responses to dynamically determine whether a user is authorized to control the lighting. This feedback loop resolves the contradiction by making proximity and authorization detection more reliable through continuous verification rather than attempting to pre-determine user identity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a communication protocol and authentication intermediary between the user's mobile device and the lighting fixture control system. This intermediary layer handles the complex tasks of proximity detection, authorization verification, and secure communication in a standardized manner. The intermediary simplifies the difficulty of detecting user proximity and authorization by providing a dedicated mechanism that translates these complex detection requirements into manageable communication and verification steps.
3Ease of operation
If direct communication link between user device and fixture is established, then ease of operation is improved, but loss of information about user identity and authorization context increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary authentication and context establishment actions before enabling direct communication control. The system pre-verifies user identity, authorization status, and proximity conditions before establishing the direct communication link between the user's mobile device and the lighting fixture. This preliminary action ensures that when direct control is enabled, the user identity and authorization context are already confirmed and stored, preventing information loss during the direct communication phase.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the communication and control process into distinct phases: authentication phase, authorization phase, and direct control phase. During the authentication and authorization phases, comprehensive user identity and context information is collected and verified. Once these phases complete successfully, the system transitions to direct control phase where the established authentication context is maintained. This segmentation prevents information loss by concentrating information verification in dedicated phases before direct control begins.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatuses, methods and systems for providing user control of an environmental parameter of a structure are disclosed. One method includes establishing a direct communication link between a user device and a fixture located within the structure, receiving, by a central controller, information of the user device from the fixture through a first communication link, receiving, by the central controller, control information from the user device through a second communication link, and communicating, by the central controller, the control information to the fixture, wherein the fixture controls the environmental parameter based on the control information.