Wireless Switch-Cover Panel for Centralized Home Lighting Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing security and automation systems often lack convenient and reliable techniques for controlling various devices, particularly lighting devices, requiring extensive power wiring or electrical skills for installation.
Innovation Solution
A panel that encapsulates a light switch and includes programmable buttons and radio components to control lighting devices, allowing centralized control without invasive installation, using battery power and multiple radio frequencies for communication.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a panel encapsulates a light switch and uses radio components for communication, then ease of operation and control convenience are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The panel is designed to perform multiple functions: it encapsulates the light switch, provides a user interface with buttons for control, and includes radio components for wireless communication with the hub. This multi-functionality consolidates several components into a single device, improving ease of operation while managing complexity through integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The panel structure encapsulates the light switch within it, creating a nested configuration where the switch is housed inside the panel. This nesting approach allows the panel to serve as both a protective enclosure and a control interface, improving ease of operation by providing a unified control mechanism while containing multiple functional elements.
2Ease of manufacture
If the panel uses battery power and wireless communication, then ease of installation is improved, but use of energy increases
Solution Approach 1:
The design extracts the power connection from the traditional hardwired switch configuration and replaces it with a battery power source. This extraction allows for easier installation without requiring electrical wiring modifications, though it introduces the need for battery power management and periodic replacement or recharging.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems, and devices for lighting control are described. An apparatus may include a panel for controlling one or more devices associated with a home. A panel may include a recess shaped to encapsulate a switch disposed on a wall of the home. A panel may include user interface hardware configured to receive input from a user. A panel may include a processor, a memory in electronic communication with the processor storing instructions executable by the processor. An instruction may include transmitting one or more communications to the one or more devices to cause the one or more devices to perform a first action based on input received by the user interface hardware. An instruction may include transmitting one or more communications to the home automation hub to cause one or more other devices to perform a second action based on the input received by the user interface hardware.