Illumination – Plural light sources – Remote adjustment or positioning means
Reexamination Certificate
2001-12-10
2003-12-02
O'Shea, Sandra (Department: 2875)
Illumination
Plural light sources
Remote adjustment or positioning means
C362S276000, C362S802000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06655817
ABSTRACT:
The present invention relates in general to modular lighting systems, remote control, and laser pointers, and more specifically to remote-controlled lighting systems.
BACKGROUND
Various remote-controlled lighting systems have been developed over the years. Examples include systems tailored for use in surgical environments, security systems, theater, and hazardous environments. Many of these systems have been very ruggedly designed and are expensive to manufacture. Some systems have incorporated multiple, individually controlled lighting units. The interfaces for the multi-unit systems have been complex, generally requiring a trained operator. In multiple-unit systems, the control function has generally been implemented either over dedicated wires, or over a common information channel, utilizing a separate address code to selectively control individual units. Various mechanical embodiments of motorized pan and tilt mechanisms have been developed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,306,297, issued to Cohen on Dec. 15, 1981 describes a remote-controllable recessed lighting fixture with pan and tilt features. This design is intended for use in suspended ceilings. Although this design potentially allows for a full 180 degrees (or more) of pan, it is limited to significantly less than 90 degrees of tilt, so the light beam cannot sweep out a full 2° steradians of solid angle. Hard-wired remote control significantly increases the expense of installation and limits the ease of remote control.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,112,486, issued to Tovai on Sep. 5, 1978 describes a remote-controlled positioning device comprising a fixed base with a rotating shaft. A second shaft is mounted to the first shaft at right angles, and a head unit is mounted to and rotatable about the second shaft. The power and control signals for the head unit are transmitted through a flexible cable between the rotating head unit and the fixed base. This design allows for a full 180 degrees (or more) of pan, and a full 180 degrees of tilt, thus allowing a directed light beam to sweep out 2° steradians of solid angle. No specific means of remote control is claimed, but the preferred method is hard-wired. This design is expensive to manufacture for several reasons. First, two separate housings are equipped with motors. Second, the flexible cabling must carry both the control and power signals. This makes the cable more expensive, and opens up a potentially dangerous failure mode where a worn cable allows high-voltage power wiring to short to the control wiring of the motors. Again, hard-wired remote control significantly increases the expense of installation and limits the ease of remote control.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,347,431, issued to Blackwell et. al. on Sep. 13, 1994 describes a multi-unit remote controlled lighting system for a surgical environment, where individual lighting units may be supplied with light from a central source via fiber-optics. Remote positioning is accomplished via cable control.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,392,187, issued to Bornhorst on Jul. 5, 1995 discloses a multi-unit cable-controlled lighting system for theater use. Remote units are controlled by coded signals over a two-conductor control bus, and powered by a separate two-conductor power bus. Controlled functions include pan, tilt, and dichroic filtering of projected light. This system is complex and costly to install. In addition, each remote unit must have its address physically set differently from the other units in order to be individually controllable. The control interface is complex, requiring a trained operator.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,406,176, issued to Sugden on Apr. 11, 1995 describes a computer-controlled array of remote light stations which execute a pre-programmed timed sequence of functions.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,779,168 describes a remote-controlled lighting system for use on a vehicle, where the remote pan and tilt functions may be controlled either via hard-wired means or via a wireless transmitter. The wireless option allows flexibility, but does not teach individual control of multiple units by the same remote.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,031,082 issued to Bierend on Jul. 9, 1991 discloses a system for the remote control of multiple modular lighting units where pan, tilt, and on/off functions are controlled via coded signals sent over standard AC power lines. This system offers the advantage that dedicated control wiring is unnecessary, reducing cost and installation time, and making modifications easier. However, this system still requires individual lighting modules to be set on a unique “channel”, and the operator must have knowledge of the channel assignments to actuate the desired light from the remote control panel. Thus some training is required to gain facility with the remote control.
Two major lighting markets exist in which remote-controlled lighting could be of great utility, but where remote-controlled lighting systems known in the art do not adequately serve the needs of the market. The first major market is retail store lighting. Most major retail establishments have a large number of ceiling-mounted track lights (often packed in tight groups) which are regularly re-aimed provide the best lighting as merchandising displays are changed and moved. The re-aiming of these lights is a costly, labor-intensive process, usually involving people going up tall ladders in the middle of the night aiming lights by hand. Often the process requires additional moving of merchandise to position the ladder. It is an object of the present invention to provide an economical modular remote-controlled lighting system which allows easy, intuitive selection of individual lights from within a tightly packed group of lights at distances of 20 or 30 feet. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a modular remote-controlled lighting module which dramatically reduces labor costs in configuring merchandising displays, and which may be used as a direct replacement for non-remote-controlled modules in existing installations, with no increase in installation cost over non-remote-controlled systems.
The second major market not adequately addressed by today's remote-controlled lighting systems is the consumer market. As mentioned in the individual descriptions above, remote-controlled lights known in the art all have limitations such as cost, difficulty of installation, safety, and complexity of user interface, which limit their appeal to the consumer market. In addition, many of the above-described devices are bulky and would not be considered aesthetically suitable for installation in the home, where aesthetics are important. It is an object of the present invention to improve upon the features available in the afore-mentioned devices provide a compact, elegant, economical remote-controlled modular lighting system with a simple, intuitive user interface.
Often stores may have repeated seasonal patterns of displaying merchandise. It is a further object of the present invention to save on needed labor and expertise traditionally needed to re-adjust lighting to previously set display conditions.
The most popular system for remote control of home lighting today is the X10 system (available through Radio Shack and X10.com). Remote controls in the X10 system require the user to know which button on a multi-button remote goes with which light. One of the uses for remote-controlled lighting in the home is to be able to quickly set up various moods and modes in lighting a given room. A mood such as “romance” might call for soft lighting. A mode such as “watching TV” might call for certain lights in the room to be off so they don't cause glare on the TV screen. The X10 system does not allow for pre-programmed moods and modes for sets of lights. It is an object of the present invention to facilitate returning a set of lights to a given mood or mode with the simple pressing of a couple of buttons.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a new means and method for implementing a modular remote-controlled lighting system. This is accomplished through a novel remote control in
Devlin Tom
Weinstein Lee
Lee Guiyoung
O'Shea Sandra
LandOfFree
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