EP1397576B1 - Device for radio-frequency controlled drive - Google Patents

Abstract

The drive (2) has a motor (10) controlled by a radio frequency circuit (12). Conductors (14) supply electricity to the motor and to the radio frequency circuit. The drive circuit can transmit or receive radio frequency signals directly through an antenna (16), or from the electric power supply conductors through an isolating coupling.

Description

The present invention relates to the control devices by radio frequency control, and more specifically the drive devices used for winding blinds and shutters.

In the field of housing or building in general, it is increasingly used radio transmission to remotely control elements electrically powered by the low voltage network (typically 230 V AC 50 Hz or 120 V AC 60 Hz), or sector.

The plaintiff markets under the reference SLT and IPSO a drive motor blinds or shutters, with radio remote control. This motor has a tubular shape and is placed inside a steel winding tube, on which is disposed the product to be wound. Under these conditions, the radio integrated in the motor has an antenna in the form of a semi-rigid wire strand, coming out of the tubular motor and also coming out of the winding tube over an appropriate distance, for example λ / 4 (a quarter of the wavelength), ie 17 cm for a frequency of 433 MHz or 8 cm for a frequency of 868 MHz.

This kind of antenna has a disadvantage of fragility, relative to the mass of the engine, which requires special handling and packaging precautions. In addition, the housing of the winding tube of the blind or shutter, is often made of a steel box, or even aluminum. In this unfavorable environment, the range of the antenna can be considerably reduced. In addition, if the device is mounted externally on a reinforced concrete wall, this reduction is accentuated.

It should be noted that various solutions have been proposed to facilitate the integration of a radio receiver with such an engine. So EP-0-921 266-A2 proposes the direct placement of the radio receiver inside the motor tube. There is no explicit mention of the antenna layout. In the product marketed by TOPELECTRO International, in Spain, under the reference TOPELECTRO JUNIOR, the quarter wave antenna is disposed completely independently of the mains wire, partially wound on itself so as to take up less space. This provision explains an extremely limited scope.

In the patent FR-2 743 390 , the radio receiver is arranged in a control box independent of the motor tube, but easy integration with the rolling shutter box or a blind fastener. There is no mention of a particular arrangement of the antenna within this housing.

It has also been proposed, in separate applications, to use the power cable of the sector as mechanical support of an antenna. Examples of device ordered radio, with an antenna extending along the power cable of the sector but without coupling to the sector, are proposed in US-A-2,218,830 , GB-A-340389 , US-A-6,104,920 , US-A-5,351,284 or US-A-3,863,157 . US-A-2,218,830 proposes an antenna for radio or television receiver, having an antenna formed by a wire associated with the power cable; the antenna is associated with this cable so as to minimize the coupling between the antenna and the mains wire. The interest is then to have a non-directive antenna and of length well calibrated by the manufacturer: thus the setting of the circuit HF does not depend on variable parameters, as it is the case with an external antenna left with the initiative of the installer. GB-A-340389 proposes, for such receivers, to use directly as an antenna a portion of the mains cable, isolated upstream and downstream by two plug circuits. At the frequency of the signal, everything happens as if the cable was a single wire serving as aerial wire. The two plugs provide isolation between the signals received by the antenna cable and the mains signals. Figure 4 of US-A-6,104,920 proposes a device of the same kind as this English patent. GB-A-702,525 proposes a solution of the same kind, for television receivers. The signal received on the portion of the antenna feed conductors is coupled into the receiver using a coupling coil and a coaxial cable.

US-A-5,351,284 relates to the base of a cordless phone; the telescopic antenna is replaced by a wire coupled to either the telephone line or the mains cable; it is expressly stated that the telephone line or mains cable does not contribute to the reception of the antenna. US-A-3,863,157 proposes a device of the same kind, in which the connecting son between the amplifier of a stereo receiver and the speakers are also used as antenna son; there is still a separation of the two functions. In all these documents, the objective is to replace a fragile or unsightly aerial with a portion of a cable accepted for other reasons. These documents accordingly specify that it is important to isolate the signals received on the cable serving as aerial signals transmitted on the cable in its usual use.

US-A-4,032,723 shows a cordless duplex telephone system; one of the elements of a doublet antenna consists of a conductor of the mains cable. The teaching of this document is similar to that of the previous documents - however the antenna is of another type.

It was also proposed to use the sector as a receiving antenna. The company BUBENDORFF sells under the reference 'id' a motor for roller shutters with integrated radio without specific antenna, for which the sector is globally used as receiving antenna, and using an electrical connection by capacitor between the terminal of arrival of a wire sector and the RF input point of the receiver circuit. It should be noted that such an arrangement makes the electronic card particularly sensitive to attacks by energy parasites carried by the sector.

For other fields of technology, similar teaching appears in the documents US-A2 581 983 , US-A-3,290,601 , US-A-2 915 627 or US-A-4,507,646 . US-A2 581 98B proposes to couple a radiofrequency reception circuit to the power supply cable of a radio receiver. The coupling point is a quarter to one eighth wavelength away from the receiver chassis, which is grounded. US-A-3,290,601 is an improvement of this patent, and proposes simply to form a doublet antenna by associating with the preceding device a monopole antenna. US-A-2 915 627 offers an antenna for radio receiver. A cylindrical conductor of one-quarter to one-half the wavelength of the radio frequency signals surrounds the power cable; the cylindrical conductor transmits to a radio frequency receiver the radiofrequency signals received by the sector, which acts as an antenna. US-A-4,507,646 proposes to use the sector wires as an antenna of the transmitter or receiver for a paging system; the nature of the coupling circuit of the receiver or radiofrequency transmitter to the sector is not specified.

The devices described in these various documents are intended to avoid using a dedicated antenna, using as antenna sector drivers. This solution involves precisely controlling the coupling point of the receiver or radiofrequency transmitter to the sector conductors; lack of such control of the coupling point, this solution actually has serious drawbacks in terms of selectivity, and susceptibility to broadband energy parasites carried by the sector. In addition, the galvanic isolation may require the use of particularly protected capacitors.

The invention proposes, in the specific case of tubular motors, a solution that makes it possible to control a motor by radio, with good reliability. The solution applies to all operating environments of these engines; it is simple to implement.

More specifically, the invention proposes a drive device having a motor, a radio frequency control circuit of the motor, motor power supply conductors and the radio frequency circuit and a monopole antenna connected to the radio frequency circuit and electrically coupled for radiofrequency at least one of the conductors by a non-galvanic coupling.

Advantageously, the power received or partially transmitted directly through the antenna represents more than 5%, or even 10% of the power received or transmitted by the radio frequency circuit.

Preferably, the power received or partially transmitted directly through the antenna represents less than 50% or even less than 40% of the power received or transmitted by the radio frequency circuit.

In one embodiment, the antenna is mechanically coupled to the conductors. The antenna may have a length close to one quarter of the wavelength of the radiofrequency signals received or transmitted by the radio frequency circuit.

In another embodiment, the device has a motor tube in which are arranged the motor, the radio frequency circuit and the antenna. This tube is for example a metal tube.

It is still possible to provide that the antenna is formed of a printed circuit track. In this case, it is advantageous that at least one conductor has a printed circuit track extending parallel to the track forming the antenna.

• figure 1 une vue schématique en coupe d'un dispositif d'entraînement selon invention;
• figure 2 une vue schématique partielle d'un autre mode de réalisation d'un dispositif d'entraînement.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear on reading the following description of embodiments of the invention, given by way of example and with reference to the appended drawings which show:

• figure 1 a schematic sectional view of a drive device according to the invention;
• figure 2 a partial schematic view of another embodiment of a driving device.

• en partie par l'antenne, qui agit comme une antenne classique;
• en partie à travers le secteur, qui agit comme antenne.

The invention proposes, for the radio control of an engine, to use a monopole antenna and to couple this antenna to the power supply conductors of the motor, by a non-galvanic coupling; the antenna is thus coupled to the conductors for radio frequencies, but is isolated from them at the frequency of the supply currents. In this way, the radiofrequency power emitted or received is:

• partly by the antenna, which acts as a conventional antenna;
• partly through the sector, which acts as an antenna.

The invention differs from the solution of the state of the art described in US-A-2,218,830 or in similar documents. Indeed, the antenna is electrically coupled to the power supply conductors, so that the radio frequency signals are at least partly received or emitted through the mains supply conductors. This configuration is particularly advantageous when the engine is in a steel or aluminum box, which can limit the propagation of electromagnetic waves.

The invention also differs from the state-of-the-art solution proposed in US-A2 581 983 or in similar documents; indeed, in these documents, there is no antenna receiving or emitting directly part of the radiated power or emitted. Since the invention is not based solely on the sector, it ensures a more efficient reception or emission.

The solution of the invention makes it possible to solve the problems of the engines of the state of the art. Since the antenna is electrically coupled to the mains wires, it is possible to arrange the antenna inside a metal tube containing the motor and its control circuit. The antenna does not protrude from the tube and will not be damaged during transport or assembly.

The figure 1 shows a schematic sectional view of a driving device according to a first embodiment of the invention. The device 2 has a tube 4, or tube engine. The motor tube is typically cylindrical in shape. It is often made of metal, which ensures the necessary mechanical rigidity; it can also be plastic. Around the engine tube is provided a winding tube 9, usually metal. This winding tube is mounted on two supports 6 and 8, the support 6 being at one end of the tube 4. The two supports include a bearing facilitating the rotation of the winding tube. This tube 9 receives the end of the shutter or awning to be wound.

Inside the motor tube 4 is provided an electric motor 10, which is capable of rotating the winding tube 9, with respect to the motor tube 4, by means of a drive wheel 11. The device further comprises, always inside the motor tube 4, a radiofrequency circuit 12 for controlling the motor. This circuit is capable of receiving or transmitting radio frequency signals, as explained below. The term "radiofrequency" is used here to mean the frequency ranges between 100 and 1000 MHz, with transmission through the air over short distances - of the order of 10 to 1000 m in free field.

The circuit 12 controls the motor according to the received signals and / or the transmitted signals. The motor and the radio frequency circuit are powered by conductors 14 intended to be connected to the electrical network.

The device also has an antenna 16. This antenna is firstly connected to the radiofrequency circuit, so that the radiofrequency signals received by the antenna are applied to the circuit and / or so that the radiofrequency signals supplied by the circuit are radiated by antenna. The antenna is typically a quarter-wave antenna, formed of an elongated conductor having a length of the order of a quarter of the wavelength of the frequency used for the control of the engine; the common frequency ranges for home automation applications are 433 MHz or 868 MHz, which leads to an antenna length of about 17 or 8 cm. In the simplest version, the antenna will be a monopoly. As shown in the figure, the antenna extends entirely into the motor tube 4; this has the advantage that the antenna is thus protected by the tube. The problems of fragility of the antenna or installation of it no longer arise.

The antenna 16 is also electrically coupled to at least one of the power supply conductors 14 of the motor and the power circuit. The electrical coupling between the conductor (s) 14 and the antenna 16 enables the radio frequency circuit to receive, through the antenna, radio frequency signals picked up by the electrical network; the network can therefore serve as an antenna for receiving radio frequency signals for the motor control circuit. Conversely, the electrical coupling between the conductor (s) 14 and the antenna 16 allows the radio frequency circuit to transmit through the antenna 16 radiofrequency signals to the electrical network; the electrical network can therefore act as a transmitting antenna for radiofrequency signals emitted by the motor control circuit.

The coupling between the antenna and the conductor (s) 14 is a coupling that is both non-galvanic and selective; that is, the antenna and the conductor are electrically coupled for signals in radiofrequency ranges used for motor control; however, at the power frequencies of the motor, the antenna and the conductors are isolated. This non-galvanic coupling can be carried out in various ways; the simplest is, as represented in figure 1 , that the antenna extends in the vicinity of the conductors; the distance between the conductor (s) and the antenna can be as small as possible and simply correspond to the thickness of the insulation surrounding the conductors; this configuration has the advantage of maximizing the coupling between the antenna and the drivers for radio frequencies.

It is also possible to mechanically couple the antenna to the conductors; this facilitates the mounting of the drive device. A simple method consists in passing the conductors and the antenna wire in the same insulating sheath, possibly heat-shrinkable; such a mechanical coupling ensures a good proximity of the conductors and the antenna wire, and therefore a good electrical coupling.

The figure 1 still shows in dotted lines the boundaries of a box 18 in which the drive device is placed; this box is a box often metal steel or aluminum; it receives the winding tube and the blind or roller shutter when it is in a folded position. The box can then be fully closed; this is particularly the case for the boxes of external blinds, which are closed when the blind is folded. In such a configuration, the antenna 16 is surrounded firstly by the tube of the motor 4, then by the winding tube 9, then by the box; the conductors 14 come out against the engine tube as the box, to be connected to the sector. It is clear, however, that the exact position of the connection between the conductors 14 and the electrical network does not affect the operation of the device.

The device of the figure 1 works as explained now. It can operate on the one hand in reception, for example to transmit to the driving device an order of operation - in the case of a blind or roller shutter, a winding or unwinding order of the blind, or still a stop order of winding or unwinding. It can also operate in transmission, to transmit information relating to the state of the training device - for example an acknowledgment of receipt of a command, or information on the position of the training device or its speed; in this case, it is of course unreasonable to describe circuit 12 as a "control" circuit, since the control of the motor can be executed by other means; however, this term is used for simplicity in the present description. The operation in transmission and the operation in reception are similar, and only the operation in reception is described in detail.

• les signaux directement reçus par l'antenne 16, et
• les signaux reçus par les conducteurs d'alimentation et couplés à l'antenne 16.

In reception, radiofrequency signals are transmitted by a transmitter - for example a portable transmitter - to the training device. These signals are on the one hand received directly by the antenna 16, and are therefore applied to the control circuit, to be decoded and executed. On the other hand, the signals are also received by the drivers of the sector - who act as antenna. Due to the electrical coupling in the radiofrequency domain between the conductors 14 and the antenna, the radiofrequency signals received by the conductors are transmitted to the antenna 16 and thus applied to the control circuit. He therefore receives:

• the signals directly received by the antenna 16, and
• the signals received by the supply conductors and coupled to the antenna 16.

The commands applied to the control circuit are transmitted by the latter to the motor, so as to drive the winding tube in rotation in one direction or the other, or to interrupt its rotation.

• les signaux reçus directement par l'antenne; et
• la puissance totale reçue par le circuit radiofréquence

variait entre 3 et 40% avec une moyenne de 21 %. Il est donc préférable que cette proportion soit supérieure à 5 %, voire supérieure à 10%; ceci est assuré par la seule présence de l'antenne. Il est aussi préférable que cette proportion soit inférieure à 50%, voire 40%; ceci est assuré par le couplage non galvanique entre l'antenne et le ou les conducteurs. La proportion diminue d'autant plus que le tube d'enroulement limite la propagation des ondes radiofréquences; elle diminue aussi si le dispositif d'enroulement est dans un caisson métallique. Les bornes proposées assurent un fonctionnement correct dans toutes les circonstances habituellement rencontrées dans les bâtiments.The Applicant has carried out acceptance tests of a drive device according to the invention, with respect to a device without electrical coupling of the antenna and the supply conductor or conductors; the coupling during the tests was obtained by placing the antenna in the vicinity of the conductors, at a distance of 2 mm, over almost the entire length (14 cm) of the antenna (17 cm); for a frequency of 433 MHz. The tests were carried out in a semi anechoic chamber. They demonstrated that the proportion of signals received directly from the antenna or through the supply conductors depended on the orientation of the training device. This proportion between:

• the signals received directly by the antenna; and
• the total power received by the radio frequency circuit

ranged between 3 and 40% with an average of 21%. It is therefore preferable that this proportion be greater than 5%, or even greater than 10%; this is ensured by the mere presence of the antenna. It is also preferable that this proportion be less than 50% or even 40%; this is ensured by the non-galvanic coupling between the antenna and the conductor (s). The proportion decreases all the more as the winding tube limits the propagation of radiofrequency waves; it also decreases if the winding device is in a metal box. The proposed terminals ensure proper operation in all circumstances usually encountered in buildings.

By way of comparison, when comparing single, identical motors but one (MA) with the antenna outside the tube 4 of steel, as already marketed by the applicant, and the other (MB) with the antenna according to the invention, the radiofrequency signals at the input of the control circuit have in the second case a power 10 dB lower than the corresponding power in the first case; this attenuation is representative of the attenuation caused by the motor tube - the antenna being arranged in the motor tube. The invention therefore has the effect of deteriorating the performance of an engine not yet installed.

On the other hand, when the device MB is inside a winding tube and a metal box, corresponding to the typical conditions of use, the radiofrequency signals at the input of the control circuit have a higher power of 3 dB to the corresponding power in an MA device also placed in a winding tube and a box; this increase in power is representative of the effect of the non-galvanic coupling between the supply conductors and the antenna in the device of the invention.

The figure 2 shows a schematic partial view of another embodiment. In the embodiment of the figure 2 , the antenna has the shape of a track 22 of a printed circuit 24. The coupling can then simply be achieved by using for the conductor or drivers one or two tracks 26 or 28 adjacent to the track materializing the antenna.

The device of the invention is remarkable in that it avoids problems during assembly of the device, during its installation, as during its current use.

Of course, the present invention is not limited to the examples and embodiments described and shown, but it is capable of many variants accessible to those skilled in the art. One could thus use configurations different from those of the figures, provided for example that the engine is delivered with the power cord, which is not always the case. In such a situation, the bead would be made specifically, and contain, at the end to be connected to the motor, the antenna strand or a portion thereof. Such an arrangement would make it possible, at least partially, to have the antenna outside the motor tube and / or the winding tube, and thus to better distribute the control signal powers transmitted directly or by the wires. 'food. It is also possible that the antenna extends outside the motor tube, even in the case where the power cord is delivered with the motor.

It is also clear that the invention is not limited to the preferred embodiment of roller shutters or blinds. It applies more generally to all training devices, such as those of garage doors, chairs or articulated beds, or other.

Claims (9)

1. Driving device (2), having:

   - a motor (10);

   - a radio frequency circuit (12) to control the motor;

   - conductors (14) for power supply to the motor and radio frequency circuit;

   - an antenna (16) connected to the radio frequency circuit,

   characterized in that
   the antenna is a single-pole antenna which is coupled electrically for radio frequencies to at least one of the conductors, by non-galvanic coupling.
2. Device of Claim 1, characterized in that for a given installation configuration of the driving device, the coupling between the antenna and at least one of the conductors is such that the power which is received or emitted partly directly via the antenna (16) represents over 5% or even 15% of the power which the radio frequency circuit (12) receives or emits.
3. Device of Claim 1 or 2, characterized in that for a given installation configuration of the driving device, the coupling between the antenna and at least one of the conductors is such that the power which is received or emitted partly directly via the antenna (16) represents under 50% or even 40% of the power which the radio frequency circuit (12) receives or emits.
4. Device of Claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that the antenna (16) is coupled mechanically to the conductors (14).
5. Device of Claim 1, characterized in that the antenna (16) has a length close to a quarter of the wavelength of the radio frequency signals which the radio frequency circuit receives or emits.
6. Device of any one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it has a motor tube (4), in which the motor, the radio frequency circuit and the antenna are arranged.
7. Device of Claim 6, characterized in that the tube (4) is metallic.
8. Device of any one of Claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the antenna is formed by a track (22) of a printed circuit (24).
9. Device of Claim 8, characterized in that at least one conductor (14) has a printed circuit track (26, 28) which extends parallel to the track forming the antenna.

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