GB2377986A

GB2377986A - Lighting apparatus responsive to spatial orientation

Info

Publication number: GB2377986A
Application number: GB0117288A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Jonathan Coles; Simon Maidment
Original assignee: Mathmos Ltd
Current assignee: Mathmos Ltd
Priority date: 2001-07-16
Filing date: 2001-07-16
Publication date: 2003-01-29
Also published as: WO2003008858A1; GB0117288D0

Abstract

A lighting apparatus 10 comprises an outer body (50, fig. 6), at least one light emitting device 22 disposed at least partially within the body (50), a rechargeable battery 14, and tilt switches 201, 202, 203 to detect the orientation of the body (50). A programmable logic controller (not shown) controls the light emitting devices 22 to produce various effects depending on the orientation of the body (50). The body (50) maybe of translucent glass. The LEDs maybe within a diffusing bulb 16.

Description

LIGHTING APPARATUS Technical Field The present invention relates to a lighting apparatus, and more particularly to a lighting apparatus wherein the lighting effects produced thereby differ dependmg upon the spatial orientation of the body of the apparatus.

Background to the Invention Various lighting apparatus'of differing constructions are well known in the art. Furthermore, various lighting apparatus'such as lamps or the like are also known which can be switched to produce different lighting effects, such as, for example, changes in the colour and/or amplitude of the light produced by the apparatus. One particular prior art arrangement type is, for example, the decorative lights of the type commonly known as"fairy lights"which are used in some countries around Christmas time to decorate homes, buildings, Christmas trees, and the like. Frequently strings of fairy lights are provided in different colours, and an electrical controller is further provided which can automatically control the lights to cause them to change colour and/or amplitude in different patterns and sequences. However, within the prior art arrangements it is usual for the pattern or sequence of lighting effects obtained to be either selected by the user using the controller or merely selected at random by the electrical controller in accordance with an instruction by the user to select random patterns. Thus, as far as a user is concerned, the different lighting effects are produced merely by selecting the particular pattern desired using a selector switch provided on the electrical controller. It is not known in the art for any for any other form of user input to be used to select the desired lighting effect, and the use of a rotary or linear selector switch is the most common.

Summary of the invention The present invention aims to provide a lighting apparatus which allows for a greater level of user interaction with the apparatus itself, in that the apparatus is capable of producing different lighting effects depending upon how the body of the apparatus is moved and handled by a user More particularly, the present invention aims to provide a lighting apparatus which produces a different lighting effect depending upon the spatial orientation of a body of the apparatus, the spatial orientation being adaptable by a user. With such a mechanism, increased human interaction with the lighting apparatus can be achieved.

In order to meet the above, according to the present invention there is provided a lighting apparatus comprising an. outer body; at least one light emitting means at least partially disposed within the body; means for receiving electrical power; orientation detecting means for detecting the spatial orientation of the body; and a controller means arranged to control the light emitting means to produce different lighting effects depending on the spatial orientation of the body as detected by the orientation-detecting means.

Thus, in accordance with the above, when a user interacts with the lighting apparatus of the present invention by changing the orientation thereof, the lighting effect produced by the present invention changes to produce a different lighting effect than was previously being emitted. This provides the advantage that interaction of the user with the light apparatus is increased, as the user is effectively rewarded with a different lighting effect depending upon the orientation in which he/she places the lighting apparatus.

In a preferred embodiment, the light emitting means comprises a plurality of light emitting diodes of different colours, which are preferably red, blue and green. By using such light emitting diodes, and pulse width

modulating the diodes, then almost any colour at almost any amplitude can be achieved when the light from each diode is combined in a diffuser.

Therefore, within the preferred embodiment the light emitter means is preferably disposed within a diffusing means to diffuse the light emitted therefrom. This provides the advantage that it is not possible to identify within the lighting apparatus a single point light source, and furthermore where the light emitter means comprises light sources of different colours, the diffuser acts to mix the light emitted from each different light source to produce an overall colour which is then emitted by the lighting apparatus.

Preferably, the diffusing means comprises one or more moulded acrylic

bulbs within which the light emitter means are at least partially encased. The use of moulded acrylic provides the required diffusion effect, without causing too much absorption of the light by the diffuser.

Furthermore, within the preferred embodiment the means for receiving electrical power further comprise at least one re-chargeable battery; and socket means for receiving an electrical cable from an external power supply for supplying charge current to the battery. The use of a re-chargeable battery within the lighting apparatus means that the apparatus can be cordless, which further encourages user interaction with the apparatus. Furthermore, the apparatus then becomes portable and can be taken anywhere for use provided the battery is charged.

In addition, within the preferred embodiment the controller means is a programmable logic circuit such as a PIC chip which is suitably programmed within a software programme to control the light emitting means to produce the lighting effects in response to the orientation of the body as detected by the orientation detector means. The use of such a programmable logic circuit renders control of the light emitting means quite straightforward, as in recent years programmable logic circuits of the PIC type have become increasingly easy to programme.

Furthermore, use of a programmable logic circuit provides a further advantage that it is possible for the circuit to be programmed with several different lighting effect programmes, to produce different changes in lighting effects dependent on the same changes in orientation of the body, such that it then becomes possible to produce different versions of the lighting apparatus of the present invention on the same assembly line. The particular version for any particular lighting apparatus can be selected on the production line by setting one or more jumps provided on the electrical circuit board to select the programme to be operated by the programmable logic circuit.

Preferably, the outer body is made of glass and is further arranged to diffuse any light emitted from components contained in the body. The use of glass increases the weight of the apparatus, to enhance the feeling of the user that the apparatus is a solid and quality product.

Finally, in the preferred embodiment the lighting effects produced by the lighting apparatus of the present invention include the production of different colours and/or with different amplitudes of the light by the light emitting means.

Brief Description of the Drawings Further features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof, presented by way of example only, and by reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts, and wherein :- Figure 1 gives a side perspective view of the internal electronic components of the lighting apparatus of the present invention ; Figure 2 illustrates a plan view of the internal electronic components contained within the present invention, as shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 illustrates a side elevation view of the internal electronic components included within the lighting apparatus, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, Figure 4 is an exploded perspective view of a lid of the lighting apparatus, provided with an inner mounting for the internal electronic components of the present invention ; Figure 5 gives a perspective view of the internal electronic components as wanted in the lid of Figure 4; Figure 6 is an exploded perspective view illustrating how the lid and electronic components of Figure 5 are mounted within the main body of the lighting apparatus; and Figure 7 gives a perspective view of the assembled lighting apparatus of the invention.

Description of a Preferred Embodiment A preferred embodiment of the lighting apparatus of the present invention will now be described with reference to all of Figures 1 to 7.

Figures 1,2 and 3 illustrate the internal electronic components which are contained within the preferred embodiment of the lighting apparatus of the present invention. As shown therein, a printed circuit board (PCB) 12 formed from glass fibre sheet with finished edges has mounted thereon a socket means (18) for receiving a plug of the type commonly found as the output from a battery charger, and a re-chargeable battery (14) provided with contact terminals into the circuit printed onto the circuit board, in order to act as a power supply for the electrical circuit printed thereon. Disposed next to the rechargeable battery (14) are a plurality of tilt switches 201,202 and 203. The tilt switches 201 and 202 are soldered onto the PCB 12 such that they project from the upper surface thereof, each at an angle of 45 to the plane of the circuit board. Furthermore, the tilt switches 201 and 202 are further arranged

such that they angle away from each other so that there is 900 between their respective long axes. The third tilt switch 203 is provided so as to project in a substantially downwards direction from the lower surface of the circuit board 12, and is again arranged so as to project at 450 to the plane of the circuit board. In a preferred configuration, the long axes of the tilt switches 201,202 and 203 are preferably arranged to be orthogonal to each other, such that a 90 angle exists between each. The purpose of this arrangement is to ensure that the three tilt switches in combination can provide an indication of the spatial orientation of the circuit board 12 in three dimensions.

Also provided in the circuit on the circuit board 12 are a plurality of high intensity light emitting diodes (LED's) 22. Within the preferred embodiment a total of 6 LED's are provided in two banks of three, being an upper bank projecting from the upper surface of the PCB 12 and a lower bank projecting from the lower surface of the circuit board 12. These 6 LED's 22 are each arranged to emit light of one of three colours, being either red, green or blue. The upper bank of LED's are preferably arranged in the order red, green, blue, whereas the lower bank of LED's are arranged in the order blue, red, green. This arrangement ensures that no two LED's of the same colour are laterally or vertically next to each, thereby improving mixing of the light emitted from each LED. As will be seen, the two banks of LED's each have their legs bent such that the light emitting portions of the LED's face in the same direction, i. e. to the left as shown in Figures 1,2 and 3. This is to facilitate the encasing of the light emitting portions of each LED within a diffusing bulb 16, which in the preferred embodiment is formed from high quality water-clear moulded acrylic. The purpose of the diffusing bulb 16 is to improve the mixing of the light emitted from each LED, as well as to diffuse the mixed light such that the light does not appear to come from one or more point sources. The purpose of this diffusion is to enhance the overall appearance of the lighting apparatus of the invention when in operation.

The diffusing bulb 16 is preferably shaped so as to provide uniform emission of light from its outer surface, and within the preferred embodiment is a unitary moulded bulb of substantially parabolic cross section, as will be seen in Figure 3. However, it should be noted that this particular shape is not essential and that other shapes of diffusing bulb have found to be just-as effective, such as, for example spheres, ovoids, or the like. Furthermore, it is not essential for the ball to be formed in one part, and we have also achieved good results with a two part diffusing ball which is moulded in two parts and then fitted around the two banks of LED's. The two part bulb provides advantages in that it is easier to manufacture, but the light emission distribution across its outer surface is not as uniform as is achieved with a unitary bulb.

Returning to the Figures, the diffusing bulb 16 is mounted on the circuit board by mounting means affixed to the circuit bulb by means of two small nut and bolt pairs 24. Also provided on the circuit board but not shown on the drawing is a surface mounted programmable logic controller such as those sold under the trade name Programmable Integrated Circuit (PIC). The programmable logic circuit is arranged to receive inputs from the tilt switches 201,202 and 203, and has the six LEDs 22 connected on it's output pins such that it can control the LEDs to produce different lighting effects. The operation of the programmable logic circuit will be discussed in more detail when the overall operation of the lighting apparatus of the present invention is discussed later.

Turning to Figures 4 and 5, these figures show how the internal electronic components mounted on the circuit board 12 are mounted on a lid 30 of the lighting apparatus. More particularly, a lid 30 is provided preferably formed from poly-propylene. The lid 30 is provided with a PCB support 32 extending away from the plane of the lid 30 orthogonal thereto. The PCB support 32 is of substantially circular cross section, but further comprises a cutout portion 324 extending from midway along the length of the PCB support to

the distal end thereof from the lid, as well as two parallel slots 322 cut into the PCB support extending in a longitudinal direction from the free end of the support. Further mounted on the lid 30 is an annular sealing ring 34 which is disposed around the base of the PCB support 32, on the inner major surface of the lid 30 Further disposed around the circumference of the annular sealing nng 34 are a plurality of clip members 38, which are used to secure the lid 30 with the electronic assembly 10 with the body of the lighting apparatus, as will be described later. In addition, located next to the clip members 38 around the circumference of the annular sealing ring 34 are a plurality of guide members 39, which are provided to ensure alignment of the lid 30 with the body.

The internal electronic assembly 10 is secured within the PCB support 32 as shown in Figure 5. That is, the PCB 12 is received into the longitudinal slots 322 provided in the PCB support 32 and the re-chargeable battery 14 rests within the cut out portion 324. It should be noted at this point that the lid 30 is provided with a circular opening extending through the major wall thereof and which opens into the interior of the PCB support 32. When the inner electronic assembly 10 is located within the PCB support 32 the socket means 18 is accessible from the exterior of the lid 30 through the hole provided therein. In order to provide a water seal around this hole a sealing ring 36 is provided disposed within the hole, as shown in Figure 6. The sealing ring 36 is provided with a plurality of rubber flap portions which allow a charging plug to be inserted therethrough into the socket 18 for charging the battery.

Figure 5 further illustrates how, once the electronic assembly 10 has been placed within the PCB support, it is secured therein. More particularly, it will be seen from Figures 3,4 and 5 that the battery 14 is provided with a plurality of slots 141 in the outer casing thereof. These slots are used to secure the electronic assembly 10 within the PCB support 32 by engaging a cable tie 42 within the slots, and extending around the battery and outer surface of the PCB support 32 to secure the electronic assembly 10 within the PCB support.

The use of the cable tie 42 provides an extremely simple and cost effective yet secure means of securing the electronic assembly 10 to the lid 30, thereby reducing production costs for the lighting apparatus Having described how the electronic inner assembly 10 is fastened to the lid 30, Figure 6 further illustrates how the lid 30 with the electronic assembly 10 is fastened into the outer body 50 of the lighting apparatus More particularly, an outer body 50 in the form of a bottle made from soda lime glass is provided, which has a circular neck portion forming an opening and which has a circular flange 54 extending around the circumference thereof. The flange has two cut out portions 56 which act as guide portions to ensure that the lid 30 is in alignment with the bottle 50. A sealing ring 52 is provided between the mating surfaces of the neck portion of the bottle and the sealing ring 34 provided on the lid portion 30. To assemble the lighting apparatus, the electronic assembly 10 mounted on the lid portion 30 is inserted through the sealing ring 52 and then into the opening in the neck portion of the bottle 50.

The lid portion 30 is then brought into contact with the neck portion of the bottle 50 and is rotated until it is brought into alignment therewith such that the guide members 39 provided on the inner surface of the lid 30 are in alignment with the guide cut out portions 56 provided in the flange 54. Once the lid 30 is alignment with the bottle 50 a sealing force is applied which forces the catch members 38 provided on the inner surface of the lid 30 to travel up and over the flange 54 to catch therebehind, thereby sealing the lid onto the bottle portion. Rotation of the lid with respect to the bottle portion is prevented once the lid has been attached thereto by virtue of the guide members 39 on the lid being disposed within the cut out portions 56 provided on the neck portion of the bottle.

The bottle 50 of the lighting apparatus is preferably formed from soda lime glass, and is provided with a silky etched effect diffusing spray finish in order to further diffuse the light emitted from the diffusing bulb provided on

the electronic assembly contained therein. Figure 7 illustrates the finished apparatus, from which it will be understood that none of the inner electronic assembly 10 is visible from the exterior, and that the lighting apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the invention provides a substantially plain glass block form, the only entry into which is provided by the sealing means 36, to allow access to the socket means 18 for a plug from a battery charger. The use of soda lime glass as the material for the bottle 50 confers on the lighting apparatus a feeling of weight and solidity, thereby enhancing the user's appreciation of the product.

Having described the construction of the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the operation thereof will now be described.

As mentioned previously, control of the lighting apparatus is effected by a programmable logic circuit such as a PIC chip mounted on the circuit board 12 of the electronic assembly 10. Such programmable logic circuits are well known in the art, and can be loaded with software programs to cause the chip to provide an output on particular of its output pins in response to certain inputs.

In the present case the programmable logic circuit is arranged to control the six LED's 22 so as each to produce light of its own particular colour at an intensity to be determined by the logic circuit, such that when the light from each LED is mixed together different colours and different amplitudes of light can be produced. Control of the LED's is effected by the programmable logic circuit by means of pulse width modulation (PWM) which is a well known technique which involves varying the"duty cycle"of each LED, being the fraction of a unit time period when each LED is turned on, to obtain a desired intensity of light from that LED. By controlling each LED in this manner, it is possible to vary the proportions of red, green and blue light emitted by the LED's to achieve almost any colour. Pulse width modulation is a technique which is well known in the art, and hence no further discussion thereof will be undertaken here.

The programmable logic circuit takes as its input the outputs from the three tilt switches 201,202 and 203. By detecting whether each of these tilt switches is activated or not, it is possible for the programmable logic circuit to determine which orientation a body of the lighting apparatus is in in three dimensions. Furthermore, it is further possible for the programmable logic circuit to detect changes in the orientation of the bottle, to transmit the which are caused by the user when the user interacts with the lighting apparatus. The programmable logic circuit therefore uses the tilt switches to detect both initial orientation as well as any change in the orientation of the lighting apparatus, and then depending on the particular programme stored therein controls the LED's using pulse width modulation to produce a different lighting effect.

Various lighting effects can be achieved by the present invention, and the particular effects achieved are dictated by the particular programs stored on the programmable logic circuit. In one version of the preferred embodiment of the invention, the lighting apparatus produces only a single colour at once, but the colour produced for example (either red, green or blue) depends upon the orientation in which the lighting apparatus is lying. For example the lighting apparatus may produce red light when one particular face is facing upwards, or produce green light when the apparatus is turned such that another face faces upwards. Furthermore, if the apparatus is turned yet again to display another face then the light may pulse. Preferably, in all versions there is an orientation which can be selected by the user, such as for example a lid up position, which effectively turns the lighting apparatus off.

In other versions of the lighting apparatus, multiple colours on a continuous cross-fade cycle can be produced, and the changes in orientation of the apparatus act to change the cycle speed of the cross-fade cycle. In further embodiments the apparatus can be arranged to produce a random colour at any change in orientation that is determined.

It will be understood by the intended reader that the above descriptions represent mere examples of the type of operation that can be achieved using the present mvention, and that further variations of the lighting effect not specifically described above could be used within the present invention and are intended to be encompassed therein.

Preferably the different programs which determine what lighting effects the lighting apparatus produces when its orientation changes are all stored on a standard programmable logic circuit which is used in the electronic assembly 10. In order to select a particular program stored on the programmable logic circuit metal jump links are used during manufacture, thereby effectively determining what model of lighting apparatus any particular manufactured apparatus will be.

It will be apparent to the intended reader that many variations can be made to the described preferred embodiment without departing from the scope of the present invention. In particular, whereas in the preferred embodiment we have described the body of the lighting apparatus as being formed from glass in a substantially cuboid shape, this is not essential and the body can be formed of any suitably transparent or translucent material. Furthermore, it is not essential that the body be regular in shape, and in fact the body can be any shape desired. Having said this, it is however preferable to provide flats on the external surface of the body in order to allow the lighting apparatus to be rested on each flat to assume a particular orientation with each. For this reason a cuboid shape is preferred for stability, but in fact any three dimensional polyhedral shape could be used or the body could be in any sort of moulded or sculpted other shape.

Furthermore, it is not essential for the body to be formed from a hard material such as glass or plastic, and instead the body could be formed from or coated in a pliable material such as rubber or silicone. In such a case it is of course essential for the coating material or material which forms the body to be

at least translucent in order to allow light from the LED's contained therein to be transmitted and/or diffused therethrough.

In addition to the above, in other embodiments it would be possible to use an electrical cable to supply power to the internal electronic assembly instead of using a rechargeable battery. In such a case it would be preferable to use a DC power supply to supply low voltage DC along the cable to the electronic assembly, in order to avoid problems associated with handling mains voltage within the lighting apparatus itself. However, it should be understood that it would be possible to directly supply mains voltage via a cable into the lighting apparatus and it should be apparent to the skilled man as to how the internal circuitry would be modified to accommodate such a power supply.

Claims

CLAIMS: 1. A lighting apparatus comprising an outer body, at least one lightemitting means at least partially disposed within the body; means for receiving electrical power; orientation detecting means for detecting the spatial orientation of the body; and a controller means arranged to control the lightemitting means to produce different lighting effects depending on the spatial orientation of the body as detected by the orientation detecting means.
2. A lighting apparatus according to Claim 1, wherein said light-emitting means comprises a plurality of light-emitting diodes of different colours.
3. A lighting apparatus according to Claim 1 or 2 wherein said lightemitting means is disposed within a diffusing means to diffuse the light emitted therefrom.
4. A lighting apparatus according to Claim 3, wherein said diffusing means comprises one or more moulded acrylic bulbs within which said light-emitting means are at least partially encased.
5. A lighting apparatus according to any of the preceding claims wherein said means for receiving electrical power further comprise: at least one re-chargeable battery; and socket means for receiving an electrical cable from an external power supply for supplying charge current to said battery.
6. A lighting apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said orientation detecting means comprises a plurality of tilt switches arranged

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to provide for detection of spatial orientation changes of the outer body in any direction.
7. A lighting apparatus according to Claim 6, wherein said tilt switches are each offset from each other by 90 .
8. A lighting apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the controller means is a programmable logic control suitably programmed to control the light-emitting means to produce the lighting effects in response to the orientation of the body as detected by the orientation detecting means.
9. A lighting apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the outer body is made of glass, and is further arranged to diffuse any light emitted from components contained within the body.
10. A lighting apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the lighting effects include the production of different colours and/or amplitude of light by the light-emitting means.
11. A lighting apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the outer body is provided with one or more flats in the outer surface thereof.
12. A lighting apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described and/or with reference to the accompanying drawings.