JP4470785B2 - Lighting control system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a lighting control system.

  Some of the conventional illumination control systems perform signal transmission by visible light, and the configuration of the signal transmission is shown in FIGS. First, a signal to be transmitted is output from the personal computer 50 to the luminaire 52 using an LED via the modulator 51. Here, the modulation unit 51 includes a signal amplification unit 51 a that amplifies input data and a superposition unit 51 b that modulates a signal, and drives the lighting fixture 52. In the lighting fixture 52, the LED 52 b connected to the power source 52 a is driven by a signal from the modulation unit 51 and performs visible light communication with the light output receiving terminal 53. The optical output receiving terminal 53 demodulates the received signal and controls the printer 54.

In this way, by using a lighting fixture as an optical communication medium, optical communication is realized without using a special communication medium. (For example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2)
JP 2002-290335 A JP 2003-318836 A

  However, in order to use a lighting fixture usually used for lighting as a communication medium, wiring for communication is constructed separately from the wiring for lighting (power supply line, dimming signal line) used in the lighting dimming system. In a large-scale lighting system that is necessary for non-residential facilities, wiring is complicated, and there are many construction restrictions. In addition, it is necessary to provide a personal computer for data transmission separately from the illumination dimming system, and the same problem as the above wiring problem has occurred.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above reasons, and its object is to provide illumination control capable of easily performing visible light communication using an existing illumination dimming system without installing communication wiring. To provide a system.

The invention of claim 1 includes a plurality of lighting fixtures and a lighting control device that changes the light output of each lighting fixture by transmitting a dimming signal connected to the plurality of lighting fixtures and having a variable on-duty. The lighting control device stops transmitting the dimming signal when the trigger signal is input, and transmits the predetermined signal generated when the trigger signal is input and the information signal following the predetermined signal to the same transmission as the dimming signal. transmitted using the line, each luminaire, the default signal when receiving the on-duty to generate a dimming signal to 100%, the frequency information signal from the lighting control apparatus modulated dimming from the lighting control apparatus It blinks according to the modulation signal superimposed on the signal.

According to the present invention, when visible light communication control is introduced into an existing illumination dimming system, it is not necessary to separately install a dedicated line for visible light communication, and can be introduced using an existing system configuration. Further, visible light communication control can be realized only by changing the software of an existing illumination control system having a dimming function without installing a separate control device for visible light communication. In addition, a free data amount that is not limited by the signal width of the dimming signal can be transmitted by visible light communication.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the illumination control device includes means for setting an information signal from the outside.

  According to the present invention, the information transmitted by the system administrator or the system operator can be changed according to the place and time, and the system can be easily changed.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the illumination control device includes a means for acquiring a trigger signal from the outside.

  According to the present invention, information transmission can be performed at an arbitrary timing.

  A fourth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the first aspect, the lighting control device sets the light output of each lighting fixture blinking in accordance with a modulation signal to a certain value or more.

According to the present invention, it is possible to intentionally ensure a certain level of brightness during visible light communication, and to improve the communication accuracy of visible light communication .

As described above, in the present invention, visible light communication can be easily performed using an existing illumination dimming system without installing communication wiring, and the signal width of the dimming signal is limited. There is an effect that a free data amount that is not transmitted can be transmitted by visible light communication .

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

( Basic configuration 1 )
As shown in FIG. 1, the lighting control system of this basic configuration includes a plurality of lighting fixtures 2 connected to a lighting control device 1 to which a commercial power supply AC is supplied via a dimming signal line L1, and each lighting fixture. A commercial power source AC, which is a power source for lighting, is connected to 2 via a power line L2.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the illumination control device 1 includes a power supply unit 1a that generates power from a commercial power supply AC, a control unit 1b that controls the operation of each unit of the illumination control device 1, and a storage unit 1c that stores data and the like. An infrared remote control input unit 1d that detects an infrared signal transmitted from an external infrared remote controller and outputs it to the control unit 1b; and an external input that detects an alarm signal from the external alarm device 4 and outputs the alarm signal to the control unit 1b. Unit 1e and a dimming signal driving unit 1f that transmits a dimming signal to each lighting fixture 2 via the dimming signal line L1 according to an instruction from the control unit 1b.

  The lighting fixture 2 has the configuration of FIG. 3 or FIG. 4 and emits visible light. The lighting fixture 2 shown in FIG. 3 uses a fluorescent lamp 2d and generates a power source from a commercial power source AC. 2a, an oscillation cycle control unit 2b that controls the oscillation cycle of the output power, an oscillation circuit unit 2c that supplies power whose oscillation cycle is controlled by the oscillation cycle control unit 2b to the fluorescent lamp 2d, and a lighting control device 1. A dimming signal input unit 2e to which a signal transmitted via the optical signal line L1 is input, and a dimming signal from the signal input to the dimming signal input unit 2e are separated and output to the oscillation cycle control unit 2b. And a signal separation unit 2f. And the oscillation period control part 2b changes the oscillation period of output electric power according to a light control signal, and changes the light output of the fluorescent lamp 2d.

  The lighting fixture 2 shown in FIG. 4 uses an LED 2i, a power supply unit 2g that generates power from a commercial power supply AC, a current control unit 2h that controls the output current to supply the LED 2i, and dimming from the lighting control device 1 A dimming signal input unit 2j for outputting a dimming signal transmitted via the signal line L1 to the current control unit 2h. Then, the current control unit 2h changes the light output of the LED 2i by changing the magnitude of the output current according to the dimming signal.

FIG. 5 shows the dimming signal waveform of this basic configuration . This dimming signal is a PWM waveform having a period T0, and includes an on period T1 having an amplitude V1 and an off period T2 having an amplitude 0 within the period T0. The light output of the luminaire 2 is uniquely determined by the ratio T1 / T0 (hereinafter referred to as the on-duty width) of the on period T1 with respect to the period T0. The relationship between the on-duty width T1 / T0 and the light output has a characteristic characteristic for each lighting fixture. FIGS. 6A and 6B show characteristics S1 (●) and S2 as characteristic examples for each lighting fixture. (♦), S3 (▲) are shown. Here, the characteristic S1 is a straight line passing through a point with an on-duty width of 5% and an optical output of 100% and a point with an on-duty width of 95% and an optical output of 0%, and the characteristic S2 has an on-duty width of 100% to Up to 84%, the optical output is 10%, and when the on-duty width is 84% or less, it matches the characteristic S1. The characteristic S3 is a straight line passing through a point with an on-duty width of 0% and an optical output of 100% and a point with an on-duty width of 100% and an optical output of 0%.

  Next, an operation when an alarm signal is transmitted from the alarm device 4 will be described. When an alarm signal is transmitted from the alarm device 4, the control unit 1b of the illumination control device 1 detects the alarm signal via the external input unit 1e, and uses this alarm signal as a trigger signal to enter an information transmission mode different from the normal mode. Transition. When shifting to the information transmission mode, the control unit 1b reads a code indicating an emergency alarm that is written in the storage unit 1c in advance at the time of factory shipment. Then, a signal having a frequency fs extremely higher than the frequency f0 (= 1 / T0) of the dimming signal as an information signal corresponding to the emergency warning code is superimposed on the on-period T1 of the dimming signal by frequency modulation. FIG. 7A shows a waveform of a dimming signal (hereinafter referred to as a modulation signal) on which an emergency warning information signal is superimposed, and the transmission signal width T3 of the information signal is from the ON period T1 of the dimming signal. Shorter. FIG. 7B is an enlarged view of part A of FIG. 7A, and an emergency alarm information signal is superimposed on part B.

  And in the lighting fixture 2 using LED2i shown in FIG. 4, when the modulation signal (period T0, on period T1, off period T2, transmission signal width T3 of an information signal) shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8B, the light source is blinked with the same light output pattern as the signal shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, in the lighting fixture 2 using the fluorescent lamp 2d shown in FIG. 3, the modulation signal (period T0, on period T1, off period T2, information signal transmission signal width T3) shown in FIG. 8A is transmitted. In this case, as shown in FIG. 8C, the frequency is extremely high (frequency fs) during the transmission signal width T3 of the information signal in the period T0, and the frequency is low (frequency f0) during periods other than the width T3. The light output pattern is represented by a waveform.

  The light output of each lighting fixture 2 represented by the pattern of FIG. 8B or FIG. 8C is detected by the light output receiving terminal 5 shown in FIG. 9, and the information signal is transmitted. The light output receiving terminal 5 includes a power supply unit 5a that generates power, a control unit 5b that controls the operation of each unit of the light output receiving terminal 5, a light receiving unit 5c that receives the light output of the lighting fixture 2, and a lighting control device. 1 includes a filter 5d that has a filter function at the frequency of the frequency modulation performed in 1 and separates the information signal from the received optical output, and a display unit 5e that displays information corresponding to the information signal. And the optical output receiving terminal 5 alert | reports an alarm from the display part 5e to a terminal user based on the emergency alert code taken out via the filter 5d.

As described above, in this basic configuration , an information signal having a frequency fs extremely higher than the frequency f0 of the dimming signal is superimposed on the on-period T1 of the dimming signal by frequency modulation and used in the existing illumination dimming system. Not only the dimming signal but also the information signal can be transmitted to the luminaire 2 through the dimming signal line L1. Therefore, when introducing visible light communication control into an existing illumination dimming system, it is not necessary to separately install a dedicated line for visible light communication, and can be introduced using an existing system configuration. Further, visible light communication control can be realized only by changing the software of an existing illumination control system having a dimming function without installing a separate control device for visible light communication.

In the basic configuration , the control unit 1b performs frequency modulation to superimpose the information signal on the dimming signal. However, a signal modulation unit is provided between the control unit 1 and the dimming signal driving unit 1f. The signal modulation unit may perform frequency modulation.

( Basic configuration 2 )
The illumination control system of this basic configuration is obtained by omitting the alarm device 4 and the external input unit 1e of the illumination control device 1 from the configuration of the basic configuration 1 as shown in FIG. 10, and data stored in the storage unit 1c. The control by the control unit 1b is different from the basic configuration 1 .

In the basic configuration 1 , information (a code indicating an emergency alarm or the like) transmitted by visible light communication is stored in advance in the data stored in the storage unit 1c. However, in this basic configuration , an area for storing information is secured, but data is not initially stored, and information to be transmitted is transmitted from the infrared remote controller 3 to the illumination control device 1. Information detected via the remote control input unit 1d is written in a predetermined area secured in advance in the storage unit 1c.

In this basic configuration , a trigger signal for shifting from the normal mode to the information transmission mode is transmitted from the infrared remote controller 3 to the illumination control device 1, and the control unit 1b detects the trigger detected via the infrared remote controller input unit 1d. The signal is shifted to the information transmission mode by the signal, and thereafter visible light communication for transmitting the modulated signal including the information signal to the light output receiving terminal 5 is performed as in the basic configuration 1 .

In this basic configuration , the information stored in the lighting control device 1 is intended to be temporarily acquired on the light output receiving terminal 5 side, so that the information transmission mode is shifted to transmit the modulation signal including the information signal. After that, when a certain time elapses, the information transmission mode is terminated and the normal mode is restored.

  The storage unit 1c needs to be a volatile storage device such as an EEPROM or a FlashROM.

In this basic configuration , the information transmitted by the system administrator or system operator of the lighting control system can be changed according to the place and time, and the system can be easily changed.

( Basic configuration 3 )
Lighting control system of the present basic configuration is the same configuration as the basic configuration 1, the illumination control method in the information transmission mode is different from the basic structure 1.

In this basic configuration , when the control unit 1b detects an alarm signal from the alarm device 4, the control unit 1b shifts from the normal mode to the information transmission mode using the alarm signal as a trigger signal and transmits the light from the dimming signal driving unit 1f. The on-duty width T1 / T0 of the signal is forcibly fixed to a prescribed width (for example, T1 / T0 = 50%), and a modulated signal in which an information signal is superimposed on this dimming signal in the same manner as in the basic configuration 1 Transmit to the luminaire 2. Further, during the information transmission mode, all codes for changing the optical output transmitted from the infrared remote controller 3 at the user's intention are canceled, and the on-duty width T1 / T0 of the dimming signal is forcibly fixed to the specified width. Keep it. The specified width of the on-duty width is set so that the light output of the luminaire 2 becomes a certain level or higher during visible light communication, and is stored in the storage unit 1c.

  Accordingly, it is possible to intentionally ensure a certain level of brightness during visible light communication, and to improve the communication accuracy of visible light communication. In addition, since the on-duty width of the dimming signal can be fixed to a predetermined width during visible light communication, the amount of information to be transmitted can be fixed. Alternatively, if the on-duty width of the dimming signal is set according to the amount of information, the information to be transmitted can be transmitted reliably.

( Embodiment 1 )
The illumination control system of the present embodiment has the same configuration as the basic configuration 1 , but the illumination control method in the information transmission mode is different from the basic configuration 1 .

  In the present embodiment, when the control unit 1b detects an alarm signal from the alarm device 4, the control unit 1b uses the alarm signal as a trigger signal to shift from the normal mode to the information transmission mode, and the dimming signal transmitted by the dimming signal driving unit 1f. Stop the signal. Then, as shown in FIG. 11A, a predetermined signal having a transmission signal width T4 generated at the trigger input time t0 and an information signal having a transmission signal width T3 generated every period T0 following the predetermined signal are adjusted. It transmits to the lighting fixture 2 from the optical signal drive part 1f.

  At this time, since the lighting state of the lighting fixture 2 has no dimming signal, the light output changes only by the information to be transmitted (see FIG. 11A), and does not become a constant output. Even in that case, visible light communication is possible, but transmission performance is not ensured because the light output varies.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 12, using the lighting fixture 2 provided with the control unit 2k in the configuration of FIG. 4, each lighting fixture 2 determines the operation according to the signal input to the dimming signal input portion 2j. To control the light output. That is, the control unit 2k always monitors the signal input to the dimming signal input unit 2j, and determines that it is a transition to the information transmission mode when it detects a predetermined signal of the transmission signal width T4 in FIG. Then, a dimming signal having an on-duty width of 100% is generated to change the light output of the LED 2i to a 100% base. Then, the information signal of the transmission signal width T3 is superimposed on the 100% base dimming signal by frequency modulation, and as shown in FIG. 11B, the first transmission signal width T4 is turned on for 100%, and thereafter Repeats blinking and 100% lighting according to the information signal of the transmission signal width T3 every cycle T0. Thereafter, visible light communication with the optical output receiving terminal 5 is performed in the same manner as in the basic configuration 1 .

  In this way, visible light communication is performed with the light output maximized, so that the accuracy of communication can be ensured, and a free data amount that is not restricted by the signal width of the dimming signal is transmitted by visible light communication. be able to.

  In the present embodiment, since the dimming signal output is stopped and only information transmission is performed, the dimming signal line L1 is regarded as a dedicated line for information transmission, and the original transmission is performed after the first transmission signal width T4. It is also possible to communicate with a protocol. However, the control unit 1b of the lighting control device 1 and the control unit 2k of the lighting fixture 2 need to have the same communication protocol.

It is a block diagram which shows the illumination control system of the basic composition 1 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows an illumination control apparatus same as the above. It is a block diagram which shows the lighting fixture using the fluorescent lamp same as the above. It is a block diagram which shows the lighting fixture using LED same as the above. It is a figure which shows the waveform of the light control signal same as the above. It is a figure which shows a load characteristic same as the above, (a) is a graph, (b) is a table | surface. It is a figure which shows the waveform of a modulation signal same as the above, (b) is the A section enlarged view of (a). (A) is a figure which shows the waveform of the modulation signal same as the above, (b) (c) is a figure which shows an optical output pattern. It is a block diagram which shows an optical output receiving terminal same as the above. It is a block diagram which shows the illumination control system of the basic structure 2 of this invention, and an illumination control apparatus. (A) is a figure which shows the signal waveform of Embodiment 1 of this invention, (b) is a figure which shows an optical output pattern. It is a block diagram which shows the lighting fixture using LED same as the above. It is a block diagram which shows the conventional illumination control system. It is a block diagram which shows the conventional modulation part.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Lighting control apparatus 2 Lighting fixture L1 Dimming signal line L2 Power supply line AC Commercial power supply

Claims (4)

A plurality of lighting fixtures, and a lighting control device that changes the light output of each lighting fixture by transmitting a dimming signal with variable on-duty connected to the plurality of lighting fixtures,
When the trigger signal is input, the lighting control device stops the transmission of the dimming signal, and the predetermined signal generated when the trigger signal is input and the information signal following the predetermined signal are transmitted in the same transmission line as the dimming signal. Send using
Each lighting fixture generates a dimming signal with an on-duty of 100% when receiving a predetermined signal from the lighting control device, and modulates the information signal from the lighting control device and superimposes it on the dimming signal. Lighting control system characterized by flashing in response to   The illumination control system according to claim 1, wherein the illumination control device includes means for setting an information signal from the outside.   The illumination control system according to claim 1, wherein the illumination control device includes means for acquiring a trigger signal from the outside. The illumination control system according to claim 1, wherein the illumination control device sets a light output of each illumination fixture that blinks in accordance with a modulation signal to a certain value or more .

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