TWI504278B - Load control system - Google Patents

Description

Load control system

The present invention relates to a load control system for controlling a load using wireless communication.

Since the past, a load control system has been known in which a central server transmits a load control signal to a plurality of area control devices, each of which controls the load according to a load control signal (see, for example, Japanese Special Edition). Bulletin 2010-74414).

In the load control system as described above, the wireless base unit is inserted between the central server and the plurality of area control devices, and each area control device is replaced with a wireless slave unit, whereby the wireless master unit can be The load control signals are transmitted wirelessly between the wireless slaves. At this time, when the load is subjected to the collective control, a plurality of wireless masters simultaneously transmit the load control signals, and there is a possibility that the load control signals collide with each other. If so, the load control signal cannot be sent to the wireless slave, and the reliability of the load control by the wireless slave will be reduced.

In order to solve the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a load control system that transmits load control signals from a plurality of wireless masters to a plurality of wireless slaves, wherein the load control signals can be reliably delivered to enable load control. Increased reliability.

In order to solve the above problems, the load control system of the present invention includes: a controller that generates a plurality of load control signals for collectively controlling a plurality of loads; and a plurality of wireless masters that wirelessly transmit load control signals generated by the controller And a plurality of wireless slaves, which receive load control signals wirelessly transmitted by the plurality of wireless masters, and control one or a plurality of loads according to the load control signals; the plurality of wireless masters and the plurality of wireless slaves, And performing wireless communication by using a beacon signal wirelessly transmitted by the plurality of wireless masters to synchronize with the designated time slot, and the plurality of wireless masters are synchronized with each other by wired communication, and receiving the load from the controller When the signal is controlled, the load control signal is stored, and the stored time slot is pre-allocated in a manner different for each of the wireless masters, and the stored load control signal is wirelessly transmitted to the plurality of wireless slaves.

The controller preferably transmits a start notification signal indicating a start timing of the collective control period of the plurality of loads including the transmission period of the load control signal, and an end notification signal indicating an end timing of the collective control period. Going to the wireless base unit; the wireless base unit detects the collective control period based on the start notification signal and the end notification signal transmitted by the controller, and receives the request from the controller during the period other than the collective control period When the signal of the wireless slave is transmitted, the signal is sent to the wireless slave in any time slot.

Preferably, the wireless base unit accumulates the load control signal during the reception of the load control signal, and transmits a load control signal accumulated up to the time point to the wireless slave unit at the time of the allocation.

Preferably, the wireless base unit repeatedly transmits the load control signal to the wireless slave after the completion of the reception of the load control signal until the end timing of the collective control period.

Preferably, the load control signal transmitted from the wireless base unit to the wireless slave unit is constituted by a bit string corresponding to the number of bits of the wireless slave unit set as the communication target of the wireless base unit, and at the time of transmission. The wireless sub-machine multi-casts; the bit column, preferably in a predetermined number of bits, represents the control content of the wireless sub-machine corresponding to the bit to the load.

When the load is operated by an operator different from the controller to change the state of the load, the wireless slave sends a status notification signal to the wireless master to notify the controller of the status change. When receiving the load control signal from the wireless base unit, determining whether the load control signal is a multi-propagation load control signal, and when determining that the load control signal is a multi-propagation load control signal, the status notification signal is preferably Sending stops.

When the load is operated by an operator different from the controller to change the state of the load, the wireless slave sends a status notification signal to the wireless master to notify the controller of the status change. When the wireless master unit starts the general control period, it is preferable to transmit a stop instruction signal indicating that the transmission of the status notification signal is stopped to the wireless slave unit.

When the load is operated by an operator different from the controller to change the state of the load, the wireless slave sends a status notification signal to the wireless master to notify the controller of the status change. When the status notification signal is to be sent, it is preferable to perform carrier sensing after a predetermined time has elapsed from the beginning of the time slot, and when other wireless slaves or signals of the wireless base unit are not detected. , the status notification signal is sent.

Preferably, the wireless base unit transmits a release instruction signal for canceling the transmission stop of the status notification signal to the wireless slave unit when the overall control period ends; and the wireless slave unit preferably detects the umbrella control period based on the release instruction signal. The end of the process is stopped and the transmission of the status notification signal is stopped.

After the completion of the reception of the load control signal, the wireless master device preferably adds a remaining number notification signal indicating the number of remaining transmissions of the load control signal to the load control signal, and transmits the signal to the load control signal. The wireless slave.

When the load is operated by an operator different from the controller to change the state of the load, the wireless slave device should send a status notification signal to the wireless base unit to notify the controller of the status change. And according to the start of the collective control period from the wireless master The transmitted stop instruction signal indicating the stop of the transmission of the status notification signal or the load control signal stops the transmission of the status notification signal, and notifies the status when the number of transmissions indicated by the remaining number of notification signals is zero. The transmission of the signal is stopped.

Preferably, the wireless slave device randomly selects a time slot in which the state notification signal is held until the transmission of the state notification signal is released, and transmits the state notification signal in the selected time slot.

Preferably, the wireless slave unit transmits the status notification signal held until then until the transmission of the status notification signal is stopped, in a time slot that is allocated in advance without being repeated.

According to the present invention, since a plurality of wireless masters transmit load control signals to the wireless slaves in different allocation time slots of each of the wireless masters, the transmission timing of the load control signals can be prevented from overlapping, and the load control signals can be prevented from colliding. . Therefore, the load control signal can be reliably delivered to the wireless slave. Thereby, the reliability of load control by the wireless slave is improved.

1‧‧‧Load Control System

2, 2A, 2B, 2C‧‧‧ lighting fixtures (load)

3‧‧‧Central switch

4‧‧‧Transfer unit (controller)

5, 5A~5J‧‧‧ Receiver (wireless master)

6, 6A, 6B, 6C‧‧‧ wireless switch (wireless slave)

31, 31A, 31B‧‧‧ operation buttons

32, 32A, 32B‧‧‧ LED

33‧‧‧Control circuit

34‧‧‧Wired communication circuit

35‧‧‧ memory

41‧‧‧Wired communication circuit

42‧‧‧Control circuit

43‧‧‧ memory

51‧‧‧Wired communication circuit

52‧‧‧Wireless communication circuit

53‧‧‧Control circuit

54‧‧‧ memory

61‧‧‧Wireless communication circuit

62‧‧‧ Relay

63‧‧‧ operation buttons

64‧‧‧Control circuit

65‧‧‧ memory

S1‧‧‧ start notification signal

S2, s2‧‧‧ lighting control signal (load control signal)

S3‧‧‧Virtual Waiting Signal

S4‧‧‧ End of notification signal

S5‧‧‧ stop indication signal

S6‧‧‧Remove the signal

S7‧‧‧ status notification signal

B1‧‧‧ beacon signal

B2‧‧‧ Bytes

B3‧‧‧ bits

D1‧‧‧Information Department

T1‧‧‧Overall control period

t2‧‧‧During the period

T1‧‧‧ slot

T2‧‧‧ distribution time slot

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a load control system of a load control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the respective configurations of a centralized switch, a transmitting unit, a receiver, and a wireless switch constituting the above load control system.

Fig. 3 is an operation diagram of the transmitting unit and the receiver in the collective control period of the lighting fixture of the above-described conveying unit.

Fig. 4 is a flow chart showing the procedure of the process of preventing collision of signals between the receivers in the above-described collective control period.

Fig. 5 is a flow chart showing the procedure of the process of preventing collision of signals between the receiver and the wireless switch during the above-described collective control period.

Fig. 6 is a view showing the configuration of an illumination control signal transmitted by the transmission unit during the above-described collective control period.

Figure 7 is a diagram showing the wireless switch of the load control system of the first modified embodiment of the above embodiment. The flow of signals collides with the flow chart to prevent the order of processing.

Fig. 8 is a flow chart showing the procedure of the signal collision preventing processing of the wireless switch of the load control system according to the second modified embodiment of the above-described embodiment.

Fig. 9 is a flow chart showing the procedure of the signal collision preventing processing of the wireless switch of the load control system according to the third modified embodiment of the above-described embodiment.

A load control system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a view showing the configuration of a load control system of this embodiment. The load control system 1 includes: a centralized switch 3 for collectively operating the lighting fixtures 2A, 2B, ... (load; hereinafter collectively referred to as the lighting fixture 2); and generating a plurality of controls for collectively controlling the lighting fixture 2 according to the operation of the centralized switch 3. A transmission unit 4 (controller) that illuminates the control signal. Further, the load control system 1 includes: receivers 5A, 5B, ... (wireless masters; hereinafter collectively referred to as receivers 5) that wirelessly transmit the illumination control signals; and wireless switches 6A, 6B that receive the transmitted illumination control signals. ... (wireless handset; hereinafter collectively referred to as wireless switch 6). Each of the wireless switches 6 controls one or a plurality of lighting fixtures 2 based on the received lighting control signals. The above-described operation and control are used to switch the lighting state and the extinguishing state of the lighting fixture 2 (hereinafter simply referred to as the state of the lighting fixture 2). In the load control system 1, the lighting fixture, the receiver, and the wireless switching device are not limited to the number shown, and may be plural.

The centralized switch 3, the transmitting unit 4, and the receiver 5 are in communication with each other by a non-polar 2-wire wired method. The centralized operation using the centralized switch 3 refers to a centralized operation in a certain place. The control according to the operation includes collectively controlling the overall lighting control 2 or the collective control of the plurality of lighting fixtures 2 of the predetermined group, and controlling the individual control of each lighting fixture 2. The centralized switch 3 has a function of displaying the state of the lighting fixture 2. The wireless switch 6 switches between the on and off of the power supply to the lighting fixture 2 by the AC power source, thereby switching the state of the lighting fixture 2. The wireless switch 6 also has a structure that operates to switch the state of the lighting fixture 2, and causes the wireless switch 6 to function as an operator that is separately provided from the transport unit 4. The wireless switch 6 can be operated by the main body of the wireless switch 6 to switch the state of the lighting fixture 2 in addition to the above-described lighting control signal. At the time of the switching, the wireless switch 6 will notify the state notification that the switching causes the state of the lighting fixture 2 to change. The number is sent wirelessly to the receiver 5. The receiver 5 receives the status notification signal, and the transmitting unit 4 transmits the status notification signal received by the receiver 5 to the centralized switch 3.

2 shows the configuration of each of the centralized switch 3, the transmission unit 4, the receiver 5, and the wireless switch 6. The centralized switch 3 has operation buttons 31A and 31B for operating the lighting fixture 2 (hereinafter collectively referred to as operation buttons 31), and LEDs 32A and 32B (hereinafter collectively referred to as LEDs 32) for displaying the state of the lighting fixture 2. Further, the centralized switch 3 has a control circuit 33 that generates an operation signal in response to the operation of the operation button 31, a wired communication circuit 34 that transmits the operation signal to the transmission unit 4, and a memory 35. The operation buttons 31 respectively correspond to the addresses of the lighting fixtures 2 that are operationally controllable by the operation buttons 31, and the memory 35 stores the correspondence. The address corresponding to the operation button 31 may be the address of the plurality of lighting fixtures 2 for collectively controlling the lighting fixture 2, or may be the address of one lighting fixture 2 for individually controlling the lighting fixture 2. The operation button 31 can switch the state of the lighting fixture 2 by, for example, a pressing operation. The LEDs 32 respectively correspond to the operation buttons 31, and display the state of the controllable lighting fixture 2 in accordance with the operation of the operation buttons 31 corresponding thereto. This state display can be realized, for example, by switching between lighting and extinction of the LED 32, switching of the color of the LED 32, or a combination of the switching modes. When the operation button 31 is operated, the control circuit 33 refers to the memory 35, and includes an information signal indicating the address of the lighting fixture 2 corresponding to the operation button 31 and the control content of the operation operation in the operation signal, and transmits the cable. The communication circuit 34 is sent to the transmitting unit 4.

The control circuit 33 performs display control of the LEDs 32. As a part of the display control, the control circuit 33 receives the status notification signal from the transmission unit 4 via the wired communication circuit 34, and controls the LED 32 to display the state of the lighting fixture 2 notified by the status notification signal. An example of this control will be described. Here, it is assumed that any one of the operation buttons 31 corresponds to the plurality of lighting fixtures 2, and the operation button 31 is operated to switch the lighting fixtures 2 to the lighting state, and the LEDs 32 corresponding to the operation buttons 31 display the lightings. The appliance 2 is already lit. It is assumed that in this state, some of the lighting fixtures 2 of the lighting fixtures 2 are switched to the extinguished state due to the operation of the wireless switch 6. At this time, when receiving the state notification signal for notifying the state change from the transmission unit 4, the control circuit 33 switches the LED 32 to a display state in which the display fixture 2 has been turned off. Thereby, the control circuit 33 notifies the user of the state in which all the lighting fixtures 2 to be lit are not lit.

The transmission unit 4 has a wired communication circuit 41 that can communicate with the centralized switch 3 and the receiver 5 in a polling manner, a control circuit 42 that communicates with the centralized switch 3 and the receiver 5 using the wired communication circuit 41, and a memory 43. When receiving the operation signal from the centralized switch 3, the control circuit 42 grasps the address and the control content of the lighting fixture 2 to be controlled based on the operation signal. The control circuit 42 generates, for example, a lighting control signal indicating the control content of the lighting fixture 2 for the address for each address (each lighting fixture 2) that is grasped as the transmission destination. The control circuit 42 continuously transmits the illumination control signals to the receiver 5. When receiving the state notification signal from the receiver 5, the control circuit 42 grasps the state of each lighting fixture 2 based on the state notification signal, stores the information signal indicating the state in the memory 43, and transmits it to the display.

The receiver 5 has: a wired communication circuit 51 in communication with the transmitting unit 4; a wireless communication circuit 52 in communication with the wireless switch 6; and a signal between the transmitting unit 4 and the wireless switch 6 is intermediated using the wired communication circuit 51 and the wireless communication circuit 52 Control circuit 53; and memory 54. The control circuit 53 extracts the illumination control signals of the lighting fixtures 2 disposed therein from among the illumination control signals received from the transmission unit 4, and sequentially stores them in the memory 54 in order. The lighting fixture 2 in the arrangement of the control circuit 53 is the lighting fixture 2 controlled by the wireless switch 6 as the communication target of the control circuit 53. The control circuit 53 reads the illumination control signal from the memory 54 when the timing at which the illumination control signal should be transmitted to the wireless switch 6, and transmits the illumination control signal to the wireless switch 6 under the arrangement. The control circuit 53 transmits the status notification signal to the transmitting unit 4 when receiving the status notification signal from the wireless switch 6.

The wireless switch 6 has a wireless communication circuit 61 that can communicate wirelessly with the receiver 5, a relay 62 that turns on or off the power supply of the illuminating device 2 by the AC power source, and an operation button for performing an operation to switch the state of the luminaire 2 63; control circuit 64; and memory 65. The relay 62 is inserted into the power supply line from the AC power source to the lighting fixture 2, and switches the conduction state and the non-conduction state of the power supply line, thereby turning on or off the power supplied to the lighting fixture 2 to switch the lighting fixture 2 status. The control circuit 64 communicates with the receiver 5 using the wireless communication circuit 61. The control circuit 64, when receiving the illumination control signal from the receiver 5, controls the conduction or disconnection of the power supply to the relay 62 based on the illumination control signal and the operation of the operation button 63 by the user. Control circuit 64, in the user's operation When the operation of the button 63 is switched to the state of the lighting fixture 2, a state notification signal is transmitted to the receiver 5. The memory 65 is a memory for temporarily storing the status notification signal. The state notification signal is written to the memory 65 and the state notification signal is read from the memory 65, and is controlled by the control circuit 64.

Hereinafter, the operation of the control circuits 33, 42, 53, and 64 will be described with the focus switch 3, the transfer unit 4, the receiver 5, and the wireless switch 6 as the main body of the operation for convenience of explanation.

FIG. 3 shows the respective operations of the transmitting unit 4 and the receiver 5 (for example, the receivers 5A to 5J) during the collective control of the transmitting unit 4. First, the operation of the transfer unit 4 will be described. Here, it is assumed that the user uses the centralized switch 3 to collectively switch the state of the lighting fixture 2. At this time, the transfer unit 4 sets a start notification signal S1 indicating the start timing of the collective control period t1 of the lighting fixture 2, the illumination control signal S2, and a dummy wait signal S3 indicating that the transmission of the illumination control signal S2 is completed. This sequence is sent to the receiver 5. Thereafter, the transmitting unit 4 transmits an end notification signal S4 indicating the end timing of the collective control period t1 to the receiver 5. The transmission period t2 of the illumination control signal S2 is included in the collective control period t1.

Before explaining the operation of the receiver 5, the communication method between the receiver 5 and the wireless switch 6 (refer to FIG. 1 described above) will be described. The communication method is a so-called time slot type random access method, and the receiver 5 and the wireless switch 6 specify the time slot T1 based on the beacon signal B1 periodically transmitted by the receiver 5 in synchronization with the designated time slot T1. Wireless communication. The receivers 5 are synchronized with each other using wired communication. For example, the receiver 5A set in advance as a reference transmits a synchronization signal to another receiver, and the receiver 5 synchronizes the transmission timing of the beacon signal B1 with each other based on the synchronization signal, and makes the time slot T1 The timing is roughly the same. Each of the receivers 5 transmits the beacon signal B1 in time slots T1 different from each other. At the time of transmission, each receiver 5 performs carrier sensing, and when the signal transmission of the other receiver 5 is detected, the transmission of the beacon signal B1 is suspended. Since the beacon signal B1 is periodically transmitted, even if the transmission is suspended several times, the communication accuracy is hardly affected.

Next, in addition to the above-described FIG. 3, the operation of the receiver 5 when the transmission unit 4 transmits the above-described respective signals and the receiver 5 receives the signals will be described with reference to FIG. Each receiver 5, upon receiving the start notification signal S1 from the transmission unit 4 (Yes at #101), detects based on the start notification signal S1. The general control period begins with the start of time t1 (#102). Thereafter, each receiver 5 receives the illumination control signal S2 from the transmission unit 4 (Yes at #103), and illuminates the lighting fixture 2 in the arrangement of the respective receivers 5 among the illumination control signals S2. The illumination control signal S2 is extracted and stored (#104). The lighting fixture 2 in the arrangement of the respective receivers 5 refers to the lighting fixture 2 controlled by the wireless switch 6 that is the communication target of each receiver 5. In the following description, the illumination control signal transmitted by the transmission unit 4 is described as "S2", and the illumination control signal extracted and stored by each receiver 5 from the illumination control signal S2 is described as "s2". the difference. Each of the receivers 5 sequentially accumulates the illumination control signal s2 during the reception of the illumination control signal S2.

Each of the receivers 5 transmits the stored illumination control signal s2 to the wireless switch 6 wirelessly in a predetermined distribution time slot T2 in a manner different from each of the receivers 5. When the slot T2 is temporarily allocated during the reception of the illumination control signal S2 (Yes at #105), each receiver 5 transmits the illumination control signal s2 accumulated up to that point in time to the wireless switch 6 (#106).

Here, each receiver 5 receives the virtual waiting signal S3 from the transmitting unit 4 after receiving the illumination control signal S2 from the transmitting unit 4 (Yes at #107). At this time, from the end of the reception to the end timing of the collective control period t1, each receiver 5 repeats the transmission of the illumination control signal s2 by the wireless switch 6, and transmits the illumination control signal s2 a predetermined number of times (for example, twice) (#) 108).

When receiving the end notification signal S4 from the transmission unit 4 (Yes in #109), each receiver 5 detects the end of the collective control period t1 based on the end notification signal S4 (#110). After the end of the collective control period t1, each receiver 5 releases the restriction that the signal is transmitted only in the slot T2 at the time of allocation. Each receiver 5 receives a signal to be sent to the wireless switch 6 from the transmission unit 4 during a period other than the collective control period t1, and transmits the signal to the wireless switch 6 in an arbitrary time slot T1.

Fig. 5 shows a process of preventing collision of signals between the receiver 5 and the wireless switch 6 during the collective control period t1. When the collective control period t1 is started (Yes in #201), each receiver 5 transmits a stop instruction signal S5 (#202) indicating that the state notification signal transmission is stopped to the wireless switch 6. The stop indication signal S5 may be included in the initial transmission during the collective control period t1 to be performed by the wireless switch 6. The illumination control signal s2 may be additionally transmitted separately from the illumination control signal s2. When receiving the stop instruction signal S5 from the receiver 5, each of the wireless switches 6 detects the start of the collective control period t1 and stops the transmission of the state notification signal (#301). Each of the wireless switches 6 stores and holds the status notification signal when the state of the lighting fixture 2 changes during the stop.

When the collective control period t1 ends (Yes in #203), each receiver 5 transmits a release instruction signal S6 (#204) indicating that the transmission of the status notification signal is released to the wireless switch 6. Each of the wireless switches 6 detects the end of the collective control period t1 based on the release instruction signal S6, and stops the transmission of the state notification signal (#302).

After the transmission of the state notification signal is stopped, each of the wireless switches 6 randomly selects the time slot T1 (#303) for transmitting the state notification signal held until then, and transmits the state notification signal S7 (#) in the selected time slot T1. 304). Each receiver 5 receives the status notification signal S7 transmitted from the wireless switch 6, and transfers the status notification signal S7 to the transmission unit 4 (#205).

Fig. 6 shows the configuration of the data portion D1 of the illumination control signal s2. The data unit D1 is composed of a bit column B2 of the number of bits corresponding to the number of wireless switches 6 to be set by the receiver 5, and is multiplexed with the wireless switch 6 as a communication target. The bit column B2 is set to a predetermined number of bits B3 in advance, and the content of control of the lighting fixture 2 by the wireless switch 6 corresponding to the bit B3 is displayed. In the present embodiment, the number of bits of the bit column B2 is set to be the same as the number of the wireless switches 6 that are the communication targets of the receiver 5, and one bit B3 corresponds to one wireless switch 6, and the bit B3, For example, "1" indicates "lighting" and "0" indicates "off" as control content. These correspondences can also be reversed.

By the generation of the illumination control signals s2, each of the receivers 5 transmits each of the illumination control signals S2 received from the transmission unit 4 by the plurality of illumination fixtures 2 in the arrangement of the respective receivers 5. A plurality of illumination control signals S2 of the destination are concentrated as one illumination control signal s2. Each of the receivers 5, when the illumination control signal S2 received from the transmission unit 4 does not include the illumination control signal S2 for any of the illumination devices 2 in the arrangement of the respective receivers 5, will each be paired The control content of the lighting fixture 2 is set to, for example, "extinguished".

Each of the wireless switches 6 preliminarily grasps the order of the bit B3 corresponding to the control content that should be recognized as an instruction to each wireless switch 6 among the data portions D1 of the illumination control signal s2 received from the receiver 5. Each of the wireless switches 6 performs control of the content indicated by the bit B3 of the sequence in the lighting fixture 2.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3 described above, since the respective receivers 5 transmit the illumination control signal s2 to the wireless switch 6 at different allocation time slots T2, it is possible to prevent the transmission timing of the illumination control signal s2 from overlapping. Therefore, collision between the respective illumination control signals s2 can be prevented, whereby the illumination control signal s2 can be surely sent to the wireless switch 6. As a result, the reliability of the illumination control by the wireless switch 6 can be improved.

Further, when the receiver 5 transmits a signal to the wireless switch 6, the signal transmission is limited to the allocation time slot T2 in the collective control period t1, but the signal can be transmitted in any time slot T1 during the other periods. Therefore, the transmission delay of the signal is less. Therefore, the purpose of improving the communication speed can be achieved.

Further, while receiving the illumination control signal S2 from the transmission unit 4, the receiver 5 transfers the accumulated illumination control signal s2 at each time slot T2 at each time point when the allocation time slot T2 is repeated a plurality of times. Go to the wireless switch 6. Thereby, the earlier the illumination control signal S2 received from the transmission unit 4 is transferred to the wireless switch 6 more times. Therefore, the reliability of wireless communication can be improved. Further, since the receiver 5 repeatedly transmits the illumination control signal s2 to the wireless switch 6 after the reception of the illumination control signal S2 from the transmission unit 4 is completed, the reliability of the wireless communication can be further improved.

Further, when a plurality of wireless switches 6 are set as the communication targets of the receiver 5, by performing multiple propagation of the illumination control signal s2 from the receiver 5 to the plurality of wireless switches 6, the transmission can be performed in one allocation time slot T2. Lighting control signal s2. Thereby, the number of transmissions of the illumination control signal s2 can be further reduced as compared with the case where the illumination control signal s2 is transmitted to each of the wireless switches 6. Therefore, the time required for the collective control can be shortened.

Further, in the collective control period t1, since the transmission of the state notification signal S7 of the wireless switch 6 is prohibited, the state notification signal S7 can be prevented from colliding with the illumination control signal s2 transmitted from the receiver 5. Thereby, the reliability of wireless communication can be improved. Further, since the receiver 5 transmits the release instruction signal S6 to the wireless switch 6 when the collective control period t1 is completed, the wireless switch 6 can promptly recognize that the transmission stop of the state notification signal S7 is released based on the release instruction signal S6. If so, after the state of the lighting fixture 2 changes, the state notification signal S7 can be quickly transmitted to the receiver 5, and the state of the lighting fixture 2 is notified to the transmitting unit 4 via the receiver 5 at an early stage. Variety.

In addition, even if the state of the lighting fixture 2 changes during the collective control period t1, the transfer unit 4 can be made to grasp the change after the end of the collective control period t1. Thereby, the correctness of the current situation of each lighting fixture 2 of the transport unit 4 is improved. Further, in order to improve the accuracy, the transmission of the state notification signal S7 of the wireless switch 6 implemented after the end of the collective control period t1 is in the randomly selected time slot T1. Therefore, collision between the respective state notification signals S7 can be prevented.

Further, for example, when a switch for switching the state of the lighting fixture 2 has been set in the construction, the load can be introduced by replacing the switch with the wireless switch 6, and providing the centralized switch 3, the transmission unit 4, and the receiver 5. System 1. Further, since it is not necessary to provide wiring between the wireless switch 6 and the receiver 5, the construction work is relatively simple, and the degree of freedom in setting the members becomes high.

Hereinafter, the load control system 1 of each of the modified embodiments of the above-described embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. The same constituent elements as those of the above embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals. In addition, only the point different from the above embodiment will be described. The load control system 1 of each of the modified embodiments is different from the above-described embodiment in the configuration for preventing the signals from colliding during the collective control period t1.

(First variation embodiment)

Fig. 7 is a view showing the process of preventing the collision of the signals of the wireless switch 6 in the load control system 1 of the first modified embodiment. In the present modified embodiment, when the collective control period t1 is started, the wireless switch 6 automatically stops the transmission.

The wireless switch 6 determines whether the illumination control signal s2 is the multi-propagation illumination control signal s2 when the illumination control signal s2 is received from the receiver 5 (Yes in #401). The determination method determines whether the transmission destination address of the illumination control signal S2 is a complex number, and when the determination address is a complex number, determines that the illumination control signal s2 is a multiple propagation signal. When it is judged that the illumination control signal s2 is the multi-propagation illumination control signal s2 (Yes at #402), the wireless switch 6 recognizes the start of the collective control period t1 and stops the transmission of the status notification signal S7 (#403) .

In the present modified embodiment, as in the above-described embodiment, the illumination control signal s2 can be prevented from colliding with the state notification signal S7. Further, unlike the above-described embodiment, it is not necessary to transmit the stop instruction signal S5 from the receiver 5 to the wireless switch 6 in order to prevent the collision. Thereby, the configuration of the receiver 5 can be simplified, the congestion of wireless communication can be prevented, and the time taken for the collective control can be shortened.

(Second variant embodiment)

Fig. 8 is a view showing a process of preventing collision of a signal of the wireless switch 6 of the load control system 1 of the second modified embodiment. In the present modified embodiment, when the state notification signal S7 is to be transmitted, the wireless switch 6 is executed after a predetermined time shorter than the time slot T1 from the beginning of the time slot T1 (Yes at #501). Carrier sensing (#502). When the signal transmission of the other wireless switch 6 or the receiver 5 is not detected in the carrier sensing (Yes at #503), the wireless switch 6 transmits a status notification signal S7 to the receiver 5 (#504).

In the present variation, since the state notification signal S7 is not transmitted when the wireless switch 6 is to transmit the state notification signal S7, if the receiver 5 transmits the illumination control signal s2, the illumination control signal s2 and the state notification signal can be avoided. S7 hits together. Further, unlike the above-described embodiment, it is not necessary to transmit the stop instruction signal S5 from the receiver 5 to the wireless switch 6 in order to avoid the collision. Further, unlike the above-described embodiment, it is not necessary to transmit the release instruction signal S6 from the receiver 5 to the wireless switch 6 in order to notify the wireless switch 6 of the transmittable state notification signal S7. Thereby, the configuration of the receiver 5 can be made simpler.

(Third variation embodiment)

In the load control system 1 of the third modified embodiment, after the receiver 5 completes the reception of the illumination control signal S2 from the transmission unit 4, the illumination control for repeatedly transmitting the wireless switch 6 until the end timing of the collective control period t1 Signal s2 has characteristics. A remaining number notification signal indicating the number of remaining transmissions of the illumination control signal s2 is added to the illumination control signal S2 by the receiver 5.

Fig. 9 shows a signal collision preventing process of the wireless switch 6 using the illumination control signal s2. Similarly to the above-described embodiment, the wireless switch 6 stops the transmission of the state notification signal S7 based on the stop instruction signal S5 from the transmission unit 4 or the illumination control signal s2 as in the first variation embodiment (#601). The wireless switch 6 determines whether or not the number of transmissions indicated by the remaining number notification signal is zero. When it is determined that the number of transmissions is zero (#602), the transmission of the status notification signal S7 is stopped (#603).

In the present modified embodiment, the wireless switch 6 can predict that the collective control period t1 has ended when the remaining number of transmissions of the illumination control signal s2 notified by the receiver 5 is 0, and the transmission of the status notification signal S7 is resumed. Thereby, it is not necessary to transmit the release instruction signal S6 from the receiver 5 to the wireless switch 6 in order to notify the end of the collective control period t1 as in the above-described embodiment. Therefore, the configuration of the receiver 5 can be made simpler.

Further, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and the configurations of the respective modified embodiments, and various changes can be made depending on the purpose of use. For example, the configuration of any of the modified embodiments may be combined with the configuration of other modified embodiments among the above-described various modified embodiments. Further, the load is not limited to the lighting fixture 2, and may be other electrical devices. Further, after the transmission of the state notification signal S7 is stopped, the wireless switch 6 may transmit the state notification signal S7 held so far in the time slot T1 that is allocated in advance without being repeated. At this time, the wireless switch 6 does not need to store a complicated program or the like in order to randomly select the time slot T1 of the transmission state notification signal S7 as in the above-described embodiment. Thereby, the structure of the wireless switch 6 can be simplified. In addition, each of the receivers 5 can also express the three states of "lighting", "extinguishing", and "no change" in the bit row B2 transmitted to the wireless switch 6 as the illumination of the wireless switch 6. The control content of the appliance 2. At this time, the bit column B2 indicates the control content of the wireless switch 6 corresponding to the bits, for example, every two bits.

In the present invention, the contents of the present invention are included in the scope of the present invention by referring to the specification and drawings of the above-mentioned patent application.

5A~5J‧‧‧ Receiver (wireless master)

S1‧‧‧ start notification signal

S2, s2‧‧‧ lighting control signal (load control signal)

S3‧‧‧Virtual Waiting Signal

S4‧‧‧ End of notification signal

B1‧‧‧ beacon signal

T1‧‧‧Overall control period

t2‧‧‧During the period

T1‧‧‧ slot

T2‧‧‧ distribution time slot

Claims (13)

A load control system, comprising: a controller that generates a plurality of load control signals for collectively controlling a plurality of loads; a plurality of wireless masters that wirelessly transmit load control signals generated by the controller; and a plurality of a wireless slave, receiving a load control signal wirelessly transmitted by the plurality of wireless masters, and controlling one or a plurality of loads according to the load control signal; the plurality of wireless masters and the plurality of wireless slaves, by the a beacon signal wirelessly transmitted by a plurality of wireless masters, the time slot is synchronized with the designated time slot for wireless communication; the plurality of wireless masters are synchronized with each other by wired communication, and the load control is received from the controller At the time of the signal, the load control signal is stored, and the stored load control signal is transmitted to the plurality of wireless slaves in a time slot allocated in advance in a manner different for each of the wireless masters. The load control system of claim 1, wherein the controller indicates a start notification signal for a start timing of the collective control period of the plurality of loads including a transmission period of the load control signal, and indicates The end notification signal of the end timing of the collective control period is transmitted to the wireless base unit; the wireless base unit detects the collective control period based on the start notification signal and the end notification signal transmitted by the controller, and during the collective control period When receiving a signal to be sent to the wireless slave from the controller, the signal is wirelessly transmitted to the wireless slave in any time slot. The load control system of claim 2, wherein the wireless master machine accumulates the load control signal during the receiving of the load control signal, and when the allocation time slot comes, the accumulated time is up to the point in time. A load control signal is sent to the wireless slave. The load control system of claim 2 or 3, wherein the wireless base unit, after the receiving of the load control signal is completed, to the collective control period The load control signal is repeatedly wirelessly transmitted to the wireless slave device until the end timing. The load control system according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the load control signal transmitted from the wireless base unit to the wireless slave unit is corresponding to the number of the wireless slave units set as the communication target of the wireless base unit. a bit column of the number of bits, and multi-casting to the wireless slave at the time of transmission; the bit column is set to a predetermined number of bits, indicating that the bit corresponds to the bit The wireless slave's control content for the load. The load control system of claim 5, wherein the wireless slave transmits the state of the load when the load is changed by an operator different from the controller. Notifying the status notification signal of the controller of the status change; when receiving the load control signal from the wireless base unit, determining whether the load control signal is a multi-propagation load control signal, and determining that the load control signal is multi-propagating When the load control signal is applied, the transmission of the status notification signal is stopped. The load control system of claim 2 or 3, wherein the wireless slave sends the state of the load when the load is changed by operating the load separately from the controller provided by the controller a status notification signal for notifying the controller of the status change; the wireless base unit transmitting a stop instruction signal indicating the stop of transmission of the status notification signal to the wireless slave unit when the collective control period starts. The load control system of claim 2 or 3, wherein the wireless slave sends the state of the load when the load is changed by operating the load separately from the controller provided by the controller a state notification signal for notifying the controller of the state change; when the state notification signal is to be transmitted, carrier sensing is performed after a predetermined time elapses from the head of the time slot, and no other is detected When the wireless slave or the wireless master transmits a signal, the status notification signal is transmitted. The load control system according to claim 6, wherein the wireless base unit transmits a release instruction signal indicating that the transmission of the status notification signal is released to the wireless slave unit when the collective control period ends; the wireless slave unit The end of the collective control period is detected based on the release instruction signal, and the transmission of the status notification signal is stopped. The load control system of claim 4, wherein the wireless base unit displays the remaining number of remaining transmission times of the load control signal until the end timing of the collective control period after the completion of the reception of the load control signal The number notification signal is attached to the load control signal and sent to the wireless slave. The load control system of claim 10, wherein when the load is changed by an operator different from the controller, the wireless slave sends the wireless master to Notifying the state notification signal of the controller of the state change, and causing the stop signal or the load control signal sent from the start of the collective control period to indicate that the state notification signal is stopped. The transmission of the status notification signal is stopped, and when the number of transmissions indicated by the remaining number of notification signals is zero, the transmission of the status notification signal is stopped. The load control system of claim 9, wherein the wireless slave device randomly selects a time slot of the state notification signal held until the transmission of the state notification signal is stopped, and The selected time slot sends the status notification signal. The load control system according to claim 9, wherein the wireless slave device distributes the state notification signal held up until the transmission of the state notification signal is stopped, and distributes the signal in a non-repeating manner in advance. The time slot is sent.