WO2016068688A1

WO2016068688A1 - Method and system for ubiquitous interface for led devices

Info

Publication number: WO2016068688A1
Application number: PCT/MY2015/000086
Authority: WO
Inventors: Smruti Santosh PALAI; Devi PRASAD; Ahmad Hafez NAWI
Original assignee: Mimos Berhad
Priority date: 2014-10-29
Filing date: 2015-10-28
Publication date: 2016-05-06

Abstract

The present invention discloses a method and system for ubiquitous interface for Light Emitting Diode (LED) devices. The system comprises a configuration module (106) that further comprises a plurality of First-in First-Out (FIFO) modules (202), a control Finite State Machine (FSM) (204), a PWM register (206), an On/Off control switch (210), a Timer register (208), a power management register (206) and an interface logic module (212).

Description

METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR UBIQUITOUS INTERFACE FOR LED DEVICES

FIELD OF INVENTION The present invention relates generally to a method and system for ubiquitous interface for Light Emitting Diode (LED) devices that allows interoperable use of LED lightings and controllers from different communication protocols.

BACKGROUND ART

In recent years, energy saving is seen as a growing concern. Lightings encompass a large amount of the world's total power consumption. Hence, there has been an advent of the use of light emitting diode (LED) devices as it significantly reduces the energy consumption of lightings as LED devices consume much less energy compared to conventional lighting devices.

In view of this, there has been an increase in the number of corporations that manufacture and commercialize LED devices and their controllers that are based on sensors, LED drivers and communication modules to reduce the energy consumption by controlling the illumination intensity of lights where necessary. Hence, there are many communication protocols or interface standards that are available, namely Digital Addressable Lighting Interface (DALI), Digital Multiplex (DMX512), Zigbee, Power Line Carrier Communication (PLCC), Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and etc. However, there is no single standard that would allow interoperable use of LED devices and controllers from different vendors. Due to this limitation, existing LED controllers can only be utilized for limited communication protocols or interface standards to control the LED devices.

Prior art US 2005/0112801 A1 is based on a non volatile memory that stores PWM information and it does not teach any remote programming capability or support for multiple standard interface. Prior art US 2007/0139316 A1 is based on a keyboard that controls the programming of the PWM information and it also does not teach any remote programming capability or support for multiple standard interface. Prior art US 2010/0060181 A1 it employs physical RC to generate PWM and it again does not teach any remote programming capability or support for multiple standard interface.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

The present invention provides a method and system for ubiquitous interface for Light Emitting Diode (LED) devices. The present invention proposes a platform to control LED drivers that enables the integration of LED devices / lightings / luminaries and controllers from multiple interface standards including DALI, D X, Zigbee, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, PLCC and any proprietary lighting standard of interface to be utilized within a single consolidated environment.

In one aspect of the present invention is a method for ubiquitous interface for LED devices. The method comprises receiving and storing temporarily, in the plurality of FIFO modules, data packets from a plurality of LED controllers of different communication protocols; checking, by a control FSM, a device ID field of the data packet from the pluralities of FIFO modules; checking, by the control FSM, a R/W bit value of a message type field of the data packet, wherein if the R/W bit value is 1 , selecting a Write operation, checking an operation mode to ascertain if an operation mode is PWM, Timer or On/Off modes and performing the operation modes; and if the R/W bit value is 0, selecting a Read operation, checking an operation mode to ascertain if an operation mode is PWM, Timer, On/Off or Discovery modes and performing the operation modes; loading, by the control FSM, a PWM register value, a Timer register value and an On/Off register value, into a PWM register, a Timer register and an On/Off control switch respectively; and sending from an interface logic module, the PWM register value and On/Off register values as control signals to at least one LED driver module to drive at least one of the LED devices.

In the various embodiments of the present invention, the data packet comprises a device ID field further comprising K bits of values, which are set according to the number of LED devices; a message type field further comprising L bits of values, which designate the type of message commands, further comprising 1 bit value of R/W; 2 bits values of VAL; and reserved bits; wherein an address value in the message type field designates the operation mode being PWM, Timer, On/Off or Discovery mode;

a length field further comprising n bit of values, which represents the number of LED devices being controlled; and at least one byte field up to a maximum of m bytes fields, wherein m = 2ⁿ, representing a plurality of LEDs being controlled.

The step of checking, by the FSM, the device ID field of the data packet from the pluralities of FIFO modules further comprises reading K bit values of the device ID field of the data packet from the pluralities of FIFO modules; and comparing the device ID to a stored device ID, wherein if it is not same, then the pluralities of FIFO modules are flushed; and if it is the same, the R W bit value of the message type field is checked for the selection of Read operation or Write operation.

If the R W bit value is 1 , the method further comprises checking the 2 bit values of VAL in the message type field to ascertain the operation mode in the Write operation wherein 2'b00 binary designates Timer mode; 2'b01 binary designates PWM mode; and 2'b10 binary designates ON/OFF mode; checking the n bit values of Length field of the data packet to determine the total number of LED devices that are required to be controlled; performing the Write operation based on the operation mode repeatedly for m times, wherein m = 2ⁿ, which is equivalent to the total number of LED devices; flushing the pluralities of FIFO modules should the value of VAL not be 2'b00, 2'b01 or 2'b10 binary; and upon completion of the Write operation, loading the register value into the PWM counter, the Timer counter and the On/Off control switch.

If the R W bit value is 0, the method further comprises checking the 2 bit values of VAL in the message type field to ascertain the operation mode in the Read operation wherein 2'b00 binary designates Timer mode; 2'b01 binary designates PWM mode; 2'b10 binary designates ON/OFF mode; and 2'b1 1 binary designates Discovery mode; checking the n bit values of Length field of the data packet to determine the total number of LED devices that are required to be controlled; performing the Read operation based on the operation mode repeatedly for m times, wherein m = 2ⁿ, which is equivalent to the total number of LED devices; and upon completion of the Read operation, loading the register value into the PWM counter, the Timer counter and the On/Off control switch. If the 2 bit values of VAL in the message type field designates Discovery mode is selected, the method further comprises reading a status information from the LED devices including the number of LED devices controlled, the state of the PWM register, the Timer register and the on/off register and the type of protocol supported.

The step of loading, by the control FSM, the PWM register value, the Timer register value and the On/Off register value, into the PWM register, the Timer register and the On/Off control switch respectively further comprises resetting the state of the PWM register and Timer register and On/Off control switch; based on the operation mode of the Read operation or Write operation, loading the PWM register value into the PWM register, the Timer register values into the Timer register and the On/Off register value into the On/Off control switch; and sends a duty cycle pulse to the Interface Logic module.

In another aspect of the present invention is a system for ubiquitous interface for Light Emitting Diode (LED) devices. The system comprises a plurality of LED controllers of different communication protocols for providing LED control data to at least DALI, DMX, Zigbee, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, PLCC and any proprietary standard of interface; a plurality of plug-in modules to convert command data from the plurality of LED controllers into LED control data supporting at least Zigbee, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and PLCC standard of interface; an LED driver module comprising at least one LED driver to drive LED devices for dimming and on/off purposes upon receiving LED control data from a configuration module; and a configuration module for handling control data and addressing scheme for control data received from the plurality of LED controllers. The configuration module further comprises a plurality of First-in First-Out (FIFO) modules for temporarily storing incoming and outgoing data to and from the plurality of LED controllers; a control Finite State Machine (FSM) for control data and addressing scheme; a PWM register and On/Off control switch for controlling the dimming and the On/Off of the LED devices; a Timer register and a power management register for power management; and an interface logic module for providing interface between the configuration module and the LED driver module.

The present invention consists of features and a combination of parts hereinafter fully described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it is being understood that various changes in the details may be made without departing from the scope of the invention or sacrificing any of the advantages of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS To further clarify various aspects of some embodiments of the present invention, a more particular description of the invention will be rendered by references to specific embodiments thereof, which are illustrated, in the appended drawings. It is appreciated that these drawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope. The invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 illustrates a block diagram of the system according to present invention. FIGURE 2 illustrates an internal architecture of a configuration module.

FIGURE 3 illustrates an addressing scheme structure for a data packet.

FIGURE 4A, 4B, 4C & 4D illustrate a flow chart of the method according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention relates to a method and system for ubiquitous interface for Light Emitting Diode (LED) devices. Hereinafter, this specification will describe the present invention according to the preferred embodiments of the present invention. However, it is to be understood that limiting the description to the preferred embodiments of the invention is merely to facilitate discussion of the present invention and it is envisioned that those skilled in the art may devise various modifications and equivalents without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

The present invention aims to improve convenience of users by providing a ubiquitous interface for LED devices / lightings / luminaries that would allow interoperable use of LED devices and controllers from different vendors. A standard addressing scheme used for all LED devices makes it possible to control the operation and monitor the operation status of LED devices more conveniently and efficiently.

Reference is first being made to FIGURE 1. FIGURE 1 illustrates a block diagram of the system according to present invention. The present invention allows interoperability of a plurality of LED controllers of different communication protocols. The system comprises LED controllers (102), plug-in modules (104), a configuration module (106) and an LED driver module (1 10). The LED controllers (102) are of different communication protocols for providing LED control data to at least DALI, DMX, Zigbee, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, PLCC and any proprietary standard of interface. The plug-in modules (104) convert command data from the plurality of LED controllers into LED control data supporting at least Zigbee, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and PLCC standard of interface. The LED driver module (1 10) comprises LED drivers to drive LED devices (108) for dimming and on/off purposes upon receiving LED control data from the configuration module. The configuration module (106) handles control data and addressing scheme for control data that is received from the LED controllers. The control data is in the form of a pulse-width modulated (PWM) lighting control signal for input to the LED driver to control LED current, in order to produce varying levels of brightness and also to enable or disable the LED devices.

Reference is now being made to FIGURE 2. FIGURE 2 illustrates an internal architecture of a configuration module. The configuration module comprises First-in First-Out (FIFO) (202) modules, a control Finite State Machine (FSM) (204), a PWM register (206), an On/Off control switch (210), a Timer register (208), a power management register and an interface logic module (212). The FIFO (202) modules are utilized for temporarily storing or holding incoming and outgoing data to and from the LED controllers.

The DMX Slave receives incoming lighting control data formatted according to the DMX standard. The data packets are then passed to the DMX TX & RX FIFO for further process. The DMX Slave also transmits lighting protocol output to the DMX controller. The DALI Slave receives incoming lighting control data formatted according to the DALI standard. The data packets are then passed to the DMX TX & RX FIFO for further process. The DALI Slave also transmits lighting protocol output to the DALI controller.

The DMX TX & RX FIFO holds data packets received from DMX Slave or Control FSM before passing the same to Control FSM or DMX Slave for further processing. The DALI TX & RX FIFO holds data packets received from DALI Slave or Control FSM before passing the same to Control FSM or DALI Slave for further processing. The PLCC TX & RX FIFO holds data packets received from the PLCC Plug In module or Control FSM before passing the same to Control FSM or PLCC Plug In module for further processing. The Wi-Fi TX & RX FIFO holds data packets received from Wi-Fi Plug In module or Control FSM before passing the same to Control FSM or Wi-Fi Plug In module for further processing. The Bluetooth TX & RX FIFO holds data packets received from Bluetooth Plug In module or Control FSM before passing the same to Control FSM or Bluetooth Plug In module for further processing. The Zigbee TX & RX FIFO holds data packets received from Zigbee Plug In module or Control FSM before passing the same to Control FSM or Zigbee Plug In module for further processing. The 6LowPAN TX & RX FIFO holds data packets received from 6LowPAN Plug In module or Control FSM before passing the same to Control FSM or 6LowPAN Plug In module for further processing. The Proprietary TX & RX FIFO holds data packets received from proprietary Plug In module or Control FSM before passing the same to Control FSM or proprietary Plug In module for further processing. The Control FSM (204) controls data and addressing scheme. It controls the data packets flow and performs the addressing scheme for all LED devices protocol inputs, thus making it possible to control the LED devices in the network lighting system with different protocols. The PWM register (206) and On/Off control switch (210) control the dimming and the On/Off of the LED devices. The PWM register (206) or register bank receives data stored as a PWM Counter value for a respective PWM Generator. The PWM Generator loads the PWM counter values and generates a PWM signal with respect to the PWM counter values. This controls the dimming of the LED device. The ON/OFF control switch (210) or register bank stores the On/Off values based on the data packet received from Control FSM.

The Timer register (208) and a power management register are utilized for power management. The power management register is based on a timer controlled by the Timer register (208) or register bank. If the LED device is idle for a period longer than a preset timeout, then, the LED device may be configured to enter a sleep mode. Additionally it can be used as a timer to On/Off the LED devices based on preset timing intervals.

The interface logic module (212) provides an interface between the configuration module and the LED driver module. The interface logic module (212) provides a logic that interfaces with the LED drivers. It also generates an On/Off in combination with the On/Off control switch and PWM control signal in combination with the PWM Generator, both signals are sent to the LED driver. Reference is now being made to FIGURE 3. FIGURE 3 illustrates an addressing scheme structure for a data packet. The addressing scheme is established to provide a standard communication interface between controllers with different communications protocol and LED devices. Considering the multiple communication protocols of device interfaces, the addressing scheme is proposed to enable a user to effectively control and monitor LED devices remotely. The data packet has a unique address field structure, which includes K bits of a device ID (302), L bits of message type (304), n bits of length (306) and 2ⁿ bits of consecutive messages (308) that may designate 2ⁿ types of LED devices. The device ID field (302) that includes K bits of values are set according to the number of LED devices. The message type field (304) includes L bits of values, which designate the type of message commands, wherein 1 bit value of R/W (310), 2 bits values of VAL (314) and the remaining bits are unused, reserved bits (312). The 2 bits value of VAL (314) represent an address value (316, 318, , 320, 322) in the message type field (304) that designates the operation mode being PWM, Timer, On/Off or Discovery mode. In the Discovery mode is the user is able to read the status information from the LED devices including the number of LED devices controlled, the state of the PWM register, the Timer register and the on/off register and the type of protocol supported wherein a first byte (326), a second byte (328), a third byte (330) and a fourth byte (332) fields of the data packet represents status information of the PWM register, Timer register, On/Off control switch and lighting communication protocol supported respectively. The length field (306) includes n bit of values that represents the number of LED devices being controlled. The 2ⁿ bits of consecutive messages (308) range from one byte field up to a maximum of m bytes fields, wherein m = 2ⁿ. These bytes represent a plurality of LEDs being controlled.

Reference is collectively being made to FIGURES 4A, 4B, 4C and 4D. FIGURE 4A, 4B, 4C & 4D illustrate a flow chart of the method according to the present invention. The method begins with the FIFO modules receiving and storing temporarily (404), data packets from LED controllers of different communication protocols. The device ID field of the data packet is then checked by the control FSM. This is achieved by reading (408) the K bit values of the device ID field of the data packet from the FIFO modules and comparing (410) it to stored device ID of LED devices that have been configured. If no match is found, then the FIFO modules are flushed (406) and the flow begins again. If a match is identified, then the R/W bit value of the message type field is checked (412) for the selection of Read operation or Write operation.

If the R/W bit value is 1 , the Write operation is selected. The 2 bit values of VAL in the message type field are checked (418, 420, 422) to ascertain the operation mode in the Write operation. 2'b00 binary designates Timer mode, 2'b01 binary designates PWM mode and 2'b10 binary designates ON/OFF mode. If the value of VAL is neither 2'b00, 2'b01 nor 2'b10 binary, FIFO modules are flushed and the flow begins again. Then the n bit values of Length field of the data packet are checked to determine the total number of LED devices that are required to be controlled. The Write operation based on the operation mode is then perform (424, 426, 428) repeatedly for m times (430, 432, 434), wherein m = 2ⁿ, equivalent to the total number of LED devices. If the R/W bit value is 0, the Read operation is selected. The 2 bit values of VAL in the message type field are checked (440, 442, 444) to ascertain the operation mode in the Read operation. 2'b00 binary designates Timer mode, 2'b01 binary designates PWM mode, 2'b10 binary designates ON/OFF mode and 2'b1 1 binary designates Discovery mode. Then the n bit values of Length field of the data packet are checked to determine the total number of LED devices that are required to be controlled. The Read operation based on the operation mode is performed (448, 450, 452) repeatedly for m times (454, 456, 458, 460), wherein m = 2ⁿ, equivalent to the total number of LED devices. Upon completion (436) of the Write or Read operation, the register value is loaded (464) into the PWM register, the Timer register and the On/Off control switch. Firstly the state of the PWM register and Timer register and On/Off control switch are reset. Then based on the operation mode of the Read operation or Write operation, the PWM register value is loaded into the PWM register, the Timer register values is loaded into the Timer register and the On/Off register value is loaded into the On/Off control switch. Finally a duty cycle pulse is sent to the interface logic module. With this, the interface logic module sends (466) the PWM register value and On/Off register values as control signals to the LED driver module to drive (468) the LED devices.

Claims

A method for ubiquitous interface for Light Emitting Diode (LED) devices, the method comprising:

receiving and storing temporarily (404), in a plurality of First-in First- Out (FIFO) modules, data packets from a plurality of LED controllers of different communication protocols;

checking (410), by a control Finite State Machine (FSM), a device ID field of the data packet from the pluralities of FIFO modules;

checking (412), by the control FSM, a R/W bit value of a message type field of the data packet, wherein

if the R/W bit value is 1 , selecting a Write operation, checking (418, 420, 422) an operation mode to ascertain if an operation mode is PWM, Timer or On/Off modes and performing the operation modes; and

if the R/W bit value is 0, selecting a Read operation, checking (440, 442, 444) an operation mode to ascertain if an operation mode is PWM, Timer, On/Off or Discovery modes and performing the operation modes;

loading (464), by the control FSM, a PWM register value, a Timer register value and an On/Off register value, into a PWM register, a Timer register and an On/Off control switch respectively; and sending (466) from an interface logic module, the PWM register value and On/Off register values as control signals to at least one LED driver module to drive (468) at least one of the LED devices.

A method according to claim 1 , wherein checking, by the FSM, the device ID field of the data packet from the pluralities of FIFO modules further comprises reading (408) K bit values of the device ID field of the data packet from the pluralities of FIFO modules; and

comparing (410) the device ID to a stored device ID, wherein

if it is not same, then the pluralities of FIFO modules are flushed (406); and if it is the same, the R/W bit value of the message type field is checked (412) for the selection of Read operation or Write operation.

3. A method according to claim 1 , wherein if the R/W bit value is 1 , the method further comprises

checking (418, 420, 422) the 2 bit values of VAL in the message type field to ascertain the operation mode in the Write operation wherein

2'b00 binary designates Timer mode;

2'b01 binary designates PWM mode; and

2'b10 binary designates ON/OFF mode;

checking the n bit values of Length field of the data packet to determine the total number of LED devices that are required to be controlled;

performing (424, 426, 428) the Write operation based on the operation mode repeatedly for m times (430, 432, 434), wherein m = 2ⁿ, which is equivalent to the total number of LED devices;

flushing the pluralities of FIFO modules should the value of VAL not be 2'b00, 2'b01 or 2'b10 binary; and

upon completion (436) of the Write operation, loading (464) the register value into the PWM register, the Timer register and the On/Off control switch.

4. A method according to claim 1 , wherein if the R/W bit value is 0, the method further comprises

checking (440, 442, 444) the 2 bit values of VAL in the message type field to ascertain the operation mode in the Read operation wherein

2'b00 binary designates Timer mode;

2'b01 binary designates PWM mode;

2'b10 binary designates ON/OFF mode; and

2'b11 binary designates Discovery mode; checking the n bit values of Length field of the data packet to determine the total number of LED devices that are required to be controlled;

performing (448, 450, 452) the Read operation based on the operation mode repeatedly for m times (454, 456, 458, 460), wherein m = 2ⁿ, which is equivalent to the total number of LED devices; and upon completion (462) of the Read operation, loading (464) the register value into the PWM counter, the Timer counter and the On/Off control switch.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein if the 2 bit values of VAL in the message type field designates Discovery mode is selected (438), the method further comprises reading a status information from the LED devices including the number of LED devices controlled, the state of the PWM register, the Timer register and the on/off register and the type of protocol supported wherein a first byte (326), a second byte (328), a third byte (330) and a fourth byte (332) fields of the data packet represents status information of the PWM register, Timer register, On/Off control switch and lighting communication protocol supported respectively.

6. A method according to claim 1 , wherein loading (464), by the control FSM, the PWM register value, the Timer register value and the On/Off register value, into the PWM register, the Timer register and the On/Off control switch respectively further comprises

resetting the state of the PWM register and Timer register and On/Off control switch;

based on the operation mode of the Read operation or Write operation, loading (464)

the PWM register value into the PWM register, the Timer register values into the Timer register and the On/Off register value into the On/Off control switch; and

sending a duty cycle pulse to the interface logic module.

7. A system for ubiquitous interface for Light Emitting Diode (LED) devices, the system comprising:

a plurality of LED controllers (102) of different communication protocols for providing LED control data to at least DALI, DMX, Zigbee, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, PLCC and any proprietary standard of interface;

a plurality of plug-in modules (104) to convert command data from the plurality of LED controllers into LED control data supporting at least

Zigbee, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and PLCC standard of interface;

an LED driver module (110) comprising at least one LED driver to drive LED devices (108) for dimming and on/off purposes upon receiving LED control data from a configuration module; and a configuration module (106) for handling control data and addressing scheme for control data received from the plurality of LED controllers, characterized in that, the configuration module further comprises

a plurality of First-in First-Out (FIFO) (202) modules for temporarily storing incoming and outgoing data to and from the plurality of LED controllers;

a control Finite State Machine (FSM) (204) for control data and addressing scheme;

a PWM register (206) and On/Off control switch (210) for controlling the dimming and the On/Off of the LED devices; a Timer register (208) and a power management register for power management; and

an interface logic module (212) for providing interface between the configuration module and the LED driver module.