WO2016117988A1 - System and device for digital automated control - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a system and device for digital automated control, which is an electronic interrupter which in turn is a control circuit with the same functionality as a classic interrupter, position ON closing the power circuit and permitting the passage of current, and position OFF opening the power circuit, but wherein the ON/OFF transition is not mechanical, rather it is controlled by software from a micro-controller, substantially increasing the automation of the system, by adding functions such as light sensors, presence sensors, voice control, scene adjustment and programming of activation schedules. Different stages were followed for the development of this invention, from the general design of the product, electronic design, production, construction of the embedded system, laboratory tests, communication tests and tests for resistance to environments.

Description

 DIGITAL DOMOTIC CONTROL SYSTEM AND DEVICE

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention belongs to the field of electronics since it is based on the creation of an electric switch by means of a light beam for the activation and deactivation of electric power current to a given circuit, using a micro controller for the collection of input signals and the determination of output responses.

BACKGROUND

There is a wide range of commercial and domestic type switches on the market to control the on and off mainly of luminaires; which are mostly made of moving parts based on simple mechanisms usually made of some type of plastic on the outside and copper foils that move inside to close or open the circuit; which have a high demand in the market globally since in addition to being simple manufacturing they are relatively low cost. These switches are operated directly manually by people moving a button to one side or the other in order to activate or interrupt electricity. Current trends are increasingly attached to the non-use of drive mechanisms as well as to avoid physical contact with actuator systems, examples of this trend are clearly seen in water taps, in dispensers and even in computers that are currently replacing keyboards with mechanical parts by virtual keyboards. There are also other types of on and off control systems that go beyond turning lights on and off, these are the so-called smart devices that use a touch screen (usually) and in some cases voice commands to turn lights on and off, control the intensity of its brightness, open or close blinds, turn on and off televisions and sound equipment, control locks, among other things; Such is the case of the patent number US 8384672 B2 Remote control system having a touch screen that uses a touch screen to control different electronic devices inside a house, such systems have the characteristic of being very cost in terms of its purchasing value and its installation since they usually require special facilities, so it is recommended that they be installed during the construction of the house. In the patent number US 7973589 B2 of the name Micro-controller-based electronic switch using a proximity detector to facilitate hands-free control of an AC device a type of optical switch with infrared sensor that uses a microcontroller to operate an electric device is described presence detection medium.

The present invention proposes a practical, simple and adaptable control system to any new or existing construction since it has the dimensions of standard switches and with a wide range of uses such as the switching off and on of any type of appliance, speed regulation of motors or fans, control of brightness intensity of luminaires, switching on and off equipment that requires security coding, control of electric locks using passwords, control of blinds, among other applications for everyday use in any home or business. This device does not have mobile mechanical parts, so its chances of failure are drastically reduced, which gives it a further advantage against the switches currently being operated, in addition to having a low production cost so it could be within reach of any person and quickly replace conventional switches and intelligent systems.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The characteristic details of the present invention are clearly shown in the following description, accompanying figures and examples, which are included by way of an illustrative example, and therefore should not be considered as limiting, for this.

Brief description of the figures: Figure 1 shows a diagram of the general operation of the system

 Figure 2 is a front perspective view of the cover of the device of the present invention.

 Figure 3 represents the front face of the device cover.

Figure 4 is a rear perspective of the device cover.

Figure 5 is a conventional perspective of the housing housing of the electronic components of the device.

Figure 6 is a block diagram of the programming logic used in example 1.

 Figure 7 is a schematic of the electronic card with its main components. Figure 8 shows the electronic diagram of the device,

 Figure 9 shows a block diagram of the logic used in example 2.

Figure 10 is a schematic of the microcontroller used in this design.

The system consists of a microcontroller (9) with analog inputs (13) and digital outputs (14), which reads the signals of two optical activation sensors (17), 1 analog signal from the light sensor (18), and 2 outputs addressed to the low voltage signal coupling module. The sampling time of this process corresponds to the processing speed of the microcontroller (9), in this case 20 MHz.

The device in all its modalities has a housing (5) with a cavity (6) where the electronic card (11) with all its components is housed and which in turn has clamping holes (7) with standard separation measures that allow you to hold on in commercial receptacles by means of screws; It also has exit holes (16) for each action module (2) with output terminals (12) of the electronic board (11) where the analogue input electrical cable (13) of the external electrical source and cables is connected electrical digital output (14) that will power the device to be controlled.

Example 1. Use of the device as an on, off and intensity switch in electrical appliances:

In its switch-selector mode, the device can have one or more intrinsic action modules (2) in the cover (1) of the device which is attached to the housing (5) under pressure by means of interlocks (4) arranged in both pieces; Each module has a led indicator (15) on the cover (1) that when it is on it indicates that the controlled circuit is closed and when it is off it indicates that the controlled circuit is open. It also has an infrared emitter (3) placed in a linear direction to a phototransistor (8) with a sunlight filter; The infrared emitter (3) housed in the module emits a light beam towards the phototransistor (8), every time a person passes a finger or touches the cavity of the action module (2) the beam is interrupted generating in the phototransistor (8 ) a current pulse that is captured by an input of a microcontroller (9) which in turn executes a logical programming sequence (fig. 6). At a certain point, the microcontroller (9) detects a change in the state of the input and then reads a variable that indicates the state in which it was previously, so if the variable was at the logic level it changes it to the logic level zero and vice versa, in this way if the circuit to be controlled is open, it is ordered to close and if it is closed it opens. Each time the light beam is interrupted, the microcontroller (9) waits for a time of 500 ms before taking the next reading again to avoid possible unwanted immediate repetitive firing of the input signal, this allows the microcontroller (9) to do Variable comparisons without errors and verify the status of each action module (2) individually. Said microcontroller (9) is capable of controlling one more action modules (2) at the same time without correlating them. Each time the microcontroller (9) detects a change in the variable of some action module (2) it emits a signal through an output assigned to that action module (2) that drives an independent power relay (10) for each module of action (2) that allows or cuts the passage of electricity to the device to be controlled by output terminals (12). In the case of devices with intensity selector or modalities each time the infrared beam is interrupted, the microcontroller (9) alternates the output signal to different power relays (0) assigned to the same action module (2); thus having a power relay (0) for each output signal generated, equivalent to a change in current status or mode in the device to be controlled. Said power relays (10) which in turn are connected to the output terminals (12) where the device to be controlled is connected.

Example 2. Use of the device as an access controller.

In this modality it is necessary that the device has at least two action modules (2) since there is a correlation between them, as well as its led indicators (15). In this mode, the microcontroller (9) is pre-recorded with an initial combination which will be requested at the time of installation by means of a signal given by the LED indicators (15), once this combination has been introduced, the user will be asked for a new combination. which will be permanently recorded for this device. Thus, any combination that the user selects will be the one that the device operates in the future, automatically eliminating the initial password. The operation will consist of a register generated through the signals produced by the phototransistors (8) in the action modules (2) whenever they capture the interruption of the infrared light beam, that is, if the device is composed of two modules may have three possible signals (1: 0, 0: 1, 1: 1) to generate a data and thus join a sequence of data to form a combination, which will be captured by the microcontroller (9) for later be compared with the permanent combination, if the combination introduced coincides with the permanent combination the microcontroller (9) will send the signal to the power relay (10) so that it allows the flow of current to the controlled device for a predefined time interval during which the led indicators will remain on; If the microcontroller (9) is incorrect, it will send a series of pulses to the LED indicators (15) so that they light up intermittently indicating that there was an error in the combination. As in the previous example, the microcontroller (9) will wait 500 ms between taking one reading and another for the same purpose. For this mode the same architecture of the electronic card (11) is used as in the previous mode.

Claims

A new and functional device for the control of equipment that works based on electricity that can work but that is not limited to a simple action switch or as a security system that allows operating by means of passwords. Consisting of: a. A uniquely designed cover which can be modified in its design and size depending on the number of modules or switches that you wish to have, which in turn has holes to place indicative illuminators. Said cover that has a cavity for each module. b. A sensor with a solar light filter capable of operating with a beam of laser light, infrared light, ultraviolet light or any type of permissible light. C. An emitter of said laser light beam, infrared light, ultraviolet light or any other type of permissible light, placed frontally to the sensor, both within each cavity of the cover with a separation suitable for the purpose of the operation d. A pressure-assembled housing with the cover and attachable to any commercial electrical receptacle that has the characteristic of protecting the electronic components for the correct operation of the device and with holes for electrical wiring. and. A card with printed circuit designed to house the electronic components necessary for the operation of the device as well as allow communication between the different elements for the correct operation of the same. F. A pyro-electric sensor that is used to monitor the presence of people in the room by means of thermal radiation and that is used for automatic switching on and off of lights or other elements controlled by the device 2. The method of operation that manages to detect the intervention of an object by means of a short-range infrared beam and thereby activates the output that has been directly related to it. Said method that uses but is not limited to two modes of operation; in one of them the device of claim 1 is used to function as a power control switch in such a way that it can be programmed to be used to turn on and off an electric power supply or it can be programmed as a multi-level selector of intensity of the additional power supply on and off. In another way the device is programmed as a controller for security systems by using combinations; By making the right combinations the device allows the passage of electrical energy to activate or deactivate another device, for example, an access door with electromagnetic closure. 3. The method of claim 2, which uses a presence detector that also allows keeping the functions active while detecting the presence of people in the area and deactivating them once the people leave, if so desired. 4. The device of claim 1 which is an optical switch that can control one or more electrical or electronic circuits or devices. 5. The device of claim 1 which is a control for electronic sheet locks that operates by means of combinations. 6. The device of claim 1 which is a voltage regulator for luminaires. 7. The device of claim 1 which is also a modality selector such as changing motor speeds and functions selected in other electrical appliances.