Method for controlling lighting parameters, controlling device, lighting system

A controlling device for controlling lighting parameters is connected to a number of lamps and includes a controlling member which is placed on a contact surface by a user. Lighting parameters of each lamp are determined based on the position of the controlling member on the contact surface. This enables the user to control the lighting parameters simply by controlling the position of the controlling member.

The present invention relates to a method for controlling at least one parameter, especially a parameter which is related to lighting.

The invention further relates to a controlling device for controlling such a parameter.

The invention further relates to a lighting system comprising such a controlling device.

In general, the way in which people apply lighting in their homes depends on the situation. For example, when a person wants to read a newspaper, he switches on a reading lamp and positions the newspaper within reach of the beam of light of the reading lamp. In such a situation, lighting is used in a functional way. In another situation, for example when a person has visitors, he switches on various table lamps, in order to create a cosy atmosphere.

Two main problems are associated with the above-described routine. In the first place, in most situations, a person needs to perform several actions in order to obtain an appropriate light setting, since various lamps need to be switched on, and all lamps need to be operated separately. In the second place, a person has to take the initiative and remember which lamps need to be switched on and which lamps should not be used or need not be used in order to obtain a suitable light setting for a specific situation.

The method according to the present invention allows people to instantly and intuitively control multiple lamps to obtain certain light settings, wherein all lamps can be operated simultaneously.

According to an important aspect of the present invention, at least one controlling member is positioned with respect to a reference plane, and the position of the controlling member with respect to the reference plane is determined. Within the scope of the present invention, the controlling member may be positioned such that contact is established between the controlling member and a contact surface, wherein the reference plane is associated with the contact surface.

The information regarding the position of the controlling member is used to determine at least one parameter, for example light intensity. In this way, a person is able to control the light setting by simply moving the controlling member with respect to the reference plane until a desired light setting is obtained.

FIG. 1shows a controlling device1according to the present invention, which comprises a sensor disc10and one controlling member20. The sensor disc10comprises a contact surface11. In the shown example, the sensor disc10has a cylindrical shape, wherein the contact surface11is formed by one of the end surfaces of the sensor disc10, and consequently has a circular shape. Further, in the shown example, the controlling member20is shaped as a ball.

FIG. 2shows a controlling device2according to the present invention. An important difference between this controlling device2and the above-described controlling device1is that this controlling device2comprises an extra controlling member30.

FIG. 3diagrammatically shows components of the sensor disc10. At the contact surface11, the sensor disc10comprises a matrix sensor40which is capable of detecting the presence and the position of one or more objects being placed on the contact surface11. The matrix sensor40is operatively connected to a processor50having a calculator51, a table reader52and a storage medium53. Preferably, the sensor disc10further comprises a programming device60. However, such a device is not an essential element of the controlling device1,2according to the present invention and may be omitted.

When a controlling member20,30is placed on the contact surface11, the matrix sensor40is activated by the pressure being exerted by the controlling member20,30, at the position where the controlling member20,30contacts the contact surface11, which will hereinafter be referred to as the contact position. The matrix sensor40generates and transmits an input signal containing information regarding the contact position to the processor50. The information may for example comprise two coordinates, by means of which the position of the controlling member20,30is exactly determined with respect to a reference system.

In a situation in which the contact surface11is not contacted by any controlling member20,30at all, the matrix sensor40generates a default input signal. In a situation in which two or more controlling members20,30are placed simultaneously on the contact surface11, an input signal is generated which contains information regarding the positions of all controlling members20,30.

In the processor50, the calculator51is utilized to calculate an average when the input signal contains information originating from more than one controlling member20,30. For example, in a situation of two controlling members20,30being placed on the contact surface11, the input signal comprises two sets of coordinates. In such case, the calculator51calculates an average set of coordinates.

In the storage medium53of the processor50, combinations of sets of coordinates and output signals are stored as a table. The table reader52is for looking up in the stored table which output signal is associated with a given set of coordinates. In the process, extrapolation techniques may be applied in order to obtain this output signal.

A user of the controlling device1,2may adjust the stored table according to his personal wishes by means of a programming device60, which is able to transmit a programming signal to the storage medium53on the basis of the input given by the user.

The controlling device1,2according to the present invention may for example be used to control the light intensity of at least one lamp70. InFIGS. 4 and 5, an example is shown in which four lamps70are connected to the controlling device1, through the power line or a dedicated bus. It will be understood that the number of lamps70may be chosen freely within the scope of the present invention. During operation, the output signal may be transmitted by means of a wire71to the lamps70, as diagrammatically shown inFIG. 4. Another possibility, which is illustrated by means ofFIG. 5, is that the connection between the lamps70and the controlling device1is wireless.

Within the scope of the present invention, it is possible that each lamp70is individually connected to the controlling device1. This possibility is illustrated by means ofFIG. 5, in which it is diagrammatically shown that each lamp70has its own receiver72for receiving the output signal being transmitted by a sender73of the controlling device1. Another possibility is that the lamps70are connected in parallel to the controlling device1. This possibility is illustrated by means ofFIG. 4, in which it is diagrammatically shown that the lamps70are connected as a group to the controlling device1.

Each lamp70may have a unique address, so that the lamps70can be individually controlled. In such case, the output signal contains specific information for each specific lamp70.

The information regarding the position of at least one controlling member20,30can be used to control just one parameter, for example the light intensity of the lamps70. This possibility is illustrated by means ofFIG. 6, in which the relation between the contact position on the contact surface11and the light intensity of the lamps70is diagrammatically depicted by means of an arrow LI. In this example, the light intensity of the lamps70increases when the controlling member20,30is moved towards the circumference of the contact surface11, and the light intensity of the lamps70decreases when the controlling member20,30is moved towards the centre of the contact surface11.

It is very advantageous to use a ball-shaped controlling member20,30, as such a controlling member20,30can very easily be rolled along the contact surface11to a desired position. A user can judge a current setting of the light intensity on the basis of the position of the controlling member20,30on the contact surface11, knowing the relation between these two parameters. Of course, the user can also judge the current setting of the light intensity by looking to the lamps70and by sensing the light setting of the room in which the lamps70are placed. By just sensing the effect of a movement of the controlling member20,30along the contact surface11, the user is able to intuitively control the light intensity of the lamps70without actually looking at the controlling device1,2.

The information regarding the position of at least one controlling member20,30can also be used to simultaneously control two parameters, for example the light intensity and the colour of the lamps70. This possibility is illustrated by means ofFIG. 7, in which the relation between the contact position and the light intensity of the lamps70is diagrammatically depicted by means of an arrow LI, and in which the relation between the contact position and the colour of the lamps70is diagrammatically depicted by means of an arrow C. In this example, the light intensity of the lamps70is determined by the position of the controlling member20,30with respect to the centre of the contact surface11, and the colour of the lamps70is determined by the angular displacement of a radial line crossing the contact position with respect to a reference radial line r, wherein a radial line is defined as a line extending from the centre of the contact surface11to the circumference of the contact surface11.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the contact surface11of the controlling device1,2is categorized according to the example as shown inFIG. 8. In this example, each quarter of the contact surface11corresponds to a certain light setting, for example a cosy light setting or a functional light setting. Additionally, the light intensity can be adjusted by moving the controlling member20,30towards the centre of the contact surface11and from the centre of the contact surface11. On application of the shown contact surface11, more than two parameters may be controlled simultaneously, as the light settings may be characterized by more than one parameter. Preferably, the transitions between the different settings are smooth, so that abrupt changes between different light settings will not occur.

It will be understood that there are many more possibilities for the categorization of the contact surface11than the three described examples. The categorization may be indicated on the contact surface11, in order to help a user in finding a desired light setting.

The categorization of the contact surface11is laid down in the table being stored in the storage medium53. In a situation in which the controlling device1,2comprises a programming device60, the categorization of the contact surface60may be changed by a user. Advantageously, two or more tables are stored in the storage medium53, so that the user is able to choose from a number of predetermined categorizations.

In the following, steps of a controlling process are described, which steps may subsequently take place when the controlling device1having one controlling member20is used:Contact is established between the controlling member20and the contact surface11at a certain position on the contact surface11, which is referred to as contact position.The controlling member20exerts a pressure on the contact surface11. This pressure activates the matrix sensor40, which transmits an input signal containing information regarding the contact position. For example, the contact position may be indicated by means of two coordinates with respect to a reference system.The input signal is received by the processor50. The table reader52compares the information of the input signal regarding the contact position with stored information in the table in the storage medium53, until a match is found or calculated by means of for example extrapolation techniques. The associated characteristics of the output signal are then found in the table or calculated on the basis of the table.The output signal is sent to the lamps70which are connected to the controlling device1.

During operation, these steps are repeated. A user can change the light setting by changing the position of the controlling member20on the contact surface11, as the output signal of the controlling device is determined on the basis of this contact position.

When the controlling device2having two controlling members20,30is used, the contact surface11is contacted simultaneously at two contact positions. Consequently, the matrix sensor40transmits an input signal containing information regarding the two contact positions. In such case, the calculator51determines a fictitious average contact position, which is used by the table reader52in order to find an associated output signal on the basis of the table in the storage medium53. In this way, two users are able to influence the light setting, wherein the obtained light setting is an average of the desired light settings. In this respect, it is possible to use different controlling members20,30, and to enable the matrix sensor40to sense which contact position is related to which controlling member20,30. The average may then be a weighted average according to preset weighing rates.

Another suitable embodiment of the controlling device according to the present invention (not shown), which may also be used by two users, comprises two units having a contact surface11and a matrix sensor40, wherein both units are connected to the processor50. During operation of such a controlling device, the processor50receives two input signals, each input signal containing information regarding the position of a controlling member20,30on one of the contact surfaces11. In this embodiment, the calculator51is utilized to calculate a fictitious average contact position on the basis of the input signals.

It will be clear to a person skilled in the art that the scope of the present invention is not limited to the examples discussed in the foregoing, but that several amendments and modifications thereof are possible without deviating from the scope of the present invention as defined in the attached claims.

In the foregoing explanation of the present invention, it is disclosed that the contact position of the controlling member20,30on a contact surface determines the output signal generated by the controlling device1,2. The contact surface can therefore be regarded as a reference plane, which is defined as a plane with respect to which the position of the controlling member20,30is determined. Within the scope of the present invention, the reference plane does not necessarily need to be associated with the contact surface for supporting the controlling member20,30. For example, an optical sensor may be placed above the controlling member20,30and the contact surface11, wherein the position of the controlling member20,30with respect to the optical sensor determines the output signal. In such case, the reference plane is associated with the optical sensor rather than the contact surface.

The controlling device1,2according to the present invention may comprise different components than the components as diagrammatically shown inFIG. 3and as explained in the foregoing. Instead of the shown matrix sensor40, any suitable component for sensing the position of one or more controlling members20,30with respect to the reference plane may be utilized. For example, as already indicated in the foregoing, the controlling device1,2may comprise an optical sensor. The optical sensor may comprise an optical matrix like a CCD.

The calculator51for determining a fictitious average position may be omitted when only one controlling member20,30is applied. Instead of using a table in a storage medium53and a table reader52for retrieving data from the table and determining data on the basis of the table, it is also possible to use an arithmetic unit which determines an output signal on the basis of a certain relation. For example, in case of the contact surface11being categorized according to the examples as illustrated by means ofFIGS. 6 and 7, it is very well possible to use a relation instead of a table.

The contact surface11does not necessarily have to be entirely flat. Further, the contact surface11can have another shape than circular, for example rectangular.

The controlling members20,30may be shaped as balls, as is the case in the shown examples, but the controlling members20,30may also be shaped differently, for example as cubes. It is important that the shape of the controlling members20,30is such that the controlling members20,30can be placed on the contact surface11in a stable manner. It is preferred that the controlling members20,30are objects which can easily be held and moved by a user, and which can easily be displaced with respect to the contact surface11. During displacement of a controlling member20,30, contact between the controlling member20,30and the contact surface11may be maintained, but it is also possible to lift the controlling member20,30from the starting position and place the controlling member20,30at a desired end position without meanwhile contacting the contact surface11. Preferably, when the contact is interrupted during displacement, a default light setting is assumed during the interruption. When the contact is maintained during displacement, the light setting may change continuously or in discrete steps, dependent on the algorithm applied by the processor50in determining the output signal.

There are numerous possibilities for the design of the controlling device1,2according to the present invention, wherein the contact surface11as well as the controlling members20,30may have any suitable shape. For example, the controlling device1,2may comprise pebbles and a disc, wherein the pebbles function as controlling members20,30, and wherein the disc comprises the contact surface11. The controlling members20,30may be designed such as to be attachable to the contact surface11.

The present invention relates to situations in which at least one passive controlling member20,30is utilized as well as to situations in which at least one active controlling member20,30is utilized. An important feature of an active controlling member20,30is that such a controlling member20,30is able to actively transmit a signal. An active controlling member20,30may for example be able to emit infrared light, wherein an optical sensor is provided to receive the infrared light signal. It will be understood that a passive controlling member20,30is not capable of actively transmitting a signal.

The contact between the controlling member20,30and the contact surface11does not necessarily need to be a point contact. For example, if the controlling member20,30has the shape of a cube, a contact area is present between the controlling member20,30and the contact surface11, having the shape of a square.

Within the scope of the present invention, additional measures may be taken in order to assure stable contact between the controlling members20,30and the contact surface11. For example, the materials of the controlling members20,30and the contact surface11may be chosen such that the controlling members20,30are held at their contact positions on the contact surface11through magnetic forces. In this respect, it is important that the additional forces are relatively low, so that a user will be able to break the contact between a controlling member20,30and the contact surface11without using much force.

The controlling device1,2according to the present invention may be used to control other parameters than lighting parameters. For example, the controlling device1,2may be coupled to sound equipment, and may be used to control sound parameters such as volume.

In the foregoing, a controlling device1,2for controlling at least one parameter is described. In a possible application, the controlling device1,2is connected to a number of lamps70. The controlling device1,2comprises at least one controlling member20,30, which is placed on a contact surface11by a user. Lighting parameters of each lamp70are determined on the basis of the position of the controlling member20,30on the contact surface11.

The controlling device1,2comprises sensing means40for sensing the position of the controlling member20,30on the contact surface11with respect to a reference system. Information regarding said position is contained by an input signal which is transmitted from the sensing means40to a processor50for generating an output signal on the basis of the input signal and an algorithm laid down in said processor50.

The controlling device1,2enables a user to control at least one lighting parameter simply by controlling the position of the controlling member20,30on the contact surface11.