Patent Publication Number: US-9412266-B2

Title: Signal conversion device and smart home network system using the same

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     The present disclosure relates to smart home technology, and particularly to a signal conversion device and a smart home network system using the signal conversion device. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     Smart home technology is becoming more popular. With this technology, a part of home devices in a house can be connected to a smart home network system, to be controlled by the smart home network system. 
     However, the home devices applied in existing smart home network system are controlled by wired control signals, which raise a bandwidth requirement. In addition, rewiring for a house is needed when the smart home network system is applied to the house at the first time. As a result of the large number of the home devices and existing wiring, rewiring for a house is difficult, and will destroy existing decoration of the house, and further increase the cost. Further, a part of existing traditional home devices in the house can only receive wireless control signal, and cannot receive cable control signal. Therefore, these traditional home devices cannot be connected to the smart home network system, and cannot be controlled by the smart home network system. It will cause a great waste if a purchase of new home devices needs to replace these traditional home devices. 
     Therefore, there is room for improvement within the art. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Many aspects of the embodiments can be better understood with reference to the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, the emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the present disclosure. Moreover, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views. 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of a smart home network system, according to an embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a signal conversion device applied in the system of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram of a smart gateway applied in the system of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a flowchart illustrating a method for registering a number of home devices and signal conversion devices applied in the system of  FIG. 1  with the smart gateway of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 5  is a block diagram of a register controller applied in the system of  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic diagram of a control interface displayed on the smart gateway of  FIG. 3  or on a control device. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIG. 1  shows a smart home network system  100  of the embodiment. The system  100  includes a smart gateway  20 , a number of home devices  30 , and a number of signal conversion devices  33 . The smart gateway  20  is connected to each home device  30  and the signal conversion devices  33  via power lines  50 . The home devices  30  may include, but are not limited to, a refrigerator, an air conditioner, an electric curtain, a lamp, and a smart socket. The home devices  30  include a number of smart home devices  31  and a number of traditional home devices  32 . The smart home devices  31  are able to directly communicate with the smart gateway  20  via the power lines. The traditional home devices  32  have wireless communication function, and the smart gateway  20  indirectly communicates with the traditional home devices  32  via the signal conversion device  33 . 
     In this embodiment, each device in the system  100  is provided with a unique identification (UID) code so that it can be uniquely identified by other devices. 
     Each signal conversion device  33  is placed in a particular area (such as a room or a kitchen) of the house. In this embodiment, the signal conversion device  33  can be contained in a particular home device  30  or placed out of the particular home device  30 .  FIG. 2  shows that the signal conversion device  33  includes a first control module  331 , a first communication module  332 , and a conversion module  333 . The first communication module  332  includes a first wireless communication module  3321  and a first wired communication module  3322 . 
       FIG. 3  shows that the smart gateway  20  includes a second control module  21 , a second communication module  22 , a second storage module  23 , and an analysis module  24 . The second storage module  23  stores the UID code of the smart gateway  20  and a mapping list (not shown). The mapping list records the configuration information of each home device  30  and each signal conversion device  33  in the system  100 . In this embodiment, the configuration information contains region codes representing areas where the home devices  30  and the signal conversion devices  33  are placed, the UID codes of each home device  30  and each signal conversion device  33 , and wireless communication function type of each traditional home device  32 . The second communication module  22  includes a second wireless communication module  221  and a second wired communication module  222 . 
     Functions of the above modules of the smart gateway  20  and the signal conversion devices  33  will be described in detail as shown in the following. 
     All of the smart home devices  31 , the second wireless communication module  221  of the smart gateway  20 , and the first wireless communication module  3321  of the signal conversion devices  33  are able to emit and receive near field wireless signals. The near field wireless signals may include, but are not limited to, infrared, BLUETHOOTH, Z-wave, NFC, ZigBee, and WIFI signals. In all embodiments of this present disclosure, each of the smart home devices  31 , the first wireless communication module  3321 , and the second wireless communication module  221  emits and receives infrared signals. 
     The second wired communication module  222  of the smart gateway  20  is able to communicate with the smart home devices  31  and the first wired communication module  3322  of the signal conversion devices  33  via Power Line Communication (PLC), Optical Fiber Power Line Communication (OPLC), Internet communication, coaxial cable communication, telephone line communication, or other communication technologies. In all embodiments of this present disclosure, the second wired communication module  222  communicates with the smart home devices  31  and the first wired communication module  3322  via PLC or OPLC technologies. 
     When the smart gateway  20  wants to control a traditional home device  32 , the smart gateway  20  sends a cable control signal to a related signal conversion device  33  in the area where the target traditional home device  32  is placed. The related signal conversion device  33  receives the cable control signals from the smart gateway  20 , and converts the cabled control signal into a corresponding wireless control signal, then transmits the wireless control signal to the target traditional home device  32 . 
     In the embodiment,  FIG. 2  shows that the analysis module  24  reads the UID codes of the target traditional home device  32  and the related signal conversion device  33 , and the wireless communication function type of the target traditional home device  32  from the configuration information recorded in the mapping list. The second control module  21  generates the cable control signal for controlling the target traditional home device  32 . In this embodiment, the cable control signal contains the UID codes of the target traditional home device  32  and the related signal conversion device  33 , and the wireless communication function type of the target traditional home device  32 . The second wired communication module  222  modulates the cable control signal and converts network protocols, and then transmits the cable control signal to the related signal conversion device  33  via the power lines  50 . 
       FIG. 3  shows that the first wired communication module  3322  of the signal conversion  33  is connected to the second wired communication module  222  of the smart gateway  20  via the power lines  50 . When the first wired communication module  3322  receives the cable control signal transmitted from the smart gateway  20  via the power lines  50 , the first wired communication module  3322  demodulates the cable control signal and converts network protocols as required. The conversion module  333  reads the wireless communication function type of the target traditional home device  32  contained in the cable control signal, and converts the cable control signal into the wireless control signal conforming to the wireless communication function type. The first control module  331  reads the UID code of the target traditional home device  32  contained in the cable control signal, and controls the first wireless communication module  3321  to wirelessly transmit the wireless control signal to the target traditional home device  32 . 
     Therefore, the traditional home devices  32  with wireless communication function can be connected into the system  100 , and be controlled by the smart gateway  20 . 
     In this embodiment, each home device  30  and each signal conversion device  33  needs to register its configuration information with the smart gateway  20 , when the home device  30  or the signal conversion device  33  is connected to the system  100  for the first time or is re-connected to the system  100 , to allow the smart gateway  20  to obtain the configuration information of each home device  30  and each signal conversion device  33 , then to control each home device  30 . 
       FIG. 4  shows that the system  100  further includes at least one register controller  34 , each of which can be placed in a particular area (such as a room or a kitchen) of the house, and be connected to the smart gateway  20  via the power lines  50 . In this embodiment, the register controller  34  can be contained in a particular home device  30  in the area or placed out of the particular home device  30 . Each register controller  34  controls all of the home devices  30  and the signal conversion devices  33  in the particular area where the register controller  34  is placed to register their configuration information with the smart gateway  20 . 
       FIG. 5  shows that the register controller  34  includes a third control module  341 , a third communication module  342 , and an input module  343 . The input module  343  is a button or a touch screen on the register controller  34  configured to allow a user to input information. The third communication module  342  includes a third wireless communication module  3421  and a third wired communication module  3422 . The register controller  34  is able to wirelessly communicate with the second wireless communication module  221  of the smart gateway  20  via the third wireless communication module  3421 , or communicate with the second wired communication module  222  of the smart gateway  20  via PLC or OPLC technology. In this embodiment, the third wireless communication module  3421  is able to emit and receive infrared signals. 
     Referring again to  FIG. 4 , a method for registering the home devices  30  and the signal conversion devices  33  in the system  100  with a smart gateway  20  is illustrated. 
     In step  1 , the register controller  34  obtains the UID code of the smart gateway  20  via the third wireless communication module  321 . 
     In this embodiment, the gateway  20  initiates a registration process, and the second control module  21  controls the second wireless communication module  221  to send out the UID code of the gateway  20 . Because the wireless technology employed is infrared transmission, the register controller  34  is carried closer to the smart gateway  20 , such that the register controller  34  is within range of the infrared signal. 
     In step  2 , the register controller  34  is carried to a particular area, such as a first area, and is connected to the system  100 . The third control module  341  of the register controller  34  generates a registration request in response to an input via the input module  343 . The third control module  341  controls the third wired communication module  3422  to send the registration request to the smart gateway  20  via the power lines  50 . 
     In this embodiment, the registration request contains the UID code of the smart gateway  20  and the UID code of the register controller  34 . 
     In step  3 , when the second wired communication module  222  of the smart gateway  20  receives the registration request from the register controller  34 , the second control module  21  assigns a register region and a region code in the mapping list for the home devices  30  and the signal conversion device  33  placed in the first area. 
     In a first embodiment, the at least one register controller  34  includes a number of register controller  34 , each of which is placed in a particular area in the house. The second control module  21  of the smart gateway  20  assigns the UID code of the register controller  34  that sends out the registration request as the region code for the home devices  30  and the signal conversion device  33  placed in the first area. In a second embodiment, the at least one register controller  34  includes only one register controller  34 , which can be moved to different areas of the house at different times. The second control module  21  of the smart gateway  20  assigns the region code according to a number or an order of the received registration requests, for example. 
     In step  4 , the second wired communication module  222  of the smart gateway  20  sends the region code back to the register controller  34  that sent out the registration request via the power lines  50 . 
     In step  5 , when the third wired communication module  3422  of the register controller  34  received the region code, the third control module  31  generates a registration code that contains the region code and the UID code of the smart gateway  20 , and the third wireless communication module  3421  wirelessly sends the registration code to all of the home devices  30  and the signal conversion device  33  placed in the first area. 
     In step  6 , when the smart home devices  31  and the signal conversion device  33  placed in the first area received the registration code from the register controller  34 , the smart home devices  31  and the signal conversion device  33  send their registration information to the smart gateway  20  via the power lines  50 . 
     In this embodiment, the registration information contains the UID code of the smart gateway  20 , the region code, and the configuration information of the home devices  30  or the signal conversion device  33 . 
     In a third embodiment, the second control module  21  of the smart gateway  20  further generates an enquiry message that contains the region code, and controls the second wired communication module  222  to send the enquiry message to all of the home devices  30  and the signal conversion devices  33  in the system  100  via the power lines  50 . The enquiry message is a signal that is used to distinguish the home devices  30  and the signal conversion device  33  that have received the registration code sent by the register controller  34 , that is, to distinguish which home devices  30  and which signal conversion device  33  are in the same area as the register controller  34  that sent out the registration request. When the home devices  30  and the signal conversion device  33  received the enquiry message from the smart gateway  20  and received the registration code from the registration controller  34 , the home devices  30  and the signal conversion device  33  determine whether or not the region code contained in the received enquiry message is the same as the region code contained in the registration code. If the region code contained in the received enquiry message matches the region code contained in the registration code, the home devices  30  and the signal conversion device  33  send their registration information to the smart gateway  20 . 
     In step  7 , when the second wired communication module  222  of the smart gateway  20  receives the registration information from the home devices  30  or the signal conversion device  33 , the second control module  21  registers the configuration information in the corresponding register region in the mapping list. Therefore, the configuration information of the home devices  30  and the signal conversion device  33  placed in the same area is registered in the same register region in the mapping list. 
     Due to the traditional home devices  32  are not able to send back their configuration information to the smart gateway  20  or the signal conversion device  33 , user can manually input the configuration information of the traditional home devices  32  to a corresponding register region in the mapping list. 
     If a new home device  30  is added to a registered area (that is, the registration information of the home devices in the area have been registered in the mapping list of the smart gateway  20 ) and needs to be registered with the smart gateway  20 , the process repeats steps  2 - 7  again. 
     It should be noted that, due to the UID code of each home device  30  being unique, the registration information of each home device  30  will only be registered once in the mapping list. If a home device  30  is moved to a new area, the registration information of the home device  30  registered in an original register region in the mapping list will be deleted, and the registration information will be registered in a new register region in the mapping list. 
     The registration process for other home devices  30  placed in other areas is similar to steps  1 - 7 . 
     In step  8 , the smart gateway  20  displays a control interface  60  (as shown in  FIG. 6 ) according to the mapping list. In this embodiment, the control interface  60  includes a number of regions corresponding to the areas in the house. Each region includes a number of icons corresponding to the home devices  30  and the signal conversion device  33  placed in a corresponding area in the house. 
     Referring also to  FIG. 2 , the smart gateway  20  further includes an interface displaying module  25 , the interface displaying module  25  displays a schematic diagram of the regions according to the region codes of the mapping list, and displays the icons of the home devices  30  and the signal conversion devices  33  in corresponding regions according to their corresponding UID codes and the region codes registered in the mapping list. 
     Such that, the registration process of the home devices  30  and the signal conversion devices  33  with the smart gateway  20  is completed. 
     The system  100  further includes a control device  40 . The control device  40  may be selected from a group consisting of a smart phone and a tablet computer. The smart gateway  20  is connected to a communication network, and communicates with the control device  40  via wired communication technology or wireless communication technologies. The control device  40  displays the control interface  60  according to the mapping list stored in the smart gateway  20 , and the smart gateway  20  receives control signals for controlling target home devices from the control device  40 , and sends the control signals to the target home devices. Therefore, the system  100  allows a user to operate the control device  40  in his hands to remotely control any target home device at anywhere and anytime. 
     Moreover, it is to be understood that the disclosure may be embodied in other forms without departing from the spirit thereof. Thus, the present examples and embodiments are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and the disclosure is not to be limited to the details given herein.