Patent Description:
Multiple switches for controlling devices in a vehicle are provided on a center fascia around a driver's seat. For example, in case of a power seat, seat switches which may control the angle of a backrest, the forward and backward position of the seat, the height of the seat, etc., are provided. Among the seat switches, a seat switch shaped as a seat and configured to radiate light so as to improve visibility at night and appearance has appeared.

From <CIT> a lighting control system according to the preamble of claim <NUM> is known. From <CIT> and <CIT> further lighting control systems are known. From <CIT> a system for reclining a seat is known, wherein input elements are arranged in the armrest of the seat.

The present invention has been made in an effort to solve the above-described problems associated with the prior art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a lighting control system which may effectively control the lighting of a seat switch.

This object is achieved by a lighting control system according to claim <NUM>. Optional features are subject of the dependent claims.

Other aspects and optional features of the invention are discussed infra.

The above and other features of the invention are discussed infra.

The above and other features of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to an exemplary embodiment thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings which is given herein below by way of illustration only, and thus is not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:.

It should be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various preferred features illustrative of the basic principles of the invention. The specific design features of the present invention as disclosed herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes, will be determined in part by the particular intended application and use environment.

In the figures, reference numbers refer to the same or equivalent parts of the present invention throughout the several figures of the drawing.

In the following description of the embodiment, terms, such as "first" and "second", are used only to describe various elements, and these elements should not be construed as being limited by these terms. These terms are used only to distinguish one element from other elements. For example, a first element described hereinafter may be termed a second element, and similarly, a second element described hereinafter may be termed a first element, as long as it remains within the scope of the invention according to the appended claims.

When an element or layer is referred to as being "connected to" or "coupled to" another element or layer, it may be directly connected or coupled to the other element or layer, or intervening elements or layers may be present. In contrast, when an element or layer is referred to as being "directly connected to" or "directly coupled to" another element or layer, there may be no intervening elements or layers present. Other words used to describe relationships between elements should be interpreted in a like fashion, e.g., "between" versus "directly between," "adjacent" versus "directly adjacent," etc..

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing the particular embodiment only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, singular forms may be intended to include plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms "comprises," "comprising," "including," and "having" are inclusive and therefore specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or combinations thereof, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or combinations thereof.

A lighting control system according to the present invention may perform effective lighting control. The lighting control system according to the present invention may control lighting to be turned off in a state in which the lighting is not needed, thereby being capable of preventing glare. Further, the lighting control system according to the present invention may exhibit a fade-in function in which, when the lighting is turned on, the brightness of the lighting is gradually increased until it reaches set maximum brightness, and a fade-out function in which, when the lighting is turned off, the brightness of the lighting is gradually decreased, thereby being capable of providing visual luxuriousness.

According to a detailed example of application, the lighting is mounted on a movable object, namely an armrest of a seat of a vehicle which is rotated with respect to a stationary object, namely the seat of the vehicle which is fixed. The movable object may be accommodable in the stationary object, such as by rotation, i.e., the movable object includes an unfolded position and a folded position, and use of the lighting may not be required in the folded position. Further, when the movable object is folded and housed in the stationary object, leakage of light emitted by the lighting may cause glare. Therefore, according to the present invention, the lighting may be controlled to shut off such as when illumination of the lighting is not necessary as in the folded position or the illumination needs to be blocked.

Further, according to the present invention, while the lighting is turned on or off, the fade-in function or the fade-out function is performed. In more detail, when the movable object is rotated with respect to the stationary object to move from the unfolded position to the folded position or from the folded position to the unfolded position, the lighting control system according to the present invention may control the lighting to fade in or fade out, thereby being capable of improving visual aesthetics.

Referring to <FIG>, according to the present invention, as a non-restrictive example, a stationary object may be a rear seat <NUM> of a vehicle, and a movable object may be an armrest <NUM> for rear seats. Further, lighting may be a seat switch (hereinafter referred to as a switch <NUM>) mounted on the armrest <NUM>.

Hereinafter, an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described assuming that the stationary object is the rear seat <NUM>, the movable object is the armrest <NUM> for rear seats, and the lighting is the switch <NUM> configured to emit light. However, the lighting control system according to the present invention is applicable to any system having the above-described relationships between a seat of a vehicle, an armrest of the seat and lighting.

The armrest <NUM> is coupled to the rear seat <NUM> of the vehicle. The armrest <NUM> is coupled to the rear seat <NUM> so as to be rotatable with respect to the rear seat <NUM>.

The armrest <NUM> includes an unfolded position or an open position in the state in which a passenger of the vehicle uses the armrest <NUM>. The armrest <NUM> at the open position may be placed approximately parallel to the horizontal direction.

The armrest <NUM> is configured to be foldable with respect to the rear seat <NUM>. When the armrest <NUM> is not used, the armrest <NUM> may be rotated and housed in the rear sear <NUM>. Therefore, in addition to the open position, the armrest <NUM> includes a folded position or a closed position in the state in which the passenger does not use the armrest <NUM>. That is, the armrest <NUM> is configured to be rotated between the open position and the closed position with respect to the rear seat <NUM>.

The switch <NUM> is mounted on the armrest <NUM>. The angle or the like of the rear seat <NUM> may be adjusted through operation of the switch <NUM>. According to the present invention, the switch <NUM> includes a light emitting unit, so the switch <NUM> is controlled to emit light at the open position of the armrest <NUM> and to stop emission of light or to emit light at the minimum brightness at the closed position of the armrest <NUM>. Further, the switch <NUM> is controlled to perform the fade-in function or the fade-out function between the open position and the closed position of the armrest <NUM>.

Referring to <FIG>, a position recognizer <NUM> is installed in the switch <NUM>. The position recognizer <NUM> is configured to recognize the position of the armrest <NUM> when the armrest <NUM> is rotated. Put differently, the position recognizer <NUM> is configured to recognize the angle of the armrest <NUM>. According to one implementation of the present invention, the position recognizer <NUM> is a G-sensor which may detect the position of the sensor by recognizing changes in six planes.

Further, the position recognizer <NUM> may determine whether or not the armrest <NUM> is being opened or closed. For example, the position recognizer <NUM> may determine whether or not the armrest <NUM> is being opened or closed based on a point in time when the angle of the armrest <NUM> is changed within the range of <NUM>° to <NUM>° from the horizon.

A controller <NUM> is configured to receive the position information of the switch <NUM> from the position recognizer <NUM>, and to adjust the intensity of light emitted by the switch <NUM> based on the received position information.

More concretely, the controller <NUM> is configured to perform fade-in or fade-out of the switch <NUM> based on the position information from the position recognizer <NUM>. The controller <NUM> performs the fade-out of the light emitting unit of the switch <NUM> when the armrest <NUM> is rotated from the open position to the closed position. On the contrary, the controller <NUM> performs the fade-in of the light emitting unit of the switch <NUM> when the armrest <NUM> is rotated from the closed position to the open position.

When the armrest <NUM> is at the open position, the switch <NUM> is controlled to emit light with a maximum brightness. The maximum brightness represents that the light by the switch <NUM> is the brightest among all positions of the armrest <NUM>. The maximum brightness may be set or adjusted by an external input to the controller <NUM>.

According to one implementation of the present invention, the controller <NUM> is configured to communicate with a brightness adjustment unit <NUM>. The brightness adjustment unit <NUM> is configured to adjust the maximum brightness of light which may be emitted by the switch <NUM>. The maximum brightness adjusted by the brightness adjustment unit <NUM> (hereinafter referred to as a set brightness S <NUM>) may be transmitted to the controller <NUM>, and the controller <NUM> may perform the fade-in or the fade-out of the switch <NUM> within the range of the set brightness S <NUM> transmitted from the brightness adjustment unit <NUM>.

According to one implementation of the present invention, the brightness adjustment unit <NUM> is a rheostat provided in the cluster of the vehicle. That is, the controller <NUM> receives the set brightness S <NUM> set by the rheostat, and controls the switch <NUM> to emit light at the set brightness S1 at the open position of the armrest <NUM>. Through adjustment using the rheostat, stages for the lighting are displayed on the cluster and thus mood lighting of the vehicle may be adjusted.

For example, as set forth in Table <NUM> below, the fade-in time or the fade-out time of the switch <NUM> may be set depending on the set brightness S <NUM> set by the brightness adjustment unit <NUM> or the rheostat. Here, the set brightness S <NUM> indicates brightness, as the name thereof suggests. That is, the set brightness S <NUM> indicates the maximum brightness when the set brightness S <NUM> is the maximum value, indicates the minimum brightness when the set brightness S <NUM> is the minimum value, indicates brightness within a range greater than a medium low value range but less than the maximum value when the set brightness S <NUM> is within a medium high value range, and indicates brightness within a range greater than the minimum value but less than the medium high value range when the set brightness S <NUM> is within the medium low value range. Further, a set fade time F which is the fade-in time or the fade-out time is gradually increased from bottom to top in the column. That is, the relation A>B>C>D is satisfied.

While the armrest <NUM> is rotated from the closed position to the open position, the controller <NUM> performs the fade-in of the switch <NUM> at the set brightness S1 for the set fade time F. For example, when the set brightness S1 is within the medium high value range, the controller <NUM> performs the fade-in of the switch <NUM> for C seconds, and controls the switch <NUM> to emit light at a brightness within the medium high value range when the armrest <NUM> is located at the open position.

While the armrest <NUM> is rotated from the open position to the closed position, the controller <NUM> performs the fade-out of the switch <NUM> so that the set brightness S1 of light emitted by the switch <NUM> is gradually decreased for the set fade-out time F set forth in the above Table <NUM>. For example, when the set brightness S1 is the maximum value, the controller <NUM> performs the fade-out of the switch <NUM> so that the set brightness S1 of light emitted by the switch <NUM> is gradually decreased for A seconds.

When the armrest <NUM> is located at the closed position, the controller <NUM> controls the switch <NUM> to emit light at the minimum brightness among the brightness values at all the positions of the armrest <NUM>. Here, the minimum brightness may mean that the switch <NUM> is turned off so that light emission of the switch <NUM> is blocked. Further, while the armrest <NUM> is rotated from the closed position to the open position, the controller <NUM> performs the fade-in of the switch <NUM> so that the intensity of light emitted by the switch <NUM> is increased from the minimum brightness to the maximum brightness. For example, while the armrest <NUM> is rotated from the closed position to the open position, the controller <NUM> performs the fade-in of the switch <NUM>, which has been turned off, for the fade-in time F set forth in the above Table <NUM>.

According to some embodiments of the present invention, logic to cope with change of the direction of the armrest <NUM> during the fade-in or the fade-out of the switch <NUM> due to rotation of the armrest <NUM>. That is, when the position recognizer <NUM> senses angular change while the fade-in or the fade-out of the switch <NUM> is performed due to rotation of the armrest <NUM>, the controller <NUM> immediately stops the fade-in or the fade-out of the switch <NUM>, and performs the fade-out or the fade-in of the switch <NUM> for an operation time T1 depending on a brightness condition. Here, the operation time T indicates the remainder of the set fade time F when the direction of the armrest <NUM> is changed during the fade-in or the fade-out of the switch <NUM>.

As set forth in Table <NUM> above, the operation time T1 may be a fade time that has been elapsed until now. Concretely, when the direction of the armrest <NUM> is changed towards the open position while the armrest <NUM> is rotated from the open position to the closed position, the controller <NUM> increases the intensity of light emitted by the switch <NUM> for a same time period as the time taken for the armrest <NUM> to be moved from the open position to a point in time when the direction of the armrest <NUM> is changed. For example, it may be assumed that A second(s) is <NUM> seconds. When, among the set fade time of <NUM> seconds, <NUM> seconds are taken for the armrest <NUM> to be moved from the open position to the closed position and then the armrest <NUM> is moved again to the open position, the controller <NUM> controls the switch <NUM> to perform the fade-in for the same time as the elapsed time, i.e., <NUM> seconds, from a point in time when the direction of the armrest <NUM> is changed. That is, the operation time T1 may be <NUM> seconds.

Similarly, when the direction of the armrest <NUM> is changed to the closed position while the armrest <NUM> is rotated from the closed position to the open position, the controller <NUM> may decrease the intensity of light emitted by the switch <NUM> for the same time as a time taken for the armrest <NUM> to be moved from the closed position to a point in time when the direction of the armrest <NUM> is changed.

According to some embodiments of the present invention, when the set brightness S1 is changed by the brightness adjustment unit <NUM> during the fade-out of the switch <NUM> where the armrest <NUM> is moved from the open position to the closed position, the controller <NUM> continues to perform the fade-out of the switch <NUM> while ignoring the change in the set brightness S1.

On the other hand, when the set brightness S1 is increased by the brightness adjustment unit <NUM> during the fade-in of the switch <NUM> where the armrest <NUM> is rotated from the closed position to the open position, i.e., when the set brightness S1 is increased to a corrected set brightness S2, the controller <NUM> controls the switch <NUM> to perform the fade-in towards the corrected set brightness S2.

Here, the remaining operation time T2 of the fade-in of the switch <NUM> after the corrected set brightness S2 has been received may be set forth in Table <NUM> above. The operation time T2 may be acquired by subtracting time taken before the set brightness S1 is increased by the brightness adjustment unit <NUM> from predetermined time taken for the switch <NUM> to perform the fade-in with the corrected set brightness S2.

Further, when the set brightness S1 is decreased by the brightness adjustment unit <NUM> during the fade-in of the switch <NUM> where the armrest <NUM> is rotated from the closed position to the open position, the controller <NUM> stops the fade-in of the switch <NUM> and immediately changes the set brightness S1 to the corrected set brightness S2.

The lighting control system according to the present invention may implement natural fade-in or fade-out of mood lighting of the seat switch <NUM> provided in a seat shape and mounted on the rear seat depending on the angle information of the armrest <NUM>.

Further, the lighting control system according to the present invention may receive the angle information using a G-sensor installed in the seat switch <NUM>, and vary the fade-in or fade-out time of the switch <NUM> depending on the current brightness of the lighting, thereby being capable of performing a natural mood lighting turn-on/off function.

Ultimately, when the lighting control system according to the present invention is applied to a rear seat of a vehicle, the lighting control system may prevent lighting from being exposed when an armrest is folded and housed in the rear seat, and may provide visual luxuriousness caused by addition of the fade-in and fade-out functions.

As is apparent from the above description, the present invention provides a lighting control system which may effectively control the lighting of a seat switch.

Claim 1:
A lighting control system, comprising:
a movable object (<NUM>) mounted to be rotatable with respect to a stationary object (<NUM>);
a switch (<NUM>) mounted on the movable object (<NUM>) and configured to emit light;
a position recognizer (<NUM>) installed in the switch (<NUM>) to sense position information of the movable object (<NUM>); and
a controller (<NUM>) configured to receive the position information and to adjust an intensity of light emitted by the switch (<NUM>) based on the position information,
characterized in that
the stationary object (<NUM>) is a seat (<NUM>) of a vehicle, and the movable object (<NUM>) is an armrest (<NUM>) rotatably mounted on the seat (<NUM>), wherein the switch (<NUM>) is a seat switch (<NUM>) provided in a seat shape and mounted on the armrest (<NUM>),
the armrest (<NUM>) is rotatable between an open position and a closed position;
the armrest (<NUM>) is completely unfolded from the seat (<NUM>) at the open position, and is completely folded towards the seat (<NUM>) at the closed position;
when the armrest (<NUM>) is located at the open position, the seat switch (<NUM>) emits light at a set maximum brightness that is a maximum brightness among positions of the armrest (<NUM>), the set brightness is adjustable by a brightness adjustment unit (<NUM>) configured to communicate with the controller (<NUM>);
when the armrest (<NUM>) is located at the closed position the controller (<NUM>) controls the seat switch (<NUM>) to stop emission of light or to emit light at a set minimum brightness that is a minimum brightness among the positions of the armrest (<NUM>);
the controller (<NUM>) controls the seat switch (<NUM>) to perform fade-out so that the intensity of light emitted by the seat switch (<NUM>) is gradually decreased when the armrest (<NUM>) is rotated to the closed position, and
the controller (<NUM>) controls the seat switch (<NUM>) to perform fade-in so that the intensity of light emitted by the seat switch (<NUM>) is gradually increased when the armrest (<NUM>) is rotated to the open position opposite to the closed position.