Patent ID: 8248203

Claim:
A monitor/controller for use with a remote billboard lighting system including plural billboards each having plural display faces with respective associated sets of lights for illuminating said display faces, said monitor/controller comprising: a utility power connection for providing utility power to said sets of lights of each billboard of said plural billboards; plural sensors each coupled to a respective set of lights of said sets of lights for providing plural output signals representing operating status of said sets of lights; plural relays each coupled to said respective set of lights of said sets of lights; said monitor/controller communicating with at least one central controller operating in a wireless communications network; a programmable signal processor coupled to said plural sensors and said relays and in communication with said at least one central controller via said wireless communications network for providing information to said at least one central controller regarding said operating status of said sets of lights, and for receiving and storing lighting operation commands from said at least one central controller and providing output signals to said relays for controlling the operation of each said sets of lights, in accordance with a predetermined schedule and said operating status of said sets of lights; wherein said programmable signal processor includes a test and calibration program initiated during installation of the monitor/controller and including determination of maximum, minimum and average current in a respective circuit connected to each of said sets of lights after operation of said sets of lights has stabilized, wherein the test and calibration program further includes determining and storing referenced calibration data for said respective circuit connected to said each of said sets of lights after operation of said sets of lights has stabilized; wherein said programmable signal processor further includes a program for storing a site history record based upon information determined and stored by said test and calibration program for said sets of lights in said each billboard of said plural billboards; wherein said programmable signal processor determines a reference tolerance curve comprising upper and lower tolerance limits for acceptable current level for said respective circuit connected to said each of said sets of lights in said each billboard of said plural billboards.