WO2014068411A1

WO2014068411A1 - System and method for controlling appliances using one or more data processing devices

Info

Publication number: WO2014068411A1
Application number: PCT/IB2013/052192
Authority: WO
Inventors: Venkatesh MUDDLIAH
Original assignee: Muddliah Venkatesh
Priority date: 2012-10-31
Filing date: 2013-03-20
Publication date: 2014-05-08

Abstract

A system and method are provided for controlling appliances using one or more data processing devices (406). The system includes at least one control panel (102), a communication coordinator (302) and a local server (304). The control panel (102) comprises a local communication module configured to receive commands to operate one or more appliances associated with the control panel (102). The communication coordinator (302) is configured to send the commands to the local communication module to operate one or more appliances associated with the control panel (102). The local server (304) is configured to receive command from one or more data processing devices (406) through a local area network or a wide area network (404) based on the location of data processing device (406) sending the command and communicate the command to the communication coordinator (302).

Description

SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING APPLIANCES USING ONE OR MORE DATA PROCESSING DEVICES

BACKGROUND

Field

[0001] The disclosed subject matter relates to the field of building automation, and more particularly but not exclusively to wirelessly controlling appliances present in a building.

Discussion of related field

[0002] Building automation or home automation is a field of technology that corresponds to controlling operation of appliances present in a building, such as a home, office or factory. The appliances that are controlled can be, for example, lights, fans, television, music system, curtains, sprinklers and HVAC, among others.

[0003] Conventionally, appliances are configured to be controlled by one or more remote controls. As is known, such remote controls use short range communication technologies, such as infrared communication. Hence, a user will not be able to control the appliance using the remote control if he is beyond the communication range. However, it is desired to control appliances from distant locations. For example, a user may wish to control an appliance present at his home from his office.

[0004] The need to control appliances from distant locations is being addressed by some of the conventional technologies. In one conventional technology, control panels, such as a switch boards, are connected using wires (Ex: Category 5 cable) to a local communication device, such as a switch or hub. The local communication device communicates with a remote server. A user wishing to control an appliance from a remote location, communicates a command to the remote server. The remote server communicates the command to the local communication device, which further communicates the command to the appropriate switch board, thereby operating the appliance. It has been observed that, the above discussed architecture always routes commands through the remote server. Hence, even when the user is operating the appliance using a smart phone, which is inside his house, the command still gets routed through the remote server, which leads to lag in effecting operation of the appliance. Further, the wired connection between the control panels and the local communication device adds to the cost and complexity of the automation system. Furthermore, it is difficult to implement the wired connection in existing buildings, which do not have such cabling laid out.

[0005] The difficulty corresponding to establishing communication between the control panels and the local communication device has been identified. Conventional technologies address the instant problem by establishing wireless communication between the control panels and the local communication device. However, the operating commands are still routed in the same manner as discussed earlier, which results in lag in effecting operation of the appliance.

[0006] In light of the foregoing discussion, there is a need for a technique to more effectively implement building automation.

STATEMENT OF THE INVENTION

[0007] Accordingly the invention provides a system for controlling appliances using one or more data processing devices. The system includes at least one control panel, a communication coordinator and a local server. The control panel comprises a local communication module configured to receive commands to operate one or more appliances associated with the control panel. The communication coordinator is configured to send the commands to the communication module to operate one or more appliances associated with the control panel. The local server is configured to receive command from one or more data processing devices through a local area network or a wide area network based on the location of data processing device sending the command and communicate the command to the communication coordinator.

[0008] There is also provided a method for controlling appliances using one or more data processing devices. The method includes receiving command to operate one or more appliances from one or more data processing devices through a local area network or a wide area network based on the location of data processing device sending the command, wherein the command is received by a local server; sending the command to a communication coordinator by the local server; and receiving command at a local communication module, wherein the command is sent by the local server to operate one or more appliances associated with a control panel configured with the local communication module.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0009] Embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the Figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references indicate similar elements and in which:

[0010] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a plurality of home appliances connected to a control panel 102a, in accordance with an embodiment;

[0011] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating control panel 102a, in accordance with an embodiment;

[0012] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating communication between control panels 102, a communication coordinator 302 and a local server 304, in accordance with an embodiment;

[0013] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a system for controlling operations of appliances 104 using Data Processing Devices (DPDs) 406, in accordance with an embodiment;

[0014] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a system for controlling operations of appliances 104 using Data Processing Devices (DPDs) 406, in accordance with an embodiment;

[0015] FIGs. 6a and 6b illustrates a user interface provided on DPDs 406 for controlling operations of appliances 104 using Data Processing Devices (DPDs) 406, in accordance with an embodiment; and

[0016] FIG. 7 illustrates an user interface wherein an image 700 is selected to enable selection of appliances 104 for operating the same, in accordance with an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] The following detailed description includes references to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of the detailed description. The drawings show illustrations in accordance with example embodiments. These example embodiments, which are also referred to herein as "examples," are described in enough detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the present subject matter. The embodiments can be combined, other embodiments can be utilized, or structural, logical, and electrical changes can be made without departing from the scope of what is claimed. The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

[0018] In this document, the terms "a" or "an" are used, as is common in patent documents, to include one or more than one. In this document, the term "or" is used to refer to a nonexclusive "or," such that "A or B" includes "A but not B," "B but not A," and "A and B," unless otherwise indicated. Furthermore, all publications, patents, and patent documents referred to in this document are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety, as though individually incorporated by reference. In the event of inconsistent usages between this document and those documents so incorporated by reference, the usage in the incorporated reference(s) should be considered supplementary to that of this document; for irreconcilable inconsistencies, the usage in this document controls.

[0019] Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, components, circuits, and networks have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure aspects of the embodiments. [0020] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a plurality of home appliances 104 connected to a control panel 102a, in accordance with an embodiment. The control panel 102a allow users to control the operation of appliances (multiple appliances are referred to as appliances 104 and single appliance is referred to as appliance 102, based on the context), such as, water heater 104a, bulb 104b, fan 104c and air conditioner 104c, among other appliances. Appropriate connections are established between the control panel 102a and the appliances 104. The connections can be, for example wired (Ex: electrical) connection.

[0021] In an embodiment, control panel 102a is capable of receiving commands and carrying out tasks based on the commands. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating control panel 102a, in accordance with an embodiment. Control panel 102a includes manual control 202, infrared receiver 204, microcontroller 206 and local communication module 208. Manual control, for example, can include one or more of, switch, regulator and touch sensitive interface, among others. A user can use the manual control to provide commands to operate the appliances 104. Similarly, commands to operate the appliances 104 can be received by infrared receiver 204. The infrared receiver 204 can receive commands from a device, such as, a remote control, which is configured to transmit commands using infrared medium. Furthermore, commands to operate the appliances 104 can be received through local communication module 208. In an embodiment, the local communication module 208 is configured to receive commands wirelessly. The commands received by the control panel 104a are processed by microcontroller 206. Appliances 104 are operated based on the processing performed by the microcontroller 206. The operations, for example, can be turning on or turning off an appliance 104 and setting a timer to operate an appliance 104, among other operations.

[0022] In an embodiment, control panel 102a includes the manual control 202, the microcontroller 206 and the local communication module 208. [0023] In another embodiment, control panel 102a includes the infrared receiver 204, the microcontroller 206 and the local communication module 208.

[0024] A system for building automation can include multiple control panels, which are configured to communicate with a communication coordinator 302. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating communication between control panels 102, a communication coordinator 302 and a local server 304, in accordance with an embodiment. It shall be noted that, control panels 102a, 102b and 102c may be collectively referred to as control panels 102 or control panel 102 when referring to a single control panel, based on the context.

[0025] In an embodiment, local communication module 208 is configured to only receive commands from communication coordinator 302.

[0026] In another embodiment, local communication module 208 is configured to receive commands from communication coordinator 302 and also communicate information corresponding to actions performed at the control panel 102 to communication coordinator 302.

[0027] In an embodiment, local communication modules 208 are ZigBee routers or ZigBee end device and communication coordinator 302 is a ZigBee coordinator.

[0028] In an embodiment, communication between the local communication modules 208 and communication coordinator 302 is established using known topology of networks, such as, star topology, mesh topology and combination thereof.

[0029] In an embodiment, communication between the local communication modules 208 and communication coordinator 302 is established using radio frequency communication technologies.

[0030] Communication coordinator 302 is configured to communicate with local server 304. In an embodiment, the local server 304 includes the communication coordinator 302. Server 304 can communicate commands to the communication coordinator 302, which in turn communicates the command to appropriate control panels 102. Further, information that is received by the communication coordinator 302 from the control panels 102 is communicated to the local server 304. The discussed architecture enables controlling operations of appliances 104 using Data Processing Devices (DPD), which may be located within the local area network (LAN) of the local server 304 or outside the LAN.

[0031] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a system for controlling operations of appliances 104 using Data Processing Devices (DPDs) 406, in accordance with an embodiment. DPDs 406, for example, can be a communication device, such as mobile phones, smart phones, tablets, laptops and computers, among others. In this example, DPDs 406a and 406b are located outside the LAN corresponding to the local server 304. On the other hand, DPD 406c is located within the LAN corresponding to the local server 304.

[0032] In an embodiment, the DPD 406c can control the operation of the appliances 104. A user can send a command thorough the DPD 406c, which will communicate the command to the local server 304 through LAN. Further, the local server 304 communicates the same command to the communication coordinator 302. The communication coordinator 302 further communicates the command to the appropriate control panel(s) 102. In an embodiment, the control panels 102 will acknowledge the operations performed in accordance with the received command back to the communication coordinator 302. These acknowledgements are delivered to the local server 304, which in turn is updated to DPD 406c. In an embodiment, DPDs 406a and 406b are also updated regarding the status of the appliances 104. Further, in each of the DPDs 406, information corresponding to the user or DPD which initiated the command to operate the appliance(s) 104 is also updated and made available on all the DPDs 406.

[0033] In an embodiment, the DPDs 406a or 406b can control the operation of the appliances 104. For example, a user can send a command thorough the DPD 406a, which will communicate the command to the local server 304 through communication network 404, such as internet (WAN). Further, the local server 304 communicates the same command to the communication coordinator 302. The communication coordinator 302 further communicates the command to the appropriate control panel(s) 102. In an embodiment, the control panels 102 will acknowledge the operations performed in accordance with the received command back to the communication coordinator 302. These acknowledgements are delivered to the local server 304, which in turn is updated to DPD 406a. In an embodiment, DPDs 406b and 406c are also updated regarding the status of the appliances 104. Further, in each of the DPDs 406, information corresponding to the user or DPD which initiated the command to operate the appliance(s) 104 is also updated and made available on all the DPDs 406.

[0034] In an embodiment, wherein the DPDs 406, irrespective of whether they are within the LAN or not, communicate directly with the local server 304, a static IP address or dynamic IP address is provided to the local server 304.

[0035] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a system for controlling operations of appliances 104 using Data Processing Devices (DPDs) 406, in accordance with an embodiment. In this example, DPDs 406a and 406b are located outside the LAN corresponding to the local server 304. On the other hand, DPD 406c is located within the LAN corresponding to the local server 304.

[0036] In an embodiment, the DPD 406c can control the operation of the appliances 104. A user can send a command thorough the DPD 406c, which will communicate the command to the local server 304 through LAN. Further, the local server 304 communicates the same command to the communication coordinator 302. The communication coordinator 302 further communicates the command to the appropriate control panel(s) 102. In an embodiment, the control panels 102 will acknowledge the operations performed in accordance with the received command back to the communication coordinator 302. These acknowledgements are delivered to the local server 304, which in turn is updated to DPD 406c. In an embodiment, DPDs 406a and 406b are also updated regarding the status of the appliances 104. Further, in each of the DPDs 406, information corresponding to the user or DPD which initiated the command to operate the appliance(s) 104 is also updated and made available on all the DPDs 406.

[0037] In an embodiment, the DPDs 406a or 406b can control the operation of the appliances 104. For example, a user can send a command thorough the DPD 406a, which will communicate the command to a remote server 502 through communication network 404, such as internet (WAN). The remote server 502 communicates the command to the local server 304 through communication network 404. Further, the local server 304 communicates the same command to the communication coordinator 302. The communication coordinator 302 further communicates the command to the appropriate control panel(s) 102. In an embodiment, the control panels 102 will acknowledge the operations performed in accordance with the received command back to the communication coordinator 302. These acknowledgements are delivered to the local server 304, which in turn is updated to DPD 406a through remote server 502. In an embodiment, DPDs 406b and 406c are also updated regarding the status of the appliances 104. Further, in each of the DPDs 406, information corresponding to the user or DPD which initiated the command to operate the appliance(s) 104 is also updated and made available on all the DPDs 406.

[0038] FIGs. 6a and 6b illustrates a user interface provided on DPDs 406 for controlling operations of appliances 104 using Data Processing Devices (DPDs) 406, in accordance with an embodiment. Icons, such as bulb icon 602, are depicted on the interface. A user can touch the icon 602 to operate the bulb. As can be seen in FIG. 6a and FIG. 6b the status of the bulb has changed as a result of the user's input and the corresponding action.

[0039] In an embodiment, instead of icons other means of listing the appliances can be used. [0040] In an embodiment, appliances can be segregated based on the type of the appliance, such as listing fans in a display.

[0041] In an embodiment, appliances can be segregated based on the type of the appliance, such as listing fans in a display and also displaying the location of the appliance.

[0042] In an embodiment, appliances can be segregated based on the location of appliance, wherein the location can be, for example, a room in a building, as illustrated in FIG. 6a and FIG. 6b

[0043] In an embodiment, the DPDs 406 are configured to select an image as a background to facilitate selection of appliances 104 for operating the same. FIG. 7 illustrates an user interface wherein an image 700 is selected to enable selection of appliances 104 for operating the same, in accordance with an embodiment. In this example, image 700 corresponds to "Room 1". It may be noted that a user can assign one or more images to a single room. In each of the images, a particular area of the image can be selected and assigned as an appliance. A user can provide input, such as a touch input, corresponding to the assigned area and operate the corresponding appliance. In this example, area 702 is selected and assigned as a fan and similarly, area 704 is selected and assigned as a lighting device. The user can thereafter touch the area 702 to operate the fan.

[0044] The processes described above is described as sequence of steps, this was done solely for the sake of illustration. Accordingly, it is contemplated that some steps may be added, some steps may be omitted, the order of the steps may be rearranged, or some steps may be performed simultaneously.

[0045] The example embodiments described herein may be implemented in an operating environment comprising software installed on a computer, in hardware, or in a combination of software and hardware.

[0046] Although embodiments have been described with reference to specific example embodiments, it will be evident that various modifications and changes may be made to these embodiments without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the system and method described herein. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

[0047] Many alterations and modifications of the present invention will no doubt become apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art after having read the foregoing description. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation. It is to be understood that the description above contains many specifications, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the personally preferred embodiments of this invention. Thus the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents rather than by the examples given.

Claims

A system for controlling appliances using one or more data processing devices, the system comprising:

at least one control panel, wherein the control panel comprises a local communication module configured to receive commands to operate one or more appliances associated with the control panel;

a communication coordinator configured to send the commands to the communication module to operate one or more appliances associated with the control panel; and

a local server configured to:

receive command from one or more data processing devices through a local area network or a wide area network based on the location of data processing device sending the command; and

communicate the command to the communication coordinator. The system according to claim 1, wherein the local communication module is configured to communicate information corresponding to actions performed at the control panel to the communication coordinator.

The system according to claim 1, wherein the local communication module is a ZigBee router or ZigBee end device and the communication coordinator is a ZigBee coordinator.

The system according to claim 1 , wherein the local communication module and the communication coordinator are connected in at least one of star topology and mesh topology.

The system according to claim 1, wherein the data processing devices configured to communicate with the local server receives information corresponding to the status of the appliances.

6. The system according to claim 5, wherein the information comprises information corresponding to users or data processing devices that initiated the command to operate the appliance.

7. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a remote server, wherein the remote server is configured to receive commands and communicate updates to data processing devices that are not within the local area network of the local server.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the data processing devices comprises user interface enabling users to send commands and display status of the appliances.

9. The system according to claim 8, wherein the user interface enables the users to segregate the appliances.

10. The system according to claim 9, wherein the user interface enables the users to:

select one or more images;

select one or more areas within the images; and

assign one or more appliances to each of the selected areas to provide commands and receive status updates.

11. A method for controlling appliances using one or more data processing devices, the method comprising:

receiving command to operate one or more appliances from one or more data processing devices through a local area network or a wide area network based on the location of data processing device sending the command, wherein the command is received by a local server; sending the command to a communication coordinator by the local server; and

receiving command at a local communication module, wherein the command is sent by the local server to operate one or more appliances associated with a control panel configured with the local communication module.

12. The method according to claim 1 1, further comprising the local communication module communicating information corresponding to actions performed at the control panel to the communication coordinator.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the local communication module is a ZigBee router or ZigBee end device and the communication coordinator is a ZigBee coordinator.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the local communication module and the communication coordinator are connected in at least one of star topology and mesh topology.

15. The method according to claim 11, further comprising receiving information corresponding to the status of the appliances by the data processing devices configured to communicate with the local server.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the information comprises information corresponding to users or data processing devices that initiated the command to operate the appliance.

17. The method according to claim 11, further comprising configuring a remote server to receive commands and communicate updates to data processing devices that are not within the local area network of the local server.

18. The method according to claim 11 , further comprising providing user interface enabling users to send commands and display status of the appliances.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the user interface enables the users to segregate the appliances.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein the user interface enables the users to:

select one or more images;

select one or more areas within the images; and assign one or more appliances to each of the selected areas to provide commands and receive status updates.

21. A system for controlling appliances using one or more data processing devices, as herein above described in the specification with reference to figures.

22. A method for controlling appliances using one or more data processing devices as herein above described in the specification with reference to figures.