Method and system of programming at least one appliance to
Contents
1. RECORD TRIGGER EVENT IN PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER BROADCAST MESSAGE DETECTED 58 RECORD BROADCAST MESSAGE IN PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER IS PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER OUT OF TRAINING TERMINATE PROGRAMMING 64 Is PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER OUT RECALL PROGRAM STORED IN PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER BROADCAST PROGRAM STORED FOR TRIGGER EVENT DETECTED DCAST BROAI MESSAGE DETECTED 78 BROADCAST MESSAGE HAVE INSTRUCTIONS FOR PROGRAMMBLE DEVICE IGNORE BROADCAST MESSAGE RECEIVE INSTRUCTIONS U S Patent Aug 29 2000 Sheet 1 of 13 6 112 127 6 112 127 Sheet 2 of 13 Aug 29 2000 U S Patent JIAIISNVAL SLOVLNOO NOS NI HISNNN Tvldas YO YOLOAIAS SSINTOYV JINON OL 6 112 127 Sheet 3 of 13 Aug 29 2000 U S Patent ee i i e a SOINOULII1I JONVITddV HYINIFOSNVUL S OV NOS NI JIGSIANN TIVIYIS JO JOLOVITIS SsSaIdadv FINTOWN 9L 6 112 127 Sheet 4 of 13 Aug 29 2000 U S Patent FONVIddY S 6L em n e us mem ve O o e SUS O O o o _ r rr _ um _ um JOLIILIA YOS YO OVINL IN3YYNI AVIIS TOYLNOO YSAISOSNVUL wares ayol YIMOd OV I Be oe Pe I ndo OV NOS NI HISWNN l VINIS YO HOLOATSS WOW NV ss3yady IINCON I I by ZY 144 PL U S Pat2. 6 1996 now U S Pat No 5 877 957 TECHNICAL FIELD An automation system for controlling the behavior of an environment in response to certain events BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Currently automation systems which are used to control the behavior of an environment such as a home or office building are programmed using either a simple command language or using a graphical user interface that requires a computer with a monitor These systems are expensive and require substantial investment by the user in time and energy to install and modify programming Generally to make changes in existing programs of such systems a user must consult a user s manual or call a programming specialist The overall utility of the automation system is drastically reduced because the user finds it difficult to adapt the system to changing needs or to make additions deletions or modi fications to the programs resident in such systems Home automation systems or home management systems as they are sometimes called commonly provide for control of lighting heating and air conditioning window shades or curtains pool heaters and filtration systems lawn sprinklers ornamental fountains audio visual equipment and other appliances Home automation systems are frequently inte grated with a home security system so that when a fire alarm is raised for example internal and external lights will be turned on Security systems frequently include lighting control
3. Menu 1 2 If the user selects Yes from Menu 1 2 Menu 1 3 is displayed Press the switch you wish to use Turn on off devices it will control BLUE when done Menu 1 3 If the user presses one of the switches next to the whole house controller then that switch can be used to control any device in the house Menu 1 4 then asks the user to decide if these response should occur at any time of the day when the switch is pressed or only during some particular period The switch will control the devices at all times only certain times gt gt Menu 1 4 If the user opts for only certain times Menu 1 5 is displayed Select time Daylight Nightime Pick Start and Stop gt gt gt gt Menu 1 5 If the user selects Pick Start and Stop from Menu 1 5 Menu 1 6 is displayed Enter Starting Time Hour Minute _ _ AM PM Blue when done Menu 1 6 6 112 127 17 then Menu 1 7 is displayed Enter Stopping Time Hour Minute _ _AM PM Blue when done Menu 1 7 If both times are AM or both are PM or the first time is AM and the second is PM Menu 1 8a is displayed Start at 9 00 am and continue to 11 15 am Correct Redo it gt gt Menu 1 8a If the first time is PM and the second is AM Menu 1 8b is displayed From 10 15 PM to 6 15 next morning Correct Redo it gt gt Menu 1 8b If the user selects Redo it at either Menu 1 8a or 1 8b Menu 1 7 will be displayed otherwise Me
4. skilled in the art could define the most appropriate way to apply the teachings presented here to particular devices FIG 16 illustrates the front panel of a security interface 218 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention The security interface 218 includes a group of conditional buttons 244 and an action button 246 It may also have its own train button 248 To train the house to do something when the security system is in a particular state ie off on away night the user places a programmable controller in training mode selects the security system state which provides the trigger event and places select program mable devices in a programmed state To activate the secu rity system in response to a trigger event the user would first 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 14 press the train button on a programmable controller and then cause the trigger event to occur The user would then press the train button on the security system and then operate the controls of the security system in a way that would normally cause it to enter the desired state The user would then press the train button on the security system a second time which would cause the security system to broadcast a message to the programmable controller that would contain the com mands the security system should be sent to cause the same effect as was produced by the user s manipulation of the controls At the design
5. 1 on the display The Blue button labeled Yes is typically used to indicate that the user had completed input Pressing the Blue button during a confirmation mes sage will erase the message and move on to the next screen When the console is in the Idle state the four function buttons Automation Security Test and Lock can be used to invoke procedures to create home automation programming administer the security system test home automation and security functions and lock various parts of the system Pressing the console button labeled Training will cause the system to display Menu 1 0 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 16 Home Automation Train House Explore System gt gt Menu 1 0 Selecting Train House lets the user teach the house new responses to trigger events Explore System lets the user practice training the house without over writing any existing programming Selecting Train House in Menu 1 0 will generate a dialog where the user is asked if the house s response is to be triggered by a switch closure If the user says yes the system asks the user to turn on or off the lamps and appliances to be controlled and then asks if these actions should be taken at some particular time and if the actions should depend on the state of the security system More particularly Menu 1 2 is first displayed Learn what to do when a switch is pressed Yes No gt gt
6. 12 to be selected FIG 3 is a block diagram of the programmable device 14 shown in FIG 1 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention The programmable device 14 includes a transceiver 34 appliance electronics 35 and a microproces sor 40 preferably having both RAM memory 42 and ROM memory 44 The microprocessor 40 is coupled to the trans ceiver 34 and appliance electronics 35 The transceiver 34 is coupled to the communication link 16 to receive and broadcast messages over the communication link 16 The programmable device 14 has an address identified with it which may be stored in ROM 42 or alternatively an address selector 44 coupled to the microprocessor 40 can be provided to allow the address of the programmable device 14 to be selected In the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIG 3 the programmable device 14 is like that shown in FIG 1 in which it is integrated into the appliance itself 6 112 127 7 FIG 3a is a block diagram of the programmable device 14 shown in FIG la according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention The programmable device 14 includes a transceiver 34 a control relay 36 a load detector 38 and a microprocessor 40 preferably having both RAM memory 42 and ROM memory 44 The microprocessor 40 is coupled to the transceiver 34 control relay 36 and load detector 38 The transceiver 34 is coupled to the commu nication link 16 to receive and broadcast messages over
7. OF THE DRAWINGS FIG 1 is a schematic of an automation system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention FIG 1a is a schematic of an automation system according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention FIG 2 is a block diagram of the programmable controller shown in FIGS 1 and 1a according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 4 FIG 3 is a block diagram of the programmable device shown in FIG 1 according to a third preferred embodiment of the present invention FIG 3a is a block diagram of the programmable device shown in FIG 1a according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention FIGS 4 5 are flow charts illustrating the communication protocol between the programmable controller and program mable device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention FIG 6 illustrates the front panel of a programmable controller incorporated with a bank of switches according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention FIG 7 illustrates the front of a programmable controller incorporated with a bank of push buttons according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention FIGS 8 9 10 11 and 12 are flow charts illustrating various program sequences FIG 13 is a of the wiring and components schematic for a home automation system according to a preferred embodi ment of the
8. and other types of home automation as an option Many larger homes incorporate a home theater which requires a certain amount of automation for convenient operation and this automation is often extended to other parts of the dwelling In farms the automation system will also control outbuilding heating and lighting and warn of off normal conditions in automated feeding machinery and the like One form of automation system includes a central control unit that monitors environmental sensors and inputs from user controls and maintains a schedule of pre programmed time of day and day of the week events Inputs to the cen tral control are provided by dedicated low voltage wiring for example from door and window sensors signals carried on power lines RF signals signals on existing telephone wiring and occasionally optical signals The central control unit is controlled by a program that is either specifically built for the particular installation or a general purpose program with a user interface that allows the owner or a technician employed by the owner to make certain types of modifica tions The interfaces to these programs can be anything from strings of digits entered on standard touch tone keypads for example Home Automation Inc s Omni Automation and Security System to graphical user interfaces for example the Molex Choices software While the graphical user interfaces can be relatively easy to use they require the presence
9. and receive messages broadcast over the communica tion Link 224 The programmable clock 210 broadcasts messages over the power lines at certain significant times i e sunset sunrise and at times selected by the user FIG 14 illustrates the front panel of a preferred embodiment of the program mable clock 210 In the preferred embodiment the program mable clock has a display 230 to display the current date and time The second display 232 is used to display events i e sunrise or intervals i e night that are either prepro grammed or programmed by the user Next button 234 allows the user to scroll through the events or intervals The user can select particular events or intervals using the Set Hour and Minute buttons In a preferred embodiment the programmable clock 210 includes a train button 236 so that programmable devices coupled over the power lines 224 can be programmed based on events i e sunrise or intervals i e night For example to program a lamp to turn on at sunset the user would press the train button on a program mable controller press the train button on the clock interface and then select the event sunset and then turn on the lamp that was to be turned on at sunset If the user wished to program a lamp to come on when a door was opened but only when it was dark out the user might use the sequence press train button on a programmable controller open the door press train button on the clock sel
10. be seen if they had simply elected to train the system After they have written their program they can explore its operation When they are finished the program is either dumped or saved Additional devices such as a telephone access module can be incorporated into the home automation system and appear to other system components just like a programmable device While the presently preferred embodiments have been described with reference to communication over power lines other communications between the intelligent switches and outlets may be used For example an RS 485 0 bus proprietary bus RF communication etc may be used The important feature is that the programmable controller trigger device and programmable device must be able to communicate It is to be understood that the forms of the invention described herewith are to be taken as preferred examples and that various changes in the shape size and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the present invention or the scope of the claims What is claimed is 1 A method of programming an appliance the method comprising the steps of providing a programmable device coupled to the appli ance providing a programmable controller coupled to the pro grammable device wherein the programmable control ler and programmable device communicate with one another the programmable controller having a training mode which when selected
11. communication link 16 to control its operation The programmable device 14 includes but is not limited to 5 10 15 20 25 30 40 45 50 55 65 6 appliances such as switches lamps dishwashers curtain controls audio and video equipment thermostats lawnsprinklers etc FIG 1a is a perspective view of an automation system 10 according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention FIG la is similar to FIG 1 except that the programmable device 14 is divided into a programmable outlet 17 and an appliance 19 In a preferred embodiment the programmable outlet 17 is plugged into the power line and provides a socket into which an appliance 19 such as a lamp can be plugged The programmable outlet 17 detects a change in state of the appliance coupled thereto and broadcasts a message over the communication link 16 that the appliance 19 has changed states While a lamp is shown as the appliance in this preferred embodiment the present invention is not limited to such appliances but includes other appliances such as switches dishwashers curtain controls audio and video equipment etc The term appliance is used broadly to encompass any device that can change its state at least from one state to another While the particular embodiment described with refer ence to FIGS 1 and 1a have the power lines of a home establishing the communication link 16 the present inven tion is not limited to such a com
12. drawing of a user console for one preferred embodiment of a whole house controller Included on its front panel is a display with several lines of text Aligned with some of these lines of text are buttons located on one or both sides of the display When menus are presented users make selections by pressing the button aligned with their choice To make it easier for users to see which text line is aligned with which button it is common to place an arrow or other character on the line of tet pointing to the button that should be pressed For illustrative purposes the menus shown here assume a display with 4 lines and 25 characters per line Normally the panel will be in the Idle state and will display Menu 0 1 Monday April 1 1996 9 15 am More Information gt gt Menu 0 1 If the user presses the side button gt gt on line 4 More information the system will display Menu 0 2 Security Off Console not locked 3 Sensors Bypassed 4 Active Passcodes Menu 0 2 The user console also includes a numeric keypad that we show arranged as a touchtone pad on a telephone would be with a red key placed where the key is conventionally found and a blue key where the key is typically located The Red button labeled No is typically used to abort operations in progress to terminate some automated sequence of events or to retire an alarm Normally an aborted operation will bring the system back to idle state with Menu 0
13. event has been detected control is passed to block 68 where the program stored in the RAM 28 of the pro grammable controller 12 associated with the particular trigger event detected is recalled Then at block 70 the program stored in RAM 28 of the programmable controller 12 is broadcast over communication link 16 The program mable devices 14 coupled to the communication link 16 listen for broadcasted messages At block 72 each program mable device 14 coupled to communication link 16 detects whether a message has been broadcast Control is then passed to block 74 where it is determined whether the program broadcast includes any message for particular pro grammable devices If it does control is passed to block 76 where the programmable devices detect this by matching their unique address with the addresses in the broadcast program If it recognizes its address the programmable device receives its designated message in the program and executes the instructions associated with that message If not control is passed to block 78 where the message is ignored Each programmable device coupled to the commu nication link checks the program broadcast by the program mable controller to see if any of the messages contained therein are for it Signaling protocols such as X 10 a proprietary protocol of the X 10 Corporation CEBus an EIA standard backed by an industry consortium or Lon Works a standard owned and maintained by the Echelon Corpora
14. has not been detected the program mable controller 12 waits for the detection of a trigger event After the trigger event has been detected and recorded control is passed to block 56 where it is determined whether a message has been broadcast by a programmable device 14 over the communication link 16 If a message is detected control is passed to block 58 where the broadcast message is recorded in the RAM 28 of the programmable controller 12 If a broadcast message has not been detected the programmable controller 12 waits for a broadcast message After a broadcast message has been detected and recorded control is passed to block 60 where it is determined whether the programmable controller 12 has been taken out of training mode If it has control is passed to block 62 and the programming is terminated If not control is passed back to block 56 where the programmable controller 12 waits for another message to be broadcast by another programmable device This cycle continues until the programming has been terminated The recording of the trigger event and broadcast messages by the programmable controller creates a program stored by the programmable controller 12 Of course many programs formed by trigger events and the broadcast messages asso ciated therewith can be stored by the programmable con troller In FIGS 1 and 1a only one programmable device 14 is shown however it is to be understood that a plurality of programmable devices ca
15. in the home of a personal computer and often require the system owner to purchase additional hardware and software Systems that rely on touch tone keypads for input and one and two line LCD for display are less expensive but generally require the user to remember or more likely lookup arbitrary commands 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 2 The Echelon Corporation has built home automation and industrial control apparatus based on a signaling protocol they refer to as LonWorks that uses a network of nodes each of which has one or more microprocessors The system is designed to operate in a cooperative computing environ ment in which the individual nodes maintain their own programs Programming of the individual nodes can be done by downloading new software from a temporarily attached lap top computer or by downloading software over the LonWorks network A similar approach has been taken by CEBus and has been used in many custom installations for larger homes and office buildings While such systems eliminate the central control unit modifying the software still requires the use of a PC based system and usually requires the user to acquire relatively expensive hardware and software and become proficient in the use of PC based software It is thus desirable to provide an automation system that is inexpensive easily installed and easily programmable and reprogrammable It is also desirable to
16. lamp can be turned either on or off it may be assumed that either Type I or Type II programming is being performed In a preferred embodi ment it is assumed that the programming is Type II While particular assumptions have been described linking certain events to Type I or Type II programming other embodiments which would be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art in light of the teachings of the present invention may be implemented In a preferred embodiment the programmable controller decides the programming mode The programmable controllers and programmable devices according to the preferred embodiments of the present invention allow a user to create a program by a simple program by demonstration technique No knowledge of programming is needed and creating modifying or deleting programs can be simply implemented by the user The user simply physically demonstrates what is to occur upon the detection of a trigger event FIGS 8 12 are flow charts illustrating examples of steps used to program various sequences in response to various trigger events It is assumed that the programmable control 6 112 127 11 ler and programmable devices are located in a home auto mation system for all of the sequences shown in FIGS 8 12 The sequence shown in FIG 8 trains the house to turn Lamp1 on and Lamp2 off when a door is opened The sequence shown in FIG 9 causes Lamp 2 to be turned off and Lamp3 turned on whenever Lampl is turne
17. making any changes in the programmable controller the new lighting fixture would be a programmable device that would broad cast a message to the programmable controller that con tained within that message an instruction that should be sent back to the lighting appliance in order to duplicate the setting the user had selected from the control panel The programmable controller stores the message that should be sent to the new lighting fixture and in the future when the trigger event was detected it would direct the stored message to the new lighting appliance The programmable controller doesn t need to know anything about the operation of this new programmable device and doesn t even need to know it is a light When the programmable controller 12 is out of its training mode it monitors the communication link 16 for recogniz able trigger events FIG 5 is a flow chart illustrating the communications over communication link 16 when the programmable controller 12 is out of its training mode At block 64 it is determined whether the programmable con troller 12 is out of its training mode If it is not control of the program is transferred to block 50 as shown in FIG 4 If it is control is passed to block 66 where it is determined whether a trigger event has been detected If one has not 6 112 127 9 control is returned to block 66 where the programmable controller 12 waits for the detection of a trigger event Once a trigger
18. present invention FIG 14 illustrates the front panel of a programmable clock according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention FIG 15 illustrates a front panel of a programmable thermostat according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention FIG 16 illustrates a front panel of a security interface according to a preferred embodiment of the present inven tion FIG 17 is a schematic of a remote programmable light fixture FIG 18 illustrates a front panel of a sequence interface according to a preferred embodiment of the present inven tion FIG 19 illustrates a front panel of a whole house con troller according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG 1 is a perspective view of an automation system 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present inven tion In its simplest embodiment the automation system 10 includes a programmable controller 12 a programmable device 14 and a communication link 16 coupling the programmable controller 12 and the programmable device 14 so that they can communicate with one another The programmable controller 12 has a user accessible control or train button 18 to place the programmable controller 12 in training mode and take the programmable controller out of training mode Training mode refers to the state in which the programmable controller 12 is in when it is being pro grammed In a pre
19. switches After the switch or switches have been pressed the user presses the next button again which extinguishes the first overhead light and illuminates the second The user proceeds through all of the overhead lights assigning to each light one or more switches that will turn it on and off When the sequencer has illuminated each light in the set in turn it could so indicate by illuminating all the lights While only two ceiling lamps are illustrated the present invention is not limited to the particular embodiment illustrated Including the elements shown in FIG 13 allows more complicated programming For example if the user wants to train a programmable controller to turn on a lamp when the front door is opened and it is night the user places the programmable controller in the training mode and opens the front door The user signals that the actions consequent on opening the door are conditional on a timer event by first selecting the appropriate time or interval on the program mable clock 210 The user then presses the train button on the clock interface After defining the conditional event the user then touches the lamps that are to be turned on or off when the front door opens and finally takes the program mable controller out of the training mode After this training the lamps touched by the user will go on or off when the door is opened and it is night If a user wants to train a switch to turn off the lights turn the secu
20. the communication link 16 The load detector 38 is coupled to an appliance 19 see FIG 1a The programmable device 14 has an address identified with it which may be stored in ROM 42 or alternatively an address selector 44 coupled to the microprocessor 40 can be provided to allow the address of the programmable device 14 to be selected In the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIG 3 the programmable device 14 is like that shown in FIG 1a which includes an outlet that is plugged into the power line and provides a socket into which the appliance 19 such as a lamp for example can be plugged into In such an embodiment the load detector 38 detects a change in state of the appliance coupled to the programmable device 14 i e the appliance begins drawing power or ceases drawing power or the amount of power the appliance is drawing The communication between the programmable control ler 12 and the programmable device will now be described with reference to the flow chart shown in FIG 4 At block 50 it is determined whether the programmable controller 12 has been put in training mode If it has not control is passed to block 64 shown in FIG 5 If it has then control is passed to block 52 where it is determined whether a trigger event has been detected over the communication link 16 If a trigger event has been detected that trigger event is recorded in the RAM 28 of the programmable controller 12 in block 54 If a trigger event
21. 6 01 An automation system for programming appliances having 340 286 11 345 158 345 162 345 166 programmable controllers programmable devices and trig Rego e i g 345 1 69 ger devices that communicate over a communication link A The user programs the programmable devices by placing the 58 Field of Search 700 86 87 12 fa 6 o programmable controller in its training mode activating the 3 pe i os NONE o 3 io trigger device to generate a trigger signed and places select 386 55 345 153 4 158 162 163 166 169 programmable devices in their programmed state After all pei 2 of the desired programmable devices have been put in then 56 References Cited programmed states the user takes the programmable con troller out of its training mode When the programmable U S PATENT DOCUMENTS controller is out of its training mode it monitors the com Meg ani i aia munication link for the trigger event Upon detecting the He 48 552 ai 988 a na AREE Di E PRE trigger event the programmable controller sends messages 4797568 1 1989 Gumb Rn O 307 41 to the selected programmable devices instructing them to go 4 808 841 2 1989 Ito et al 307 141 to their programmed state 4 899 129 2 1990 MacFadyen et al 340 310 R 5 043 531 8 1991 Gutenson et al 174 49 29 Claims 13 Drawing Sheets IS PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER IN TRAINING MODE Vie EVENT DETECTED
22. N OFF LAMP 1 DEPRESS TRAIN BUTTON TO TERMINATE PROGRAMMING U S Patent Aug 29 2000 Sheet 9 of 13 6 112 127 DEPRESS TRAIN BUTTON TO BEGIN PROGRAMMING SUPPLY TRIGGER EVENT BY TURNING SWITCH TURN ON LAMP 1 Fig Il TURN ON LAMP 2 TURN ON LAMP 3 DEPRESS TRAIN BUTTON TO TERMINATE PROGRAMMING DEPRESS TRAIN BUTTON TO BEGIN PROGRAMMING SUPPLY TRIGGER EVENT BY DEPRESSING A PUSH BUTTON TURN OFF LAMP 1 TURN ON LAMP 2 TURN OFF LAMP 3 DEPRESS TRAIN BUTTON TO TERMINATE PROGRAMMING Fig 12 U S Patent Aug 29 2000 Sheet 10 of 13 6 112 127 RE ES 000 E mia 208 Fig 13 206 212 214 216 222 222 218 202 220 U S Patent Aug 29 2000 Sheet 11 of 13 6 112 127 230 JULY 9 1996 4 12 PM ALARM SETTING DAYLIGHT 210 232 SET A A HOUR MIN LI Vv Vv 234 236 240 214 COMFORT A V e lt ECONOMY ii Fig 15 U S Patent Aug 29 2000 Sheet 12 of 13 6 112 127 244 244 244 244 248 292 252 254 250 250 224 224 Fig 7 U S Patent Aug 29 2000 Sheet 13 of 13 6 112 127 258 254 260 123456789012345678901234 MONDAY APRIL 1 1996 9 15 AM MORE INFORMATION gt gt 6 112 127 1 METHOD AND SYSTEM OF PROGRAMMING AT LEAST ONE APPLIANCE TO CHANGE STATE UPON THE OCCURRENCE OF A TRIGGER EVENT This application is a continuation of application Ser No 08 746 115 filed Nov
23. United States Patent 15 US006112127A 11 Patent Number 6 112 127 Bennett 45 Date of Patent Aug 29 2000 54 METHOD AND SYSTEM OF 5 086 385 2 1992 Launey et al 364 184 PROGRAMMING AT LEAST ONE 5 187 655 2 1993 Post et al iin 364 146 APPLIANCE TO CHANGE STATE UPON 5 218 552 6 1993 Stirk et al 340 286 01 5 237 305 8 1993 Ishikuro et al eee 364 191 THE OCCURRENCE OFA ERIGGRR EVENT 5 270 915 12 1993 Tomita et al eee 318 102 5 392 223 2 1995 Caci ns we 700 15 75 Inventor Raymond W Bennett Naperville Ill 5412291 5 1995 Payne et al 345 158 5 457 478 10 1995 Frank cmi 340 545 73 Assignee Ameritech Services Inc Hoffman 5 565 843 10 1996 Meyvis 340 825 19 Estates Ill 5 600 311 2 1997 Rice et al vee 340 825 19 5 838 563 11 1998 Dove et al ino 700 18 21 Appl No 09 201 296 5 940 296 8 1999 Meyer 700 83 5 956 025 9 1999 Goulden et al 700 83 22 Filed Nov 30 1998 5 963 446 10 1999 Klein et al 700 18 5 963 886 10 1999 Candy et al n 700 83 Related U S Application Dat Ee ian Primary Examiner Paul P Gordon 63 Continuation of application No 08 746 115 Nov 6 1996 Assistant Examiner Ramesh Patel E Pat No 5 877 957 Attorney Agent or Firm Brinks Hofer Gilson amp Lione 51 MiC Ai ee ee G05B 19 42 57 ABSTRACT 52 US Cl iii 700 86 700 12 700 16 i 700 83 700 87 700 262 700 275 340 28
24. allows the at least one programmable device to be programmed to change the state of the appliance upon the occurrence of the trigger event placing the programmable controller in training mode providing a trigger event while the programmable con troller is in training mode changing the state of the appliance from an unpro grammed state to a programmed state while the pro grammable controller is in training mode 6 112 127 21 taking the programmable controller out of training mode wherein the appliance is now programmed so that upon the next occurrence of the trigger event while the programmable controller is out of training mode the appliance will change state from its unprogrammed state to its programmed state 2 A method according to claim 1 wherein the step of providing a trigger includes providing a switch coupled to the programmable controller having at least two states wherein the trigger event is supplied by changing the state of the switch 3 A method according to claim 1 wherein the step of providing a trigger event includes providing an environmen tal sensor coupled to the programmable controller wherein the trigger event is the detection of an environment change by the environmental sensor 4 A method according to claim 1 further comprising the steps of providing a plurality of appliances wherein each appli ance is coupled to a programmable device changing the state of a first appliance from an unpro g
25. amming are arbitrary and the present invention is not limited to the particular examples given These are but some of the programming sequences that can be implemented using the programmable controller and programmable devices according to the present invention The present invention however is not limited to these particular sequences Adding changing or deleting existing programs is also simply implemented In a preferred embodiment if the system has learned a response to a particular trigger event to delete responses associated with that particular trigger event one need only put the programmable controller in the training mode supply the particular trigger event and then take the programmable controller out of the training mode To clear all programming one need only put the program mable controller in the training mode and then directly take the programmable controller out of the training mode Of course in a particular application if the risk of inadvertently erasing programming outweighs the convenience of being able to start over the designer could elect to not imple ment the erase all function to require the user to perform the erase all action twice in succession before it took effect or even to provide a separate delete button that was protected from accidental manipulation The programmable controllers and programmable devices according to the preferred embodiments already described can be incorporat
26. and installation to build a thermostat that could get a signal to and from the power line Instead according to a preferred embodiment the thermostat 214 includes a plug in module not shown that will relay the messages between the thermostat 214 and power lines 224 over an RF transceiver not shown Preferably both the RF transceiver and the thermostat 214 will have an LED not shown that will blink whenever there is a transmission to ease installation by verifying the RF signal path Alternatively the thermostat can be linked to the power line 224 using a two piece configuration where the thermostat would be linked to a box near the furnace by the existing thermostat wire The box will communicate with the thermostat over a serial data interface and provide contact closures on screw terminals for the furnace and air conditioning The box will also have an AC line cord which will provide its power and a connection for a power line transceiver In order to program the thermostat 214 to go to an economy setting whenever a wall switch near a front door is pressed the programmable controller might ordinarily need to know what commands to send to a particular thermostat to cause it to enter economy mode The preferred embodi ment of the present invention simplifies this problem To cause the thermostat to enter economy mode when a switch is pressed the user would start as usual by pressing the train button on a programmable controller and manipu
27. ated by the user putting pro grammable devices 14 into their programmed state The trigger event is selected as the event which generated the first message received by the programmable controller after it is placed in training mode For example if the trigger event is generated by an environmental sensor coupled to the communication link 16 the trigger event may be the detec tion of a movement in the field of view of the sensor the opening or closing of a door or window the detection of an alarm condition The trigger event can also be generated by a programmable device where the trigger event is the change of state of the programmable device For example the user may want a second programmable device to go to a desired programmed state every time a first programmable device goes to a particular programmed state Putting the first appliance in its programmed state after the programmable controller 12 is in the training mode is the trigger event Generally the trigger event can be any signal broadcast over communication link 16 to the programmable controller 12 The trigger event is preferably the first detected signal by the programmable controller 12 after it has been put in training mode Various programming sequences and trigger events will be described hereinafter The programmable device 14 illustrated in FIG 1 is able to broadcast messages over the communication link 16 indicating a change in its state and also receive signals over the
28. ce and the transceiver broad casts that information back to the programmable con troller and when the programmable controller is not in the training mode and trigger event occurs the power controller sends a signal to the programmable device commanding the control relay to switch the first appli ance to its programmed state 20 A system according to claim 19 wherein the micro processor has memory which stores the address of the programmable device 21 A system according to claim 19 further comprising a module address selector coupled to the microprocessor wherein the module has stored within it the address of the programmable device 22 A system according to claim 7 wherein the program mable controller is cleared of any stored program by placing the programmable controller in the training mode and then directly taking the programmable controller out of the training mode 23 A system according to claim 7 wherein the program mable controller is cleared of any programs associated with a particular trigger event by placing the programmable controller in the training mode providing the particular trigger event and then taking the programmable controller out of the training mode 24 A method for programming a home automation system the method comprising the steps of providing programmable devices located throughout a home 6 112 127 23 providing a programmable controller located in the home and coupled to the programmable
29. ce coupled to the communication link wherein the trigger device and programmable controller so that the trigger device and programmable controller can communicate with one another wherein the trigger device outputs a trigger event placing the programmable controller in a training mode activating the trigger device to generate a trigger signal while the programmable controller is in its training mode storing the trigger signal in the memory of the program mable controller placing the programmable device in a desired state after the occurrence of the trigger signal and while the programmable controller is in its training mode broadcasting a message that the programmable device is in the desired state storing the message in the memory of the programmable controller taking the programmable controller out of the training mode monitoring for the trigger event while the programmable controller is not in its training mode detecting the trigger event and broadcasting a control signal to the programmable device to change its desired state 29 A method according to claim 28 wherein the step of broadcasting a message that the programmable device is in the desired state includes broadcasting an instruction which will later be rebroadcasted as the control signal over the communication link to the programmable device UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION PATENT NO 6 112 127 Page 1
30. cording to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a system of programming at least one appliance The system includes a programmable device coupled to at least a first appliance where the programmable device detects the state of the first appliance and a pro grammable controller coupled to and communicating with the programmable device over a communication link The programmable controller has a training mode which when selected allows the programmable device to be programmed to change the state of the first appliance upon the occurrence of the trigger event When the programmable controller is put in the training mode and a trigger event occurs and the state of the first appliance is changed and the programmable controller is taken out of the training mode the first appli ance will change to its programmed state upon the next occurrence of the trigger event According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a method for programming a home automation 6 112 127 3 system The method includes the steps of providing pro grammable devices located throughout a home Each pro grammable device is coupled to an appliance and each programmable device can detect the state of the appliance coupled to it Providing a programmable controller located in the home and coupled to the programmable devices by a communication link The programmable controller has a training mode which when selected allows select
31. d on In this case turning Lampl on is the trigger event The sequence shown in FIG 10 programs the house to turn Lamp2 and Lamp3 on when Lampl is turned on In a preferred embodi ment the last event turning Lampl off is ignored since for the purpose of this training sequence Lampl is a trigger event and all trigger events subsequent to the occurrence of the first trigger event are ignored In other applications it may not be appropriate to ignore subsequent trigger events The sequence shown in FIG 11 programs the home to turn Lamps 1 2 and 3 on every time one of the bank of switches 100 shown in FIG 6 is turned on Because one of the bank of switches 100 was used as the trigger event it was assumed that Type I programming was implemented which cause all of the selected appliances to go to the same state as the trigger event regardless of their actual state during programming Alternatively the sequence shown in FIG 12 programs the house to turn Lamps 1 and 3 off and Lamp2 on every time one of the push buttons 110 shown in FIG 7 is depressed Even though the same steps were performed after the trigger event as occurred in FIG 11 because one of the push buttons 110 of the programmable was used as the trigger event it was assumed that Type II programming was implemented which causes all of the selected appliances to go to their individual programmed states As already described the assumptions made with respect to Type I and Type II progr
32. devices by a com munication link wherein the programmable controller has a training mode which when selected allows a programmable device to be programmed programming a programmable device to change from an unprogrammed state to a programmed state by placing the programmable device in its unprogrammed state placing the programmable controller in the training mode providing a trigger event changing the state of the programmable device from its unprogrammed to its programmed state while the programmable controller is in its training mode and taking the programmable controller out of the training mode wherein the pro grammable device is now programmed so that the next occurrence of the trigger event while the programmable controller is not in its training mode will cause the programmable device to change from its unpro grammed state to its programmed state 25 A method according to claim 24 wherein the step of providing the trigger event includes changing the state of a first appliance wherein when the programmable controller is out of the training mode the next occurrence of the first appliance changing state causes the other selected appli ances to change state to their programmed states 26 A method of programming an appliance the method comprising the steps of providing a programmable controller coupled to a com munication link to the appliance placing the programmable controller in a training mode broadcasting a trig
33. e user touched the appliance during pro gramming regardless of whether the appliance was turned on or off The bank of switches 100 shown in FIG 6 are particularly useful in such an application The second type of programming which will be referred to as Type II programming associates discrete events with specific commands to be sent to the programmable devices For Type II programming the state of the appliance during programming is material Thus if the above sequence was programmed using Type II programming lamps 1 and 2 would turn on and lamp 3 would turn off upon the occur rence of the trigger event The bank of push buttons 110 shown in FIG 7 are particularly useful for Type II program ming The determination of whether Type I or Type II program ming is taking place is arbitrary and the present invention is not limited to the particular examples given Whether the programming is of Type I or Type II is inferred from the trigger event and from what programmable devices that are to be controlled by that trigger event If the trigger event is supplied by an on off switch and if the appliances to be controlled all have on and off states it may be assumed that Type I programming is being performed If the trigger event is supplied by a momentary contract device or the opening of a door then it may be assumed that Type II programming is being performed If the trigger event is supplied by an appliance whose state is reversible the
34. ect the interval night time from the clock display press the train button on the clock again turn on the lamp that is to come on when the door opens and it is dark out press the train button on a programmable controller again Variations in this sequence could be defined by one skilled in the art to suit the needs of particular installations or types of users Alternatively the programmable clock need not have a train button to program appliances according to time Instead one can put another programmable controller in its training mode select a time interval or event using the programmable clock as the trigger event place selected programmable devices in their program state and take the programmable controller out of training mode to complete programming Upon the next occurrence of the time interval or event used as the trigger event the selected program mable devices will go to their programmed state To clear a time based program one simply presses the train button selects the interval for which programming is to be cleared and presses the learn button again FIG 15 illustrates a preferred embodiment of a front panel of programmable thermostat 214 The thermostat 214 has a display 240 to display temperature and displays 242 to 6 112 127 13 indicate whether comfort or economy made has been selected Because the thermostat 214 runs at low voltages supplied by the HVAC interface 11 it would be difficult both in design
35. ed by the power lines in the home If the user wants the programmable device 14 to go to a programmed state upon the occurrence of a particular event i e a trigger event the user first places the programmable controller 12 in its training mode by depressing the train button 18 and then causes a trigger signal which will be described hereinafter that is received by programmable controller 12 over the communication link 16 The user then walks over to the programmable device 14 he or she wishes to be controlled by the trigger event and puts the programmable device 14 in the desired programmed state For example if the programmable device is a lamp the programmed state may be turning the lamp on The user then walks back to the programmable controller 12 and takes it out of its training mode using the train button 18 Now the automation system 10 is programmed so that upon the next occurrence of the trigger event the programmable device 14 will go to the desired programmed state A detailed descrip tion of the communications over communication link 16 will be described hereinafter The trigger event can be generated in numerous ways For example as will be seen hereinafter programmable devices 14 frequently generate messages which can be regarded as trigger events by the programmable controller 12 In operation the programmable controller 12 can receive a number of messages that might be trigger events and other messages that might be gener
36. ed into a larger system to support for example home automation FIG 13 is a schematic of the wiring and components for a home automation system according to a preferred embodiment of the present inven tion The automation system 200 preferably includes the following components a first programmable controller 202 a plurality of programmable devices 204 a second program mable controller 206 a plurality of wall switches 208 a programmable clock 210 a programmable light fixture 212 a programmable thermostat 214 coupled to a HVAC inter 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 12 face 216 a security interface 218 and a security panel 220 and a plurality of environmental sensors 222 As will be described all of these components communicate with one another preferably over the power lines 224 of the house in which they are installed The embodiment shown in FIG 13 is merely exemplary and the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment The programmable controller 202 is preferably of the type shown in FIG 1 where it has a user access control 203 to put the programmable controller 202 in and out of training mode The plurality of programmable devices 204 are pref erably of the type shown in FIGS 1 and 1a Programmable controller 206 is preferably of the type shown in either FIG 6 or 7 The switches 208 are preferably programmable so that they broadcast messages over the communication link 224
37. ed pro grammable devices to be programmed to change the state of the appliance connected thereto Programming selected appliances to change from an unprogrammed state to a programmed state by placing selected appliances in their respective unprogrammed state placing the programmable controller in the training mode providing a trigger event changing the states of selected appliances from their unpro grammed state to their programmed state and taking the programmable controller out of the training mode The home is now programmed so that the next occurrence of the trigger event will cause the selected appliances to change from their unprogrammed states to their programmed states According to a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of programming at least one appliance The method includes the steps of providing a programmable controller coupled by a communication link to the at least one appliance placing the programmable controller in the training mode broadcasting a trigger event over the com munication link wherein the trigger event is received and stored by the programmable controller changing the state of the at least one appliance from an unprogrammed state to a programmed state deleting the change of state of the at least one appliance broadcasting a message over the communi cation link indicating that the programmed state of the at least one appliance wherein the message is received and stored by the pr
38. ent Aug 29 2000 Sheet 5 of 13 6 112 127 PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER IN TRAINING MODE TRIGGER EVENT DETECTED RECORD TRIGGER EVENT IN PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER BROADCAST MESSAGE DETECTED 58 YES RECORD BROADCAST MESSAGE IN PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER 60 IS PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER OUT OF TRAINING NO TERMINATE PROGRAMMING U S Patent Aug 29 2000 Sheet 6 of 13 6 112 127 PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER OUT OF TRAINING TRIGGER EVENT DETECTED RECALL PROGRAM STORED IN PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLER Fig 5 BROADCAST PROGRAM STORED FOR TRIGGER EVENT DETECTED BROADCAST MESSAGE DETECTED BROADCAST MESSAGE HAVE INSTRUCTIONS FOR PROGRAMMBLE RECEIVE INSTRUCTIONS IGNORE BROADCAST MESSAGE U S Patent Aug 29 2000 Sheet 7 of 13 6 112 127 1 2 100 110 110 100 110 100 20 18 DEPRESS TRAIN BUTTON TO BEGIN PROGRAMMING SUPPLY TRIGGER EVENT BY OPENING DOOR 1 di TURN ON LAMP 2 DEPRESS TRAIN BUTTON TO TERMINATE PROGRAMMING U S Patent Aug 29 2000 Sheet 8 of 13 6 112 127 DEPRESS TRAIN BUTTON TO BEGIN PROGRAMMING SUPPLY TRIGGER EVENT BY TURNING ON LAMP 1 TURN OFF LAMP 2 TURN ON LAMP 3 DEPRESS TRAIN BUTTON TO TERMINATE PROGRAMMING DEPRESS TRAIN BUTTON TO BEGIN PROGRAMMING SUPPLY TRIGGER EVENT BY TURNING ON LAMP 1 TURN ON LAMP 2 Fig 10 TURN ON LAMP 3 TUR
39. enu 1 23 is i displayed Select Security Mode Day Night Away Off 45 gt gt To move highlight gt gt Menu 1 23 After the security mode is selected Menu 1 24 is dis played 50 Training Complete Menu 1 24 55 If the user has indicated that the action is not triggered by a switch a sensor or a timer event Menu 1 25 is displayed 60 Learn what to do if the security status changes Yes gt gt No gt gt Menu 1 25 65 If the user selects No the system goes to Idle state Otherwise Menus 1 26 and 1 27 are sequentially displayed 20 Select Security Mode Day Night Away Off gt gt To move highlight gt gt Menu 1 26 Tum on off devices you want to change when Security is lt descriptor gt Press BLUE when done Menu 1 27 The user is then asked in Menu 1 28 if entering the selected security state will control these devices at all times or only certain times Security system will control these devices at all times only certain times gt gt gt gt Menu 1 28 Once the user has picked a time the Training Complete confirmation message is displayed If the user would like to play with the system without permanently changing any programming they can accept the Explore System option from the Menu 1 0 elicited by pressing the Training button on the whole house console The sequence starts with a few screens of information and then they are given exactly the same set of prompts as would
40. er s option a security interface could be constructed so that after the train button was pressed user manipulation of the controls might have no effect on the current operation of the security system FIG 17 is a schematic of a remote programmable lighting fixture The light fixture includes a plurality of remotely located lamps 250 for example recessed ceiling lights programmable devices 252 coupled to the lamps 250 that can receive message from the power lines 224 and broadcast messages over the power lines and a programmable sequencer 254 coupled to the power lines FIG 18 illustrates the front panel of a programmable sequencer interface according to a preferred embodiment of the present inven tion The interface includes a train button 256 a next button 258 a reset button 260 and a select button 262 In the preferred embodiment the programmable control ler is used with a bank of momentary contact switches to associate arbitrary sets of ceiling lights with the various switches The user begins by pressing the train button on the programmable controller The user then presses the train button on the programmable sequencer which causes all of ceiling lights to be extinguished The user then presses the next button on the programmable sequencer which causes one light to be illuminated and presses the momentary contact switch the user would like to have control that light Of course any one light can be associated with several
41. ferred embodiment the user accessible control 18 is a push down button which places the program mable controller 12 in training mode and when pushed again to release the button takes the programmable controller 12 out of training mode The user accessible control 18 will be referred to hereinafter as the train button Optionally the programmable controller 12 may also be equipped with an indicator 20 such as an LED which is illuminated when the programmable controller 12 is in training mode and is extinguished when the programmable controller is not in training mode The programmable device 14 which will be described in detail hereinafter broadcasts messages to and 6 112 127 5 receives messages from the programmable controller 12 over communication link 16 First a brief description of the operation of the automation system 10 will be given followed by a detailed description of various preferred embodiments of the components of the automation system 10 The automation system 10 is pro grammed by demonstrating what should happen in response to a particular event For example if the automation system 10 is installed in a home the programmable controller 12 is preferably mounted in a wall of the home for example where the user will have access to the train button 18 The programmable device 14 is also located in the home and the communication link 16 between the programmable control ler 12 and the programmable device 14 is provid
42. ger event over the communication link wherein the trigger event is received and stored by the programmable controller while the programmable con troller is in its training mode changing the state of the appliance from an unpro grammed state to a programmed state after the trigger event has occurred and the programmable controller is in its training mode broadcasting a message over the communication link indicating that the programmed state of the appliance has changed wherein the message is received and stored by the programmable controller and taking the programmable device out of a training mode wherein the appliance is programmed to go to its programmed state upon the occurrence of the trigger event 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 24 27 A method according to claim 26 wherein the step of broadcasting a message over the communication link indi cating that the state of the at least one appliance has changed includes broadcasting an instruction message when later rebroadcast back to the at least one appliance controls the operation of the at least one appliance 28 A method for automating an environment the method comprising the steps of providing a programmable device providing a programmable controller having a memory wherein the programmable controller is coupled to the programmable device so that the programmable device and programmable controller communicate with one another providing a trigger devi
43. ill change to its programmed state upon the next occurrence of the trigger event when the programmable controller is not in its training mode 8 A system according to claim 7 further comprising providing a switch coupled to the programmable controller the switch having at least two states wherein the trigger event is supplied by changing the state of the switch 9 A system according to claim 7 further comprising an environmental sensor coupled to the programmable control ler wherein the trigger event is the detection of an environ mental change by the environmental sensor 10 A system according to claim 9 where in the environ mental sensor is a motion detector 11 A system according to claim 9 wherein the environ mental sensor is an alarm condition from a security system 12 A system according to claim 9 further comprising a plurality of appliances wherein each appliance is coupled to a programmable device wherein the state of 10 15 20 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 22 the appliance is changed from an unprogrammed state to a programmed state after the programmable control ler has been placed in the training mode and the trigger event has occurred while the programmable controller is in the training mode wherein the appliance is now programmed to change its state upon the next occur rence of the trigger event 13 A system according to claim 9 wherein the program mable device and the programmable co
44. lating the switch that was to be the trigger event The user would then press the train button on the thermostat press the economy mode and then press the train button again When the train button on the thermostat was pressed a second time the thermostat would broadcast a message that contained the instructions it should be sent in order to duplicate the effect the user had just produced by manipulating the thermostat s controls The programmable controller would receive this message and store it Later on when the trigger event occurred the programmable controller would read the stored message and broadcast it for the thermostat to receive and act on Of course rather than just put the thermostat in economy mode the user could have done any sequence of operations for example defining the temperature for economy mode and then placing the unit in economy mode after pressing the thermostat s train button An appliance could be constructed so that manipulating the controls after pressing the train button might or might not cause the appliance to immediately alter its functioning in accordance with the user input For example if the appliance were a complicated lighting fixture it might be desirable for the user to observer the consequences of changing the controls Alternatively if the appliance were a security system it might not be desirable to change the state of the security system when programming a controller It is assumed that one
45. munication media Other media may be used such as RF transmissions messages over dedicated wiring messages sent as data over phone lines using frequencies not used by voice signals optical signals etc In addition while only one programmable device 14 is shown in FIGS 1 and la a plurality of programmable devices can be provided to communicate with one or a plurality of programmable controllers 12 all coupled by communication link 16 Later a description of preferred embodiments of the present invention applied to a home automation system will be described FIG 2 is a block diagram of the programmable controller 12 shown in FIGS 1 and la according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention The programmable controller 12 includes a transceiver 22 a microprocessor 26 preferably having both RAM memory 28 and ROM memory 30 and train button 18 The microprocessor 26 is coupled to the transceiver 22 which in turn is coupled to the commu nication link 16 The transceiver 22 receives messages from the communication link 16 and sends messages over the communication link 16 The train button 18 is coupled to the microprocessor 26 and places the programmable controller 12 either in or out of training mode The programmable controller 12 has an address identified with it which may be stored in ROM 30 or alternatively an address selector 32 coupled to the microprocessor 26 can be provided to allow the address of the programmable controller
46. n be coupled to the communication link 16 in which case the programmable controller 12 may receive more than one broadcast message In particular according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention the trigger signal will have associated with it a unique identifier which will be recorded by the program mable device 12 The message s broadcast by the program 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 8 mable device s will each have associated with it the pro grammable device s unique address preferably a byte or two in length followed by a message The message of the broadcast signal may specify that the device has been turned on or off or that a particular percentage of energy is being drawn for example In addition particularly for the embodi ment shown in FIG 1 the message includes instructions which will be broadcast back to the programmable device to cause it to mimic the action that was just taken This message will be broadcast back to the programmable device by the programmable controller upon the next occurrence of the trigger event when the programmable controller 12 is out of training mode This is particularly useful when the programmable device 14 is like that shown in FIG 1 because the programmable controller 12 does not have to know anything about the configuration of the programmable device 14 The programmable device 14 provides its own instruction in the message it broadcasts
47. nse is to select only certain times the same dialog will occur as did for a response triggered by a switch closure and then Menu 1 16 is displayed to ask if the response is to be contingent on the status of the security system The sensor will control these devices in all security modes a particular mode gt gt Menu 1 16 If the answer is a particular mode Menu 1 17 is displayed Select Security Mode Day Night Away Off gt gt To move highlight Menu 1 17 If the user indicates the trigger is neither a switch nor a sensor Menu 1 18 is displayed Learn what do to at a particular time Yes No gt gt gt gt Menu 1 18 If the user responds Yes to Menu 1 18 then Menu 1 19 is displayed 6 112 127 Do something at Sunset gt gt Sunrise gt gt 5 Enter a time Menu 1 19 If the user selects Enter a time from Menu 1 19 Menu 1 20 is displayed 10 Hour Minute _ _AM PM Blue when done Menu 1 20 15 After entering a time Menu 1 21 is displayed 20 Turn on off devices you want to change at lt time descriptor gt Press BLUE when done Menu 1 21 25 If the user selected Sunset or Sunrise Menu 1 22 is displayed 30 Should the Sunset Sunrise actions be done in all security modes gt gt a particular mode gt gt Menu 1 22 35 If the user had selected particular times those times would be indicated instead of Sunrise Sunset If the user chooses a particular mode M
48. ntroller each include a transceiver for two way communication between the programmable device and the programmable controller 14 A system according to claim 7 wherein the commu nication link includes power lines 15 A system according to claim 7 wherein the commu nication link includes phone lines 16 A system according to claim 7 wherein the commu nication link supports RF transmissions 17 Asystem according to claim 7 wherein the program mable device is integrated in the appliance itself 18 A system according to claim 7 wherein the program mable device is an outlet with a socket into which the appliance is plugged 19 A system according to claim 7 wherein the program mable device includes a transceiver couple to a power line a control relay coupled to the communication link a load detector coupled to the control relay and the first appliance wherein the load detector detects the state of the first appliance a microprocessor coupled to the transceiver load detector and control relay wherein the microprocessor receives input from the load detector and transceiver and sends output to the transceiver and control relay wherein when the programmable controller is in the training mode the load detector sends a signal to the micro processor indicating the state of the first appliance and the microprocessor sends a signal to the transceiver indicating the state of the first appliance and an address of the programmable devi
49. nu 1 9 is dis played The switch will control these devices in all security modes a particular mode gt gt gt gt Menu 1 9 If the user selects a particular mode from Menu 1 9 menu 1 10 is displayed Select Security Mode Day Night Way Off gt gt To move highlight gt gt Menu 1 10 If the user selected all security modes from Menu 1 9 or picked a mode from Menu 1 10 Menu 1 11 is displayed Training Complete Menu 1 11 If the user selects No in Menu 1 2 Menu 1 12 is displayed Learn what to do when a sensor is tripped Yes No gt gt Menu 1 12 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 18 If the user selects Yes Menu 1 13 is displayed Activate trigger sensor Turn on off devices it will control BLUE when done Menu 1 13 When the system detects that a sensor that could be the trigger has been tripped it will preferably sound the alarm for 2 seconds and display the name of the sensor or zone on the screen When the user presses the Blue button Menu 1 14 is displayed Trigger event Front Door Press Blue when done Press Red to Start over Menu 1 14 After the Blue button is pressed Menu 1 15 is displayed to ask if the house is always to respond this way to that sensor or do so only at certain times of the day The sensor will control these devices at all times only certain times gt gt Menu 1 15 If the user respo
50. of 1 DATED August 29 2000 INVENTOR S Raymond W Bennett It is certified that error appears in the above identified patent and that said Letters Patent is hereby corrected as shown below Claim 4 Line 9 after programmed insert to Claim 10 Line 1 delete where in and substitute wherin in its place Claim 19 Line 3 delete couple and substitute coupled in its place Claim 28 Lines 10 11 delete wherein the trigger device and programmable controller Signed and Sealed this Eleventh Day of September 2001 hola P Lodi Attest NICHOLAS P GODICI Attesting Officer Acting Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office
51. ogrammable controller and taking the pro grammable device out of the training mode The at least one appliance is programmed to go to its programmed state upon the occurrence of the trigger event According to a fifth aspect of the present invention there is provided a method for automating an environment The method includes the steps of providing programmable device coupled to a communication link providing a pro grammable controller having memory wherein the program mable controller is coupled to the communication link wherein the programmable controller and programmable device communicate with one another over the communi cation link providing a trigger device coupled to the com munication link wherein the trigger device and program mable controller communicate with one another placing the programmable controller in a training mode activating the trigger device to generate a trigger signal storing the trigger signal in the memory of the programmable control placing the programmable device in a desired state broadcasting a message that the programmable device is in the desired state storing the message in the memory of the programmable controller taking the programmable controller out of the training mode monitoring the communication link for the trigger event detecting the trigger event and broadcasting a control signal over the communication link to the program mable device to change to its desired state BRIEF DESCRIPTION
52. provide a home automation system that can be programmed and repro grammed by a user having little or no knowledge or expe rience in programming It is also desirable to provide an automation system that allows the incorporation of new and different appliances and controllers without the system becoming obsolete SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of programming at least one appliance to change state upon the occurrence of a trigger event The method includes the steps of providing at least one program mable devices coupled to the at least one appliance provid ing a programmable controller coupled to the programmable device where the programmable controller and program mable device communicate with one another The program mable controller has a training mode which when selected allows the at least one programmable device to be pro grammed to change the state of the first appliance upon the occurrence of the trigger event The user places the pro grammable controller in training mode provides a trigger event and changes the state of the first appliance from an unprogrammed state to a programmed state The user then takes the programmable controller out of training mode so that the first appliance is now programmed so that upon the next occurrence of the trigger event the first appliance will change states from its unprogrammed state to its pro grammed state Ac
53. rammed state to a programmed state while the pro grammable controller is in the training mode and after the trigger event has occurred so that the first appliance is now programmed change its programmed state upon the next occurrence of the trigger event 5 A method according to claim 1 further comprising the step of deleting programs stored by programmable controller by placing the programmable controller in the training mode and then directly taking the programmable controller out of the training mode 6 A method according to claim 1 further comprising the step of deleting a program stored by programmable control ler with respect to a particular trigger event by placing the programmable controller in the training mode providing the particular trigger event and then taking the programmable controller out of the training mode 7 A system of programming an appliance the system comprising a programmable device a programmable controller coupled to and communicating with the programmable device over a communication link wherein the programmable controller has a training mode which when selected allows the programmable device to be programmed to change its state upon the occurrence of the trigger event wherein to program the programmable device the programmable controller is put in the training mode a trigger event is generated and the state of the programmable device is changed to a programmed state so that the programmable device w
54. rity system on and turn the thermostat down the user puts a programmable controller in training mode depresses a switch to provide the trigger event turns the security system on using the controls on the security system interface and presses the setback switch on the thermostat interface and takes the programmable con troller out of training mode 6 112 127 15 If the user wants to train the house to turn off some light and put the thermostat in economy mode when the secu rity system is in away mode the user puts a programmable controller in training mode presses an intelligent switch to provide the trigger event turns off the lights presses the train button on the security interface panel and then presses the Away button The user then presses the train button on the security interface panel a second time presses the train button on the thermostat interface press the economy button and then presses the train button again The user then takes the programmable controller out of training mode In another embodiment the individual components of the master clock module 210 security interface and panel 218 and 220 shown in FIG 13 may be located in a whole house controller that is coupled to the power lines FIG 19 illustrates the front panel of the house controller according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention The whole house controller is preferably a menu driven device In FIG 19 we show a line
55. tion may be used for the communication protocol over communication link 16 The programmable controller may be incorporated into more complex systems depending upon the particular appli cation to which it will be subjected FIG 6 illustrates a programmable controller 12 incorporated with a bank of switches 100 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention FIG 7 illustrates a programmable con troller 12 incorporated with a bank of push buttons 110 according to a preferred embodiment of the present inven tion The programmable controllers 12 and 12 shown in FIGS 6 and 7 respectively are particularly useful for two types of programming A first type which will be referred to as Type I programming causes programmable devices coupled over a communication link 16 to the programmable controller and selected to be programmed to all go to the same state when the trigger event occurs For the simplest variety of Type I programming all of the selected program mable devices have just two states for example on and off The trigger event also has two states for example on and off When the trigger event is put in its on state all of the selected programmable devices go to their on state When the trigger event is put in its off state all of the selected programmable devices go to their off state Of course the programmable devices and trigger event may have more than two states For example suppose that the trigger e
56. to the programmable controller This allows the automation system 10 to easily accom modate new types of appliances and controllers For example suppose that at some future time it became popular to install lighting where the user could control not only the intensity of a programmable light fixture on off and various dimming levels but also the color of the light For existing automation systems in order to add color control it would be necessary for system controllers to receive new program ming that at the minimum expanded the message set defin ing control of lighting from one that referred only to intensity to one that specified color and intensity In a preferred embodiment of the present invention a simpler and more general solution to the problem of adding new devices to be controlled without making any modifi cations of the existing system components exists For example in the case of a lighting appliance that allows the user to adjust both color and intensity a user control panel could be provided so that the user could use one control to adjust intensity and another control to adjust color of the indirect lights in a room Using programming methods previously discussed the user could then program the pro grammable controller to provide a soft white indirect light when a small table lamp was turned on and to provide bright white light when a particular floor lamp was illuminated To make this programming possible without
57. vent is supplied by a programmable dimmer switch and the selected programmable devices are light fixtures attached to the programmable dimmer switch For Type I programming all of the lighting fixtures would respond to changes in the setting of the trigger dimmer in the same way The program mable devices and trigger event do not have to be identical in state but they do have to be congruent in the sense of having operational states that can be mapped onto each other For example suppose there are three programmable devices 14 according to the preferred embodiment shown in FIG 1a where each appliance 19 is a lamp If the user wants 10 15 30 35 FS 0 45 50 55 60 65 10 to program all of the lamps to turn on based upon the occurrence of a trigger event the user performs the follow ing sequence press the train button 18 to place the programmable controller 12 in its training mode to commence pro gramming supply a Type I type trigger event i e depress one of the bank of switches 100 turn lamp 1 on turn lamp 2 on turn lamp 3 off and deactivate the user control to take the programmable controller out of training mode to conclude program ming Now upon the next occurrence of the trigger event when the programmable controller is out of its training mode lamps 1 2 and 3 will all turn on The actual state of the appliances during programming is immaterial the important feature is that th
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