Method, apparatus, and system for occupancy sensing

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention include an occupancy sensing unit configured to monitor an environment illuminated by a lighting fixture. An inventive occupancy sensing unit may include an occupancy sensor to detect radiation indicative of at least one occupancy event in the environment illuminated by the lighting fixture according to sensing parameters. The occupancy sensor can be coupled to a memory that logs sensor data, which represent the occupancy events, provided by the occupancy sensor. A processor coupled to the memory performs an analysis of the sensor data logged in the memory and adjusts the sensing parameters of the occupancy sensor based on the analysis.

1 . A method of adjusting illumination of an environment by a network of lighting fixtures, the method comprising:
 sensing, by at least one sensor communicatively coupled to the network of lighting fixtures, an object and/or a person within the environment;   predicting, with a processor communicatively coupled to the at least one sensor, a velocity and/or a trajectory of the object and/or the person; and   adjusting, in response to a command from the processor, the illumination provided by the network of lighting fixtures based on the velocity and/or the trajectory of the object and/or the person.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein adjusting the illumination comprises increasing a light level of a portion of the environment before the object and/or person enters the portion of the environment. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein adjusting the illumination comprises determining when to decrease the light level of the portion of the environment based on the velocity and/or the trajectory of the object and/or the person. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 adjusting a sensor delay of the at least one sensor based on the velocity and/or the trajectory of the object and/or the person.   
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the object and/or person comprises a vehicle and adjusting the illumination comprises:
 determining a stopping distance of the vehicle based on the velocity and/or the trajectory of the vehicle; and   illuminating a portion of the environment based on the stopping distance.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein illuminating the portion of the environment comprises providing illumination sufficient for an operator of the vehicle to see a distance equal to or greater than the stopping distance. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the object and/or the person is moving at a speed of about 0.6 m/s to about 4.5 m/s. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein predicting the velocity and/or the trajectory of the object and/or the person comprises at least one of:
 comparing an amplitude of a digital signal from the at least one sensor to at least one amplitude threshold; or   comparing a duration of the digital signal from the at least one sensor to at least one duration threshold.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein predicting the velocity and/or the trajectory of the object and/or the person further comprises:
 classifying the object and/or the person based on the amplitude of the digital signal with respect to the at least one amplitude threshold.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising:
 determining that the duration of the digital signal is below the at least one duration threshold; and   discarding the digital signal as spurious in response to determining that the duration of the digital signal is below the at least one duration threshold.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein predicting the velocity and/or the trajectory of the object and/or the person further comprises:
 determining at least one of a derivative of a signal from the least one sensor or a change in position versus time of the object and/or the person based on the signal from the at least one sensor.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein adjusting the illumination comprises:
 reducing the illumination of an area in the environment after a predicted departure of the object and/or the person from the area in the environment.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein adjusting the illumination comprises:
 increasing the illumination of an area in the environment at a rate based on a time of day.   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 determining a common trajectory through the environment based on information from the at least one sensor.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 identifying different trajectories for different types of objects based on information from the at least one sensor.   
     
     
         16 . A method of adjusting illumination of an environment by a network of lighting fixtures, the method comprising:
 sensing, by at least one sensor communicatively coupled to the network of lighting fixtures, an object and/or a person within the environment;   comparing an amplitude of a digital signal from the at least one sensor to at least one amplitude threshold, the digital signal representing the object and/or the person;   comparing a duration of the digital signal from the at least one sensor to at least one duration threshold;   performing a classification of the object and/or the person based on the amplitude of the digital signal with respect to the at least one amplitude threshold and on the duration of the digital signal with respect to the at least one duration threshold; and   adjusting, in response to a command from the processor, the illumination provided by the network of lighting fixtures based on the classification of the object and/or the person.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising:
 determining that the duration of the digital signal is below the at least one duration threshold; and   discarding the digital signal as spurious in response to determining that the duration of the digital signal is below the at least one duration threshold.   
     
     
         18 . A method of adjusting illumination of an environment by at least one lighting fixture in a network of lighting fixtures, the method comprising:
 (A) sensing, via at least one sensor communicatively coupled to the network of lighting fixtures, an object and/or a person within the environment;   (B) identifying, with a processor communicatively coupled to the at least one sensor, a lighting profile associated with the object and/or the person sensed in (A), the lighting profile specifying at least one parameter for adjusting the illumination of the environment by the at least one lighting fixture; and   (C) adjusting the illumination provided by the at least one lighting fixture according to the lighting profile identified in (B).   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein (A) comprises at least one of:
 interrogating a radio-frequency identification tag (RFID) on the object with an RFID tag reader;   emitting an ultrasonic signal;   acquiring an image of the object and/or the person; or   acquiring an infrared representation of the object and/or the person.   
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein:
 (A) comprises determining a location of the object and/or the person within the environment; and   (C) comprises adjusting the illumination provided by the at least one lighting fixture based at least in part on the location of the object and/or the person within the environment.   
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 18 , further comprising:
 (D) tracking movement of the object and/or person within the environment; and   (E) adjusting the illumination provided by the at least one lighting fixture based on the movement tracked in (D).   
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21 , further comprising:
 (F) storing a record of the movement in a memory.   
     
     
         23 . An apparatus for adjusting illumination of an environment by at least one lighting fixture in a network of lighting fixtures, the apparatus comprising:
 a communications interface, operably coupled to a sensor in the network of lighting fixtures, to receive an indication of a presence of an object and/or a person within the environment; and   a processor, communicatively coupled to the communications interface, to receive the indication of the presence of the object and/or the person and to identify a lighting profile associated with the object and/or the person present within the environment, the lighting profile specifying at least one parameter for adjusting the illumination of the environment by the at least one lighting fixture, and to transmit the lighting profile to the at least one lighting fixture via the communications interface.