Illumination control network

Abstract

The present invention addresses the problem of providing illumination in a manner that is energy efficient and intelligent. In particular, the present invention uses distributed processing across a network of illuminators to control the illumination for a given environment. The network controls the illumination level and pattern in response to light, sound, and motion. The network may also be trained according to uploaded software behavior modules, and subsets of the network may be organized into groups for illumination control and maintenance reporting.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A lighting system comprising a plurality of illuminators displaced relative to each other, each of plural illuminators comprising:
 a light source; 
 a sensor; 
 a communications interface communicating with other illuminators in a network; 
 a processor responsive to the sensor, the processor controlling the illuminator; the processors of plural illuminators configured to make illumination decisions through distributed processing across the network based on information exchange among the illuminators through the communication interfaces; and 
 a plurality of radio-frequency gateways that allow isolated portions of the system to communicate with each other. 
 
     
     
       2. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the gateways are integrated into plural illuminators. 
     
     
       3. A lighting system comprising a plurality of illuminators displaced relative to each other, each of plural illuminators comprising:
 a light source; 
 a sensor; 
 a communications interface communicating with other illuminators in a network; and 
 a processor responsive to the sensor, the processor controlling the illuminator; the processors of plural illuminators configured to make illumination decisions through distributed processing across the network based on information exchange among the illuminators through the communication interfaces, wherein the processors forming the distributed network make lighting decisions according to a polling algorithm. 
 
     
     
       4. The system of  claim 3 , wherein the polling algorithm weights stimuli sensed across the distributed network. 
     
     
       5. A method for providing illumination comprising:
 providing a plurality of illuminators, each comprising:
 an illuminator;   a sensor;   a communications interface; and   a processor;    
 at each of plural the plurality of illuminators, emitting light from an the illuminator, sensing stimuli with a the sensor, and communicating with other illuminators through a the communications interface;, and making illumination decisions with the processor, wherein the illumination decisions are made through distributed processing across a network of the plurality of illuminators based on information exchanged among the illuminators; and  
 processing responses to the sensed stimuli across a distributed network of the plural illuminators to make illumination decisions; and 
 using radio-frequency gateways that allow isolated portions of the distributed network to communicate with each other. 
 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the radio-frequency gateways are integrated into plural plurality of illuminators. 
     
     
       7. A method for providing illumination comprising:
 providing a plurality of illuminators, each comprising:
 an illuminator;   a sensor;   a communications interface; and   a processor;    
 at each of plural the plurality of illuminators, emitting light from an the illuminator, sensing stimuli with a the sensor, and communicating with other illuminators through a the communications interface;, and making illumination decisions with the processor, wherein the illumination decisions are made through distributed processing across a network of the plurality of illuminators based on information exchanged among the illuminators according to a polling algorithm  
 processing responses to the sensed stimuli across a distributed network of the plural illuminators to make illumination decisions, wherein the processing across the distributed network makes lighting decisions according to a polling algorithm. 
 
     
     
       8. The method of  claim 7 , wherein the polling algorithm weights the stimuli sensed across the distributed network. 
     
     
       9. A method for providing illumination comprising:
 providing a plurality of illuminators, each comprising:
 an illuminator;   a sensor;   a communications interface; and   a processor;    
 at each of plural plurality of illuminators, emitting light from an the illuminator, sensing stimuli with a the sensor, and communicating with other illuminators through a the communications interface;, and making illumination decisions with the processor, wherein the illumination decisions are made through distributed processing across a network of the plurality of illuminators based on information exchanged among the illuminators; and 
 using a clock to control the timing of lighting decisions across the network of the plurality of illuminators  
 processing responses to the sensed stimuli across a distributed network of the plural illuminators to make illumination decisions, wherein the processing comprises using a clock to control the timing of lighting decisions across the network. 
 
     
     
       10. A method for providing illumination comprising:
 providing a plurality of illuminators, each comprising:
 an illuminator;   a sensor;   a communications interface; and   a processor;    
 at each of plural the plurality of illuminators, emitting light from an the illuminator, sensing stimuli with a the sensor, and communicating with other illuminators through a the communications interface;, and making illumination decisions with the processor, wherein the illumination decisions are made through distributed processing across a network of the plurality of illuminators based on information exchanged among the illuminators; and 
 responding to instructions for reduced emission at an illuminator by controlling emissions by neighboring illuminators to produce patterns of illumination  
 processing responses to the sensed stimuli across a distributed network of the plural illuminators to make illumination decisions, wherein the processing comprises responding to instructions for reduced emission at an illuminator by controlling emissions by neighboring illuminators to produce patterns of illumination. 
 
     
     
       11. A method for providing illumination comprising:
 providing a plurality of illuminators, each comprising:
 an illuminator;   a sensor;   a communications interface; and   a processor;    
 at each of plural the plurality of illuminators, emitting light from an the illuminator, sensing stimuli with a the sensor, and communicating with other illuminators through a the communications interface, and making illumination decisions with the processor, wherein the illumination decisions are made through distributed processing across a network of the plurality of illuminators based on information exchanged among the illuminators; and 
 processing responses to the sensed stimuli across a distributed network of the plural illuminators to make illumination decisions, wherein the processing comprises learning reactions to stimuli according to a training set 
 learning reactions to stimuli from one or more of the plurality of illuminators according to a training set.