Daintree Networks (Daintree) is a Silicon Valley smart lighting company that provides wireless lighting controls solutions.
Daintree owns U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0112654 (’654 Application), entitled “Wireless adaptation of lighting power supply” and directed to a wireless adapter device and method for wirelessly controlling a power supply device.
The ’654 Application describes a lighting system (100) controlled by a wireless controller (108) and wireless adapters (120). The system includes lighting power supplies, or LPS (110) connected to a wall switch (106), which provides a connection to the power source (102).
Figure 2 of the ’654 Application shows one of the wireless adapters (120) and a lighting power supply (110) in more detail. The wireless adapter (102) includes a wireless communication device, such as a transceiver (122), that receives transmissions from the wireless controller (108). The transmissions include control signals for the lighting power device (110), and those signals are output to a processing device (124) in the adapter (120).
The adapter processing device (124) generates the control commands from the control signals and outputs those commands to the adapter serial interface (126). The wireless adapter (120) also includes an adapter power circuit (128) that receives regulated DC power from the power supply device (110) via a conductor (129).
The lighting power supply (110) includes a power subsystem (112) that receives AC power input and generates a regulated power supply signal for a power supply processing device (114) and a power supply for a lighting load (118). The power supply processing device (114) communicates with a lighting power supply serial interface (116), which is connected to the adapter serial interface (126) via a conductor (132).
In this way, the power supply processing device (114) receives the control commands from the wireless adapter (120) so the power supply processing device (114) can control power provided to the lighting load (118) in a manner specified by the control commands.
According to the ’654 Application, the serial data communications links eliminate the need for additional specialized circuitry within the wireless adapter to generate specific control signals for the lighting power supply. The system also leverages off existing power and conditioning circuitry in the device being controlled, thereby reducing fabrication costs.
Other Daintree patents and published applications include U.S. Patent Nos. 7,660,892, 7,792,956 and 7,962,606, all filed off the same provisional application and entitled ”Network analysis system and method” and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2011/0172844, entitled “Wireless system commissioning.” According to Cleantech PatentEdge™, Daintree owns at least two international patent applications as well.
Some major lighting and electronics companies have taken notice of Daintree’s technology. This Greentech Media piece reports that Philips is working with Daintree on a commercial-scale rollout of building lighting systems.
Eric Lane is a patent attorney at McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP in San Diego and the author of Green Patent Blog. Mr. Lane can be reached at elane@mckennalong.com
