NL2035871B1

NL2035871B1 - Luminaire with dongle

Info

Publication number: NL2035871B1
Application number: NL2035871A
Authority: NL
Inventors: Secretin Laurent
Original assignee: Schreder Sa
Priority date: 2023-09-25
Filing date: 2023-09-25
Publication date: 2025-04-01
Also published as: WO2025068293A1

Abstract

A luminaire comprising: a light source (10), an antenna (20), a driver (30) conﬁgured to receive a power supply signal (P) and to drive said light source using said power supply signal, a dongle (40) with communication circuitry (42), said communication circuitry being conﬁgured to process signals received by the antenna and/or to generate signals to be emitted by the antenna, wherein said dongle is connected to the antenna, and wherein the driver has a connection interface (34) and a driver housing (36), which are configured to receive the dongle. 10 FIG. l

Description

LUMINAIRE WITH DONGLE

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of luminaires, in particular outdoor luminaires, and to a mesh network comprising such luminaires.

BACKGROUND

Luminaires comprise typically a luminaire housing in which at least one light source is arranged, the light source being driven by a driver receiving power from the mains. Additionally, a controller may be provided for controlling the light emitted by the light source and/or for controlling beyond- lighting devices, i.e. lighting devices having additional functions such as sensing, data processing, etc. Typically, the controller is connected to the driver and/or to other components such as sensors.

The controller may be provided in the luminaire housing. Alternatively, the controller may be provided outside of the luminaire housing, e.g. as a pluggable control module which can be plugged in a socket receptacle which is connected to the driver. Such socket receptacle may be provided, e.g., on top of the luminaire housing or on a surface of the luminaire housing facing the ground.

Sometimes, the controller may be integrated with the driver.

The controller may be configured for performing controlling and/or sensing and/or processing and/or wireless communications. For example, the controller may be a pluggable control module with a processor and a photosensor for sensing ambient light.

Luminaire networks in urban or industrial environments may contain large numbers of luminaires.

With existing solutions, many controllers are needed to control the drivers of the luminaire network, often one controller per luminaire of the luminaire network.

SUMMARY

The object of embodiments of the invention is to provide a luminaire capable of communicating in an improved manner with other luminaires and/or with other edge devices, and in particular to avoid that a separate controller is needed in every luminaire.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a luminaire comprising a light source, an antenna, a driver configured to receive a power supply signal, e.g., power from the mains, and to drive the light source using said power supply signal, and a dongle with communication circuitry.

The communication circuitry is configured to process signals received by the antenna and/or to generate signals to be emitted by the antenna. The dongle is connected to the antenna, and the driver has a connection interface and a driver housing. The connection interface and the driver housing are configured to receive the dongle.

Thus, by adding the dongle, the driver is enhanced in a simple and robust modular manner with communication and/or processing capabilities allowing the luminaire to perform in a smart manner.

By using a dongle connected to an antenna, the antenna can be arranged at any suitable location of the luminaire, whilst being connected via the dongle to the driver. Compared to prior art solutions using a controller in every luminaire, less wires, housing parts and connections are required. Also, the addition of a dongle allows for a simple installation and assembly of the luminaire. Also, connectivity is provided without requiring much space within the luminaire housing. Further, exemplary embodiments can provide a well-protected assembly as the driver with dongle may be mounted within the luminaire housing with only the antenna potentially outside of luminaire housing.

In the context of the present application the dongle is a small piece of computer hardware that connects to a port of the driver to provide it with additional functionality and/or to enable a pass- through to the driver that adds functionality. The driver housing may be provided with a recessed portion with a connection interface including a number of connection ports, wherein a connector of the dongle is pluggable in the connection interface.

Preferably, the dongle is dimensioned such that it does not protrude out of the recessed portion.

Preferably, the dongle has a peripheral side between the connector side and an end side opposite the connector side, wherein a cable extends from the peripheral side to the antenna, optionally through a further recessed portion of the driver housing. Alternatively. the cable can extend from the end side in which case the recessed portion is preferably sufficiently deep so that the dongle does not protrude out of the recessed portion.

Preferably, the driver has a connection interface for the dongle comprising at least one, more preferably at least two communication ports and at least one power port. The at least one communication port may allow a monodirectional or bidirectional communication between the driver and the dongle. The power port is configured to provide power to the dongle, for example a

DC voltage. Preferably, the connector and connection interface are configured such that the connector of the dongle can only be plugged in one possible position in the connection interface of the driver.

Preferably, the dongle is configured to determine a dimming level, optionally based on a signal received by the communication circuitry, said determined dimming level being intended for controlling the driver of the luminaire and/or for controlling a driver of another luminaire.

The dimming level may be determined based on stored and/or received and/or sensed data as will be further discussed below. The determined dimming level may then be used to control the driver of the luminaire so that light with the desired intensity is being emitted by the light source and/or to control another driver of another luminaire. The latter may be done by emitting a message including the dimming level to the other luminaire via the communication circuitry.

In addition or alternatively, the dongle may be configured to determine any other parameter related toa light beam emitted by the light source, such as a color temperature and/or a shape and/or a size and/or intensity distribution of a light beam emitted by the light source. Also, the dongle may be configured to determine a parameter to drive an actuator of a component of the luminaire, for example an actuator to control the position of an optical element relative to a light source or an actuator to control a position of a sensor.

In further embodiments, an optical element or optical plate may be movable and/or the control of the light source may be selective. Examples of movable optics are disclosed in patent specifications

US10347123B2, WO2019134875A1, WO2020025427A1, WO2020136202A1,

WO2020136200A1, WO2020136205A1, WO2020136203A1, WO2020136204A1,

WO02020136197A1, and WO2020136196A1 in the name of the applicant, which are included herein by reference. Examples of selective control of light elements are disclosed in patent applications

WO2019020366A1, WO2020165284A1, WO2020173836A1, WO2021130275A1 and

PCT/EP2023/062509 in the name of the applicant, which are included herein by reference.

Preferably, the dongle is configured to communicate with the driver using any one or more of the following protocols: a Digital Addressable Lighting Interface DALI protocol, e.g. DALI-2 or D4i, a digital multiplex interface DMX protocol, a serial protocol such as a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPD protocol or RS232, an Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C) protocol. For example, the dimming level or any other light beam related parameter may be communicated by the dongle to the driver using any one of these protocols. In some exemplary embodiments, the dongle is configured to communicate with the driver using two different protocols and is able to switch between the two protocols. In another embodiment, two dongles may be provided each using a different communication protocol, wherein optionally the two dongles may share the same antenna.

Preferably, the luminaire is configured to be part of a mesh network of luminaires, and the communication circuitry and antenna are configured to communicate with other luminaires of the mesh network of luminaires.

Preferably, the luminaire has a luminaire housing comprising the driver and the light source, and the antenna is arranged at least partially outside the luminaire housing. For example, a communication wire may extend between the antenna and the dongle to connect an antenna arranged on the luminaire housing with the dongle inside the luminaire housing. In this manner, the antenna can be positioned in an appropriate manner to communicate with neighboring devices, such as other luminaires, a central server, an edge device, a fog device, a mobile device.

Preferably, the dongle comprises a memory storing data received by the communication circuitry and/or sensed data and/or processed data based thereon and/or information related to the operation of the luminaire. The data related to the operation of the luminaire may be for example any one or more of the following: a profile defining a dimming level and/or any other light beam related parameter in function of a variable such as time, a light level, etc. ; communication data such as a routing table defining routing schemes to be applied by the communication circuitry and/or authentication data, such as a security key or certificate; sensor reaction schemes defining how to react to a sensed signal; power consumption monitoring data; etc.

For example, a dongle may be configured to verify if the power consumption of the luminaire, for example measured by the driver and communicated by the driver to the dongle, is in line with the dimming profile in function of time, and if this is not the case, the luminaire may emit an alarm signal, for example a message sent via the communication circuitry.

The communication parameter and/or the authentication data may be used by the dongle for ensuring secure communication via the communication circuitry.

Optionally, the driver comprises a memory storing information about the luminaire, such as an identification number, a configuration parameter. However, the memory of the driver could also store any of the data mentioned above which can be stored in a memory of the dongle. Thus, memory may be provided in the dongle and/or in the driver.

Preferably, the luminaire further comprises at least one sensor.

Optionally, the driver housing is provided with at least one sensor connection port, and at least one sensor is connected to said at least one sensor connection port. In that way a sensor does not need 5 wireless communication means and can communicate with the driver and/or the dongle (via the driver). However. in other embodiments, the at least one sensor may comprise a sensor which communicates in a wireless manner with the dongle, for example by providing the sensor also with a dongle with communication circuitry. For example, the dongle of the sensor and/or the sensor itself may communicate using Bluetooth.

The at least one sensor may comprise one or more of the following: an optical sensor such as a photodetector or an image sensor (e.g. a camera), a sound sensor, a radar such as a Doppler effect radar, a LIDAR, a humidity sensor, an air quality sensor, a motion sensor, a temperature sensor, a visibility sensor, a pollution sensor, an antenna, an RF sensor, a vibration sensor, a metering device (e.g. a metering device for measuring the power consumption of a component of the edge device, more in particular a metering device for measuring the power consumption of a driver of a luminaire), a malfunctioning sensor (e.g. a sensor for detecting the malfunctioning of a component of the luminaire such as a current leakage detector for measuring current leaks in the driver of the luminaire), a measurement device for measuring a maintenance related parameter of a component of the luminaire, an alarm device (e.g. a push button which a user can push in the event of an alarming situation). In this way, environmental data about an event in the vicinity of an luminaire or in the luminaire may be detected, e.g. characteristics (presence, absence, state, number) of objects like vehicles, street furniture, animals, persons, sub-parts of the edge device, or properties related to the environment (like weather (rain, fog, sun, wind), pollution, visibility, earth quake) or security related events (explosion, incident, gun shot, user alarm) in the vicinity of the luminaire, maintenance related data or malfunctioning data of a component of a luminaire.

The data of one or more sensors may be processed in the dongle. Optionally multiple dongles could be provided and the processing may be performed in a distributed manner in the different dongles.

The data of one or more sensors may be used for performing object monitoring, such as traffic monitoring, classification of objects, counting of objects, etc.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a sensor may be mounted in or on the luminaire housing, in an orientable manner. An example of a suitable mounting structure is disclosed in WO 2019/243331 Al in the name of the applicant which is included herein by reference. Such mounting structure may be used for arranging e.g. an optical sensor in the luminaire housing. Other suitable mounting structures for sensors are described in WO 2019/053259 A1, WO 2019/092273 Al, WO 2020/053342 Al, WO 2021/094612 Al, PCT/EP2023/056833 and PCT/EP2023/075532, all of which are in the name of the applicant and included herein by reference.

Preferably, the dongle is configured to receive a sensor signal sensed by a sensor of the at least one sensor, or a sensor signal based on what is sensed by said sensor. This sensor signal may be received wirelessly or via the driver or via a communication wire connected to the dongle. Preferably, the dongle is configured to process said sensor signal and/or to send said sensor signal or a signal based thereon to another device, e.g., another edge device such as a luminaire or server or mobile device.

Optionally, the dongle is configured to determine a setting or to optimize a setting of a sensor of the at least one sensor, optionally based on data sensed by the at least one sensor.

Optionally, the sensor comprises a memory storing information related to the operation of the luminaire and/or sensed data and/or processed data based thereon. The information related to the operation of the luminaire may be any one of the data listed above.

Optionally, the dongle is configured to receive external data from an external database or from another edge device such as another luminaire, preferably via the communication circuitry. The term “external” in “external database” indicates that the database is not part of the luminaire. The database may be e.g. a weather database, a landmarks database, a geo-localization database specifying geographic coordinates of (optionally moving) objects, such as vehicles or persons, in an area, a traffic database storing information about the traffic, a toll station database storing e.g. information on vehicles that have passed the toll station, etc. More generally the database may be any resource server comprising resources selected from the group of news media & internet information, public transportation schedules, public safety reports, security reports, regulatory reports, tratfic reports, weather reports, cellular telephone traffic reports, road condition reports, power supply information (e.g., power blackout expected at 12:00 am, duration 3 hours, etc.). The resources server may include other related information resources such as proprietary and/or third-party news media and Internet related resources which may provide information such as public safety, security, regulatory, traffic, weather, road condition reports and/or forecasts.

The data obtained from a database or from another edge device may be environmental data related to the environment of the luminaire. An environmental parameter may relate to an event in the vicinity of an edge device, e.g. characteristics (presence, absence, state, number, direction, speed, wearing mask or not) of objects like vehicles, street furniture, animals, persons, sub-parts of the luminaire, or properties related to the environment (like weather (rain, fog, sun, wind), pollution, visibility, earth quake) or security related events (explosion, incident, gunshot, user alarm) in the vicinity of the luminaire. Examples of possible edge devices are described in PCT patent publications

W02022122755, W02022122750, PCT/EP2022/056270 and N2031012 in the name of the applicant which are included herein by reference.

Preferably, the dongle is configured to determine a configuration or operation setting, for example a light beam related parameter, such as the dimming level, based on the sensor signal and/or the external data, wherein optionally the dongle is configured to determine if an idle profile, such as an idle dimming profile needs to be overridden by an event profile, such as an event dimming profile, based on the sensor signal and/or the external data.

The communication circuitry of the dongle may be configured to broadcast or multicast messages to a plurality of other luminaires of the mesh network. Such messages may contain sensor data and/or processed data based thereon and/or external data, so that a luminaire may take into account sensor data and/or external data received from another luminaire, for example to decide whether an event profile should be activated.

Optionally, the dongle is configured to determine whether or not a message is to be sent to one or more other luminaires of a network of luminaires. The message may comprise the sensor signal and/or the external data, and the determining of whether or not a message is to be sent may be based on the sensor signal and/or the external data.

Optionally, the luminaire further comprises a controller configured to communicate with the dongle, for example wirelessly via the antenna connected to the dongle. The controller may be provided in the mesh network so that it is capable of communicating with the dongle. For example, one controller may be provided for more than ten luminaires which communicate through the mesh network, or even for more than fifty luminaires. In that way, not every luminaire needs to be provided with a controller. It is noted that the controller may be part of a luminaire or may be separate of the luminaire. In the latter case, it may be for example a segment controller, a gateway or a border router.

For example, a first luminaire of the mesh network may be provided with a controller and no dongle, and a plurality of other luminaires of the mesh network may be provided with a dongle which can communicate with the controller of the first luminaire.

Optionally, the controller is implemented as a pluggable control module. Preferably, the pluggable control module is configured to be plugged in a socket receptacle, e.g. a socket receptacle provided to a luminaire housing accommodating the light source of the luminaire. More preferably, the socket receptacle is one of a NEMA or Zhaga socket receptacle, and the pluggable control module is a module configured to be plugged in such socket receptacle.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the socket receptacle and control module may be implemented as described in PCT publication WO2017/133793 in the name of the applicant, which is included herein by reference. Optionally, the socket receptacle and control module may be configured and/or mounted as described in patent application PCT/EP2020/068854 or

PCT/EP2020/060751 or NL 2025472 in the name of the applicant, which are included herein by reference. Further, the controller may be configured as described in any one of the following patent applications in the name of the applicant which are included herein by reference: WO 2020/161356,

WO 2021/013925, N2026209.

The socket receptacle and the control module may be configured to be coupled through a twist-lock mechanism, e.g. as described in ANSI C136.10-2017 standard or ANSI C136.41-2013 standard or

Zhaga Interface Specification Standard (Book 18, Edition 1.0, July 2018, see

Bip dhagastandardorg/datiddownloadabley VA Mosk 180d or Book 20:

Smart interface between indoor luminaires and sensing/communication modules), which are included herein by reference.

Optionally, the controller comprises at least one sensor and/or measurement circuitry for measuring at least one value representative for the power consumption of the luminaire.

When a controller is provided, the dongle may be configured to determine a light beam related parameter, such as a dimming level based on signals received from the controller.

In some embodiments, circuitry of the controller and circuitry of the dongle together perform the controlling of the driver. In other embodiments, the dongle is configured to autonomously control the driving of the light source by the driver. Also, the driver may comprise control circuitry communicating with circaitry of the dongle, for example when the dongle only comprises communication circuitry, wherein the control circuitry of the driver and the circuitry of the dongle together perform the controlling of the driving of said light source.

Optionally, the driver comprises NFC communication circuitry, and the driver and/or the dongle is configured to be programmed using said NFC circuitry.

Preferably, the antenna is a quarter wavelength antenna, Preferably, the antenna is configured for receiving RF signals.

In an exemplary embodiment, the antenna comprises a wire surrounded by a protective cover.

In an exemplary embodiment, the antenna is integrated in the dongle. Optionally, the driver may then be arranged in the luminaire housing with the dongle protruding partially out of the luminaire housing. However, the driver with the dongle may also be arranged entirely within the luminaire housing, especially when the luminaire housing or a portion thereof is made of a material which allows wireless signals to pass through, e.g. plastic.

Preferably, the antenna and communication circuitry are configured to communicate using any one or more of the following protocols: Bluetooth, WiSun, Zigbee, NFC, LoRa communication protocol,

Sigfox, LPWAN, 802.15.4, Thread, Lightweight Machine to Machine (LwM2M), cellular (GPRS, 3G/4G/5G), WiFi. When it is desirable to have the option of using multiple protocols, either multiple dongles may be provided which share the antenna or a single dongle may be provided which can be switched between multiple protocols. For example, an operator can then configure the protocol. In a specific example an operator, typically using a mobile device, can first communicate with the dongle using Bluetooth and then the protocol be changed to communicate using WiSun; if at a later moment intime maintenance is needed, a message may be sent from central server to the dongle using WiSun to change the protocol back to Bluetooth. The same antenna may be used for Bluetooth and WiSun but typically the antenna cannot be used to communicate simultaneously through the two protocols.

For some other protocol combinations multiple antenna's may be used.

Optionally, the communication may take place as described in WO2023001933A1 in the name of the applicant, which is included herein by reference. By using a sensor group concept as described, information can be propagated easily from one node to another node where the sensor group exists.

Preferred embodiments relate to outdoor luminaires. By outdoor luminaires, it is meant luminaires which are installed on Toads, tunnels, industrial plants, stadiums, airports, harbors, rail stations, campuses, parks, cycle paths, pedestrian paths or in pedestrian zones, for example, and which can be used notably for the lighting of an outdoor area, such as roads and residential areas in the public domain, private parking areas, access roads to private building infrastructures, warehouses, industry halls, etc.

Preferably, the light source comprises a plurality of LEDs. The driver is then preferably configured to generate a drive current for driving the plurality of LEDs. Optionally, the driver may be a multi- channel driver configured to drive multiple groups of LEDs. Examples of luminaires with multiple groups of LEDs which can be separately driven are disclosed in WO2021130275A1 in the name of the applicant, which is included herein by reference. In an embodiment with a multi-channel driver, the dongle may determine for example a suitable color temperature based on stored or received data and control the driver accordingly to generate the corresponding currents for the different color channels.

In some embodiments, a driver can detect when AC mains changes to DC, and act accordingly. The dongle could determine to use a different configuration or operation parameter, for example a different light beam related parameter, such as a different dimming profile when powered by AC or when powered by DC. Also, a dongle could be configured to determine when to use battery and when to use mains in function of stored or received data, and control the driver accordingly.

According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a mesh network comprising a plurality of luminaires according to any one of the previous embodiments, wherein the luminaires are configured to communicate through the communication circuitries of the dongles.

Preferably, the mesh network further comprises a controller configured to communicate with the dongles of the luminaires of the mesh network and with a further network, such as a cloud network.

Optionally the controller is configured to read and/or change settings of one or more luminaires of the network and/or to add a new luminaire to the mesh network and/or to function as a gateway to the mesh network.

The controller may be configured to perform a time syncing between luntinaires of the network.

The controller may be configured to cause a sending of messages between luminaires in order for the luminaires to consecutively illuminate an object that is moving along a number of luminaires of the network and/or to send a sensor instruction. For example, when a dongle is using the Wisun protocol, the dongle can only unicast a message to another dongle at a time, in which case the controller may act as a mesh coordinator and do the broadcasting to multiple other dongles to spread the message. However, when the dongle is using the Zigbee protocol, the dongle itself may broadcast a message to multiple other devices.

According to a further aspect there is provided a dongle configured to be plugged in a driver of a luminaire according to any one of the embodiments above, said dongle comprising communication circuitry configured to process signals received by the antenna and/or to generate signals to be emitted by the antenna.

The dongle may have any of the features described above for the luminaire.

According to a further aspect there is provided a driver configured to receive a power supply signal and to drive a light source using said power supply signal, said driver being further configured to receive the dongle of any one of the embodiments described above. The driver may have any of the features described above for the luminaire.

Further embodiments of the invention are defined in the following clauses: 1. An assembly including an antenna, a dongle (40) and a driver (30) for a light source or a controller for controlling a driver of a light source, said driver or controller comprising a housing with a recessed portion (37) in which the dongle is received, wherein the dongle does not protrude out of the recessed portion, wherein the dongle has a connector side (46) connected to a connection interface (34) arranged at a bottom of the recessed portion, a peripheral side (45) extending from the connector side to an opposite side, preferably a closed side (44), of the dongle, wherein the peripheral side is provided with a cable (25) which is connected to the antenna (20). 2. The assembly of clause 1, wherein the housing is provided with a guidance portion in which the cable is guided to the antenna. 3. The assembly of clause 2, wherein the housing has an upper wall, a lower wall and a side wall between the upper wall and the lower wall, and wherein the guidance portion is a groove extending between the recessed portion and the side wall of the housing. 4, The assembly of any one of the previous clauses, wherein the driver (30) is configured to receive a power supply signal (P) and to drive said light source using said power supply signal. 5. The assembly of any one of the previous clauses, wherein the dongle (40) comprises communication circuitry (42), said communication circuitry being configured to process signals received by the antenna and/or to generate signals to be emitted by the antenna.

6. The assembly of any one of the previous clauses, wherein the dongle is configured to determine a light beam related parameter, such as a dimming level, optionally based on a signal received by the communication circuitry, said determined light beam related parameter intended for controlling the driver. 7. A luminaire comprising an assembly of any one of the previous clauses, wherein the luminaire has a luminaire housing comprising the light source and driver or the controller, and wherein the antenna is arranged at least partially outside the luminaire housing.

By providing the housing of the driver or controller with a recessed portion which is dimensioned such that the dongle does not protrude out of the housing and by connecting the dongle to an antenna using a cable which extends between a peripheral side of the dongle (and not the side opposite the connector side), all connections are well protected and less prone to damage compared to prior art solutions. Also, a compact assembly is provided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

This and other aspects of the present invention will now be described in more detail, with reference to the appended drawings showing exemplary embodiments of the invention. Like numbers refer to like features throughout the drawings.

Fig. 1 is a schematic view of an exemplary embodiment of a luminaire having a luminaire housing in which a driver with a dongle is arranged.

Fig. 2 is schematic diagram of an exemplary embodiment of a luminaire.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a driver with a dongle.

Fig. 4 illustrates a first exemplary embodiment of a network of laminaires.

Fig. 5 illustrates a second exemplary embodiment of a network of luminaires.

Fig. 6 illustrates the programming of an exemplary embodiment of the driver with dongle.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Figure 1 illustrates a luminaire 100 with a luminaire housing 70 in which a light source 10 and a driver 30 for the light source 10 are arranged. The driver 30 is configured with a power supply connection 39 to receive a power supply signal P, here an AC mains signal, and to drive said light source 10 using said power supply signal P. More in particular the driver 30 is configured to convert the mains signal P into a suitable current signal I for driving the light source 10, typically a constant current signal. The light source 10 may comprises a PCB on which a plurality of LEDs is arranged.

The luminaire 100 further comprises an antenna 20 which is shown to protrude out of the luminaire housing 70 but which could also be arranged inside the luminaire housing 70 if the material of the luminaire housing 70 or a portion thereof allows wireless signals to pass through the luminaire housing 70.

The luminaire housing 70 may be a housing with multiple parts so as to form a closed space in which the components are arranged. Preferably, the luminaire 100 is an outdoor luminaire and the luminaire housing 70 is suitable for outdoor use.

The luminaire 100 further comprises a dongle 40. The dongle 40 is connected to the antenna. The driver 30 has a driver housing 36 and a connection interface 34, which are configured to receive the dongle 40. A preferred embodiment of the driver 30 with a driver housing 36 with a recessed portion for the dongle 40 will be described in more detail below with reference to Figure 3.

The luminaire 100 may further comprise at least one sensor 50, wherein preferably the at least one sensor 50 comprises one or more of the following: a light sensor, an image sensor (e.g. a camera), an audio sensor, an air quality sensor, a motion sensor, a temperature sensor, a visibility sensor, a vibration sensor, a humidity sensor, a radar. Optionally, the sensor 50 may be part of a pluggable module such as a NEMA or Zhaga module which can be plugged in a socket provided to the laminaire housing 70. In such an embodiment, the pluggable module may also function as a controller, see further.

The driver housing 36 may then be provided with at least one sensor connection port 35, wherein at least one sensor 50 is connected to said at least one sensor connection port 35. The sensor 50 may be a separate device only including the sensor or may be integrated in another component such as a controller 500. In an exemplary embodiment, the sensor 50 may be included in a pluggable module which may be at the same time a control module but this is not required as the dongle 40 may perform the controlling of the driver 30.

The driver 30 may be further implemented as described in WO2017220690A1 in the name of the applicant, which is included herein by reference. More in particular, the driver 30 may be provided with a pluggable module, for example an additional dongle, with a further circuit, and the driver housing 36 may be provided with connections. for example the at least one sensor connection port 35 or another connection port, which are connected to the further circuit when the pluggable module is plugged in the receiving means; wherein the connections are arranged such that they are accessible by a user from outside of the driver housing; The further circuit could also be included in the dongle 40 with the communication circuitry.

The driver 30 may be further implemented as described in WO2020064864A1 in the name of the applicant, which is included herein by reference. More in particular, the driver may be provided with a receiving means configured for receiving at least one pluggable module, said at least one pluggable module comprising a first circuitry associated with a first protocol and second circuitry associated with a second protocol, said second protocol being different from said first protocol. The functionalities of this at least one pluggable module may be added to the dongle 40, or additional pluggable may be provided.

Also, the driver 30 with dongle 40 may have the functionalities described in the following applications in the name of the applicant which are included herein by reference:

WO2019175438A1, WO2019175437A1, BE1026104. It is noted that those functionalities may be included either in the driver 30 or in the dongle 40.

Also, the driver 30 may be implemented as described in WO2020064487A1 in the name of the applicant which is included herein by reference. More in particular, the driver housing 36 may be provided with a first and second power supply input connector element for connection to an electrical distribution grid, and output connector elements for connection to the light source 10 with driver circuitry arranged inside the driver housing 36, between said first and second power supply input connector elements and said output connector elements; wherein said driver housing 36 is provided with an equipotential connecting part available at an external surface of said driver housing and intended for being connected to an equipotential part of the luminaire; said luminaire driver further comprising a resistive circuitry arranged inside said driver housing and connected between the equipotential connecting part and the first power supply input connector element.

Also, the driver housing 36 may be provided with a first and second interface as described in

WO2020064499A1 in the name of the applicant which is included herein by reference. The first interface is configured to receive first signals from the first peripheral interface device using a first protocol and the second interface is configured to send second signals to the second peripheral interface device using a second protocol; wherein the first protocol and the second protocol are different.

Also, the driver 30 may be implemented as described in WO2020144273A1 in the name of the applicant which is included herein by reference. More in particular, the driver housing 36 may be provided with a receiving means configured for receiving a pluggable surge protection module comprising surge protection circuitry. The surge protection module and/or the receiving means may be configured such that the surge protection circuitry is connectable to a power supply and such that the surge protection circuitry is electrically connected to the driver circuitry, when the surge protection module is received in the receiving means. Optionally the surge protection circuitry may be added to the dongle 40. Alternatively, it may be included in a separate module.

WO2022200378A1 in the name of the applicant which is included herein by reference discloses a method which may be used to determine a protocol that is being used by a driver. Such method may also be used in embodiments of the driver 30.

PCT/EP2023/075507 in the name of the applicant which is included herein by reference discloses a control unit which may be used in combination with the driver 30.

The functional modules of an embodiment of the dongle 40 and driver 30 are explained with reference to Figure 2. The dongle 40 comprises communication circuitry 42 configured to process signals received by the antenna 20 and/or to generate signals to be emitted by the antenna 20. The driver 30 has a connection interface 34 and a driver housing 36 (see Figure 1), which are configured to receive the dongle 40.

The dongle 40 may be configured to determine a setting of the luminaire, for example a light beam related parameter, such as a dimming level, optionally based on a signal received by the communication circuitry 42, said determined light beam related parameter being intended for controlling the driver 30 of the luminaire 100 and/or for controlling a driver of another luminaire.

The dongle 40 may comprise a memory 41 storing data received by the communication circuitry 42 and/or sensed data and/or processed data based on sensed data and/or information related to the operation of the luminaire 100, such as: - aprofile defining a dimming level and/or any other light beam related parameter in function of a variable such as time, a light level, etc.,

- communication data such as a routing table defining routing schemes to be applied by the communication circuitry 42, a communication parameter, authentication data, such as a security key or certificate, - sensor reaction schemes defining how to react to a sensed signal, - power consumption monitoring data.

Alternatively, the driver 30 may store any of the data mentioned above. In this case. the dongle 40 could only comprise the communication circuitry and optionally the antenna.

The driver 30 comprises driver/converter circuitry 32 configured to convert the mains signal P into a suitable current signal for driving the light source 10. Also, the driver 30 may comprise a memory 31 storing information about the luminaire 100, such as an identification number, a configuration parameter, an optionally the data mentioned above in connection with the memory of the dongle, ete.

The dongle 40 may be configured to receive a sensor signal sensed by a sensor 50 or a sensor signal based on what is sensed by said sensor 50. The dongle 40 is configured to process said sensor signal and/or to send said sensor signal or a signal based thereon to another device, e.g. another luminaire.

Also, the dongle 40 may be configured to determine a setting or to optimize a setting of a sensor 50, optionally based on data sensed by the sensor 50. Optionally, the sensor 50 comprises a memory 51 storing information related to the operation of the luminaire 100 and/or sensed data and/or processed data based thereon.

Preferably, the dongle 40 is configured to receive external data from an external database or from another edge device such as another luminaire, preferably via the antenna 20 and the communication circuitry 42. The dongle 40 may be configured to determine a configuration or operational parameter, for example a light beam related parameter, based on the sensor signal and/or the external data, wherein optionally the dongle 40 is configured to determine if an idle profile, such as an idle dimming profile needs to be overridden by an event profile based on the sensor signal and/or the external data.

The dongle may also be configured to determine whether or not a message is to be sent to one or more other luminaires of a network of luminaires and/or to a remote device, e.g. a fog device or a central server, and/or to a mobile device. The message may comprise the sensor signal and/or the external data and/or processed data based on the sensor signal or the external data, and the determining of whether or not a message is to be sent is based on the sensor signal and/or the external data and/or the processed data.

The various determining steps and other control functions performed by the dongle 40 may be realized with control circuitry 43 arranged in the dongle 40.

Optionally, the driver 30 comprises NFC and/or Bluetooth communication circuitry 33, and the driver 30 and/or the dongle 40 is configured to be programmed using said NFC and/or Bluetooth communication circuitry 33. This is illustrated in Figure 6 where the driver 30 is programmed with a mobile device 200 using NFC. For example, LED current settings, thermal protection settings, etc. may be configured, but it is also possible to provide control related data to the driver 30 during installation, such as a GPS position, an identification, a key, etc.

The antenna 20 and the communication circuitry 42 may be configured to communicate wirelessly with another device using any one or more of the following protocols: Bluetooth, NFC, LoRa communication protocol, WiSun, Sigfox, LPWAN, 802.15.4, Zigbee, Thread, Lightweight Machine to Machine (LwM2M), cellular (GPRS, 3G/4G/5G), WiFi.

The dongle 40 may be configured to communicate with the driver 30 using any one or more of the following protocols: a Digital Addressable Lighting Interface DALI protocol, e.g. DALI-2 or D4i, a digital multiplex interface DMX protocol, a serial protocol such as a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) protocol or RS232, an Inter-Integrated Circuit (12C) protocol.

The luminaire may be configured to be part of a mesh network of luminaires, wherein the communication circuitry 42 and antenna 20 are configured to communicate with other luminaires of the mesh network of luminaires.

Figures 3 and 6 illustrates in more detail an embodiment of the driver housing 36 with the various connection interfaces 35, 39 and the dongle 40. The driver housing 36 has an upper wall 36a, a lower wall 36b and a side wall 36c between the upper wall 36a and the lower wall 36b. The upper wall 36a is provided with a recessed portion 37 with a connection interface (not visible), wherein a connector side 46 of the dongle 40 is pluggable in the connection interface. The dongle 40 may be dimensioned such that it does not protrude out of the recessed portion 37. In other embodiments, the connection interface may be provided on a side wall 36¢ of the driver housing, optionally in a recessed portion of the side wall 36¢, or in the lower wall 36b, optionally in a recessed portion thereof. It is noted that the connection interface does not have to be provided in a recessed portion, although such embodiments have certain technical advantages as was explained above.

The dongle 40 has a peripheral side 45 between the connector side 46 and an end side 44 opposite the connector side 46. A cable 25 extends from the peripheral side 45 to the antenna 20, optionally through a guidance portion 38 of the driver housing 31, preferably a groove 38 extending from the recessed portion 37 to the side wall 36c of the driver housing. Alternatively, cable 25 may extend trom end side 44 of dongle 40, and optionally no groove 38 is present. For example, the connection interface could be provided in a recessed portion of a side wall 360, and the antenna could be connected to the end side 44.

The antenna 20 may be a quarter wavelength antenna. The antenna 20 may comprise a wire surrounded by a protective cover. Antenna 20 may be configured for receiving RF signals. In some embodiments the antenna 20 may be integrated in the dongle 40.

Figure 4 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a mesh network comprising a plurality of luminaires 100 according to any one of the previous embodiments, wherein the luminaires 100 are configured to communicate through the communication circuitries of the dongles 40 arranged in the drivers 30. A mobile device 200 of an operator O may communicate directly with the luminaires 100, for example to read or change settings of the driver 30 and/or dongle 40 and/or another luminaire component such as a sensor. Preferably, a communication protocol is used which is compatible with both the mobile device 200 and in the dongle 40, for example a Bluetooth protocol.

The dongle 40 may use for example the Zigbee or Bluetooth protocol so that the dongle 40 is capable of broadcasting a message to multiple other devices. The dongles 40 may be configured to cause a sending of messages between luminaires 100 e.g. in order for the luminaires to consecutively illuminate an object that is moving along a number of luminaires 100 of the mesh network or to send sensor instructions to one or more neighboring luminaires. For example, when a first luminaire 100 detects an object, it may send a message to the neighboring luminaires to activate the light source and/or a sensor.

Figure 5 illustrates another exemplary embodiment of a mesh network comprising a plurality of luminaires 100 according to any one of the previous embodiments, wherein the luminaires 100 are configured to communicate through the communication circuitries of the dongles 40 arranged in the drivers 30.

The dongle 40 may use for example the Wisun protocol so that the dongle 40 is capable of unicasting or multicasting a message to one or more other devices. such as one or more luminaires 100. The dongles 40 may be configured to cause a sending of messages between luminaires 100, e.g. in order for the luminaires to consecutively illuminate an object that is moving along a number of luminaires 100 of the mesh network or to send sensor instructions to a plurality of neighboring luminaires. For example, when a first luminaire 100 detects an object, it may send a message to the neighboring luminaires to activate the light source and/or a sensor.

An operator O may communicate with the luminaires 100 using a mobile device 200, for example to read or change settings of the driver 30 and/or dongle 40. In this example the communication between the mobile device 200 and the luminaire 100 is indirect and passes via the cloud. It is noted that not all luminaires 100 need to be able to communicate through the cloud. It may be sufficient if acouple of luminaires 100 can communicate through the cloud, whereupon they can inform the other luminaires via the mesh network.

Optionally, the mesh network further comprises a controller 500 configured to communicate with the dongles 40 of the luminaires 100 of the mesh network and with a further network 400, such as a cloud network, wherein optionally the controller 500 is configured to read and/or change settings of one or more luminaires 100 of the network and/or to add a new luminaire 100 to the mesh network and/or to function as a gateway to the mesh network. Controller 500 may be configured to perform a time syncing between luminaires of the network.

The controller 500 may be a controller positioned at a distance of the luminaires 100, as shown in

Figure 5, but it may also be positioned in/on a luminaire 100. For example, the controller 500 may be implemented as a pluggable module, wherein optionally the controller S00 comprises at least one sensor 50. Figure 1 shows an example of a controller 500 with integrated sensor 50 which is plugged in a socket (not shown) arranged on or in a luminaire housing 70. In another embodiment, the controller 500 is not pluggable, and is arranged in or on the luminaire housing 70. The dongle 40 may be configured to determine an operational parameter, e.g. a light beam related parameter such as a dimming level based on signals received from the controller 500. It is noted that element 500 in

Figure 1 could also be merely a sensor without controlling means.

Controller 500 may be configured to cause a sending of messages between luminaires 100, e.g. sensor instructions for example to activate/deactivate a sensor, communication instructions, light beam related instructions for example in order for the luminaires to consecutively illuminate an object that is moving along a number of luminaires of the network. For example, when the dongles 40 are using the Wisun protocol, the dongle 40 can only unicast a message to another dongle 40, in which case the controller 500 may act as a mesh coordinator and do the broadcasting to multiple other dongles 40 to spread the message.

Whilst the principles of the invention have been set out above in connection with specific embodiments, it is to be understood that this description is merely made by way of example and not as a limitation of the scope of protection which is determined by the appended claims.

Claims

CONCLUSIONS

1. A light fixture comprising: a light source (10), an antenna (20), a driver (30) configured to receive a power signal (P) and drive the light source using the power signal, a dongle (40) having a communication circuit (42), the communication circuit configured to process signals received by the antenna and/or to generate signals to be transmitted by the antenna, the dongle being connected to the antenna, and the driver having a connection interface (34) and a driver housing (36) configured to receive the dongle.

2. The light fixture according to claim 1, wherein the dongle is configured to determine a light beam related parameter, such as a dimming level, optionally based on a signal received by the communication circuit, the light beam related parameter being intended to control the light fixture driver and/or to control a driver of another light fixture.

3. The light fixture of any preceding claim, wherein the light fixture is configured to form part of a mesh network of light fixtures, the communications circuit (42) and antenna being configured to communicate with other light fixtures of the mesh network of light fixtures.

4. The light fixture according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the light fixture comprises a light fixture housing comprising the driver and the light source, and wherein the antenna is arranged at least partially outside the light fixture housing.

5. The light fixture according to any preceding claim, wherein the dongle comprises a memory (41) storing at least one of the following: data received by the communication circuit; detected data; processed data based on detected data; light fixture control related information, such as a profile defining a dimming level and/or another light beam related parameter as a function of a variable such as time, light level, etc.; communication data such as a routing table defining routing schemes to be applied by the communication circuit; a communication parameter; authentication data, such as a security key or certificate; sensor response schemes defining how to respond to a detected signal; energy consumption monitoring data.

6. The light fixture according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the driver comprises a memory (31) that stores information about the light fixture, such as an identification number, a configuration parameter.

7. The luminaire according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the driver housing is provided with a recessed portion with the connection interface, whereby a connection side of the dongle can be inserted into the connection interface.

8. The luminaire according to claim 7, wherein the dongle is dimensioned such that it does not protrude from the recessed portion.

9. The luminaire according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the dongle has a peripheral side between the connection side and an end side opposite the connection side, and wherein a cable extends from the peripheral side to the antenna, optionally through a guide portion of the driver housing, preferably a groove extending from the recessed portion to a side wall of the driver housing.

10. The light fixture according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the light fixture further comprises at least one sensor (50), wherein the at least one sensor preferably comprises one or more of the following: a light sensor, an image sensor (e.g. a camera), an audio sensor, an air quality sensor, a motion sensor, a temperature sensor, a visibility sensor, a vibration sensor, a humidity sensor, a radar, an infrared sensor, a LIDAR sensor.

11. The luminaire according to the preceding claim, wherein the driver housing is provided with at least one sensor connection port (35), and wherein the at least one sensor (50) is connected to the at least one sensor connection port.

12. The luminaire of claim 10 or 11, wherein the dongle is configured to receive a sensor signal detected by a sensor of the at least one sensor or a sensor signal based on what is detected by this sensor, and wherein the dongle is configured to process the sensor signal and/or to send the sensor signal or a signal based thereon to another device.

13. The luminaire of any of claims 10-12, wherein the dongle is configured to determine a setting or to optimize a setting of a sensor of the at least one sensor, optionally based on data detected by the at least one sensor.

14. The luminaire according to any of claims 10 to 13, wherein the sensor includes a memory (51) that stores luminaire operation related information and/or detected data and/or processed data based thereon.

15. The light fixture according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the dongle is configured to receive external data from a database or from another edge device such as another light fixture, preferably via the communication circuit.

16. The light fixture according to claim 2 and 12 and/or 15, wherein the dongle is configured to determine the light beam related parameter based on the sensor signal and/or the external data, wherein the dongle is optionally configured to determine whether an inactive profile, such as an inactive dimming profile, should be overwritten by an event profile based on the sensor signal and/or the external data.

17. The light fixture according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the dongle is configured to determine whether or not a message should be sent to one or more other devices, such as one or more light fixtures of a light fixture network, a fog device, an edge device, a central server, a mobile device.

18. The luminaire according to claim 12 and/or 15 and 17, wherein the message comprises the sensor signal and/or the external data, and wherein the determination of whether or not a message should be sent is based on the sensor signal and/or external data.

19. The light fixture of any preceding claim, further comprising a controller configured to communicate with the dongle, the controller optionally being implemented as a plug-in module, the controller comprising at least one sensor.

20. The light fixture according to claim 2 and 19, wherein the dongle is configured to determine the light beam related parameter such as the dimming level based on signals received from the controller.

21. The luminaire of any preceding claim, wherein the NFC driver comprises a communication circuit, and wherein the driver and/or the dongle is configured to be programmed using the NFC circuitry.

22. The luminaire of any preceding claim, wherein the antenna is a quarter-wave antenna and/or wherein the antenna comprises a wire surrounded by a protective sheath and/or wherein the antenna is configured to receive RF signals.

23. The luminaire according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the antenna is integrated into the dongle.

24. The light fixture of any preceding claim, wherein the antenna and the communication circuit are configured to communicate wirelessly with another device using one or more of the following protocols: Bluetooth, NFC, LoRa communication protocol, WiSun, Sigfox, LPWAN, 802.15.4, Zigbee, Thread, Lightweight Machine to Machine (LwM2M), cellular (GPRS, 3G/4G/5G), WiFi.

25. The light fixture according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the dongle is configured to communicate with the driver using one or more of the following protocols: a Digital Addressable Lighting Interface DALI protocol, e.g. DALI-2 or D4i, a digital multiplex interface DMX protocol, a serial protocol such as a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) protocol or RS232, an Inter-Integrated Circuit (12C) protocol.

26. A mesh network comprising a plurality of light fixtures according to any preceding claim, wherein the light fixtures are configured to communicate through the communication circuit of the dongles.

27. The mesh network of the preceding claim further comprising a controller configured to communicate with the dongles of the mesh network light fixtures and with a further network, such as a cloud network. wherein the controller is optionally configured to read and/or change settings of one or more network light fixtures and/or to add a new light fixture to the mesh network and/or to act as a gateway to the mesh network.

28. The mesh network of claim 26 or claim 27, wherein the controller is configured to perform time synchronization between the networked light fixtures.

29. The mesh network of any of claims 26 to 28, wherein the controller is configured to cause a transmission of messages between light fixtures.

30. A dongle configured to be inserted into a driver of a light fixture according to any one of claims 1 to 25, the dongle comprising a communication circuit configured to process signals received by the antenna and/or generate signals to be transmitted by the antenna, the dongle being configured according to any one of the features of claims 1 to 25.

31. A driver configured to receive a power signal (P) and to drive a light source using the power signal, the driver further configured to receive the dongle of the preceding claim.