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US 10,732,575 B2Granted
Clock device with automatic simulation of sunrise or sunset
AssigneeLutron Technology Company LLC
InventorsErica Patton, Daniel Raneri
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A clock comprises an alarm clock housing having a front face, a clock display occupying at least a portion of the front face, a control on the housing for activating a shade positioning function, and a processor within the housing. The processor is responsive to the control for generating at least one shade positioning command to be transmitted to at least one motorized window shade, so as to cause the motorized window shade to move to one or more position at one or more corresponding predetermined interval relative to an alarm time.
Claims15
An apparatus, comprising:
- a housing having a front face, wherein at least a portion of the front face is configured to display a time;
- a radio frequency transceiver configured to transmit shade positioning control commands for controlling a motorized window shade;
- an audio alarm configured to emit an audible alarm sound;
- and
- a processor within the housing, the processor configured to:
- receive an alarm time from a user;
- generate a plurality of shade positioning commands responsive to receiving the alarm time, each positioning command to be transmitted to the motorized window shade over a time period so as to cause the motorized window shade to move to successively higher positions over the time period at one or more corresponding predetermined shade-movement intervals prior to the alarm time;
- during the time period before the alarm time, transmit, via the radio frequency transceiver, the plurality of shade positioning commands at the one or more corresponding predetermined shade-movement intervals to cause the motorized window shade to move to the successively higher positions over the time period;
- at a predetermined time after transmitting respective ones of the plurality of shade positioning commands:
- determine an ambient light level;
- compare the ambient light level with a threshold to determine whether the ambient light level is lower than the threshold;
- and
- transmit a lighting control command, via the radio frequency transceiver, based on the determination that the ambient light level is less than the threshold, wherein the lighting control command is configured to cause a dimmer to increase a light level of a lighting load;
- and
- cause the audio alarm to emit the audible alarm sound at the alarm time or at a predetermined audible-sound interval after the alarm time.
12 more elements
A method comprising:
- receiving, by a processor, an alarm time from a user;
- generating, by the processor, a plurality of shade positioning commands responsive to the alarm time, each positioning command to be transmitted to a motorized window shade over a time period, so as to cause the motorized window shade to move to successively higher positions over the time period at one or more corresponding predetermined shade-movement intervals prior to the alarm time;
- during the time period before the alarm time, transmitting, via a radio frequency transceiver, the plurality of shade positioning commands at the one or more corresponding predetermined shade-movement intervals to cause the motorized window shade to move to the successively higher positions over the time period;
- at a predetermined time after transmitting respective ones of the plurality of shade positioning commands:
- determining an ambient light level;
- comparing the ambient light level with a threshold to determine whether the ambient light level is lower than the threshold;
- and
- transmitting a lighting control command, via the radio frequency transceiver, based on the determination that the ambient light level is less than the threshold, wherein the lighting control command is configured to cause a dimmer to increase a light level of a lighting load;
- and
- causing, via the processor, an audio alarm to emit an audible alarm sound at the alarm time or at a predetermined audible-sound interval after the alarm time.
7 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.