Side looking occupancy sensor
OwnerLouia Weidmaninventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A side looking occupancy sensor is incorporated in a conventional wall switch mounted into a switch box adjacent to a door. The side-looking proximity sensor preferably is mountable to either side of the doorjamb to make the side-looking proximity sensor face the door opening. During operation, the side-looking sensor monitors the door movement or senses the passage of a person for indication that a person is entering or leaving the space. Entry and exit determination is made based on activation of the side-looking sensor.
Claims3
An occupancy sensor system for controlling the application of electrical power to electric loads in a room with a doorway having an opening comprising:
- a wall switch mounted into a switch box adjacent to the door opening, the wall switch having a controller;
- and
- a first proximity sensor mounted to either side of a doorjamb so that the first proximity sensor is facing the door opening, wherein the first proximity sensor has two zones of monitoring, a first zone is adjacent to the door opening, and a second zone at a distance away from the door opening into the room;
- wherein the controller is programmed to receive signals and determine direction, so when the first zone is activated before the second zone it denotes that a person enters the room and the controller applies power to the electrical load, and when the second zone is activated before the first zone it denotes that a person is exiting the room and the controller disconnects power upon receipt of a signal transmission from the first proximity sensor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.