Thin wire antenna for control devices, for example, for control of or inclusion in a luminaire

Abstract

An antenna assembly includes a radio frequency (RF) connector connected to a first end of a coaxial cable and a wire antenna attached to a second end of the coaxial cable. The wire antenna may be made of a shape memory alloy, such as nitinol. Examples of RF connectors include U.FL, IPEX, IPAX, IPX, AMC, MHF and UMCC connectors that allow the wire antenna to be removably attached to a printed circuit board (PCB) of a lighting control device and to avoid hardwiring the antenna to the PCB. The device that includes the antenna assembly may be incorporated into a luminaire for wireless control of the luminaire. The lighting control device may be installed within the luminaire, such that the wire antenna is positioned between a light source and a diffuser. A number of such luminaries may be combined to provide an intelligent lighting system.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.