US 2023/0238908 A1Published application

Motor Control Device

AssigneeLutron Technology Company LLC

InventorsJames P. Steiner, Dinesh Sundara Moorthy

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Abstract

A load control device may control power delivered from a power source, such as an alternating-current (AC) power source, to at least two electrical loads, such as a lighting load and a motor load. The load control device may include multiple load control circuit, such as a dimmer circuit and a motor drive circuit, for controlling the power delivered to the lighting load and the motor load, respectively. The load control device may adjust the rotational speed of the motor load in a manner so as to minimize acoustic noise generated by the load control device and reduce the amount of time required to adjust the rotational speed of the motor load. The load control device may remain powered when one of the electrical loads (e.g., the lighting load) has been removed (e.g., electrically disconnected or uninstalled) and/or has failed in an open state (has “burnt out” or “blown out”).

Claims21

Dependent claims

A load control device for controlling power delivered from an alternating-current (AC) power source to a first electrical load device and to a second electrical load device, the load control device comprising:

a first load control circuit electrically conductively coupled to the AC power source, the first load control circuit to deliver a continuously dimmable power level to the first electrical load device
a second load control circuit electrically conductively coupled to the AC power source, the second load control circuit to deliver one of a plurality of discrete power levels to the second electrical load device:
a power supply circuit to provide a DC voltage, the power supply circuit coupled in electrical parallel with the first load control circuit;
a control relay selectively positionable between a first position that electrically conductively couples the power supply circuit to the first electrical load device and a second position that electrically isolates the power supply circuit from the first electrical load device and electrically conductively couples the power supply circuit to the second electrical load device;
and
a control circuit that includes zero-cross detection circuitry, the control circuit electrically conductively coupled to the power supply circuitry, to the controllably conductive device in the first load control circuit, the plurality of switches in the second load control circuit, and the control relay, the control circuit to:
adjust the first load control circuit to deliver the continuously dimmable power from the AC power source to the first electrical load device;
adjust the second load control circuit to deliver the one of the plurality of discrete power levels to the second electrical load device;
monitor the zero-crossings of the AC power source;
detect, via the zero-cross detection circuitry, an absence of a defined number of zero crossings of the AC power source indicative of a failure of the first electrical load device;
and
responsive to detection of the absence of a defined number of zero crossings of the AC power source indicative of the failure of the first electrical load device, transition the control relay from the first position to the second position.

9 more elements

A method of controlling power delivered from an alternating-current (AC) power source to a first electrical load device and to a second electrical load device, the method comprising:

adjusting, by control circuitry, a first load control circuit to deliver a continuously dimmable power level from an AC power source to a first electrical load device;
adjusting, by the control circuitry, a second load control circuit to deliver one of a plurality of discrete power levels to a second electrical load device;
monitoring, by the control circuitry via communicatively coupled zero-cross detection circuitry, zero-crossings of the AC power source;
detecting, via the zero-cross detection circuitry, an absence of a defined number of zero crossings of the AC power source indicative of a failure of the first electrical load device;
and
responsive to detection of the absence of the defined number of zero crossings of the AC power source indicative of the failure of the first electrical load device, transition the control relay from a first position to a second position such that:
in the first position, the control relay electrically conductively couples a power supply circuit that provides power to the control circuitry to the first electrical load device;
and
in the second position, the control relay electrically isolates the power supply circuit from the first electrical load device and electrically conductively couples the power supply circuit to the second electrical load device.

6 more elements

The method of clam 9 wherein adjusting the second load control circuit to deliver one of the plurality of discrete power levels to the second electrical load device further comprises:

reversibly transitioning, by the control circuitry, each of a plurality of switches between an OPEN position and a CLOSED position, wherein each of the plurality of switches coupled in electrical series with a respective one of a plurality of capacitors to provide a plurality of series connected capacitor/switch combinations and wherein each of the plurality of series connected capacitor/switch combinations is coupled in electrical parallel with the remaining plurality of series connected capacitor/switch combinations,

A non-transitory, machine-readable, storage device that includes instructions that, when executed by a control circuit that controls power delivered from an alternating-current (AC) power source to a first electrical load device and to a second electrical load device, causes the control circuit to:

adjust a first load control circuit to deliver a continuously dimmable power level from an AC power source to a first electrical load device;
adjust a second load control circuit to deliver one of a plurality of discrete power levels to a second electrical load device;
monitor, via communicatively coupled zero-cross detection circuitry, zero-crossings of the AC power source;
detect, via the zero-cross detection circuitry, an absence of a defined number of zero crossings of the AC power source indicative of a failure of the first electrical load device and
responsive to detection of the absence of the defined number of zero crossings of the AC power source indicative of the failure of the first electrical load device, transition the control relay from a first position to a second position, such that:
in the first position, the control relay electrically conductively couples a power supply circuit that provides power to the control circuitry to the first electrical load device;
and
in the second position, the control relay electrically isolates the power supply circuit from the first electrical load device and electrically conductively couples the power supply circuit to the second electrical load device.

5 more elements

The non-transitory, machine-readable, storage device of clam 16 wherein the instructions that cause the control circuit to adjust the second load control circuit to deliver one of the pith of discrete power levels to the second electrical load device further cause the control circuitry to:

reversibly transition each of a plurality of switches between an OPEN position and a CLOSED position, wherein each of the plurality of switches coupled in electrical series with a respective one of a plurality of capacitors to provide a plurality of series connected capacitor/switch combinations and wherein each of the plurality of series connected capacitor/switch combinations is coupled in electrical parallel with the remaining plurality of series connected capacitor/switch combinations.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 18/186,985Filed 21 Mar 2023
Priority: 9 Jun 2017
Published: 27 Jul 2023
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification14 codes

H02P 25/04
Characterised by the kind of motor: single phase motors, e.g. capacitor motors
F21V 33/0096
Ventilating systems: fans, e.g. ceiling fans
H01H 47/02
Circuit arrangements not adapted to a particular application of the relay and designed to obtain desired operating characteristics or to provide…:…
H02P 1/24
For starting dynamo-electric motors or dynamo-electric converters: for starting an individual AC commutator motor

Family

Application62/517,478Us provisional application · filed 9 Jun 2017
Application16/003,864Continuation · filed 8 Jun 2018
Application17/001,143Continuation · filed 24 Aug 2020
Application17/552,625Continuation · filed 16 Dec 2021
Application18/186,985Continuation
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From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.