Programmable system controller for remote devices

#This invention is related to a programmable system for controlling a plurality of electrical loads, more particularly, to a programmable system controller for accepting switch and telephone commands and providing in response thereto drive signals for controlling one or more output devices such as banks of relays.

#The means for selecting the required response of the programmable system controller are typically in the form of switches that may be manually or automatically operated. For certain applications it is advantageous that the programmable system controller have the capability to respond to commands initiated by a telephone. The telephone commands are in the form of electrical quantities having a value determined by the selection of the push buttons of the telephone. The switches along with the telephone commands provide the stimuli for the dynamic operation of the programmable system controller.

#The switches may be of a two-wire maintained switch, commonly known as a single pole, single throw (SPST) switch, a three-wire maintained switch, commonly known as a single pole, double throw (SPDT) switch, or a momentary switch comprised of two push buttons and commonly in the form of two single pole, single throw, momentary action switches. The programmable system controller must be able to correctly respond to these various types of switches. For those applications related to interfacing with a telephone, the programmable system controller must be able to respond to the electrical signals generated the manual operation of the telephone and notify or direct the correct sequential operation of the telephone.

#FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a programmable system controller in accordance with the present invention.

#FIGS. 2(a), 2(b) and 2(c) respectively illustrate a two-wire maintained switch, a three-wire maintained switch, and a momentary contact switch.

#FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram of a switch conditioning input circuit and the programmable system controller related to the present invention.

#FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a programmable system controller 10 of the present invention. The programmable system controller 10 responds to one or more input selectable means of various types that are appropriately connected to an excitation source for respectively generating one or more switch control signals. The input selectable means are shown in FIG. 1 as Master Switch No. 1, Master Switch No. 2, and Mode Select switch. The generated switch command related to the switches shown in FIG. 1 are routed to switch conditioning input circuit 12.

#The switch conditioning input circuit 12 preferably performs a high frequency filtering function so as to reduce and avoid false reactions typically caused by switch conditions such as contact bouncing, and also reduces noise levels that may be present on the switch lines. The output stages containing digital signals representative of the received switch commands of the switch conditioning means are routed to a controller 14 having programmable means, to be discussed hereinafter as programmable controller, which responds to the received inputs and generate in response thereto digital output quantities which are routed to an output sequence 16.

#The output sequencer 16 decodes the output digital quantities of the programmable controller and generates in response thereto sequence control signals to control circuits of the programmable system controller. These control circuits in one embodiment of the present invention are in the form of two banks of relays, Bank A and Bank B relays with Bank A having control lines 1A . . . nA for accepting the sequencer control signals of sequencer 16 and Bank B having control lines 1B . . . nB for accepting the sequencer control signals of sequencer 16.