Home automation system
US5621662A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Feb 15, 1994 |
| Grant date | Apr 15, 1997 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Feb 15, 2014 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG05B2219/2642
- WIPO fieldControl
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A home automation system comprises a number of sub-systems for controlling various aspects of a house, such as a security sub-system, an HVAC sub-system, a lighting control sub-system, and an entertainment sub-system. The network comprises a host computer connected through a host interface to a plurality of nodes. The network is in a free form topology and employ asynchronous communication. The host computer polls each node on the network to determine system configuration and to perform a diagnostic check on the system. The messages that are transmitted between the nodes are comprised of a source address, a destination address that uniquely identifies the location of each piece of hardware on the system, a message type field, and a data length segment. Each hardware device has a mirror image software object in the host computer to which messages are directed. The user interfaces for the various sub-systems share a common interfacing method whereby use of the system is greatly simplified.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.