U.S. patent number 3,706,914 [Application Number 05/214,878] was granted by the patent office on 1972-12-19 for lighting control system.
Invention is credited to George F. Van Buren.
United States Patent |
3,706,914 |
Van Buren |
December 19, 1972 |
LIGHTING CONTROL SYSTEM
Abstract
A light control system for the control of a plurality of lights
in a pre-programmed lighting sequence. The system is comprised of a
keyboard module and one or more controller modules. Each controller
module contains 16 manually operated light controllers and a
semiconductor memory capable of storing 16 individual settings for
each of the 16 light controllers. The keyboard has 16 pushbuttons
through which any of the 16 lighting combinations may be put into
memory or selected out of memory for control of the lights. First
and second registers are provided for retaining any pair of
lighting combinations, with a cross fade control on the keyboard
being adapted to provide a smooth transition from one of such
lighting combinations to the other combination. An automatic
sequencing selection is provided whereby each of the 16 lighting
combinations will be automatically selected in sequence through the
use of the cross fade control. Other features of the system include
the ability to program one lighting combination while playing
another lighting combination, to have one or more light controls
under manual control while the rest are under control by the
memory, and a means for displaying on a meter any stored light
control setting.
Inventors: |
Van Buren; George F. (Sherman
Oaks, CA) |
Family
ID: |
22800763 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/214,878 |
Filed: |
January 3, 1972 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
315/316; 315/291;
315/312; 315/318; 315/292; 315/317 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H05B
47/155 (20200101) |
Current International
Class: |
H05B
37/02 (20060101); H05b 039/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;315/291,295,312,316,317,318 ;235/151.2,151.21 ;340/172.5,324A |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Shaw; Gareth D.
Claims
I claim:
1. A lighting control system for storing and playing back a
plurality of combinations of light control signals comprising:
a keyboard having a plurality of keyboard switches thereon;
a plurality of manual light controls for individually controlling a
plurality of SCR light controllers;
means coupled to said light controls for converting the setting of
each of said light controls to a digital signal representing said
setting;
read-write semiconductor memory means for storing digital
information and presenting said digital information responsive to a
memory address signal and a read-write signal;
means coupled to said keyboard switches and responsive to each of
said keyboard switches to address the first of a unique series of
memory locations in said memory means by the operation of each of
said keyboard switches;
a record switch;
means coupled to said record switch for providing a write signal to
said memory means, for selecting the digital signal corresponding
to the setting of the first of said light controls, and for
sequentially advancing said memory address signal and selecting the
signal corresponding to the setting of the next of said light
controls until the digital information corresponding to the setting
of each of the plurality of said light controls has been stored in
said memory;
first and second registers for each of said plurality of light
controls, the input of said registers being coupled to the output
of said memory means, each of said registers being responsive to a
load signal to store the output of said memory;
first and second play switches;
means coupled to said first play switch for providing a read signal
to said memory means, for sequentially advancing said memory
address signal and sequentially providing a load signal to each of
said first registers, whereby the digital signal corresponding to
the setting of each of the plurality of said light controls for the
last keyboard switch to be actuated may be stored in said first
registers;
means coupled to said second play switch for providing a read
signal to said memory means, for sequentially advancing said memory
address signal and sequentially providing a load signal to each of
said second registers, whereby the digital signal corresponding to
the setting of each of the plurality of said light control for the
last keyboard switch to be activated may be stored in said second
registers;
conversion means coupled to each of said first and second registers
associated with each of said light controls for converting digital
signals in said first and second registers to analog signals;
and
combining means coupled to said conversion means and operative by a
single control to variably combine the outputs of said conversion
means so as to provide a plurality of analog output control signals
for control of an SCR controller, each of which is a variable
combination of the analog signals corresponding to the digital
signal stored in the corresponding first and second registers.
2. The light control system of claim 1 further comprised of a
switch means associated with each of said light controls and means
coupled to said last named switch means for causing any of said
analog output control signals to be controlled by the setting of
the respective said light control instead of by the digital signal
stored in the respective first and second registers.
3. The light control system of claim 2 further comprised of an
all-on manual switch means and a variable manual master control
means, said all on manual switch means being a means for causing
all of said analog output control signals to be controlled by the
respective said light control, said variable manual master control
means being a means for changing all of said analog output control
signals in response to the setting of said variable manual master
control means.
4. The light control system of claim 1 further comprised of a
rechargeable battery pack, said battery pack being coupled to said
semiconductor memory and being a means for providing power to the
memory cells when the main power is off so as to provide retention
of digital information stored in said memory.
5. The light control system of claim 1 wherein said control for
said combining means is operative between first and second
positions to vary said analog output control signals from the
signals corresponding to the digital signals stored in said first
registers when in said first position to the signals corresponding
to the digital signals stored in said second registers when in said
second position, further comprised of a means coupled to said
combining means for automatically causing the digital signals
stored in said memory means corresponding to the memory locations
associated with the one of said keyboard switches immediately
following the one of said keyboard switches corresponding to the
digital signals stored in said first registers to be stored in said
second registers when said control is moved to said first position,
and the digital signal stored in said memory means corresponding to
the memory locations associated with the one of said keyboard
switches immediately following the one of said keyboard switches
corresponding to the digital signals stored in said second
registers to be stored in said second registers when said control
is moved to said second position, whereby said analog output
control signals may be caused to sequentially and smoothly vary
through a series of combinations by the movement of said control
for said combining means between first and second positions.
6. The light control system of claim 1 further comprised of first
and second fader control means associated with said conversion
means coupled to said first and second registers respectively, said
first fader control means being a means for varying the outputs of
said conversion means for said first registers in accordance with
the setting of said first fader means, and second fader means being
a means for varying the outputs of said conversion means for said
second registers in accordance with the setting of said second
fader means.
7. The light control system of claim 6 further comprised of a
memory master fader control means, said memory master fader control
means being coupled to said first and second fader control means
and operative to vary the output of said conversion means for said
first and second registers in accordance with the setting of said
memory master fader means.
8. The light control system of claim 1 further comprised of first,
second and third light display means, coupled to said keyboard
switches, said first light display means being a means for
displaying characters corresponding to the last of said keyboard
switches to be actuated, said second and third light display means
being further coupled to said first and second play switches,
respectively, and responsive thereto to display characters
corresponding to the keyboard switch associated with the digital
signals stored in said first and second registers,
respectively.
9. A lighting control system for storing and playing back a
plurality of combinations of light control signals comprising:
a keyboard having a plurality of sequentially numbered keyboard
switches thereon;
a plurality of manual light controls of the potentiometric type for
individually controlling a plurality of SCR light controllers;
an analog to digital converter coupled to said light controls
through a set of first gates for selecting and converting the
setting of each of said light controls to a digital signal
representing said setting;
a read-write semiconductor memory for storing digital information
and presenting said digital information in parallel form responsive
to a memory address signal and a read-write signal;
a first coder coupled to said keyboard switches to provide a
parallel digital output signal in response to the actuation of any
of said keyboard switches;
a keyboard counter adapted for parallel loading coupled to said
first coder;
a reference clock; provided a continuous train output
a comparison circuit;
a preset counter;
a channel address counter adapted to repetitively count through a
number equal to the number of said plurality of light controls;
a memory address counter coupled to said memory means, said
comparison circuit being coupled to said keyboard counter and said
pre-set counter and adapted to provide an enable signal to couple
said clock to said memory address counter and said channel address
counter until a comparison is obtained between said keyboard
counter and said pre-set counter outputs, said channel address
counter being coupled to said first gates whereby said light
controls will be sequentially coupled to said analog to digital
converter as said channel address counter counts up to its largest
count, said channel address counter being coupled to said preset
counter to advance said preset counter by one count when said
channel address counter returns to its lowest count;
a record switch;
control means coupled to said record switch and said channel
address counter for sequentially enabling the operation of said
analog to digital converter, for providing a write signal to said
memory means to store the output of said analog to digital
converter in the memory location corresponding to said memory
address counter count, and for advancing the count of said memory
address counter and said channel address counter by one count, said
channel address counter being coupled to said control means to
disenable said control means after the analog to digital conversion
and storage in said memory means of each of said light control
settings;
first and second registers for each of said plurality of light
controls, the input of said registers being coupled to the output
of said memory means, each of said registers being responsive to a
load signal to store the output of said memory;
first and second play switches;
means coupled to said first play switch and responsive thereto for
providing a read signal to said memory means, for sequentially
advancing said memory address signal and sequentially providing a
load signal to each of said first registers, whereby the digital
information corresponding to the setting of each of the plurality
of said light controls associated with the count in said keyboard
counter may be stored in said first registers;
means coupled to said second play switch for providing a read
signal to said memory means, for sequentially advancing said memory
address signal and sequentially providing a load signal to each of
said second registers, whereby the digital information
corresponding to the setting of each of the plurality of said light
controls associated with the count in said keyboard counter may be
stored in said second registers;
conversion means coupled to each of said first and second registers
associated with each of said light controls for converting digital
signals in said first and second registers to analog signals;
and
combining means coupled to said conversion means and operative by a
single control to variably combine the outputs of said conversion
means so as to provide a plurality of analog output control signals
for control of an SCR controller, each of which is a variable
combination of the analog signals corresponding to the digital
signal stored in the corresponding first and second registered.
10. The light control system of claim 9 further comprised of a
switch means associated with each of said light controls and means
coupled to said last named switch means for causing any of said
analog output control signals to be controlled by the setting of
the respective said light control instead of by the digital
information stored in the respective first and second
registers.
11. The light control system of claim 10 further comprised of an
all-on manual switch means and a variable manual master control
means, said all on manual switch means being a means for causing
all of said analog output control signals to be controlled by the
respective said light control, said variable manual master control
means being a means for changing all of said analog control signals
in response to the setting of said variable manual master control
means.
12. The light control system of claim 9 wherein said keyboard
counter is adapted to count up in response to a count up pulse
applied thereto and said control for said combining means is
operative between first and second positions to vary said analog
output control signals from the signals corresponding to the
digital signals stored in said first registers when in said first
position to the signals corresponding to the digital signals stored
in said second registers when in said second position, further
comprised of; means coupled to said combining means, said means
coupled to said final and second play switches and said keyboard
counter for automatically causing a countup pulse to be coupled to
said keyboard counter and for activating said means coupled to said
second play switch when said control is moved to said first
position, and for automatically causing a countup pulse to be
coupled to said keyboard counter and for activating said means
coupled to said first play switch when said control is moved to
said second position, whereby said analog output control signals
may be caused to sequentially and smoothly vary through a series of
combinations by the movement of said control for said combining
means between first and second positions.
13. The light control system of claim 9 further comprised of first
and second fader control means associated with said conversion
means coupled to said first and second registers respectively, said
first fader control means being a means for varying the outputs of
said conversion means for said first registers in accordance with
the setting of said first fader means, and second fader means being
a means for varying the outputs of said conversion means for said
second registers in accordance with the setting of said second
fader means.
14. The light control system of claim 13 further comprised of a
memory master fader control means, said memory master fader control
means being coupled to said first and second fader control means
and operative to vary the output of said conversion means for said
first and second registers in accordance with the setting of said
memory master fader means.
15. The light control system of claim 9 further comprised of first,
second and third light display means, coupled to said keyboard
switches, said first light display means being a means for
displaying characters corresponding to the last of said keyboard
switches to be actuated, said second and third light display means
being further coupled to said first and second play switches,
respectively, and responsive thereto to display characters
corresponding to the keyboard switch associated with the digital
signals stored in said first and second registers,
respectively.
16. The light control system of claim 9 further comprised of a
rechargeable battery pack, said battery pack being coupled to said
semiconductor memory and being a means for providing power to the
memory cells when the main power is off so as to provide retention
of digital information stored in said memory.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field Of The Invention
This invention relates to the field of lighting control systems,
such as may be used for the sequential control of stage lighting
and the like.
2. Prior Art
Lighting systems for theaters and the like are generally adapted to
allow the independent control of various lights or groups of lights
so as to achieve various desired lighting combinations. By way of
example, for a stage show, various scenes will require various
lighting intensities and lighting color combinations so as to
enhance the color of costumes, simulate daylight, moonlight, etc.,
to contribute to the mood and spirit of such scenes. Since such
productions are normally repeated a number of times, it is highly
desirable that the lighting be easily controllable in a repeatable
manner.
Various means are well known in the prior art for the control of
such lighting. One of the earliest of such means to find general
application is the variable autotransformer. These devices are
comprised generally of a single layer toroidal winding on a
magnetic core, with each lead of the winding connected to one of
the terminals of the alternating current power source. One terminal
of the lights to be controlled is connected to the lead connected
to one terminal of the power source, and the other terminal of the
lights is coupled to a wiper disposed so as to variably contact a
bare surface of the wires forming toroidal winding in a readily
controllable manner. Thus, with the wiper adjacent the end of the
winding which is also coupled to the lights to be controlled, the
voltage and power delivered to the lights is substantially zero. As
the wiper is moved along the toroidal winding, an increasing
voltage and power is delivered to the lights, with the maximum
generally being limited to the voltage of the power source. Such
devices are commonly found in the older systems, and though they
perform the desired function, are not convenient to use for a
number of reasons. The control of such devices is entirely manual
and is very subject to human error. Further, the number of
individual controls that may be readily handled is very limited
and, therefore the flexibility in the lighting combinations is
similarly limited. The autotransformers are relatively large (to
handle the power required) and, therefore, are generally immovable,
require a substantial amount of space, and dissipate a considerable
amount of power, thereby requiring a permanent installation of
adequate space and cooling.
With the advent of silicon controlled rectifiers (SCR's) and their
ability to readily control considerable levels of AC power, newer
lighting systems have SCR controllers interposed in the power lines
to the lights, and have used smaller and more readily handled
devices for controlling the SCR controllers. By way of example,
potentiometers have been used to control the signal directed to the
SCR controllers. This type of control does not dissipate as much
power and requires less space than the autotransformer type of
control, though it still has certain disadvantages. By way of
example, in the present invention, individual controls for sixteen
light controllers may be pre-programmed for the semi-automatic
control of lighting through sixteen lighting combinations, with the
mere manual control of a single cross fade potentiometer control.
However, in prior art systems using all potentiometer control, 256
potentiometers would be required for pre-setting, and an additional
sixteen potentiometers for use as faders would be required. In such
a system, a first row of 16 potentiometers would be set in
accordance with the first desired lighting combination. The second
row of 16 potentiometers would be set in accordance with the second
desired lighting combination, etc., with the signal to each of the
SCR controllers being the sum of the signals for the corresponding
potentiometer in each of the 16 rows. To bring up the first
lighting combination, the master fader from the first row would be
brought up to the on position, with the other 15 master faders in
the off position. To change from one lighting combination to
another lighting combination, the master fader for the previous
lighting combination is smoothly moved to the off position while
the master fader corresponding to the desired new lighting
combination is moved to the on position. Thus, 272 potentiometer
controls, in addition to other switches and the like, are required
on the control panel, and, thus, such systems are also relatively
bulky, immobile and difficult to preset and use.
In a few prior art systems, information regarding the desired
lighting combinations throughout a sequence of combinations is
stored in digital form in a magnetic core memory of the type
commonly used in digital computers. These systems have the
advantage that a number of controls, equal in number to the light
controllers to be controlled for any one lighting combination, may
be set in the desired manner, the settings stored in the memory,
and then reset and similarly memorized for each subsequent lighting
combination. In this manner, the number of controls may be reduced
to that required for one lighting combination rather than that
required for all lighting combinations. However, such systems as
have utilized a digital memory of any type, and specifically of the
magnetic core type, have been very expensive and large capacity
systems, being limited in practical and economic operation in those
situations requiring extensive and numerous lighting
combinations.
There is, therefore, a need for a light control system which is
small and generally movable, which combines the desirable features
of storage of information in digital form in a memory of some form,
which is easy to operate, susceptible of substantially automatic
operation, and programmable before or during playback of the
various lighting combinations so as to be practical and economical
in those applications not justifying the magnetic core memory
systems, such as for school auditoriums and the like.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A light control system for the control of a plurality of lights in
a pre-programmed lighting sequence. The system is comprised of a
keyboard module and one or more controller modules which may be
coupled in series and operated from the single keyboard module.
Each controller module contains 16 manually operated light
controllers in the form of potentiometer controls and a
semiconductor memory capable of storing in digital form 16
individual settings for each of the 16 light controllers. The
keyboard has 16 pushbuttons with which any of the 16 lighting
combinations may be put into memory or selected out of memory for
control of the lights. The lighting combinations are put into
memory by setting the manually operated light controllers to the
desired position, pushing a keyboard switch indicating the number
to be assigned to the lighting combination and pushing a record
switch which causes the sequential analog to digital conversion of
each of the 16 light controller settings and the loading of the
respective digital information into the appropriate memory
spaces.
For reading the memorized information out of memory, first and
second registers are provided in each controller channel card for
retaining any pair of lighting combinations, with a cross fade
control on the keyboard module being adapted to provide a smooth
transition from one of such lighting combination to the other
combination. An automatic sequencing selection is provided whereby
each of the 16 lighting combinations will be automatically selected
in sequence through the use of the cross fade control. Other
features of the system include the ability to program one lighting
combination while playing another lighting combination, to have one
or more light controls under manual control while the rest are
under control by the memory, and a means for the displaying on a
meter any stored light control settings while playing back any
lighting combination. The system further includes a battery pack
and circuitry to allow power to be continuously applied to the
memory to prevent loss of the memorized information when the system
is "turned off."
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a keyboard module 20 and two
controller modules 22 connected in series thereto;
FIG. 2 is a front view of the keyboard module 20 of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a front view of a controller module 22 of FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the circuits and controls therefor
which are located in the keyboard module, or are located in the
controller module and are associated with all channels of the
controller; and,
FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the circuit for each channel in the
controller module, and in addition, for the meter circuit in the
controller module which is used in conjunction with all channels of
the controller module.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
First referring to FIG. 1, a perspective view of the present
invention may be seen. A keyboard module 20 and one or more
controller modules 22 are combined to comprise the system. In FIG.
1, two controller modules 22 are shown, with the first of such
controller modules connected to the keyboard module through cable
24, and the two controller modules connected through cable 26. As
shall be further described, the various electrical connections in
cable 26 are coupled directly to the equivalent connections in
cable 24 and, therefore, a parallel connection, that is, connection
of each of controllers 22 to the keyboard module 20, might also be
used. However, the series connection as shown in FIG. 1 is
particularly advantageous since it allows the use of a single
keyboard module 20 with substantially any number of controller
modules 22 without requiring a comparable number of connectors on
the keyboard module for connecting to each of the controller
modules. This is achieved by providing on each controller module
connectors for connection to a cable providing the input to that
controller and, in common therewith, additional and equivalent
connectors for coupling the same signals through another cable to
the next controller module (e.g. there are common male and female
connectors on each controller module). Thus, in the preferred
embodiment, the output of each controller is buffered so that an
unlimited number of controller modules 22 may be coupled in series
and controlled with a single keyboard module 20.
Now referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, a front view of the keyboard module
and of a controller module may be seen. The keyboard module has a
key switch 28 for activating the various power supplies. A circuit
breaker 30 of conventional design on the controller module provides
protection for the control power supplies. A keyboard 32, having 16
numbered momentary switches on the front thereof, is located at the
center of the keyboard, with a light emitting diode matrix 34
located thereabove for displaying numbers ranging from 1 to 16
thereon. One fader control is located on each side of keyboard 32
which, for reasons which will hereafter become apparent, are
referred to as the A and B fader controls. Thus, the A fader
control 36 is located to the left of keyboard 32, with a light
emitting diode matrix 38 similar to the matrix 34, located
thereabove, and an A play switch 40 located thereunder. The B fader
42 is located to the right of keyboard 32 with a light emitting
diode matrix 44 thereabove, and a B play switch 46 thereunder.
Under the keyboard 32 is a pile switch 48 and a cross fade switch
50 with a cross fader control 61 located thereunder. A pre-set
record switch 54 is located at the left of the keyboard module with
a sequence switch 56 thereunder, and a manual master fader control
58, with an all on manual pushbutton 60 thereunder, is located to
the right of the keyboard module. Each controller module 22 has 16
fader controls 62a through 62p in side-by-side relationship, with a
memory master fader control 64 to the right thereof. Above each of
the fader controls 62a through 62p is a three positioned switch 66
(e.g. 66a through 66p) located between controller 62p and memory
master 64 is a meter 68. The function of these various switches and
controls and the manner in which they are used will be subsequently
described in relation to the circuits of the present invention
light control system.
The 16 controllers 62a through 62p in the controller module are
individual potentiometer controls for each of up to 16 SCR light
controllers, coupled to and associated with, each of the controller
modules. The 16 pushbuttons on the keyboard 32 correspond to
corresponding ones of up to 16 combinations of controller 62
settings which may be stored in a semi-conductor memory in the
controller module. Thus, 256 controller 62 settings may be stored
in the memory comprising 16 combinations of the 16 controller
settings.
Now referring to FIGURES 4 and 5, block diagrams illustrating the
circuit, logic and interconnection of the system of the present
invention may be seen. FIGURE 4 is a diagram showing the circuits
and controls therefor which are located in the keyboard module, or
are located in the controller module and are associated with all
channels of the controller, whereas FIG. 5, except for the meter
circuit thereon, is a block diagram of the circuit for each channel
in the controller module, the controller module having 16 printed
circuit cards therein, each associated with one of the channels in
the controller module, and each containing the circuits indicated
in the block diagram.
In general, the individual circuits which in combination comprise
the lighting system of the present invention are all well-known
circuits, and the logical interrelationship thereof may be best
explained in relation to the manner of using the system. Thus, to
program this system for 16 selections of sixteen lighting
combinations, the following procedure is followed: (in the
following explanation it is assumed that the system is used in
conjunction with 16 SCR light controllers of conventional design so
that one controller module 22 is used with a keyboard module 20, it
being understood that additional controller modules as indicated in
FIG. 1, may also be used to control through one keyboard more than
16 light controllers.) The key switch 28 is turned on, thereby
activating the system and the all-on manual switch 60 is actuated.
This logically connects line 100 on each of the channel cards to
ground so that transistors T-1 and T-2 are turned on by the biasing
of the bases thereof through the voltage dividers defined by
resistors R-1 and R-2, and R-3 and R-4, respectively. This shorts
points 102 and 104 to ground. Similarly, transistor T-3 is turned
on, shorting point 106 to ground as a result of the base current
supplied to transistor T-3 through resistor network R-20, R-5 and
R-6. As shall subsequently be seen, the values of R-20, R-5 and R-6
are selected such that transistor T-3 is on at all times unless
line 100 is not connected to ground, either through the all-on
manual switch 60 or through the individual channel switch 66, and
simultaneously the output of inverter I-1 is positive. The
inverters herein such as inverter I-2 are of the type having a
floating output if the input is in the zero state, so that when in
the all-on manual mode, the voltage at point 108 will be determined
by the position of the channel controller potentiometer 62, with
this voltage appearing at the dimmer control terminal 110 through
resistors R-7 and R-8 and diode D-1, diodes D-2 and D-3 being back
biased at this time since points 102, 104 and 106 are shorted to
ground. Thus, the lights are directly controlled by the plurality
of potentiometer controllers 62a through 62p in the all-on manual
mode.
At the same time, the dimmer voltage, as determined by the position
of the channel control 62, also appears at terminal 112, with
resistor R-9 maintaining diode D-4 in a forward biased condition
and the dimmer voltage being coupled to terminal 112 through
forward biased diode D-5. Terminals 112 on each and every (e.g. 16)
channel card in a controller are connected in parallel to the input
112 of the analog to digital converter AD-1 in FIG. 4. A channel
address terminal 114 is coupled through an inverter I-3 to resistor
R-9 so that when a positive signal is applied to the channel
address terminal 114, point 116 is in the zero state, back biasing
diode D-4 and decoupling terminal 112 from the output of the
channel control 62. Also, in this condition, the analog to digital
converter terminal 112 is similarly decoupled from point 116 by the
back biasing of diode D-5. Therefore, by applying a positive
voltage to terminal 114, that is, a one state for all channels
except one, the input to the analog to digital converter AD-1 will
be equal to the channel controller 62 for that particular channel,
all other channels being decoupled at that time. Thus, it may be
seen that in the all-on manual mode, each dimmer may be
individually controlled with the channel control 62a through 62p,
and the input to the analog to digital converter AD-1 may be
addressed to any of the 16 controller channels by applying
appropriate signals to the channel address terminals 114 on the
various channel cards.
When in the all-on manual mode, the controllers 62a through 62p are
set to give one of the desired lighting combinations. (The
controllers 62a through 62p are coupled to the manual master fader
58 through line 99, which should be at (or near) its maximum
position for recording). To record the lighting combination in the
desired sequential position, one of the switches 32a through 32p on
keyboard 32 is momentarily depressed. This provides an input to the
BCD coder C-1 which codes the input and parallel loads the BCD
keyboard counter CR-1. The counter CR-1 is of the type susceptible
of parallel loading through multiple lines, and further, of countup
from any previously loaded number upon receipt of an appropriate
countup pulse, specifically through line 118. The output of the
keyboard counter CR-1, also a binary coded decimal number, is
displayed on the character display 34, which in the preferred
embodiment is a light emitting diode array having a seven segment
character preceded by a one, with the one driven from the ten line
on the output of the keyboard counter and the seven segment
character driven from a decoder coupled to the first four binary
output lines.
The output of the keyboard counter CR-1 is also applied to a
similar character display 38 and 44, though is not yet displayed on
either of these displays because of the absence of an enabling
signal on lines 120 and 122. The output of the keyboard counter
CR-1 is further coupled to a plurality of gates comprising a
comparison circuit CC-1 which compares the output of the keyboard
counter CR-1 with the output of a pre-set counter CR-2. If a
comparison is not obtained, a signal is applied through line 123 to
a clock enabling circuit E-1, which provides as an output a clock
pulse train on line 125 through OR gate or OR-1 to a memory address
counter CR-3 and a channel address counter CR-4. The memory address
counter is an eight bit binary counter (one through 256) and the
channel address counter is a one through 16 counter providing a
decoded output to address one controller card at a time, and each
controller card in sequence in the manner hereinbefore described.
Thus, the first 16 clock pulses through OR gate OR-1 advance the
memory address counter and the channel address counter through 16,
with the 17th pulse moving the memory address counter to seventeen
and effectively re-setting the channel address counter to one. The
return of the channel address counter output to one is coupled
through line 118 to the pre-set counter CR-2, which in turn is
coupled to the comparison circuit CC-1 through lines 124.
When one of the keyboard switches 32a through 32p is depressed, the
keyboard counter is loaded with the corresponding number in BCD
form and the number is displayed on display 34. The number is also
presented in BCD form to the comparison circuit CC1, and when the
record button 54 is depressed, the memory address counter CR-3 and
the channel address counter CR-4 are re-set, and the pre-set
counter CR-2 is re-set to one by a re-set pulse generated by
conventional re-set circuits (not shown). If the number presented
to the comparison circuit is one. (e.g., switch 32a was depressed),
a comparison is immediately obtained and no enabling signal is
applied to the clock enable E-1. On the other hand, if any number
other than one is punched in, the clock enable E-1 will provide a
train of clock pulses through OR gate OR-1 to the channel address
counter, and each time the counter counts through 16, the pre-set
counter CR-2 is advanced by one count. Thus, it may be seen that
the pre-set counter is advanced one count for every 16 counts of
the channel address counter, and since the channel address counter
is coupled to each of the channel cards in the controller, the
controller cards are addressed once in sequence for each advance of
the pre-set counter CR-2. Though this couples an input to the
analog to digital converter AD-1 through terminal 112, no
information is loaded into the memory M-1 because of the absence of
a write signal on line 134.
When a comparison is obtained, the clock signal is disabled and an
enabling signal is applied through line 128 to AND gate A-1. The
pre-set record switch 54 also applies a signal through line 126 and
OR gate OR-2 to the AND gate A-1. (Inverters I5, I6, and I7 provide
a logical inversion for the switches 46, 40 and 54, respectively).
Thus, with both enabling inputs to the AND gate A-1, an enable
signal is delivered to the ring counter CR-5. The ring counter, in
turn, is coupled to the analog to digital converter AD-1 to the
memory M-1 and to the OR gate OR-1 and when enabled, provides a
start pulse to the analog to digital converter AD-1. Since the
channel address counter is then addressing the first channel card,
the input to the A to D converter is the controller setting 62a for
the first channel on the controller module.
The analog to digital converter converts the analog input to a five
bit binary coded output which is coupled directly to the memory
M-1. The specific analog to digital converter used in the preferred
embodiment is of the type wherein sequentially, the most
significant bit is set and all other bits are re-set, the digital
output is converted to an analog signal by means of a resistor
network comprising a digital to analog converter, the D to A output
signal is compared with the analog input signal, and by appropriate
gating, the most significant bit is re-set if the D to A output is
greater than the analog input. Thereafter, the next most
significant bit is set, then re-set if the error signal changes
sign, etc., until the least significant bit has been similarly
processed, whereupon the analog to digital conversion is complete.
This type of analog to digital converter is well-known in the prior
art and may be found in many reference books on the subject, such
as that hereafter specifically mentioned. At the end of the analog
to digital conversion, the ring counter CR-5 is advanced by a
signal on line 132, which provides a write pulse on line 134 so as
to cause the digital output of the analog to digital converter to
be stored in the memory M-1. The ring counter CR-5 then provides a
pulse to the memory address counter CR-3 and the channel address
counter CR-4 through line 136 and OR gate OR-1, thereby addressing
the next memory location and the next channel card. The ring
counter CR-5 then initiates the next A to D conversion cycle by a
signal on line 130, and continues in this cycle until the channel
address counter CR-4 addresses the last or 16th channel card, at
which time the addressing of the 16th channel card is coupled
through line 138 to the ring counter CR-5 to disenable the ring
counter from further counting.
Thus, it may be seen that the first 16 memory word locations are
used to store the first 16 controller settings, the second 16
memory word locations are used to store the second 16 controller
settings, etc. and upon pushing any of the 16 numbered keyboard
switches, the memory is automatically addressed to the first of the
proper 16 memory word locations, whether to subsequently write the
information into the memory as hereabove described or to read the
information out of memory as shall subsequently be described.
In the preferred embodiment, the analog to digital converter AD-1
provides a five bit binary output, thus dividing the substantially
continuous controller settings into 32 discrete settings. The
memory M-1 in the preferred embodiment is a semiconductor memory,
specifically an MOS LSI memory manufactured by Intel Corporation of
Mountain View, California, as their part No. 1101. Each 1101 unit
provides a 256 bit memory, and five of such units are used, one for
each bit of the five bit binary number. Thus, the first storage
space in the first 1101 is used to store the first bit in the
binary number representing the first controller position for the
first keyboard selection. The second storage space is used to store
the first bit in the second controller position binary number, etc.
The first storage space in the second 1101 is used to store the
second bit in the binary number representing the first controller
setting for the first keyboard selection, the second storage space
is used for the second bit in the second controller setting for the
first keyboard selection, etc. Thus, addressing each of the five
1101 units simultaneously with the same address provides a parallel
read and a parallel write capability for each five bit binary
number.
Once the memory is loaded as desired, a lighting combination may be
played back out of the memory in any desired order or, if desired,
in sequence. To play the lighting combination back in sequence, the
cross fader 61 is placed in the left hand position (FIG. 2), the
keyboard switch 32a is depressed, and the A play button 40 is then
depressed. By depressing the keyboard switch 32a, the input to the
comparison circuit is set as in loading. Similarly, when the A play
switch 40 is depressed, the various counters are reset as in
loading (e.g. when the record button is depressed), a signal is
applied through line 140 to the A load enable circuit E-2 and
simultaneously through line 146 to the ring counter CR-5 to
disenable the write signal on line 134 coming therefrom, and to
enable the operation of the ring counter through OR gate OR-2 and
AND gate A-1. Thus, the ring counter again addresses the next 16
memory positions and the 16 channel cards. (In the preferred
embodiment, an analog to digital conversion by the analog to
digital converter AD-1 actually occurs, as hereinbefore described,
though because the write signal on line 134 is disabled, no writing
into memory occurs). As the individual channel cards are addressed
through terminals 114a through 114p, the A load enable circuit E-2
of each channel card provides a pulse on line 142 which strobes the
memory output on lines 109 into the A register S-1 on the
particular channel card. Thus, when the first channel card is
addressed, the memory output corresponding to the controller
setting for that channel for the particular keyboard selection (in
the example keyboard setting number one) is strobed into the A
register S-1. Also, an enable signal is applied through the enable
line 120 to the A character display 38 so as to display the
keyboard counter number corresponding to the information loaded
into the A registers of the various channel cards. The character
display 38, as in character display 44 for the B channel, contains
a register so that once the character is strobed into the register
by the enable signal, that character will remain displayed until a
new character is strobed in, even if the keyboard counter CR-1
count subsequently changes.
To load the B registers in the various cards, another keyboard
setting may be selected, (for sequential operation keyboard switch
32b will be depressed), and the B play button 46 will then be
depressed. As in channel A, the depression of keyboard switch 32b
followed by depression of the B plug switch 46 addresses the
appropriate memory position and provides a signal on line 144 to
the B load enable signal E-3 and starts a read cycle by a signal
coupled to the ring counter CR-5 through line 146. Thus, as before,
as each channel card is addressed, the B load enable signal E-3 on
the various channel cards will strobe the appropriate information
into the appropriate B registers S-2.
The all-on manual switch 60 is an alternate action switch and when
off the information stored in the A registers and B registers may
be played back in a variety of ways. The cross fader 61 is coupled
to a fade and sequence circuit F-1, and by control thereof
oppositely varying signals may be applied through lines 150 and 152
to the A fader 36 and the B fader 42, respectively. Thus, with the
cross fader 61 in the maximum left hand position, the maximum
signal is applied through line 150 to the A fader 36, whereas the
signal applied through line 152 to the B fader 42 is substantially
zero. By moving the cross fader to the right hand position, the
signal applied to the A fader 36 linearly decreases to zero whereas
the signal applied to the B fader 42 increases to a maximum. The
potentiometer wiper signals of faders 36 and 42 are coupled to a
pair of mechanically coupled potentiometers forming the memory
master fader 64, with the outputs of the wipers coupled on lines
154 and 156 to the digital to analog converters DA-1 and DA-2,
respectively. These converters are of the well-known resistor
network type wherein a signal output voltage is provided which is a
fraction of the reference voltage applied thereto as determined by
the binary input. Thus, the digital to analog converter outputs on
lines 158 and 160 are analog signals which are dependent upon the
cross fader 61 position, the information stored in the A or B
register and the position of the A or B fader. Assuming both the A
and B faders are at their maximum position, the output of the
digital to analog converter DA-1 may be caused to linearly decrease
from the number stored in register S-1 to zero and the output of
the digital to analog converter DA-2 linearly increased from zero
to the value corresponding to the binary number in register S-2 by
moving the cross fader 61 from the left hand position to the right
hand position.
When the all-on manual switch 60 is open, (and the corresponding
switch 66 is in the open position), transistor T-1 is turned off by
a voltage applied to the base thereof through resistors R-10 and
R-2. Thus, the signal on line 158 is coupled through resistors R-11
and R-12 and diode D-3 to the dimmer control signal 110 for that
channel. The signal on line 160 from the B channel may be combined
with the signal from the A channel two ways. When the pile switch
48 is depressed, a positive or one signal is applied through line
162 to the inverter I-4. The zero output is coupled to resistor
R-11 and because of the coupling of the base of transistor T-2
through R-3 to the negative voltage supply, transistor T-2 is
turned on. This shorts point 104 to ground and prevents the
coupling of the signal on line 160 to point 164. The zero output of
inverter I-4 is also coupled to inverter I-1 giving a one output
therefrom which turns off transistor T-3 through resistor R-6.
Thus, the output of the B register is coupled to resistors R-13 and
R-14 and to diode D-2 to the dimer control terminal 110. It is
apparent that because of the diodes D-2 and D-3, the signal
appearing at the dimmer control terminal 110 will be the higher of
the output signals of the D to A converters DA-1 and DA-2. In the
pile on mode, the cross fader 61 is switched out of the circuit and
a reference voltage is switched directly to the A and B faders.
Thus, by decreasing the position of the A fader 36, the lighting
combination stored in the A registers will linearly decrease, with
each dimmer signal decreasing until the corresponding output of the
B register (dependent on the position of the B fader 42) increases
to the same value, whereupon the output from the B register will
control and increase the light to the corresponding setting. Thus,
a change from one lighting combination to another lighting
combination is achieved, though a significant and observable dip in
lighting may occur.
When the cross fade switch 50 is depressed, a low signal is applied
through line 162 to the inverter I-4 giving a high signal through
resistor R-11 to the base of transistor T-2, thereby turning it off
and providing a low signal through inverter I-1 and resistor R-6 to
the base of transistor T-3, turning it on. This shorts out point
106 and prevents the signal being delivered through diode D-2 to
the dimmer control 110, and at the same time couples the output of
the B channel on line 160 through resistors R-15 and R-16 to point
164. Thus, the combination of resistors R-11, R-12, R-15 and R-16
provide a resistive summing network, with the signal applied to
diode D-3, and thus to the dimmer terminal 110, being the average
of the two output signals of the two digital to analog converters
DA-1 to DA-2. Thus, with the cross fade switch depressed, a linear
and dipless transition from the lighting combination stored in the
A register to the lighting combination stored in the B register and
vice-versa may be achieved through the cross fade control. Also, it
should be noted that the pile switch 48 and the cross fade switch
50 are mutually exclusive conditions and a flip-flop comprised of
NAND gates N-1 and N-2 are set or re-set in accordance with the
last of the switches to be depressed.
From the above description, it may be seen that the memorized
lighting combinations may be played back in any order and a smooth
transition obtained from any one combination to any other
combination. When the sequence switch 56 is depressed, the
memorized lighting combinations may be played back in sequence. By
way of example, the first lighting combination may be stored in the
A registers and a one will be displayed in the A display 38.
Thereafter, the second lighting combination may be stored in the B
registers with a two being displayed in the B display 44. At this
point, the keyboard counter CR-1 will have loaded thereinto the
binary number two. Assuming that the cross fader 61 is in the left
hand position, the first lighting sequence as stored in the A
registers will be provided to the light controllers, and as the
cross-fader is moved to the right hand position the lighting
combination will change to the second combination as stored in the
B registers (both being also individually controllable through the
A and B faders 36 and 42, respectively, or simultaneously
controlled by the memory master fader 64). The position of cross
fader 61 is sensed by the fade and sequence circuit F-1 and as the
cross fader approaches its maximum position, the fade and sequence
switch provides a countup pulse on line 118 to the keyboard counter
CR-1, thereby, in effect, setting the keyboard counter as if the
next keyboard select switch 32 had been depressed. At the same
time, a signal is applied by the fade and sequence circuit F-1 to
lines 140 or 144 so as to enable the loading of the next light
combination into either the A or B registers of each channel card.
By way of example, when the cross fader 61 is moved to the right
hand position, whereby the light controllers are controlled by the
information in the B registers, a signal will be applied to line
140 by the fade and sequence circuit F-1 so as to enable the
reloading of the A registers, with the countup pulse applied to the
keyboard counter advancing that counter from a two count to a three
count, thereby changing the information heretofore stored in the A
registers from that corresponding to the first lighting combination
to the third lighting combination. In a similar manner, when the
cross fader 61 is moved to the left hand position, the keyboard
counter CR-1 is advanced to the number four and a signal applied by
the fade and sequence circuit F-1 to line 144, thereby changing the
information loaded in the B registers from that corresponding to
the second lighting combination to that corresponding to the fourth
lighting combination. Thus, by moving the cross fade switch back
and forth as the lighting combinations are changed, the light
control system will automatically cycle through 16 pre-memorized
lighting combinations.
It should be noted that this automatic sequencing may be achieved
in either the pile mode, as controlled by the switch 48, or in the
cross fade mode as controlled by switch 50, and, further, once
information is loaded into the A and B registers out of memory, the
light controllers may be controlled from the information in the A
register, in the B register, or in any combination through the
cross fade control 61, and at the same time the keyboard switches
32a through 32p, the pre-set record switch 54 and the 16
controllers 62a through 62p may be used to program other memory
locations. Thus, if more than 16 lighting combinations are to be
played back, a few of the first combinations may be played back in
sequence, and once played back, these memory locations may be used
to store the additional lighting combinations desired.
The manner of loading the memory and of playing the information out
of memory has been hereabove described. In certain instances, it
may be desired, while playing back one lighting combination, to
read out of memory the settings in any of the other lighting
combinations. This may be achieved as follows: assuming that a
lighting combination is being played back out of the A register,
that is, with the cross fader control 61 in the left hand position,
any lighting combination may be loaded into the B register without
affecting that play back by pushing the appropriate keyboard switch
32 followed by the B play button 46. This will load the information
for the selected lighting combination into the B registers. At the
same time, the output of the B load enable E-3 will be coupled
through line 143 to the meter enable circuit E-4, which in turn is
coupled to the A register output 145 and a B register output 147,
(these lines not being connected to the register outputs in FIG. 5
only for purposes of clarity). The meter enable circuit E-4
includes a flip-flop which is set or reset in accordance with the
last load enable signal received, that is, either the A load enable
or the B load enable. Thus, since the last enable signal in the
above example received was from the B load enable circuit E-3, the
meter enable circuit will disable the A register output, and upon
depression of the appropriate switch 66 to the meter position,
enables the B register output to be coupled to the digital to
analog converter DA-3, similar in construction to the digital to
analog converter DA-1 and DA-2, except for the use of a fixed
voltage reference. The output of the digital to analog converter
DA-3 is coupled to the meter 68. It should be noted that each
channel has a meter enable circuit E-4 and all 16 meter enable
circuits of the 16 channel cards are coupled in parallel to the
digital to analog converter DA-3. However, the meter enable circuit
E-4 provides a decoupled zero output unless the particular meter
enable circuit is in fact enabled. Therefore, the meter enable
circuit E-4 which has the highest output controls the digital to
analog converter DA-3, and since only one of the switches 66a
through 66p will be depressed to the meter position at once, any
individual memorized controller setting may be read out on meter
68. (It should be noted that switches 66a through 66p are three
position switches, and in the upper position put the respective
channel in the manual mode. When in that condition, each such
channel may be manually controlled by the master controller 58 and
one of the respective ones of controllers 62a through 62p, while
the rest of the channels are controlled out of memory).
The type of semiconductor memory used in the present invention will
not retain the memorized information if power is interrupted or
shut off. Thus, a rechargeable battery pack B1 is provided in the
controller module to maintain a memory sustaining power level to
the memory when the main power is interrupted or shut off. Very
little power is required to maintain the memory, as semiconductor
memories generally have separate power lines for the memory cells
and the addressing, buffering, etc. circuitry and only the memory
cells themselves need be energized for memory retention. Such
battery packs and the circuitry for connection thereof so as to be
self charging when the power is on are known in the art and
therefore are not described in further detail herein.
There has been described herein a light controller which may be
used to memorize and play back 16 combinations of 16 or more light
controller settings, to smoothly change from one combination to any
other combination, or to change combinations in their memorized
sequence, which is capable of being caused to memorize additional
combinations while playing back any of the previous memorized
combinations, which is capable of indicating on a meter any of the
memorized controller settings while playing back any of the
combinations and which includes other and further features which
will be apparent from the drawings and specifications herein. The
detailed circuits making up the various counters, coders, decoders,
registers and the like may be any of the corresponding well-known
circuits for such devices having the characteristics as described
herein. Such circuits are well known in the field of digital
devices and computers and many of these circuits are available in
integrated circuit form from any of a number of manufacturers. The
circuits, wiring and use thereof are described in detail in the
respective manufacturers'products information sheets, and the
circuits in general are described in any of the many reference
books on the subject, such as, by way of specific example, "DIGITAL
COMPUTER COMPONENTS AND CIRCUITS" by R. K. Richards, a 1957 Van
Nostrand Company, Inc. publication. There has been disclosed and
described herein the basic logic and information flow in the
present invention light control system and, where particularly
applicable, specific circuits which may be used in the present
invention system. However, the specific circuits, memory devices
and the like disclosed herein are disclosed only by way of example,
and other circuits, memory devices and the like may be used, Thus,
while the invention has been particularly shown and described with
reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood
by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and
details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and
scope of the invention.
* * * * *