Programmable control for siren and lights
Contents
1. nr 4 200 2 5 US 2013 0038444 1 Feb 14 2013 Sheet 7 of 11 Patent Application Publication Dis 335 002 JINGOW 1O3 LNOO LNALNO LAANI 5919 335 00 FINGOW 9 338 009 SINGOW LHOM MoS Mee MOLLSMONSV WNYSALXa WINGS IHON Patent Application Publication Feb 14 2013 Sheet 8 of 11 US 2013 0038444 A1 lt lt VOLTAGE SPEAKER BATT REGULATOR OUTPUT 401 CURRENT 402 SENSE 404 SPEAKER DRIVER CIRCUIT 406 VEHICLE IGNITION 408 gt MICROPROCESSOR SUB MODULE 500 FOR THE AMPLIFIER MODULE USB SAE SEE FIG 5 VEHICLE VO 434 IN PARK SWITCH 412 REMOTE SWITCH 414 DC BIAS FOR AUDIO CIRCUIT 430 DIGITAL AMP POT CIRCUIT RRB OR 426 428 MIC SIGNAL CONDITION CIRCUIT INTERCLEAR 422 CIRCUIT 418 CONTROLLED SWITCH 424 INPUTS FROM CONTROL HEAD FIG 4 MIC INPUTS FROM CONTROL HEAD 420 419 Patent Application Publication Feb 14 2013 Sheet 9 of 11 US 2013 0038444 1 PORTS 532 ANALOG TONE TIMER CIRCUIT 524 D FET S CIRCUIT FLIP PORTS 504 SPEAKER S FLOP 528 526 FET EN HORN RELAY INTERCLEAR DIGITAL TONE 522 MICROPROCESSOR 502 CONTROLLING PORTS 530 THE AMPLIFIER MODULE PARK KILL HORN RING ICSP2. MO Le au mojeg sje ez ay ndui au sndyno dop yas aq uea yoe US 2013 0038444 A1 U01991014 alqeu3 10000111 ajpied dh 185 Jash ayy smoje peog ay aGeue y NHOH 02 Feb 14 2013 Sheet 2 of 11 44 INI V L Sls Patent Application Publication US 2013 0038444 1 Feb 14 2013 Sheet 3 of 11 Patent Application Publication H H H H H H H H H H H H i H suonoas uoyng ysnd 3ND 4134 Fes 225 sindino paysajas ayeanae 0 ag uea suongeysnd JND1 LTY PUE TINA palqPsip aq yooquang AU WOKE ANE pajgeua si yooqUaNS yNeyap 9 si po quals saua BLY E 18487 10 2 8487 8487 yamg BASEL yayi ued 2146 58101 uals gz TOUS
3. 15 The system of claim 1 further comprising at least one of the following wherein at least one of the processors is programmed to implement a configurable power manager function or a configurable load manager function wherein at least one of the processors is programmed to implement monitoring voltages or currents of compo nents and includes de energizing a component having a monitored voltage or a monitored current outside a pre set range and wherein at least one of the processors is programmed to monitor a power supply voltage level and recognize dropout voltage groups selectable by a user and wherein in response to the monitored voltage level falling below a specified voltage level for a selected dropout voltage group the processor is programmed to cause the selected dropout voltage group to become de energized 16 The system of claim 15 wherein the preset range and the specified voltage level are each selectable by user via a USB port connected to one of the processors and wherein a delay period must elapse before a group is de energized 17 The system of claim 1 wherein the control head pro cessor is programmed to implement a light alert function in which an audible signal is generated on a periodic basis when lighting including auxiliary and traffic directing lighting is activated 18 The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of the processors is programmed to implement a lock function selectable at configuration
4. PIEZO BUZZER CIRCUIT 722 PUSH BUTTON ARROWSTICK CIRCUIT 720 LEVEL INDICATORS 718 FIG 7 US 2013 0038444 Al PROGRAMMABLE CONTROL FOR SIREN AND LIGHTS BACKGROUND 0001 The technology described in this patent document generally relates to a system for controlling sirens and warn ing lights in a motorized vehicle and in particular to a pro grammable control system for a siren and warning lights in a motorized vehicle SUMMARY 0002 Systems and methods are described herein for con trolling a siren and warning light system in a motorized vehicle In one example a system is provided for use with a power supply of a vehicle an emergency warning light and a speaker The system includes an amplifier module a light module and a control module The amplifier module has an input receiving power from the power supply and has outputs for selectively energizing the emergency warning light and for selectively energizing the speaker The amplifier module has an amplifier module processor controlling the outputs of amplifier module The amplifier module processor has acom munications port The light module has an input receiving power from the power supply and has outputs for controlling the emergency warning light The light module has a light module processor communicating the amplifier module and controlling the outputs of the light module The light module processor has acommunications port A communications link connects
5. be provided and components may be combined Alternatively or in addition a component may be implemented by several components 0091 The above description illustrates the invention by way of example and not by way of limitation This description enables one skilled in the art to make and use the invention and describes several example implementations adaptations variations alternatives and uses of the invention including what is presently believed to be the best mode of carrying out the invention Additionally it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings The invention is capable of other example implementations and of being practiced or carried out in various ways Also it will be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting 0092 Having described aspects of the invention in detail it will be apparent that modifications and variations are pos sible without departing from the scope of aspects of the inven tion as defined in the appended claims As various changes could be made in the above constructions products and methods without departing from the scope of aspects of the invention it is intended that all matter contained in the above description and shown in accompanying dr
6. mined voltage level 0083 For purposes of illustration programs and other executable program components such as the operating sys tem are illustrated herein as discrete blocks It is recognized however that such programs and components reside at vari ous times in different storage components of the computer and are executed by the data processor s of the computer 0084 Although described in connection with an exem plary computing system environment example implementa tions are operational with numerous other general purpose or special purpose computing system environments or configu rations The computing system environment is not intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use or functionality of any aspect of the invention Moreover the computing system environment should not be interpreted as having any dependency or requirement relating to any one or combina tion of components illustrated in the exemplary operating environment Examples of well known computing systems environments and or configurations that may be suitable for use with aspects of the invention include but are not limited to personal computers server computers hand held or lap top devices multiprocessor systems microprocessor based systems set top boxes programmable consumer electronics mobile telephones network PCs minicomputers mainframe computers distributed computing environments that include any of the above systems or devices
7. 0051 INTERCLEAR to control InterClear feature output 0052 RRS EN to enable disable the RRB audio sig nal from going through the controlled switch 424 0053 EN to enable disable the PA audio signal from going through the controlled switch 424 0054 HOLD ON to hold power to the amplifier the light board and the control head until the vehicle ignition is off and the sleep timer has expired 0055 POWER EN to switch siren speaker output from full to reduced power out 0056 REMOTE to monitor an external remote switch 0057 PARK KILL to monitor the park switch and 0058 HORN RING to monitor the status of the horn ring switch 0059 An ICSP port 506 is in circuit serial program ming port for programming the microprocessor 502 The microprocessor is connected to an overvoltage circuit 508 for monitoring the applied voltage and selectively shutting down Feb 14 2013 components or a system when the voltage exceeds a prepro grammed maximum e g 15 volts An external clock 510 may be connected to the microprocessor 502 An I O port 512 is connected to and communicates with a light board module processor 602 In order to prevent overheating port 514 monitors temperature sensors positioned adjacent MOSFETs 528 driving the siren speakers 407 Communications port 518 is connected to a USB communication interface such as an MCP2200 for connecting to a USB port of an external com puter e g
8. and the like 0085 The example implementations may be described in the general context of data and or computer executable instructions such as program modules stored one or more tangible computer storage media and executed by one or more computers or other devices Generally program modules include but are not limited to routines programs objects components and data structures that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types Example imple mentations may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote process ing devices that are linked through a communications net work Ina distributed computing environment program mod ules may be located in both local and remote computer storage media including memory storage devices 0086 In operation computers and or servers may execute the computer executable instructions such as those illustrated herein to implement aspects of the invention 0087 Examples may be implemented with computer ex ecutable instructions The computer executable instructions may be organized into one or more computer executable components or modules on a tangible computer readable storage medium Examples may be implemented with any number and organization of such components or modules For example Example implementations are not limited to the specific computer executable instructions or the specific components or modules illustrated in the
9. by the siren Alternatively or in addition the system may have one or more of the following 0010 wherein when a push to talk PTT function is activated for providing audio via a speaker one or more of the processors resets the PTT function after a preset period of being activated so that the reset returns the system to its previous condition even though the PTT function continues to be active thereby avoiding a sys tem operation in which the PTT function is activated beyond the preset period 0011 one or more of the processors is programmed to implement a configurable power manager function or a configurable load manager function 0012 one or more of the processors is programmed to implement monitoring voltages or currents of compo nents and includes de energizing a component having a monitored voltage or a monitored current outside a pre set range 0013 one or more of the processors is programmed to implement monitoring current or voltage of the power supply and includes dropout voltage groups wherein a user selects one or more groups of outputs of the system to de energize when the power supply levels fall below a specified voltage level for each selected group and or 0014 wherein one or more of the processors imple ments a load manager function and a configurable delayed shutoff function wherein the load manager when configured controls the power to other equipment in the vehicle through an external solenoid and wherein
10. example provided is a system for con trolling the use of an emergency warning light system and for controlling the use ofa siren system in a motorized vehicle A user control panel receives user input and displays system status One or more processors control operation of the sys tem in response to received user input and provide system status for display Storage media encoded with emergency Feb 14 2013 warning light system instructions for execution by one or more of the processors controls the actuation of the emer gency warning light system and controls light patterns gen erated by the emergency warning light system The storage media further encoded with siren system instructions for execution by one or more of the processors controls the actua tion of the siren system and controls audible sounds generated by the siren system 0009 In another example a system is provided for con trolling the use of an emergency warning light and for con trolling the use of a siren in a motorized vehicle A user control panel receives user input and displays system status One or more processors controls operation of the system in response to received user input and provides system status for display Storage media encoded with system instructions for execution by one or more of the processors controls the actua tion of and the pattern provided through the emergency warn ing light and controls the actuation of and the audible sounds generated
11. laptop or desktop to program the processor 502 which controls the amplifier module 400 Port 520 connects to the control head 700 via an SAE J1708 circuit such as a DS36277 transceiver Digital and analog tones to the siren speakers are provided by either an analog tone timer circuit 524 controlled by and responsive to the microprocessor 502 or by a digital tone signal 522 generated by the microproces sor 502 viaa flip flop 526 anda MOSFET circuit 528 driving speaker s 0060 Input Outputs to from the microprocessor 502 include an data port for communicating with a light module processor 602 a SIREN EN port for enabling the short circuit current sense circuit to allow for tone generation by the siren a PTT port for monitoring the push to talk switch on the microphone a PC CLOCK port for generating the clock pulses for C communications a VOX port for monitoring voice a RESET port that may be connected to ground for resetting the microprocessor 502 to factory default configuration an ALARM port for sensing a user supplied monitor such as a canine temperature sensor and or an IGNITION port for monitoring when the ignition is on or off 0061 In one example implementation the system includes computer executable diagnostic instructions stored on a tangible computer readable media and executable by the amplifier module processor 502 for detecting one or more of the following system faults 0062 A configuration failure in w
12. the configurable delayed shutoff function when config ured includes a sleep delay timer such that the system remains active after the vehicle ignition is turned off for the duration of the sleep delay timer BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS AND APPENDICES 0015 FIG 115 a block diagram of another example system for controlling the actuation of a warning light system and siren in a motorized vehicle 0016 FIGS 1A 1D are example screen shots of the con trol panel for configuring an example amplifier module 0017 FIG 2 is an illustration of the display of an example control head lined for color The toggle switch and the left section of the faceplate of the control head are lined for the color red the center section of the faceplate of the control US 2013 0038444 Al head is lined for blue and the upper right section of the faceplate of the control head is lined for yellow e g amber 0018 FIG 3 is a block diagram of an example system for controlling warning lights and a siren 0019 FIG 4 is a block diagram of an example amplifier module 0020 FIG 5 is a block diagram of an example micropro cessor sub module for the example amplifier module 0021 FIG 6 is a block diagram of an example light mod ule 0022 FIG 7 is a block diagram of an example control head module 0023 APPENDIX 1 illustrates FUNCTIONS CON TROLLED BY AMPLIFIER MODULE processor of an example system 0024 APPENDIX 2 illustrates F
13. the horn ring is configured for Hit n Go the InterClear feature turns on when the vehicle horn ring is pressed and remains on for approximately 7 to 8 seconds The siren also generates one of the secondary tones as configured In one embodiment a manual button can also turn on the InterClear output while it is pressed The InterClear output can also be configured to operate as the LoadMGR output This feature disables the normal InterClear function and utilizes the same circuitry to provide a positive signal This signal may be US 2013 0038444 Al connected to a user supplied solenoid or relay to power other equipment within the vehicle The LoadMGR continues to supply this output until the input voltage to the amplifier drops below a configurable level or until the ignition is turned off and the sleep timer expires 0046 In one example implementation the InterClear cir cuit is internally current limited to one 1 amp If an appli cation requires higher currents a power booster may be used Also shown in FIG 4 are the inputs 419 420 from the micro phone which are connected via the control head 700 includ ing a radio re broadcast RRB and or microphone signal conditioning circuit 422 There is also a microphone con trolled switch 424 which is connected to a digital potentiom eter 426 and an amplifier circuit 428 to control volume The digital potentiometer 426 is controlled by via the PC port 434 to adjust the volume during PTT P
14. wherein a remote input activates the lock function allowing only preset siren tones to be gen erated via the speakers when a signal is applied to the remote input 19 The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of the processors is programmed to implement a user configurable input voltage monitoring and dropout function in which an input voltage from the power supply is monitored and one or US 2013 0038444 Al more operations are disabled when the input voltage is out side a user configurable range 20 The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of the processors is programmed to implement a load manager func tion and a configurable delayed shutoff function wherein the load manager when activated controls the power to other equipment in the vehicle through an external solenoid and wherein the configurable delayed shutoff function when acti vated includes a sleep delay timer such that the system remains active after the vehicle ignition is turned off for the duration of the sleep delay timer 21 The system of claim 20 wherein the load manager function and the delayed shutoff function control the power supplied to other loads in the vehicle such that the power to these other loads are turned off when the user turns off the vehicle ignition or the voltage of the battery for the vehicle has dropped below a predetermined voltage level 22 The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of the processors is programmed to implement a user configurabl
15. which allow the system to receive under voltage and over voltage thresholds from an operator 7 The system of claim 1 wherein the amplifier module processor is programmed to reset a PTT function after a preset period of time elapses after a PTT push button is continu ously engaged to activate the PTT function for providing audio via a speaker to prevent the PTT function from remain ing activated beyond the preset period 8 The system of claim 1 wherein the amplifier module processor is programmed to execute instructions for generat ing a siren tone responsive to the engagement of each of the following switches on the control head A WAIL push button wherein the microprocessor gener ates a wail tone via a siren speaker YELP push button wherein the microprocessor gener ates a yelp tone via a siren speaker A ALT TONE push button wherein the microprocessor generates the Hi Lo tone via a siren speaker and A MANUAL push button wherein the microprocessor generates a manual wail tone via a siren speaker 9 The system of claim 1 further comprising instructions for execution by the amplifier module processor for providing digital volume control including separate and independent digital volume control for at least one of radio re broadcast RRB push to talk PTT and public address PA transmis sions of audio 10 The system of claim 1 wherein the amplifier module processor is programmed to broadcast two way radio recep Feb 1
16. 4 2013 tion over siren speakers when a two way radio is connected to an auxiliary port of the amplifier module 11 The system of claim 1 further comprising a light source for backlighting the control head wherein an intensity or brightness of the light source is adjustable wherein the control head processor is responsive to a user to selectively dim the light source 12 The system of claim 1 further comprising solid state relays controlled by the amplifier module processor for selec tively providing power to energize the emergency warning light and wherein the light module processor is connected to and controls the selective energizing of the emergency warn ing lights to create various patterns in response to user input via the control head 13 The system of claim 1 wherein the control head includes three control groups presented to an operator a first control group for selectively controlling speaker operation a second control group for selectively controlling auxiliary operations of the emergency warning light and the speakers and a third control group for selectively controlling a traffic directing light and the emergency warning light 14 The system of claim 13 wherein the first control group includes a toggle switch and other switches having a faceplate colored red wherein the second control group includes switches having a faceplate colored blue and wherein the third control group has switches having a faceplate colored amber
17. A push to talk public address and RRB radio re broadcast operation During PTT PA and RRB operation an operator may adjust the vol ume setting and the adjusted setting is stored in memory Thus the amplifier microprocessor sub module 500 e g microprocessor 502 stores in memory the previous digital volume control setting during each of and RRB operation and sets the potentiometer 426 at the previous set ting the next time PTT PA or RRB operation is actuated by the operator Also part of the related connections are a circuit 430 controlling a DC bias of the audio circuit and a voice input 432 audio power is indicated as V 4p 0047 The module 400 includes several I O ports 434 for communication including an port for communicating with the light board module 600 an SAE J1708 port for communicating with the control head 700 anda programming port for communication with a USB port of a computer hav ing software for programming the processor 502 of the ampli fier module 400 0048 FIG 5 is a block diagram of an example micropro cessor sub module for the amplifier module 400 In this example the microprocessor 502 for the amplifier module 400 is a PIC 16F887 E PT processor although other proces sors may be used Input output 1 0 ports 504 include one or more of the following 0049 FET EN to enable disable siren output FETs 528 to the siren speakers 0050 HORN RELAY to enable disable the vehicle horn
18. For example FIG 1A illustrates a screen 120 which allows user to select the load management settings such as under voltage and over voltage thresholds among other setting discussed herein FIG 1B illustrates a screen 140 which allows a user to select the siren lock settings among other setting discussed herein FIG 1C illustrates a screen 160 which allows a user to select the California Title 13 settings CA T 13 among other setting discussed herein FIG 1B illustrates a screen 180 which allows a user to select function settings for a 3 level toggle switch 182 see also 202 of FIG 2 among other setting discussed herein 0036 The storage media 110 may also be encoded with operating options instructions that when executed by one or more of the processors 108 causes the system 100 to receive operating options data over the I O port 112 The operating options data when interpreted by one of the processors 108 executing the operating options instructions causes the sys tem to make available for user selection via the user control panel 106 e g a control head module 700 a subset of avail able system operating options The subset of system operat ing options corresponds to the operating options data 0037 Tangible computer readable media 116 encoded with computer executable configurable instructions may also be provided for use with the external computer The user configurable instructions when executed by the external com pu
19. MANUAL push button is pressed 0070 Usually a PTT push button is pressed on a micro phone to activate the PTT function In one example imple mentation the amplifier module processor 502 resets the PTT function after a preset period e g 30 seconds of being held so that the reset returns to its previous condition even though the PTT push button is still being held in the on position This avoids the situation where the PTT push button is stuck in the ON position for extended periods such as beyond the preset period 0071 In one example implementation computer execut able instructions for providing a digital volume control are implemented by the amplifier module processor 502 includ ing separate and independent volume control for radio re broadcast RRB and public address PA transmissions of audio provided by a microphone connected to the control head The microphone has a PTT press to talk push button which is also responsive to a volume adjustment mode for digitally adjusting the potentiometer 426 to adjust the vol ume 0072 Optionally the amplifier module processor 502 may execute computer instructions broadcasting two way radio reception over the siren speakers 407 when a two way radio is connected to an auxiliary port of the amplifier module 400 0073 In FIG 5 the other inputs and outputs to ampli fier module 400 which are illustrated in FIG 4 are directly or indirectly via circuits connected to the proce
20. PORT 506 OVERVOLTAGE CIRCUIT 508 CLOCK 510 SAE J1708 COMM CIRCUIT 520 MOSFET TEMPERATURE SENSORS 514 FIG 5 PCDATA SIREN EN PTT PC CLOCK VOX RESET ALARM IGNITION US 2013 0038444 1 Feb 14 2013 Sheet 10 of 11 Patent Application Publication 9 914 69 OA 219 HOOTO 619 HNO 79 HOLIINNOI YOLOANNOO MOILSMONNV 99 H 9 819 NOHO YOLOANNOO 43 949 OI HITIVAON 39044 41VH LHOM AHL ONITIONLNOOD 209 55 299 YOLOANNOO 029 SAYJJY 31715 HOIH veg LINDO YOLOANNOO L HA31 829 73437 401 YOLINOW 3814 929 Y YOLINOW 3504 019 YOLOANNOD 2453 809 HNH YOLOANNOO MOLLSMONV 909 UNOHO HOLIINNOI WWO ava 1H911 709 NOULVZIHEVLS Patent Application Publication Feb 14 2013 PUSH BUTTON CIRCUIT 726 FOR AUX A H DIM WAIL YELP amp ALT TONE BACKLIGHTING 704 MICROPROCESSOR 702 CONTROLLING THE CONTROL HEAD MODULE MICROPROCESSOR PROGRAMMING CONNECTOR 710 LEVEL 1 3 SWITCH CIRCUIT 712 PUSH BUTTON CIRCUIT FOR MANUAL amp AIR HORN 714 ARROWSTICK SIMULATOR 716 Sheet 11 of 11 US 2013 0038444 1 PA MIC CONNECTOR 708 CONTROL HEAD COMM CONNECTOR SAE J1708 706 COMM CIRCUIT 724 INTERNAL
21. The center section 206 is lined for the color blue A right section 208 of the faceplate of the control head 200 is lined for amber e g yellow to indicate to the user that the control buttons located in the right portion of the control head control the traffic directing equipment The right section 208 is lined for the US 2013 0038444 Al color amber yellow A backlight control button for control ling dimming of a backlight for the control head 200 may also be positioned within the right section 208 It activates the DIM output on the control head This DIM output would be connected to the light source for the control head or other lighting equipment that has a DIM input control This allows the user to place the backlighting of the control head 200 and or other lighting equipment into a DIM mode of opera tion 0040 Thus the example control head includes three con trol groups presented to an operator a first control group for selectively controlling siren operation a second control group for selectively controlling auxiliary operations such as the emergency warning lights ofa vehicle and a third control group for selectively controlling a traffic directing light and or emergency warning lights The first control group includes the red toggle switch 202 and other switches having the faceplate 204 colored red The second control group includes the switches having the faceplate 206 colored blue The third control group has switche
22. UNCTIONS CON TROLLED BY CONTROL HEAD MODULE PROCES SOR of an example system 0025 APPENDIX 3 illustrates FUNCTIONS CON TROLLED BY LIGHT MODULE PROCESSOR of an example system 0026 APPENDIX 4 illustrates Siren System Platform Z3 Siren System Technical Specification of an example system 0027 APPENDIX 5 illustrates a Hardware Installation and Operation Manual of an example system 0028 APPENDIX 6 illustrates a Hardware Quick Install Manual of an example system 0029 APPENDIX 7 illustrates a Quick Start Software Configuration Setup Manual of an example system 0030 APPENDIX 8 illustrates a Software User Manual of an example system 0031 Corresponding reference characters indicate corre sponding parts throughout the drawings DETAILED DESCRIPTION 0032 FIGS 1A 1D are example screen shots of displays presented by software for configuring an amplifier module Many parameters of the example system may be specified by the user some of which have limited ranges minimums and or maximums Example settings and their purpose are dis cussed below and within the Appendices 0033 FIG 1 is a block diagram of an example system 100 for controlling the actuation of a warning light system 102 and siren system 104 in a motorized vehicle such as an emer gency vehicle The example system 100 includes a control panel 106 one or more processors 108 storage media 110 and an input output I O port 112 such as a USB or oth
23. US 20130038444 1 a2 Patent Application Publication Pub No US 2013 0038444 1 19 United States Miller et al 43 Pub Date Feb 14 2013 54 PROGRAMMABLE CONTROL FOR SIREN AND LIGHTS 75 Inventors Daniel 8 Miller St Louis US Roger L Miller Louisville KY US Daniel S Pursley St Peters MO US John C Davis Eureka MO US 73 Assignee CODE 3 INC St Louis MO US 21 Appl No 13 478 753 22 Filed May 23 2012 Related U S Application Data 60 Provisional application No 61 489 581 filed on May 24 2011 MANUAL 120 AIR HORN Voltage Fault Threshold Level Dropout Delay Publication Classification 51 600 1 52 2006 01 HOAR 27 00 2006 01 600 1 00 2006 01 52 US CL 340 455 340 471 381 82 57 ABSTRACT A system comprising a power supply an emergency warning light and a speaker in combination with a control head One or more processors controls operation of the system in response to received user input and provides system status for display Storage media encoded with emergency warning light system instructions for execution by one or more of the processors controls the actuation of the emergency warning light system and controls light patterns generated by the emergency warning light system The storage media is further encoded with siren system instructions for execution by one or more of the processors for control
24. ad may be a PIC 16F887 E PT processor The microprocessor 702 interfaces with a backlighting circuit 704 to dim the LED lighting for the flash left center right manual and air horn push buttons on the control head FIGS 1A 1D 2 A control head communication connector 706 connects to the SAE port of the amplifier microprocessor 502 via an SAE circuit 724 and to the PA microphone via connec tor 708 A connector 710 provides a programming input to the processor 702 which also connects level 1 3 switch circuit 712 e g the red toggle switch and the push buttons for manual siren and air horn operation 714 An Arrowstik simu Feb 14 2013 lator circuit 716 on the face of the control head is driven by the processor 702 to indicate that the traffic directing signal is illuminating a move right pattern a move left pattern a move left or right pattern or a flash pattern Three LEDs indicating the position of the toggle switch and thus the level of opera tion are connected at 718 The button controls for the Arrow stik light are connected at 720 An internal audio device e g piezo buzzer or speaker for the control head e g to beep or sound alarms is connected at 722 The push buttons for auxiliary A H dim wail yelp and alternative tone on the face of the control head 700 are connected at 726 0076 Optionally the control head processor 702 may include a configurable light alert function in which an audible signal is generate
25. angible computer readable media said configuration instructions executable by a computer to provide monitoring instructions to at least one of the processors via the USB port said moni toring instructions when executed by at least one of the pro cessors causing the system to detect a system setting which is outside a reference range said monitoring instructions for causing the system to provide a warning to the user when a system setting is outside the reference range 5 The system of claim 1 further comprising computer executable diagnostic instructions stored on a tangible com puter readable media said diagnostic instructions executable by the amplifier module processor for detecting one or more of the following system faults a configuration failure in which amplifier module fails to successfully load configuration data at power up wherein in response to said configuration failure said amplifier module implements a factory default configu ration a communication failure in which the control head and amplifier module are unable to establish data communi cations therebetween wherein in response to said com munication failure the control head signals the operator until communication is established and a blown fuse or no output voltage wherein in response to said blown fuse or no output voltage the control head signals the operator 6 The system of claim 5 wherein the diagnostic instruc tions include load management instructions
26. awings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense What is claimed is 1 A system for controlling the use of an emergency warn ing light and a speaker on a vehicle with a power supply said system comprising an amplifier module having an amplifier module processor for controlling the amplifier module to selectively ener gize the emergency warning light and to selectively energize the speaker said amplifier module processor having a communications port a light module having a light module processor for control ling the amplifier module and the emergency warning light said light module processor having a communica tions port a communications link connecting the amplifier module communications port to the light module communica tions port and acontrol head connected to the amplifier module processor for controlling the amplifier module and for controlling the light module processor via the amplifier module processor and via the communications link US 2013 0038444 Al 2 The system of claim 1 further comprising said light module having at least one of a serial port for controlling a serial emergency warning light and having a parallel port for controlling a centrally controlled emergency warning light 3 The system of claim 1 wherein the amplifier module processor is configurable via a USB port 4 The system of claim 3 further comprising computer executable user configurable instructions stored on a t
27. ay yoo quan uonenijuoq jesus 2881 L 913 US 2013 0038444 1 Feb 14 2013 Sheet 4 of 11 Patent Application Publication aq AIO u ns 10 uens aq NHOH HIY lw ANCL 17 aq o uaus 27 AU 195 0 nod F 92 uonemBijuo3 8313 TYNNYH 091 Jr 914 US 2013 0038444 1 suoda ayy yo Bunuri 8437 2 z BEANIE 2 BAS 8497 SEADE suondo Buara dn 146 1 01 asp 10 10 aq uea yamg ay uz 2 Feb 14 2013 Sheet 5 of 11 Patent Application Publication NHOH 08 TYNNYH al Sis 931 Patent Application Publication Feb 14 2013 Sheet 6 of 11 US 2013 0038444 1 2
28. d on a periodic basis when any lighting is activated including auxiliary and traffic directing lighting 0077 In one example implementation at least one of the processors is programmed to implement a configurable power manager function or a configurable load manager func tion For example at least one of the processors is pro grammed to implement monitoring voltages or currents of components and includes de energizing a component having a monitored voltage or a monitored current outside a preset range As another example at least one of the processors is programmed to implement monitoring current or voltage of the power supply and includes dropout voltage groups wherein a user selects one or more groups of outputs of the system to de energize when the power supply levels fall below a specified voltage level for each selected group In one embodiment the preset range and or the specified voltage level are each configurable by the user via a USB port con nected to one of the processors Alternatively or in addition a delay may be specified before a group is dropped out 0078 In one example implementation at least one of the processors implements a user configurable input voltage monitoring and dropout function in which an input voltage from the power supply is monitored and one or more opera tions are disabled when the input voltage is outside a user configurable range 0079 In one example implementation at least one of the proce
29. e function which when activated by the user disables speaker Alt Tone functions and disables speaker Air Horn functions when any tone or light is active 23 The system of claim 1 further comprising a power supply an emergency warning light and a speaker 24 A method for use with a power supply an emergency warning light and a speaker said method comprising providing an amplifier module having an input receiving power from the power supply and having outputs for selectively energizing the emergency warning light and for selectively energizing the speaker said amplifier module having an amplifier module processor control ling the outputs of amplifier module said amplifier mod ule processor having a communications port providing a light module having an input receiving power from the power supply and having outputs for control ling the emergency warning light said light module having a light module processor controlling the ampli fier module and controlling the outputs of the light mod ule said light module processor having a communica tions port providing a communications link connecting the amplifier module communications port to the light module com munications port and controlling the amplifier module and controlling the light module processor via the amplifier module processor and via the communications link Feb 14 2013 25 A system for controlling the use of an emergency warn ing light and a speaker on a veh
30. e has a processor In another example a single processor may be used so that a communication link between the modules and or processors is not needed In yet another example one or more processors control operation of the system in response to received user input and provide system status for display The processors may be independent of each other so that a com munications link between processors is not needed In gen eral a link or cable 308 between storage media encoded with system instructions for execution by one or more of the pro cessors controls the actuation of and the pattern provided through the emergency warning light and controls the actua tion of and the audible sounds generated by the siren For convenience the following description of FIGS 4 7 includes the example wherein each module has a processor The examples shown in FIGS 4 7 may be modified to include one or more processors Also FIGS 4 7 show one example implementation of the various functions inputs and outputs of the modules and the processors Other example implemen tations may provide for any one or more of the processors to Feb 14 2013 provide any one or more of the functions illustrated and any one or more of the processors may have any one or more of the inputs and or outputs instead of or in addition to the other processors Also the example system of FIG 1 may perform any one or more of the functions illustrated with regard to FIGS 4 7 and may ha
31. er port The control panel 106 may be used to receive user input for example via push buttons switches touchpad etc and may be used to display system status 0034 The processor s 108 execute programming instruc tions stored on storage media 110 to control the operation of the system such as the actuation of the warning light system and the light patterns generated by the warning light system in response to received user input and to provide system status for display by the control panel 106 The processor s 108 also execute other programming instructions stored on stor age media 110 to control other operations of the system such as executing programming instructions for controlling the actuation of the siren system and for controlling audible sounds generated by the siren system 0035 The I O port 112 may be used by an external com puter 114 to pass instructions or data to the processor s 108 Feb 14 2013 and or storage media 110 that may be stored in the storage media 110 Data and or instructions passed by the external computer 114 may be used by the processor s 108 to con figure the system 100 The instructions may include monitor ing instructions for detecting a system setting which is out side a reference range above a maximum and or below a minimum Among other features the monitoring instructions may control the system and or provide a warning to the user when a system setting is outside the reference range
32. figures and described herein Other example implementations may include different computer executable instructions or com ponents having more or less functionality than illustrated and described herein 0088 The order of execution or performance of the opera tions in examples illustrated and described herein is not essential unless otherwise specified That is the operations may be performed in any order unless otherwise specified and example implementations may include additional or fewer operations than those disclosed herein For example it Feb 14 2013 is contemplated that executing or performing a particular operation before contemporaneously with or after another operation is within the scope of the example implementa tions 0089 When introducing elements of example implemen tations the articles a an and said are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements The terms comprising including and having are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements 0090 Not all of the depicted components illustrated or described may be required In addition some example imple mentations may include additional components Variations in the arrangement and type of the components may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the claims as set forth herein Additional different or fewer components may
33. hich amplifier mod ule 400 fails to successfully load configuration data at power up wherein in response to the configuration fail ure the control head lights blink and a piezo buzzer sounds to visually and audibly signal an operator 0063 communication failure in which the control head and amplifier module 400 are unable to establish data communications therebetween wherein in response to the communication failure the control head signals the operator e g visually and or audibly until communication is established and 0064 A blown fuse or no output voltage wherein in response to the blown fuse or no output voltage the control head signals the operator e g audibly or via a flashing light 0065 Inone example implementation the amplifier mod ule processor 502 implements programmable multiple siren tone sets responsive to activation of the following on the control head 0066 A WAIL push button so that the microprocessor 502 generates a wail tone via speakers 407 when the WAIL push button is pressed 0067 A YELP push button so that the microprocessor 502 generates a yelp tone via speakers 407 when the YELP push button is pressed 0068 ALT TONE push button so that micropro cessor 502 generates the Hi Lo tone via speakers 407 when the ALT TONE push button is pressed and US 2013 0038444 Al 0069 A MANUAL push button so that the micropro cessor 502 generates a MANUAL wail tone via speakers 407 when the
34. icle with a power supply said system comprising an amplifier module to selectively energize the emergency warning light and to selectively energize the speaker said amplifier module having a communications port a light module to selectively energize the emergency warn ing light said light module having a communications port a communications link connecting the amplifier module communications port to the light module communica tions port and a control head connected to the amplifier module for con trolling the amplifier module and for controlling the light module via the amplifier module and via the com munications link 26 The system of claim 25 further comprising at least one of the following wherein at least one of the modules resets a PTT function after a preset period of time elapses after a PTT push button is continuously engaged to activate the PTT func tion for providing audio via a speaker to prevent the PTT function from remaining activated beyond the preset period wherein at least one of the modules implements a config urable power manager function or a configurable load manager function wherein at least one of the modules monitors voltages or currents of components and includes de energizing a component having a monitored voltage or a monitored current outside a preset range and wherein at least one of the modules monitors a power supply voltage level and recognize dropout voltage groups selectable by a u
35. ling the actuation of the siren system and for controlling audible sounds generated by the siren system eneral Configuration Load Manager he Load Manager allows the user to set up three parate Dropout Voltage Groups ach group can be set to drop out individual outputs he input voltage to the 23 Siren falls below the Yoltage Fault Threshold he input voltage must remain below the Group oltage Fault Threshold until the Group Dropout elay has expired outputs will remain off 4s long as the input voltage the 23 Siren remains below the Group Voltage ult Threshold US 2013 0038444 1 Feb 14 2013 Sheet 1 of 11 Patent Application Publication 1 148 y 91 I I I I t i J VYOLS 101 I a ace WALSAS 18 8 LHS ZOL 5 3 yne dnog auy ualg gz at O se Guo se wewa sindino LP de PAS x sey feja ee ee Ne ef fase ynodoug ay Inun yne4 abeyo gang Z BAS dnog ay ay ney dno
36. s having the faceplate 208 colored amber yellow 0041 FIG 3isa block diagram of another example system for controlling the actuation of a warning light system and siren system in a motorized vehicle such as an emergency vehicle In general FIG 3 illustrates the primary connections between the modules of the example system an amplifier module 400 primarily for driving siren speakers a light board module 600 for primarily driving an emergency warning light or an auxiliary device and a control head module 700 for controlling the operation of the siren and other connected devices e g via a CAT 5 cable 306 Both the amplifier module 400 and light bar module 600 receive power via cable connections to a battery not shown such as vehicle battery The light bar module 600 may have a dual cable connection to the battery so that three higher gauge cables instead of two lower gauge cables can handle the current needs for driving the light bar An internal communication cable 308 intercon nects processors of the modules 400 600 to facilitate an T O input output communication link between the modules 400 600 and to facilitate communication with the control head module which may connected to the amplifier processor 400 via a CAT 5 SAE J1708 communications cable 310 0042 Alternatively or in addition some or all of the com munication link between components may be direct wired or wireless such as Wi F1 In one example each modul
37. ser and wherein in response to the monitored voltage level falling below a specified voltage level for a selected dropout voltage group the module causing the selected dropout voltage group to become de energized and wherein at least one of the modules implements a load manager function and a configurable delayed shutoff function wherein the load manager when activated con trols the power to other equipment in the vehicle through an external solenoid and wherein the configurable delayed shutoff function when activated includes a sleep delay timer such that the system remains active after the vehicle ignition is turned off for the duration of the sleep delay timer
38. ssor 502 These inputs and outputs are represented by I O ports 532 0074 FIG 6 is a block diagram of an example light mod ule 600 In this example the microprocessor 602 for an emer gency warning light such as a light bar may be any processor having serial and parallel ports such as a PIC 16F887 E PT processor The microprocessor 602 interfaces with power stabilization circuitry 604 for controlling the voltage applied to the light bar A light bar parallel communication port 606 connects to a centrally controlled light bar 1 an emergency warning light to control the light bar An Arrowstik traffic directing light communication parallel port 698 controls the traffic directing device An ICSP port 610 permits in circuit serial programming ICSP An external clock 612 is con nected to the processor 602 An I O port 613 is connected to and communicates with the amplifier processor via port 512 ACC Arrowstik connector 614 is for operating centrally controlled Arrowstik light products An IC 616 is con nected to the processor 602 to control the auxiliary circuits E H 618 619 Also solid state relays 620 connect to the processor to control the level 1 3 connector circuit 624 and the auxiliary circuits A D 622 Ports 626 628 also monitor the auxiliary A F fuses and the level 1 3 fuses respectively 0075 FIG 7 is a block diagram of an example control head module In this example the microprocessor 702 for the control he
39. ssors includes a lock function selectable at configura tion such that a remote input activates the lock function allow ing only allow siren tones to be generated via the speakers when a signal positive or negative as set in configuration is applied to the remote input This function meets certain requirements of the European Union 0080 In one example implementation at least one of the processors includes a user configurable function which when activated by the user disables speaker Alt Tone functions and disables speaker Air Horn functions when any tone or light is active This function meets certain requirements of California Title 13 0081 In one example implementation at least one of the processors implements a load manager function and or a con figurable delayed shutoff function wherein the load manager when configured controls the power to other equipment in the vehicle through an external solenoid The configurable delayed shutoff function when configured includes a sleep delay timer such that the system remains active after the vehicle ignition is turned off for the duration of the sleep delay timer 0082 The load manager function and or the delayed shut off function control the power supplied to other loads in the vehicle such that the power to these other loads are turned off US 2013 0038444 Al when the user turns off the vehicle ignition and or the voltage of the battery for the vehicle has dropped below a predeter
40. ter 114 may allow the external computer to provide moni toring instructions to the processor s via the I O port 112 The monitoring instructions may cause the system 100 to monitor a system setting to detect when the system setting is outside a reference range and or to provide a warning indica tion via the user control panel 106 when the system setting is outside the reference range 0038 The storage media 110 may also be encoded with load management instructions When the load management instructions are executed by the processor s the system 100 monitors system input voltage from a vehicle battery detects when the system input voltage is outside a system input voltage reference range and or provides a warning indication via the user control panel 106 when the system input voltage is outside the system input voltage reference range 0039 FIG 2 is an example control head 200 lined for color In this example a toggle switch 202 and a left section 204 of a faceplate of the control head 200 are red to indicate to the user that the control buttons and toggle switch located in the left portion of the control head control a siren The left section 202 is lined for the color red A center section 206 of the faceplate of the control head 200 is blue to indicate to the user that the control buttons located in the center section 206 of the control head control the auxiliary buttons which control a light bar and or other devices on the vehicle
41. the amplifier module communications port to the light module communications port The control head con nected to the amplifier module processor controls the ampli fier module and controls the light module processor via the amplifier module processor and via the communications link 0003 In another example a method is provided for use with a power supply an emergency warning light and a speaker The example method comprises 0004 providing an amplifier module having an input receiving power from the power supply and having out puts for selectively energizing the emergency warning light and for selectively energizing the speaker the amplifier module having an amplifier module processor controlling the outputs of amplifier module the ampli fier module processor having a communications port 0005 providing light module having an input receiv ing power from the power supply and having outputs for controlling the emergency warning light the light mod ule having a light module processer communicating with the amplifier module and controlling the outputs of the light module the light module processor having a communications port 0006 providing a communications link connecting the amplifier module communications port to the light mod ule communications port and 0007 controlling the amplifier module and controlling the light module processor via the amplifier module processor and via the communications link 0008 In another
42. ve any one or more of the inputs and or outputs illustrated in FIGS 4 7 0043 FIG 4 is a block diagram of some of the various inputs and outputs of an example amplifier module 400 The module 400 is connected to a vehicle battery 401 or other battery via a voltage regulator 402 and also via a circuit 404 for sensing current and or voltage supplied by the battery 401 to speaker driver circuit 406 driving one or more speak ers 407 An ignition input port 408 monitors the on off con dition of the vehicle ignition A software timer 410 in the amplifier processor see 502 in FIG 5 is referred to as a sleep timer This sleep timer may be configured using the siren configuration software In one example it may be set for instant off or for a 10 minute 20 minute 30 minute one hour two hour or four hour delay This delay is started when the processor 502 detects that the vehicle ignition is turned off through the ignition input 408 The sleep timer maintains power to the amplifier the control head and the light board until the delay expires 0044 park switch input 412 monitors the status of the vehicle park switch An additional remote switch I O port 414 may be to connect to an independent control switch such as a foot switch not shown The amplifier module 400 is pro grammed to execute a particular mode when receiving the appropriate signal via the remote switch input port 414 For example when the foot switch is activated
43. while the amplifier is generating one of the primary tones the amplifier would execute a particular mode such as change the amplifier tone from the primary tone to an override tone for approximately 7 to 8 seconds It may also activate an InterClear output based on the configuration settings As used herein Interclear is a user actuated timed circuit option that initially changes the tones of the siren and the pattern of the light signals as the vehicle approaches an intersection and then returns the siren to normal operation after a pre set interval 0045 horn ring I O 416 monitors the status of a horn ring switch not shown The amplifier module 400 is pro grammed to execute a particular mode when receiving the appropriate signal via the horn ring I O 416 For example when the horn ring is activated while the amplifier is gener ating one of the primary tones the amplifier would execute a particular mode such as change the amplifier tone from the primary tone to an override tone for approximately 7 to 8 seconds It may also activate the InterClear output based on the configuration settings An InterClear output 418 connects to an InterClear circuit which connects to the device or circuit that activate an InterClear Feature The operation during the InterClear mode is preprogrammed by the user InterClear may be activated in different ways For example ifthe siren is operating one of the three primary tones wail yelp alt tone and
Download Pdf Manuals
Related Search