Intelligent Street Light

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

0001This application claims the priority of Republic of China Patent Application No. 105131543 filed on Sep. 30, 2016, in the State Intellectual Property Office of the R.O.C., the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

0002The invention relates to the field of communication facilities, and more particularly, to an intelligent street light having a data communication function.

Descriptions of the Related Art

0003In densely populated urban areas there has long existed a problem that base stations do not have sufficient channel capacities and usually are not able to meet growing demands of communication service in those areas. An effective solution to this problem is to build new mobile communication base stations. However, urban public land available for communication operators to build base stations is becoming limited due to rapid developments in the city, and more and more residents protest against building the base stations due to health concerns, thereby leading to great difficulty in finding a place where the base stations can be built.

0004Moreover, traditional municipal street lights generally are only used for road lighting and thus are restricted in function. Current municipal street lights nevertheless are usually provided with infrastructure including electricity introduction, lightning protection grounding and towers (which have a certain height for wireless signal emission), and relatively are widely distributed. Such infrastructure happens to be necessary for construction of communication base stations. Therefore, how to effectively utilize current city infrastructure to solve the problem of existing base stations is thus an important task in the art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

0005In view of the above drawbacks in the prior art, a primary object of the invention is to provide an intelligent street light, which can resolve the difficulty in finding a place for building base stations and is thus favorable to overall designing and planning of the city.

0006Another object of the invention is to provide an intelligent street light, which can reduce construction costs and shorten construction periods of base stations.

0007Further object of the invention is to provide an intelligent street light, which can improve utilization of public resources.

0008For the objects said above and for other objects, the invention provides an intelligent street light for allowing data transmission between the street light and a remote server, including: a lamppost; and a built-in data transmission system provided at bottom of the lamppost, the data transmission system including a data transmission unit, a data exchange unit and a plurality of network devices, which are connected to each other, wherein, the data transmission unit is for performing data transmission between the data transmission unit and the remote server; and the data exchange unit is respectively connected to the data transmission unit and the plurality of network devices so as to provide service of data exchange and transmission between the plurality of network devices and the data transmission unit.

0009Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the bottom of the lamppost includes a base, and the data transmission system is built in the base, wherein the base includes a receiving space, a discharge space and a liquid guiding structure, wherein the receiving space is located above the discharge space and accommodates the data transmission system, and the liquid guiding structure is for guiding any liquid inside the base away from the receiving space to flow to the discharge space where the liquid is discharged out of the base.

0010Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein further includes an antenna provided at top of the lamppost, for providing data exchange and transmission service.

0011Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the data transmission unit is a telecom backhaul unit, for performing data transmission between the data transmission system and the remote server by means of various types of xDSL (Digital Subscriber Line), HFC (Hybrid Fiber Coaxial), LTE (Long Tenn Evolution), Microwave,WiFi and DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communications).

0012Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the data transmission system further includes a fiber distribution unit connected to the data transmission unit, for performing data transmission between the data transmission system and the remote server by means of PON (Passive Optical Network), CES (Carrier Ethernet Switch), PTN (Public Transport Network) and SDN (Software Defined Network) Switch.

0013Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the network devices further include a wireless access unit, and the data transmission system further includes an RF over fiber unit for transmitting wireless signals from the wireless access unit to the fiber distribution unit to allow the wireless signals to be transmitted through fiber cables.

0014Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein further includes a lamp (that is light armature holder and fixture) formed on and extended from the lamppost, and at least one external device provided on the lamp. The external device is one of an IP device (that is internet protocol based device) and a sensor.

0015Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the external device is selectively connected to the data exchange unit, for allowing the data exchange unit to provide data exchange and transmission service for the external device.

0016Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the data exchange unit is a PoE switch unit connected to an RJ45 terminal, for providing power and data transmission service for the external device.

0017Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the network devices further include a gateway unit selectively connected to the external device, for managing the external device, setting configuration parameters of the external device and providing data transmission service for the external device.

0018Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the gateway unit is an IoT gateway unit, which includes a southbound interface for being connected to the external device, and a northbound interface for being connected to the data exchange unit or for direct LTE backhaul.

0019Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the intelligent street light is for allowing data transmission between the street light and a near end device, and the gateway unit is selectively connected to the near end device, for managing the near end device, setting configuration parameters of the near end device and providing data transmission service for the near end device. The near end device is one of a gateway unit provided close to a body of the intelligent street light, an IP device and a sensor.

0020Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the network devices further include a wireless access unit for allowing at least one mobile client to perform wireless accessing so as to provide data exchange and transmission service for the mobile client.

0021Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the network devices further include a lighting control unit for controlling and monitoring a lighting device mounted on the intelligent street light.

0022Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein further includes a power system for providing power required for operation of intelligent street light. The data transmission system further includes the a power distribution unit electrically connected to the power system and connected to a UPS unit and a power supply control unit, wherein: the UPS unit is for providing backup power; the power supply control unit is for detecting a power supply state of the power system, wherein if the power system is detected being in a power on state, the power supply control unit controls the power system to supply electricity to the data transmission system and to charge the UPS unit, and if the power system is detected being in a power off state, the power supply control unit controls the UPS unit to output the backup power to supply electricity to the data transmission system.

0023Preferably, for the intelligent street light said above, wherein the data transmission system further includes a remote monitoring unit for monitoring a power supply state of the power distribution unit, a data transmission state of the data transmission unit, an operation state of the network devices and a synchronous timing state of the network devices.

0024Compared to the conventional technology, the intelligent street light of the invention has a data transmission system provided at the bottom of its lamppost, and thus functions for normal lighting as well as helps communication data transmission, thereby improving utilization of public resources. Moreover, the invention incorporates the existing conditions such as electricity introduction, lightning protection grounding and wide distribution of current street lights. This may reduce construction costs and shorten construction periods of base stations, and make the base stations have uniform signal coverage to improve the quality of communication.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

0025The above and other aspects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

0026<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref> is an architectural schematic diagram of an intelligent street light of the invention.

0027<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2A</figref> is a basic architectural schematic diagram of a data transmission system built in a lamppost shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>.

0028<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2B</figref> is an architectural schematic diagram of an embodiment of the data transmission system built in the lamppost shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>.

0029<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2C</figref> is an architectural schematic diagram of an embodiment of the data transmission system built in the lamppost shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

0030Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. In the drawings, the shapes and dimensions of elements may be exaggerated for clarity, and the same reference numerals will be used throughout to designate the same or like components.

0031Referring to <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 1 and 2A</figref>, <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref> is an architectural schematic diagram of an intelligent street light of the invention, and <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2A</figref> is a basic architectural schematic diagram of a data transmission system built in a lamppost shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>. As shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>, the intelligent street light <b>1</b> of the invention includes the lamppost <b>11</b> (such as a steel pipe) and the built-in data transmission system <b>100</b> installed at the bottom of the lamppost <b>11</b>, wherein the data transmission system <b>100</b> allows data transmission between itself and a remote server <b>200</b>. As shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2A</figref>, the data transmission system <b>100</b> includes a data transmission unit <b>110</b>, a data exchange unit <b>120</b> and a plurality of network devices <b>130</b>, which are interconnected. Particularly, the data transmission unit <b>110</b> is used to perform data transmission between itself and the remote server <b>200</b>, and the data exchange unit <b>120</b> is respectively connected to the data transmission unit <b>110</b> and the plurality of network devices <b>130</b> so as to provide service of Ethernet data exchange and transmission between the plurality of network devices <b>130</b> and the data transmission unit <b>110</b>.

0032The following description is to depict preferred embodiments of the intelligent street light <b>1</b> of the invention with reference to <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 1 and 2B</figref>, wherein <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2B</figref> is an architectural schematic diagram of an embodiment of the data transmission system built in the lamppost shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>.

0033Referring to <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>, in a preferred embodiment, the lamppost <b>11</b> has a base <b>12</b> at its bottom, and the data transmission system <b>100</b> is installed in the base <b>12</b>. The base <b>12</b> includes a receiving space <b>121</b>, a discharge space <b>122</b> and a liquid guiding structure <b>123</b>. The receiving space <b>121</b> is located above the discharge space <b>122</b> and accommodates a carrier unit <b>124</b> (which may be composed of a rail, a mounting support and a carrier board) for mounting the data transmission system <b>100</b> thereon. The liquid guiding structure <b>123</b> is used to guide any liquid inside the base <b>12</b> away from the receiving space <b>121</b> to flow to the discharge space <b>122</b> where the liquid is discharged out of the base <b>12</b>, in order to protect the data transmission system <b>100</b> from being damaged by external contaminants (such as water drops and dust). Moreover, the intelligent street light <b>1</b> may further include a grounding unit (as shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2B</figref>) for protecting the intelligent street light <b>1</b> (including the data transmission system <b>100</b>) against thunder attack. It should be noted that the intelligent street light <b>1</b> of the invention is not limited to the above structural arrangements but is flexible in design according to practical requirements.

0034The intelligent street light <b>1</b> may further include an antenna <b>14</b> provided at the top of the lamppost <b>11</b>. The antenna <b>14</b> is used to provide data exchange and transmission service, and can be GPS antenna or GNSS antenna.

0035In this embodiment, the data transmission unit <b>110</b> is for example a telecom backhaul unit, and achieves communication connection between the data transmission system <b>100</b> and the remote server <b>200</b> by means of such as various types of xDSL (Digital Subscriber Line), HFC (Hybrid Fiber Coaxial), LTE (Long Term Evolution), Microwave and so on, such that data can be transmitted between the data transmission system <b>100</b> and the remote server <b>200</b>.

0036Preferably, the data transmission system <b>100</b> further includes a fiber distribution unit <b>140</b> having several parts such as splicing tray, patch panel, adapter, fiber protection tube and so on. The fiber distribution unit <b>140</b> is used to connect the data transmission unit <b>110</b> to the remote server <b>200</b> by means of a fiber network, for example, PON (Passive Optical Network), CES (Carrier Ethernet Switch) and PTN (Public Transport Network), etc., such that data transmission can be performed between the data transmission system <b>100</b> and the remote server <b>200</b>.

0037Further referring to <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>, there is provided a lamp <b>13</b> extended from an upper end of the lamppost <b>11</b>. An associated lighting device (not shown) of the intelligent street light <b>1</b> is installed in the lamp <b>13</b>, and at least one external device <b>300</b> can be mounted on the lamp <b>13</b>. This design allows the existing lamp <b>13</b> to serve as a mounting support for the external device <b>300</b>, thereby no need to provide an additional mounting device for installing the external device <b>300</b>. Moreover, generally there are ready-made power lines placed on the lamp <b>13</b> to supply electricity to the lighting device for operation. Thus, the above design does not need additional power lines dedicated for the external device <b>300</b> and may effectively reduce construction costs. The external device <b>300</b> is for example an IP device (Internet Protocol based Device) or a sensor (such as security camera, temperature and humidity sensor, air quality sensor, RF signal sensor or Photocell, NEMA Node and so on).

0038In an embodiment of the invention, the external device <b>300</b> may selectively be connected to the data exchange unit <b>120</b> such that the data exchange unit <b>120</b> may provide data exchange and transmission service for the external device <b>300</b>. Preferably, the data exchange unit <b>120</b> further provides electricity required for operation of the external device <b>300</b> connected to the data exchange unit <b>120</b>. For example, the data exchange unit <b>120</b> can be a PoE switch unit connected to an RJ45 terminal to incorporate electricity transmission with data transmission such that the external device <b>300</b> is entitled to electricity and data transmission service.

0039As shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2B</figref>, the network devices <b>130</b> further include a gateway unit <b>131</b>. In an embodiment, the external device <b>300</b> may selectively be connected to the gateway unit <b>131</b> that can manage the external device <b>300</b>, set relevant configuration parameters of the external device <b>300</b> and provide data transmission service for the external device <b>300</b>. Particularly, the gateway unit <b>131</b> is an IoT gateway unit, which includes a Southbound interface for being connected to the external device <b>300</b>, and a Northbound interface for being connected to the data exchange unit <b>120</b> or for inserting a SIM card therein for direct LTE backhaul. The IoT gateway unit has some management functions such as software download, device restart, device configuration and monitoring, which conform to the external device <b>300</b>. Moreover, the IoT gateway unit allows the Northbound interface to be connected through an adapter card to various types of IoT cloud computing devices (such as OpenADR, ETSI and so on), and allows the Southbound interface to have short distance communication connection with the outside by means of wireless connection (such as WIFI, BLE, Zigbee, Wi-Sun, LTE-M, NB-IOT, LoRa, DSRC and so on) or other types of wired connection.

0040In an embodiment, the intelligent street light <b>1</b> may further allow data transmission to be performed between itself and a near end device <b>301</b> so as to expand its functions or form expansion of network architecture. For example, the near end device <b>301</b> is one of an IP device and a sensor, provided close to a body of the intelligent street light <b>1</b>, wherein the sensor can be a sensor for monitoring if sewer water state is normal. Alternatively, the near end device <b>301</b> includes a gateway unit <b>131</b> of another device provided close to the body of the intelligent street light <b>1</b>. This gateway unit <b>131</b> is selectively connected to the near end device <b>301</b> to manage the near end device <b>301</b>, set configuration parameters of the near end device <b>301</b> and provide data transmission service for the near end device <b>301</b>, such that functional expansion of the intelligent street light <b>1</b> or expansion of network architecture is achieved.

0041Referring to <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 1 and 2B</figref>, the network devices <b>130</b> of the invention further include a wireless access unit <b>132</b> for allowing at least one mobile client <b>300</b> (such as mobile phone, tablet or laptop) to perform wireless accessing. The wireless access unit <b>132</b> thus may serve as a mobile base station (smaller than 5 W) for providing the at least one mobile client <b>300</b> with mobile data exchange and transmission service, and may also serve as a hotspot application wireless AP. Moreover, the wireless access unit <b>132</b> may provide relevant configuration and installation service for the data transmission system <b>100</b> through Bluetooth transmission.

0042In an embodiment, the data transmission system <b>100</b> further includes an RF over fiber unit <b>150</b> for transmitting wireless signals from the wireless access unit <b>132</b> to the fiber distribution unit <b>140</b> (or the antenna <b>14</b>). This is to allow the wireless signals to be transmitted through fiber cables and thereby reduce signal loss during transmission.

0043Referring to <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2C</figref>, the data transmission system <b>100</b> further includes a coax distribution unit <b>190</b> for transmitting wireless signals from the wireless access unit <b>132</b> to the antenna <b>14</b>. This is to allow the wireless signals to be transmitted through coax cables.

0044Moreover, as shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2B</figref>, the network devices <b>130</b> of the data transmission system <b>100</b> may further include a lighting control unit <b>160</b> for controlling and monitoring the associated lighting device (not shown) installed on the intelligent street light <b>1</b>. For example, the lighting control unit <b>160</b> controls and monitors the lighting device's operations such as its lighting level and its switch control. Further, the lighting control unit <b>160</b> may communicate with the remote server <b>200</b> through the data exchange unit <b>120</b> and the data transmission unit <b>110</b>. For example, the remote server <b>200</b> controls the lighting control unit <b>160</b> to perform lighting control on the intelligent street light <b>1</b>, and the lighting control unit <b>160</b> monitors a working state of the intelligent street light <b>1</b>, such that when there is detected abnormality of the intelligent street light <b>1</b>, abnormality detection information is sent to the remote server <b>200</b> to notify the management.

0045The intelligent street light <b>1</b> of the invention may further include a power system (not shown) for supplying electricity to (but not limited to) the street light <b>1</b>, the external device <b>300</b> and the data transmission system <b>100</b> for their operation. The data transmission system <b>100</b> further includes a power distribution unit <b>170</b> (as shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2B</figref>) that is electrically connected to the power system. The power distribution unit <b>170</b> is used to distribute AC power to various parts that are connected to the power distribution unit <b>170</b>, such that those parts obtain electricity required for their operation. Provided that the intelligent street light <b>1</b> is usually turned on at night or when the outside becomes dark, that is, the power system of the intelligent street light <b>1</b> does not need to continuously supply power, the power distribution unit <b>170</b> of the invention is further connected to a UPS unit <b>171</b> and a power supply control unit <b>172</b>. The UPS unit <b>171</b> is used to provide (but not limited to) backup power, and the power supply control unit <b>172</b> is used to detect a power supply state of the power system. When the power supply control unit <b>172</b> detects the power system is in a power on state, it controls the power system to supply electricity to the data transmission system <b>100</b> for its operation and to charge the UPS unit <b>171</b>. When the power supply control unit <b>172</b> detects the power system is in a power off state, it controls the UPS unit <b>171</b> to output backup power to supply electricity to the data transmission system <b>100</b> for its operation.

0046The data transmission system <b>100</b> of the invention may further include a remote monitoring unit <b>180</b> for monitoring a power supply state of the power distribution unit <b>170</b>, a data transmission state of the data transmission unit <b>110</b> and an operation state of each of the network devices <b>130</b>. For example, the remote monitoring unit <b>180</b> may monitor three types of states through Web or SNMP: it monitors power supply states of the power distribution unit <b>170</b> and the UPS unit <b>171</b>; it monitors a traffic state to meet SLA (service level agreement) requirements and performs synchronous timing processing on data transmission service (voice, data and video, etc.); and it monitors a device operation state, that is to perform remote control and maintenance on operation of various parts in the data transmission system <b>100</b>.

0047Therefore, the intelligent street light of the invention is provided with a data transmission system at the bottom of its lamppost to make the street light not only have a traditional lighting function but also serve as a communication base station for transmitting mobile signals, thereby solving the current problem of having difficulty in finding a place where communication base stations can be built, and improving utilization of public resources of the city. Moreover, as traditional street lights are usually provided with infrastructure including electricity introduction, lightning protection grounding and towers (which have a certain height for wireless signal emission), there is no need to construct such infrastructure when building the communication base stations, thereby desirably reducing construction costs and shortening construction periods thereof. The street lights are also distributed evenly, such that the communication base stations built based on the street lights have advantages of great coverage of communication signals and even distribution, thereby improving the quality of communication.

0048The examples above are only illustrative to explain principles and effects of the invention, but not to limit the invention. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, the protection range of the rights of the invention should be as defined by the appended claims.