JP7626977B2 - Lighting console and lighting system - Google Patents

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a lighting control console for controlling lighting fixtures and a lighting system.

For example, stage lighting and studio lighting use multiple lighting fixtures, which are controlled by a lighting console. The lighting fixtures installed on each stage or studio may be the same, such as horizon lights, but may be from different manufacturers.

Conventionally, lighting fixtures used halogen bulbs as their light source and adjusted the light color to the desired level using color filters. In this case, there were no problems with light color deviations when scene data created for lighting fixtures from one manufacturer was applied to lighting fixtures from another manufacturer.

In recent years, lighting fixtures used for stage and studio lighting have increasingly been equipped with light-emitting elements such as LEDs as light sources, making it possible to adjust the light color by combining red, green, and blue light-emitting elements.

However, lighting fixtures from different manufacturers do not necessarily have the same chromaticity, number, and output of light-emitting elements of each color. Therefore, when scene data created for lighting fixtures from one manufacturer is applied to lighting fixtures from another manufacturer, there is a problem that the light color will be misaligned and the desired light cannot be reproduced.

JP 2002-43072 A

The problem that this invention aims to solve is to provide a lighting console and lighting system that can reproduce the desired light color.

The lighting control console of the embodiment includes a storage unit and a determination unit. The storage unit stores, as a first operating condition, first lighting device identification information of a first lighting device equipped with a plurality of types of first light-emitting elements that can be individually controlled, and light emission intensity information of each of the first light-emitting elements equipped in the first lighting device in association with each other. The determination unit determines, based on second lighting device identification information of a second lighting device different from the first lighting device and equipped with a plurality of types of second light-emitting elements that can be individually controlled, a second operating condition of the second lighting device using second light-emitting device information of the second light-emitting device equipped in the second lighting device, which is specified by referring to a device information database in which identification information of each of the multiple devices including the first lighting device and the second lighting device and light-emitting device information equipped in each of the multiple devices are associated and registered, and light color information of light irradiated from the first lighting device under the first operating condition estimated by referring to the device information database based on the first operating condition.

The lighting control console of this embodiment can reproduce the desired light color.

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a lighting console and a lighting system according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is an xy chromaticity diagram showing color coordinates of first and second light-emitting elements of the first and second lighting devices provided in the lighting system. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing, in a table, various pieces of information including model numbers and emission intensity information stored as first operating conditions in a memory unit of the lighting control console. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing, in the form of a table, information associated with model numbers registered in an appliance information database referenced by the lighting control console. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the lighting control console according to the first embodiment; 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the lighting control console according to the second embodiment; 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of a determination unit of the lighting control console.

An embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Figure 1 shows a lighting system 10. The lighting system 10 is used, for example, for stage lighting or studio lighting. The lighting system 10 includes a plurality of lighting fixtures 11, a lighting console 12 that controls the plurality of lighting fixtures 11, and a communication means 13 that connects the plurality of lighting fixtures 11 and the lighting console 12 so that they can communicate bidirectionally.

The lighting fixtures 11 include various fixtures such as spotlights and horizon lights used for stage lighting and studio lighting. The lighting fixtures 11 are divided into lighting fixtures 11 included in the first lighting fixtures 21 and lighting fixtures 11 included in the second lighting fixtures 22.

The first lighting device 21 is equipped with multiple types of first light-emitting elements that can be controlled individually. For example, the first lighting device 21 is a device that can adjust the color of light emitted from the first lighting device 21 by combining at least red, green, and blue first light-emitting elements. In addition to red, green, and blue, the first light-emitting elements may also include amber, cyan, lime, mint, white, etc.

The first lighting fixture 21 stores at least first lighting fixture identification information such as a model number and a name, and can transmit this first lighting fixture identification information to the lighting operation console 12 connected by the communication means 13. In addition to the first lighting fixture identification information, the first lighting fixture 21 may store information including the emission intensity information and color information of each of the first light-emitting elements as first light-emitting element information, and can transmit this first light-emitting element information to the lighting operation console 12 connected by the communication means 13. By configuring in this way, it is possible to obtain the first lighting fixture identification information and additional information from the first lighting fixture 21 without going through an external network. In other words, when using the first lighting fixture 21 in a studio where an external network environment is not in place, it is possible to omit the trouble of reading out the first lighting fixture identification information and additional information stored in a medium such as a USB memory.

The first lighting fixture 21 is, for example, a fixture from a certain manufacturer, a fixture for which the first operating conditions, which are scene data, are created by the lighting control console 12, and a fixture that is controlled by the lighting control console 12 under the first operating conditions.

Figure 1 shows an example of a single spotlight as the first lighting fixture 21, but the first lighting fixture 21 may include multiple fixtures of the same model, or may include multiple different models of fixtures, such as a spotlight and a horizon light.

The second lighting device 22 is equipped with multiple types of second light-emitting elements that can be controlled individually. For example, the second lighting device 22 is a device that can adjust the color of light emitted by combining at least red, green, and blue second light-emitting elements. In addition to red, green, and blue, the second light-emitting elements may also include amber, cyan, lime, mint, white, etc.

The second lighting fixture 22 stores at least second lighting fixture identification information such as a model number and a name, and is capable of transmitting this second lighting fixture identification information to the lighting control console 12 connected via the communication means 13. Note that the second lighting fixture 22 may store information including the emission intensity information and color information of each of the second light-emitting elements as second light-emitting element information in addition to the second lighting fixture identification information, and be capable of transmitting this second light-emitting element information to the lighting control console 12 connected via the communication means 13.

The second lighting fixture 22 may be, for example, a fixture made by a manufacturer different from that of the first lighting fixture 21, or may be made by the same manufacturer as that of the first lighting fixture 21 but with a different model number from that of the first lighting fixture 21. In other words, the first lighting fixture 21 and the second lighting fixture 22 are fixtures in which at least one of the chromaticity (including peak wavelength and dominant wavelength), number, output, and size of the light-emitting elements mounted thereon does not match (is different). For example, as shown in the xy chromaticity diagram of FIG. 2, the color coordinates of the red, green, and blue first light-emitting elements of the first lighting fixture 21 are different from the color coordinates of the red, green, and blue second light-emitting elements of the second lighting fixture 22. Therefore, for example, when the first operating conditions created for the first lighting fixture 21 are applied to the second lighting fixture 22, the brightness and light color of the light irradiated from the second lighting fixture 22 and the light irradiated from the first lighting fixture 21 may differ, and the desired light color may not be obtained. In addition, the second lighting fixture 22 is a fixture made by a manufacturer different from the manufacturer of the first lighting fixture 21, but the other manufacturers include cases where the fixture is made by a single manufacturer, as well as cases where the fixture is made by multiple manufacturers. In other words, the second lighting fixture 22 includes a third lighting fixture, a fourth lighting fixture, etc., made by different manufacturers.

Figure 1 shows an example of one horizon light as the second lighting fixture 22, but the second lighting fixture 22 may include multiple fixtures of the same model, or multiple different models of fixtures, such as a spotlight and a horizon light.

The lighting fixtures 11 connected to the lighting console 12 via a predetermined communication means 13 may include only the first lighting fixture 21, only the second lighting fixture 22, or a mixture of the first lighting fixture 21 and the second lighting fixture 22, depending on, for example, each stage or each studio. In other words, for example, the first lighting fixture 21 may be used in studio A and the second lighting fixture 22 may be used in studio B, and the first lighting fixture 21 and the second lighting fixture 22 may be used in studio A.

The lighting control console 12 also communicates bidirectionally with multiple lighting fixtures 11, including a first lighting fixture 21 and a second lighting fixture 22, connected via a specific communication means 13, and controls each lighting fixture 11 according to the scene on stage or in the studio.

The lighting console 12 includes a control unit 30 that controls the lighting console 12, and a memory unit 31 that stores various information. Furthermore, the lighting console 12 includes a lighting fixture information collection unit 32 and a judgment unit 33 in the control unit 30.

The memory unit 31 associates the first lighting device identification information of the first lighting device 21 with the light emission intensity information (first light emission intensity information) of each of the first light-emitting elements mounted on the first lighting device 21, and stores the information as a first operating condition, which is scene data.

For example, FIG. 3 shows a table of various information including model numbers and light emission intensity information stored in memory unit 31 as first operating conditions. Memory unit 31 stores light emission intensity information of each of the red, green, and blue first light-emitting elements for each of multiple scenes 1 to 5, which is associated with the model number, as the first operating conditions. The first operating conditions may or may not include INT (intensity) for each scene 1 to 5, xy color coordinates, and target color information such as a filter number and an arbitrary color name. Note that the filter number and filter name here are information indicating which number or name of the color filter used conventionally corresponds to the color produced in each scene.

The lighting fixture information collection unit 32 is capable of collecting first lighting fixture identification information and second lighting fixture identification information from the first lighting fixture 21 and the second lighting fixture 22 connected via the communication means 13.

The determination unit 33 determines the second operating condition, which is scene data of the second lighting device 22, using second light-emitting element information of the second light-emitting element mounted on the second lighting device 22, which is identified by referring to a specific device information database 34 based on the second lighting device identification information collected by the lighting device information collection unit 32, i.e., second light-emitting element information including light emission intensity information and color information of each of the second light-emitting elements, and light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition, which is estimated by referring to the device information database 34 based on the first operating condition.

The estimation by the determination unit 33 of the light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition is performed using the first light-emitting element information of the first lighting device 21, which includes the light emission intensity information of each of the first light-emitting elements mounted on the first lighting device 21 and the color information of each of the first light-emitting elements mounted on the first lighting device 21, which are associated with the first lighting device identification information included in the device information database 34.

The determination unit 33 determines the second operating condition so that the light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition is reproduced in the second lighting device 22.

The first lighting fixture 21 connected to the lighting console 12 is controlled under the first operating condition, and the second lighting fixture 22 connected to the lighting console 12 is controlled under the second operating condition determined by the determination unit 33, thereby reproducing the desired light color in both the first lighting fixture 21 and the second lighting fixture 22.

The device information database 34 may exist on a specified website (e.g., https://gdtf-share.com/) or on the cloud that is connected to the lighting control console 12 via a specified network 35, or may be provided in the lighting control console 12. If the lighting control console 12 is provided with the device information database 34, the lighting control console 12 and the device information database 34 do not need to be connected via the specified network 35.

In the equipment information database 34, for each equipment of each manufacturer, lighting equipment identification information such as model number and name and each light-emitting element information including light-emitting intensity information and color information of each light-emitting element mounted on each equipment are registered in association with each other. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, for each model number, output ratio, which is light-emitting intensity information, and xy color coordinates, which is color information, are registered for each red, green, and blue light-emitting element. In addition to red, green, and blue, the light-emitting elements may include amber, cyan, lime, mint, and white. The output ratio is, for example, a luminous flux ratio, but any parameter can be used as long as it is a ratio of light output such as illuminance ratio or brightness ratio. Furthermore, as the output ratio, an absolute value such as maximum output may be input, or a ratio of absolute values such as maximum output may be input. In addition, the color coordinates may be the standard color (25°C, rated current) of each light-emitting element, or may be the color coordinates of each light-emitting element when outputting at the above-mentioned output ratio (for example, at 25°C). In addition, the information in the equipment information database 34 is updated by manual input or automatically updated by sensor linkage. In the case of sensor linkage, it is preferable that the information is updated in association with the model number of the lighting fixture 11. In addition, each light-emitting element information may be registered in the fixture information database 34 in association with the manufacturer name of the light-emitting element and the model number of the light-emitting element.

The lighting control console 12 allows information to be viewed in the appliance information database 34, and also allows specific information to be downloaded from the appliance information database 34 in a specified file format and a specified compressed format, and allows the downloaded information to be read, for example, into a spreadsheet program.

The communication means 13 also converts signals of communication protocols such as the RDM (Remote Device Management) standard, which is an extension of the DMX (Digital Multiplex) standard, into signals of communication methods such as Art-net, Ethernet (registered trademark), and LAN, enabling wired or wireless two-way communication between the multiple lighting fixtures 11 and the lighting control console 12.

Then, the operation of the lighting control console 12 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 5.

The first lighting fixture 21 is connected to the lighting control console 12 via the communication means 13 (step S1).

The lighting fixture information collection unit 32 of the lighting control console 12 collects first lighting fixture identification information from the first lighting fixture 21 (step S2). The first lighting fixture identification information here includes at least one of individual information such as the manufacturer, fixture model number, fixture name, and fixture type of the first lighting fixture 21. Note that the first lighting fixture identification information does not have to be collected from the first lighting fixture 21. For example, the first lighting fixture identification information may be manually input to the lighting control console 12 using an input interface such as a keyboard or touch panel, or may be input from outside via a storage medium such as a USB memory.

The lighting control console 12 creates light emission intensity information for each of the first light-emitting elements mounted on the first lighting fixture 21 according to the collected first lighting fixture identification information (step S3). The light emission intensity information may be acquired (created) by referring to the fixture information database 34 based on the first lighting fixture identification information, or may be collected from the first lighting fixture 21 if the first lighting fixture 21 stores light emission intensity information. Note that if the first lighting fixture identification information is known in advance, step S2 may be omitted and step S3 may be performed after step S1, or step S1 may be performed after step S3.

The lighting control console 12 associates the first lighting device identification information with the light emission intensity information of each of the first light-emitting elements and stores them as first operating conditions in the memory unit 31 (step S4).

The first operating condition may be created by acquiring the first operating condition created by another lighting console 12 via a specified storage medium or a specified network. In this case, the lighting console 12 does not need to perform the first operating condition creation operation of steps 1 to 4. Furthermore, when acquiring the first operating condition created by another lighting console 12 via a specified storage medium or a specified network in this manner, the storage of the first operating condition in the storage unit 31 may also be temporarily stored for processing by the judgment unit 33.

Then, the second lighting device 22 is connected to the lighting control console 12 via the communication means 13 (step S5).

The lighting fixture information collection unit 32 of the lighting control console 12 collects the second lighting fixture identification information from the second lighting fixture 22 (step S6). The second lighting fixture identification information does not have to be collected from the second lighting fixture 22. For example, the first lighting fixture identification information may be manually input to the lighting control console 12 using an input interface such as a keyboard or touch panel, or may be input from outside via a storage medium such as a USB memory.

The determination unit 33 of the lighting control console 12 estimates the light color information of the light emitted from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition (step S7), and determines the second operating condition so that the light color information of the light emitted from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition is reproduced by the second lighting device 22 (step S8).

The light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition estimated in step S7 is, for example, information such as chromaticity coordinates (xy coordinate system, uv coordinate system, etc.), color temperature (K), color deviation (duv), color rendering index (R1 to R15, Ra, etc.), and at least one of these pieces of information is estimated.

Then, in step S8, the second operating condition is determined based on the light color information of the light estimated in step S7. Here, the second operating condition is determined so that the light irradiated from the second lighting device 22 under the second operating condition matches the light color information of the light estimated in step S7. At this time, the second operating condition may be configured to be able to set information that does not necessarily have to match, and may be configured to be able to register second lighting device light color restriction information as the allowable range of the light irradiated from the second lighting device 22. For example, if the color temperature is set to ±10K as the second lighting device light color restriction information, the second operating condition is set so that the color temperature falls within a range of ±10K with respect to the color temperature estimated in the first operating condition when determining the second operating condition in step S8. Also, for example, if the color temperature is set to +500K as the second lighting device light color restriction information, the second operating condition is set so that the color temperature is +500K with respect to the color temperature estimated in the first operating condition when determining the second operating condition in step S8.

Furthermore, a second embodiment of the operation of the lighting control console 12 will be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 6. A detailed description will be omitted, but the above description can be applied as is to the same operations as those in the flowchart in FIG. 5.

The first lighting fixture 21 is connected to the lighting control console 12 via the communication means 13 (step S11).

The lighting fixture information collection unit 32 of the lighting control console 12 collects first lighting fixture identification information from the first lighting fixture 21 (step S12).

The lighting control console 12 creates light emission intensity information for each of the first light-emitting elements mounted on the first lighting fixture 21 according to the collected first lighting fixture identification information (step S13). The light emission intensity information may be created by referring to the fixture information database 34 based on the first lighting fixture identification information, or may be collected from the first lighting fixture 21 if the first lighting fixture 21 stores light emission intensity information.

The determination unit 33 of the lighting control console 12 estimates the light color information of the light emitted from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition (step S14).

The lighting control console 12 stores in the memory unit 31 the first lighting device identification information, the light emission intensity information of each of the first light-emitting elements, and the light color information of the light emitted from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition in association with each other as the first operating condition (step S15).

The first operating condition may be created by acquiring the first operating condition created by another lighting console 12 via a specified storage medium or a specified network. In this case, the lighting console 12 does not need to perform the operations of creating the first operating condition in steps 11 to 15. Furthermore, when acquiring the first operating condition created by another lighting console 12 via a specified storage medium or a specified network in this manner, the storage of the first operating condition in the storage unit 31 may also be temporarily stored for processing by the judgment unit 33.

Then, the second lighting device 22 is connected to the lighting control console 12 via the communication means 13 (step S16).

The lighting fixture information collection unit 32 of the lighting control console 12 collects second lighting fixture identification information from the second lighting fixture 22 (step S17).

The determination unit 33 of the lighting control console 12 determines the second operating condition so that the light color information of the light emitted from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition is reproduced by the second lighting device 22 (step S18).

Then, the judgment operation of the judgment unit 33 in the above-mentioned Examples 1 and 2 will be explained with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 7.

Based on the first lighting fixture identification information, the fixture information database 34 is referenced, and first light-emitting element information including the emission intensity information and color information of each of the first light-emitting elements installed in the first lighting fixture 21 is identified and acquired (step S21).

The light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating conditions is estimated from the light emission intensity information and color information of the acquired first light-emitting element information (step S22).

The operations in steps S21 and S22 correspond to the operations performed in step S7 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 5, and correspond to the operations performed in step S14 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 6.

Based on the second lighting device identification information collected by the lighting device information collection unit 32, the device information database 34 is referenced, and second light-emitting device information of each of the second light-emitting devices mounted on the second lighting device 22, that is, second light-emitting device information including the light emission intensity information and color information of each of the second light-emitting devices, is identified and acquired (step S23). Note that in the above-mentioned Example 1, this operation may be performed at any stage, for example, before, after, or during the estimation of the light color information under the first operating conditions.

The output ratio of each second light-emitting element is determined to reproduce in the second lighting device 22 the light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition (step S24). In this step S24, the light color of the light irradiated from the second lighting device 22 under the second operating condition is determined. As described above, at this time, the additional information may include information that the color is different from the first operating condition. This additional information may include information that the color temperature is different by XXXK from the first operating condition.

The output (absolute value) that reproduces the brightness of the light irradiated from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition as the brightness of the light irradiated from the second lighting device 22 is determined (step S25). In step S25, the brightness of the light irradiated from the second lighting device 22 under the second operating condition is determined. Note that this output (absolute value) may be determined by multiplying the output ratio of each second light-emitting element determined in step 24 by a positive number, or by adjusting the INT (intensity).

In this way, a second operating condition is determined in which the light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting device 21 under the first operating condition is reproduced as the light color information of the light irradiated from the second lighting device 22 (step S26).

Note that the operations from step S23 to step S26 correspond to the operations performed in step S8 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 5, and correspond to the operations performed in step S18 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 6.

Then, the lighting control console 12 controls the first lighting fixture 21 under the first operating condition, and controls the second lighting fixture 22 under the second operating condition determined by the determination unit 33.

If the first operating conditions, which are scene data created for a first lighting fixture 21 made by one manufacturer, are applied to a second lighting fixture 22 made by another manufacturer, a discrepancy in light color will occur.

In the lighting control console 12 of this embodiment, a second operating condition is determined in which the light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting fixture 21 under the first operating condition is reproduced as the light color information of the light irradiated from the second lighting fixture 22, and the second lighting fixture 22 is controlled under this second operating condition, thereby reducing the light color difference between the light color irradiated from the first lighting fixture 21 and the light color irradiated from the second lighting fixture 22, and the desired light color can be reproduced using the second lighting fixture 22.

The second operating condition, which is the scene data of the second lighting fixture 22, can be determined using second light-emitting element information of the second light-emitting element mounted on the second lighting fixture 22, which is identified by referring to a specific fixture information database 34 based on the second lighting fixture identification information collected by the lighting fixture information collection unit 32, that is, second light-emitting element information including light emission intensity information and color information of each of the second light-emitting elements, and light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting fixture 21 under the first operating condition, which is estimated by referring to the fixture information database 34 based on the first operating condition.

Furthermore, the light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting device 21 under this first operating condition can be estimated using the first light-emitting element information of the first lighting device 21, which includes the light emission intensity information of each of the first light-emitting elements mounted on the first lighting device 21 and the color information of each of the first light-emitting elements mounted on the first lighting device 21, which are associated with the first lighting device identification information included in the device information database 34.

Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be embodied in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents described in the claims.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 Lighting system 12 Lighting control console 13 Communication means 21 First lighting fixture 22 Second lighting fixture 31 Memory unit 32 Lighting fixture information collection unit 33 Determination unit 34 Fixture information database

Claims (4)

a storage unit that associates first lighting device identification information of a first lighting device equipped with a plurality of types of first light-emitting elements that can be individually controlled with light emission intensity information of each of the first light-emitting elements equipped in the first lighting device, and stores the first operating conditions in association with each other;
a determination unit that determines a second operating condition of the second lighting device based on second lighting device identification information of a second lighting device different from the first lighting device and equipped with multiple types of second light-emitting elements that can be individually controlled, using second light-emitting element information of the second lighting device equipped in the second lighting device, which is identified by referring to a device information database in which identification information of each of the multiple devices including the first lighting device and the second lighting device and information of the light-emitting element equipped in each of the multiple devices are associated and registered, and light color information of the light emitted from the first lighting device under the first operating condition estimated by referring to the device information database based on the first operating condition;
A lighting control console equipped with The lighting console according to claim 1 , wherein the determination unit determines the second operating condition so that the light color information of the light irradiated from the first lighting device under the first operating condition is reproduced by the second lighting device. The lighting control console according to claim 1 or 2 , further comprising a lighting fixture information collection unit configured to collect the second lighting fixture identification information from the second lighting fixture connected via a predetermined communication means. A first lighting device equipped with a plurality of types of first light-emitting elements that can be individually controlled;
a second lighting device different from the first lighting device, the second lighting device including a plurality of types of second light-emitting elements that can be individually controlled;
A lighting control console according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , which is connected to the first lighting fixture and the second lighting fixture by a predetermined communication means;
A lighting system comprising:

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