A semiconductor lighting system controlled through a LIN network to automotive application

This paper proposes an intelligent lighting system for bus interior environment using LEDs (light emitting diodes) controlled through an automotive communication network. The system consists on a master central control and slaves lighting modules, using a LIN (local interconnect network) network to perform communication. This network is a low cost alternative to the proposed system requirements, due to its low bit rate and physical needs. The slaves are independent lighting modules that supply a group of LEDs and measure the environment lighting level. The master sets LEDs module parameters (slaves), such as the state (on/off), and desired lighting level The master makes the user interface, sets the lighting parameters, as timer and lighting level and, more over, it establishes communication with other bus systems through a CAN (controller area network) gateway. This paper presents a complete logical description, including block and state diagrams, a physical description and some relevant experimental results.