Roadway fixture systems with integrated transceiving equipment

Abstract

A roadway fixture system includes a lighting fixture having an outer housing that holds one or more light devices. The outer housing includes an access door through which an interior of the lighting fixture is accessible. The system also includes a radio frequency (RF) transceiver configured to send and receive cellular communications. The RF transceiver includes a mounting plate that is sized and shaped to fit into a space occupied by the access door of the outer housing of the lighting fixture so that the RF transceiver is mounted to the lighting fixture.

1 . A system comprising:
 a lighting fixture having an outer housing that holds one or more light devices, the outer housing including a removeable access door through which an interior of the lighting fixture is accessible; and   a radio frequency (RF) transceiver configured to send and receive cellular communications, the RF transceiver including a mounting plate that is, upon removal of the access door from the outer housing of the lighting fixture, coupled to the outer housing of the lighting fixture, the mounting plate sized and shaped to fit into a space previously occupied by the removeable access door of the outer housing of the lighting fixture so that the RF transceiver is mounted to the lighting fixture.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the RF transceiver is a low power, micro-cell cellular transceiver. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the RF transceiver is configured to be retrofitted to a pre-existing lighting fixture support. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 3 , wherein the lighting fixture support is a pole arm or a horizontally oriented portion of a pole. 
     
     
         5 . (canceled) 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the RF transceiver is configured to be conductively coupled with and electrically powered by a power supply that also powers the lighting fixture. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 6 , further comprising one or more battery cells configured to be conductively coupled with the RF transceiver, wherein the one or more battery cells are configured to electrically power the RF transceiver responsive to an interruption of power from the power supply to the RF transceiver. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a wired network connection configured to communicatively couple the RF transceiver with one or more networks. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a heat sink configured to be thermally coupled with the RF transceiver. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a housing to which the RF transceiver is configured to be coupled, wherein one or more surfaces of the housing include one or more of an RF reflective coating or an RF absorbing coating configured to modify a cellular beam pattern of the RF transceiver. 
     
     
         11 - 20 . (canceled)