Safety control circuit for detecting the removal of lamps from a ballast and reducing the through-lamp leakage currents
US6051940A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 30, 1998 |
| Grant date | Apr 18, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 30, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S315/07
- WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A series resonant ballast safety control circuit for controlling the operation of a ballast when a lamp is removed from a lamp fixture. The safety control circuit senses a diode clamp current and activates a transistor to ground one of the terminals of a dimming control circuit. The dimming control circuit reduces the duty cycle of one of the inverter transistors to decrease the available output voltage and reduce the through-lamp leakage current to safe levels. Once the lamp is replaced in the lamp fixture, the safety control circuit no longer controls the dimming control circuit and the ballast returns to normal operation. In another embodiment, the safety control circuit is used with a boost power factor correction circuit in a non-dimming ballast system to reduce the current provided to the lamp load. The safety control circuit is connected to the boost power factor correction circuit so that when the safety control circuit senses a diode clamp current, the safety control circuit disables the boost power factor correction circuit. This prevents the boosted voltage from being supplied to the inverter, which in turn reduces the output voltage provided to the removed lamp and resu…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.