Abstract:
A device (500) and method (600) control a dimming level of one or more lighting units (130) in response to a user interaction with a reference-free user interface (410), such as a rocker-type interface. A bidirectional triode thyristor (460) supplies an AC input voltage (110) to the lighting unit(s) when it is triggered. A triggering circuit (510) triggers the bidirectional triode thyristor. The triggering circuit includes a capacitor (554) and a variable resistance element (510) which sets a time constant during each half cycle of a period of the AC input voltage for charging the capacitor to a triggering voltage which triggers the bidirectional triode thyristor. The resistance of the variable resistance element is controlled in response to a dimming input signal from the reference-free user interface. The dimming input signal indicates only relative changes in the output level of the lighting unit(s) with respect to the present level.
Abstract:
A dimmer switch (110-x, 200, 400, 600, 700A, 700B,1200) adapted to be coupled to an alternating current (AC) source and to a load so as to control an amount of power delivered from the AC source to the load, the dimmer switch may include: a triode for AC (TRIAC) (208, 408, 612) coupled between the AC source and the load, and which when triggered conducts to deliver a controlled amount of power from the AC source to the load for a corresponding half-cycle of one or more half cycles of the AC source. The dimmer switch may include first and second triggering circuits (606, 608) configured to trigger the TRIAC when charged after being enabled. One or more of the triggering circuits may be a self-balancing triggering circuit. The dimmer switch may further include a controller (412, 602, 1210) which selects and thereafter enables one or more of the first or second triggering circuits.