Panasonic Electric Works Co., Ltd.

Matsushita Electric Works, Ltd.

Panasonic Corporation

Ikeda Electric Co., Ltd.

Universal Lighting Technologies, Inc.

Matsushita Electric Works R&d Laboratory, Inc.

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.

Takeshi Goriki

Akira Yufuku

Takeshi Kamoi

Yiyoung Sun

Kenichi Fukuda

Daisuke Yamahara

Nobutoshi Matsuzaki

Hiroyasu Eriguchi

Naoki Komatsu

Jun Kumagai

Satoru Nagata

Noriyuki Fukumori

Jun Konishi

Wei Xiong

John Jay Dernovsek

Junichi Hasegawa

Akihiro Kishimoto

Nobuo Ukita

Tsutomu Shiomi

Hiroichi Shinbori

Koji Noro

Naoki Komatu

An LED driver circuit is provided with a dynamic operating range. A controller for a power converter is configured to regulate the output voltage and the output current generated by the power converter based on a dimming control signal from a dimming control interface, a sensed output from the power converter, and programmed maximum output voltage and maximum output current values. The tuning interface may be coupled to the dimming control interface and provide a sequence of digital pulses corresponding to a desired maximum output voltage and/or maximum output current. The controller may modify the programmed maximum output voltage and the maximum output current values based on the predetermined sequence of digital pulses received via the tuning interface circuit.

LED driver circuit with dimming control and programming interfaces

An electronic ballast is provided for improved startup and powering of a high pressure discharge lamp. The ballast includes an inverter, a starting circuit for generating a high voltage to ignite the lamp, a controller for controlling an operating frequency of the inverter from startup to steady-state lamp operation, and a lamp output detection circuit. The controller controls the inverter in association with one or more of a first phase in which the starting circuit generates the high voltage and causes dielectric breakdown between the lamp electrodes, a second phase in which an electrode heating operation is performed after dielectric breakdown and a third phase in which steady-state operation of the lamp is performed. A lamp output determination is performed at a predetermined time before shifting to the third phase, and upon determining that the lamp is ignited the second phase is inserted.

Hid lamp ballast with multi-phase operation based on a detected lamp illumination state

A high pressure discharge lamp lighting device in this invention comprises a converter, an inverter, an igniter, a controller, and a pulse voltage detection circuit. The converter outputs the direct current voltage. The inverter converts the direct current voltage into the lighting voltage which is alternating current voltage, and applies the lighting voltage to the high pressure discharge lamp through an output terminal. The igniter is configured to output the pulse voltage superimposed on the lighting voltage, whereby the starting voltage is applied to the high pressure discharge lamp. The controller is configured to control the igniter to allow the igniter to superimpose the pulse voltage on the lighting voltage. The pulse voltage detection circuit detects the starting voltage to output the detection signal. The starting voltage regulation circuit regulates the starting voltage to the desired voltage value of the voltage on the basis of the detection signal.

High pressure discharge lamp lighting device and lighting fixture using the same

A high pressure discharge lamp lighting device comprising an inverter, an igniter, a controller, a pulse voltage detection circuit, and the starting pulse voltage regulation circuit. The inverter applies a lighting voltage to a high pressure discharge lamp. The controller applies the starting pulse voltage generated by the igniter to the high pressure discharge lamp. The pulse voltage detection circuit is configured to detect a voltage indicative of the starting pulse voltage to output a detection signal. The starting pulse voltage regulation circuit is configured to regulate the starting pulse voltage to a desired value of the starting pulse voltage on the basis of the detection signal. The pulse voltage detection circuit is configured to detect either one of the voltage developed in the specified circuit component of the igniter and the starting pulse voltage as the voltage indicative of the voltage indicative of the starting pulse voltage.

A high pressure discharge lamp lighting device, includes: a DC/DC converter for converting a power source voltage of a DC power source into a desired DC voltage and stably lighting a high pressure discharge lamp; a DC/AC inverter for inverting the DC voltage into an AC voltage; and a starting pulse generating circuit for generating a high voltage required for the start-up of the high pressure discharge lamp. Further, the high pressure discharge lamp lighting device includes a lighting state decision unit for deciding a lighted/unlighted state of the high pressure discharge lamp; and an operating state switching control unit for switching the operating state of at least one of the DC/DC converter, the DC/AC inverter, and the starting pulse generating circuit to another operating state, depending on a predetermined operation phase out of the start-up, stable lighting and power interrupt phases of the high pressure discharge lamp.

High pressure discharge lamp lighting device and luminaire

A lamp ballast capable of lighting a discharge lamp and an incandescent lamp each at an optimum condition. The lamp ballast has a DC-DC converter, an inverter that converts an output of DC-DC converter into an AC power for applying the same to a lamp load, a starting circuit generating a high voltage pulse from the AC power to provide the same to the lamp load, and a controller that controls the DC-DC converter and the inverter to provide a variable DC voltage and the AC power of variable frequency. The controller has a starting mode of operating the inverter at a starting frequency to generate the high voltage, and a lighting mode of operating the inverter at a lighting frequency lower than the starting frequency. The controller has a detection mode of causing the DC-DC converter to output a detection voltage of a predetermined level prior to the starting mode, a discharge lamp lighting program of operating, after the detection mode, the inverter in the starting mode and subsequently in the lighting mode, and an incandescent lamp lighting program of operating, after the detection mode, the inverter in the lighting mode without through the starting mode. When the detection voltage exceeds a predetermined threshold, the controller selects the discharge lamp lighting program, and otherwise selects the incandescent lamp lighting program. When the incandescent lamp is connected, the ballast turns on the incandescent lamp without applying a high voltage pulse so as to avoid lowering of the lamp life.

Lamp ballast and an illumination apparatus

A high-voltage discharge lamp lighting device provides a starting pulse voltage sufficient to turn on a high-voltage discharge lamp having terminal wire connections of variable length. A power conversion circuit is coupled to a commercial AC power source input and rectifies the AC input into a predetermined DC voltage output. A charging capacitor is coupled to the power conversion circuit. A full bridge circuit is coupled to the power conversion circuit and the charging capacitor and provides a rectangular wave AC output signal to a transformer primary winding circuit of at least a capacitor, a single switching element and a primary winding of a transformer. A low pulse voltage is induced in the primary winding and a transformer secondary winding is connected on one end to the high-voltage discharge lamp, wherein the low pulse voltage is stepped up to a high pulse voltage and applied to the high-voltage discharge lamp. A reference voltage is generated in a reference transformer winding representative of the high pulse voltage. A starting pulse equivalent value detection circuit is connected to the reference winding and detects a value associated with the reference voltage. A control circuit receives said value from said detection circuit, and variably controls at least one of a frequency of the single switching element or an ON impedance of the single switching element in association with said value, wherein said frequency or ON impedance is further associated with a starting pulse voltage sufficient to start the high-voltage discharge lamp.

High voltage discharge lamp lighting device

There is provided a discharge-lamp lighting device that, upon start-up of a high-intensity discharge lamp, alternately outputs a period A during which a starting circuit applies a high voltage to the high-intensity discharge lamp by resonance operation when a DC/AC inverter outputs a high-frequency voltage, and a period B during which the DC/AC inverter applies a low-frequency-square-wave voltage or a DC voltage to the high-intensity discharge lamp via the starting circuit. The period A for applying the high voltage by the resonance operation is set to about a time enough for a high-intensity discharge lamp in an initial aging stage to cause a dielectric breakdown, and a period C for alternately outputting the high-voltage generating period A and the period B for outputting the low-frequency-square-wave voltage or the DC voltage is set to about a time enough for a high-intensity discharge lamp in a life's last stage to cause a dielectric breakdown.

Discharge-lamp lighting device and luminaire

When the starting of the discharge lamp has been detected at least once, the control circuit increases the number of repetitions of a period while the high frequency voltage and the square wave voltage are being outputted alternately. In such a way, in the discharge lamp lighting device that alternately generates the high frequency voltage and the square wave voltage at the time of starting, sure startability is ensured.

Discharge lamp lighting device and light fixture

A lighting device for lighting a high-pressure discharge lamphaving an outer tube, an interior of which is substantially under vacuum. The lighting device includes a ballasthaving at least a current limiting element and a high-voltage pulse generating circuitfor generating a high-voltage pulse, and also includes a lighting discriminating meansfor discriminating between lighting and non-lighting of the discharge lamp, a timer circuitfor setting a predetermined period of time, and a pulse-stop control meansfor stopping generation of the high-voltage pulse. When the lighting discriminating meansdiscriminates non-lighting after lighting has been discriminated, generation of the high-voltage pulse is stopped within the predetermined period of time set by the timer circuit

Lighting device for a high-pressure discharge lamp and lighting equipment employing same

A level shift IC () of a power supply/shutoff section () is operable, when a shutoff signal (Sa) is input from a timer circuit () for a time T during an ON state of a discharge lamp (), to turn off a MOSFET () so as to shut off power supply to a smoothing capacitor (). When a detection signal (Sb) of a capacitor voltage is lowered to a value less than a reference voltage Vrduring input of the shutoff signal (Sa), an output of a comparator () is changed from an H level to an L level in an inverted manner. In conjunction with this change, respective outputs of an auxiliary control circuit () and a NOT element (,) are changed from an L level to an H level in an inverted manner. As a result, a current flows from the NOT element () to an LED () through a resistor () to turn on the LED (). Thus, a life end of the smoothing capacitoris annunciated, and a main control circuit () is operable to suppress an output of an inverter main circuit ().

Discharge lamp lighting device, and lighting equipment and lighting system using the device

A method and apparatus for protecting a discharge lamp lighting device from damage due to mis-wiring of a source of electrical power to the discharge lamp lighting device. The protection apparatus includes a detector, a comparer and an inhibitor. The detector samples at least one monitor point associated with the discharge lamp lighting device to obtain at least one detection voltage. The comparer compares the at least one detection voltage with a reference voltage. The inhibitor inhibits an operation of the discharge lamp lighting device when the comparer determines that a mis-wiring of the source of electrical power to the discharge lamp lighting device exists.

Discharge lamp lighting device, lighting system and method

In a discharge lamp lighting apparatus for lighting a lighting system using a discharge lamp, a housing used for containing a printed circuit board on which a discharge lamp lighting circuit is mounted is formed by resin molding. In order to put out wires connected to the printed circuit board from an inside to outside of the housing, protruding portions are protruded outward from upper end portions of a front face and a rear face of side walls of a base member which constitute the housing, and wire putting grooves are formed on upper faces of the protruding portions. Furthermore, reinforcing ribs are provided for coupling the protruding portions and portions of the side walls except the protruding portions so as to reinforce mechanical strength of the protruding portions by the reinforcing ribs.

Discharge lamp lighting device and illuminator

Circuit and method for driving a gas discharge lamp having a bridge converter. The bridge converter includes a plurality of switches. A controller turns on and off the plurality of switches. The circuit further includes a zero current sensor circuit. The controller senses at least one voltage differential to control a length of time that at least one of the at least four switches is on. The controller controls when at least one of the plurality of switches is turned on in accordance with an output of the zero cross sensor.

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Yawata, Japan

Takeshi Goriki