Electrochromic element drive control circuit
First Claim
1. A drive control circuit for controlling an electrochromic element, said drive control circuit comprising:
- an input for receiving an input voltage;
a current regulator coupled to the input for generating one of at least first and second discrete amounts of current;
a controller for controlling the current regulator to select the one of the at least first and second discrete amounts of current to drive an electrochromic element; and
an output for supplying the selected one of the at least first and second discrete amounts of current to the electrochromic element.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A drive control circuit for controlling an electrochromic element is substantially integrated into an integrated circuit, with the exception of resistive elements for dissipating heat away from the integrated circuit. The drive control circuit includes a current regulator for generating a select one of at least two discrete amounts of current to drive the electrochromic element. Further, a control system individually controls a plurality of electrochromic elements and includes shunts coupled in parallel with the individual electrochromic elements. The control system controls the ratio of the reflectance of the individual electrochromic elements as a function of sensed glare.
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Citations
63 Claims
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1. A drive control circuit for controlling an electrochromic element, said drive control circuit comprising:
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an input for receiving an input voltage;
a current regulator coupled to the input for generating one of at least first and second discrete amounts of current;
a controller for controlling the current regulator to select the one of the at least first and second discrete amounts of current to drive an electrochromic element; and
an output for supplying the selected one of the at least first and second discrete amounts of current to the electrochromic element. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A drive control circuit for controlling an electrochromic element, said drive control circuit comprising:
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an input for receiving an input voltage;
a first resistive path coupled to the input for providing a first discrete amount of current to an electrochromic element;
a second resistive path coupled to the input for supplying a second discrete amount of current to the electrochromic element;
a current selector for selecting one of the first and second resistive paths to supply the corresponding one of the first and second discrete amounts of current to drive the electrochromic element; and
an output for supplying the selected one of the first and second discrete amounts of current to the electrochromic element. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A control circuit for controlling an electrochromic element, said control circuit comprising:
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an integrated circuit chip; and
drive circuitry substantially formed in the integrated circuit chip for driving an electrochromic element, said drive circuitry comprising a current control circuit configured to supply current to an electrochromic element. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. A control circuit for controlling an electrochromic element, said control circuit comprising:
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an integrated circuit chip;
a processor formed in the integrated circuit chip; and
drive circuitry substantially formed in the integrated circuit chip for driving an electrochromic element, said drive circuitry comprising a current control circuit including a first resistor configured to generate a current to be supplied to an electrochromic element, wherein the first resistor is located separate from the integrated circuit chip. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33)
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34. A drive control system for controlling first and second electrochromic elements, said control system comprising:
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an input for receiving an input voltage;
a first shunt coupled in parallel with a first electrochromic element;
a second shunt coupled in parallel with a second electrochromic element;
a sensor for sensing glare; and
a controller for controlling a ratio of the reflectance of the first and second electrochromic elements, said controller controlling the ratio as a function of the sensed glare. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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41. A drive control circuit for driving first and second serially-connected electrochromic elements, said drive control circuit comprising:
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an input for receiving a voltage;
a voltage regulating circuit for providing a predetermined voltage across the serially-connected electrochromic elements;
a first shunt connected across the first electrochromic element;
a feedback loop connected to the first shunt for controlling the voltage across the first electrochromic element;
a second shunt connected across the second electrochromic element;
a second feedback loop connected to the second shunt for controlling the voltage across the second electrochromic element;
a sensor for sensing glare; and
a controller for controlling a ratio of the reflectance of the first and second electrochromic elements, said controller controlling the ratio as a function of the sensed glare. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43, 44)
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- 45. An application specific integrated circuit for individually controlling the reflectivity of a plurality of electrochromic elements independent of one another.
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50. An application specific integrated circuit for controlling the reflectivity of first and second electrochromic elements, comprising:
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a current regulator for generating first and second discrete amounts of current;
a first shunt coupled to the first electrochromic element; and
a second shunt coupled to the second electrochromic element.
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51. An application specific integrated circuit for controlling the reflectivity of one or more electrochromic elements, comprising:
at least one shunt circuit for bypassing electric current around said electrochromic element.
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52. A method of controlling an electrochromic element, said method comprising the steps of:
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receiving an input voltage;
generating a first discrete amount of current;
controlling a current regulator to change the first discrete amount of current to a second discrete amount of current; and
supplying the selected one of the first and second discrete amounts of current to an electrochromic element. - View Dependent Claims (53, 54, 55, 56, 57)
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58. A method of controlling an electrochromic element, said method comprising the steps of:
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receiving an input voltage;
generating a discrete amount of boost current for darkening an electrochromic element;
monitoring a boost time period; and
controlling a current regulator to reduce the discrete amount of boost current to a lesser discrete amount of drive current when the monitored boost time period expires. - View Dependent Claims (59, 60, 61)
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62. A method of controlling first and second serially-connected electrochromic elements, said method comprising the steps of:
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receiving an input voltage;
regulating the input voltage to provide a predetermined voltage across the serially-connected electrochromic elements;
shunting current around the first electrochromic element with a first shunt;
shunting current around the second electrochromic element with a second shunt;
sensing glare; and
controlling a ratio of the reflectance of the first and second electrochromic elements as a function of the sensed glare by controlling the first and second shunts. - View Dependent Claims (63)
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Specification