Modulated control circuit and method for current-limited dimming and color mixing of display and illumination systems
First Claim
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1. An illumination control circuit comprising:
- a controlling module having one or more analog output signals producing output control voltages each individually variable within a range of values;
one or more intensity modules receiving said analog output signals of said controlling module to control one or more illumination sources;
wherein said intensity modules are controlled according to said analog output signals of said controlling module to vary the intensity of said illumination sources in proportion to the voltage level of said analog output signals, and additionally in response to a pulsing of said analog output signals between any two or more discrete voltage levels.
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Abstract
A control circuit for a lighting system allows analog control over a first range of illumination intensities in which the intensity of the illumination source varies in proportion to the voltage level of the control signal. The circuit provides for improved dimming and color mixing capability by allowing pulse width or frequency modulation control in addition to analog control over a second range of illumination intensities.
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Citations
18 Claims
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1. An illumination control circuit comprising:
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a controlling module having one or more analog output signals producing output control voltages each individually variable within a range of values;
one or more intensity modules receiving said analog output signals of said controlling module to control one or more illumination sources;
wherein said intensity modules are controlled according to said analog output signals of said controlling module to vary the intensity of said illumination sources in proportion to the voltage level of said analog output signals, and additionally in response to a pulsing of said analog output signals between any two or more discrete voltage levels. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An illumination control circuit comprising:
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a microcontroller adapted to write an output control signal to a digital-to-analog converter according to programmed instructions;
said digital-to-analog converter having an analog output signal that varies according to said output control signal of said microcontroller;
a switching device receiving said analog output signal of said digital-to-analog converter to control an illumination source;
wherein said switching device is controlled according to the analog output signal of said digital-to-analog converter to vary the intensity of said illumination source over a first range of illumination intensities of said illumination source such that the intensity of the illumination source varies in proportion to the voltage of said analog output signal of said digital-to-analog converter, and a second range of illumination intensities of said illumination source such that the intensity of said illumination source varies in proportion to the voltage of the analog output signal of said digital-to-analog converter and said analog output signal of said digital-to-analog converter is pulsed between any two or more discrete voltage levels.
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12. A method for controlling the intensity of an illumination source comprising:
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providing an input signal to a circuit containing said illumination source;
varying said input signal over a first range of illumination intensities of said illumination source such that the intensity of the illumination source varies in proportion to the voltage of the input signal; and
varying said input signal over a second range of illumination intensities of said illumination source such that the intensity of said illumination source varies in proportion to the voltage of the input signal and the input signal is pulsed between any two or more discrete voltage levels. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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Specification