Switchable luminance LED light bulb

• US 9,144,129 B2
• Filed: 12/26/2012
• Issued: 09/22/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Regents of the University of California (University of California)
• Original Assignee: Regents of the University of California (University of California)
• Inventors: Munday, David, Baker, Ryan, Dahan, Julian, Petersen, Russell, Sloan, Craig
• Primary Examiner(s): Donovan, Lincoln
• Assistant Examiner(s): Almo, Khareem E
• Application Number:
  US13/727,463
• Publication Number:
  US 20130328493A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,000 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/10 Controlling the intensity of the light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/30 Driver circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/345 Current stabilisation; Maintaining constant current
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/375 using buck topology
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/30 Semiconductor lamps, e.g. solid state lamps [SSL] light emitting diodes [LED] or organic LED [OLED]

Abstract

A switchable luminance LED light bulb, including embodiments that may be used with any common commercial fitting.

Claims

1. A switchable luminance LED light bulb device comprising:

an AC input component in functional communication with a driver board, the driver board comprising a rectifier, wherein the DC current is fed into a switch, the switch having a single input pole and multiple output poles and a plurality of selectable positions, wherein the switch directs the current through one of a plurality of selectable capacitors and/or resistors corresponding to one of a plurality of different DC output currents, wherein the selected DC output current is fed into at least one of a plurality of light emitting diodes, wherein the selected DC output current corresponds to the light output of the light emitting diodes, the device further comprising a switch having a plurality of output poles each connected to a different capacitor, wherein the current from the capacitor is subsequently conducted to a switch having a plurality of output poles each connected to a different resistor, wherein the combination of capacitor and resistor selected corresponds to a selected DC output current that corresponds to the light output of the light emitting diodes.

2. A switchable luminance LED light bulb device comprising:

an AC input component in functional communication with a driver board, the driver board comprising a rectifier, wherein the DC current is fed into a switch, the switch having a single input pole and multiple output poles and a plurality of selectable positions, wherein the switch directs the current through one of a plurality of selectable capacitors and/or resistors corresponding to one of a plurality of different DC output currents, wherein the selected DC output current is fed into at least one of a plurality of light emitting diodes, wherein the selected DC output current corresponds to the light output of the light emitting diodes, further comprising a current regulating device functionally associated with the driver board, and at least one transistor, wherein the current regulating device modulates the gate of the output transistor by measuring the voltage, thereby regulating current.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein the transistor is a MOSFET.

4. A switchable luminance LED light bulb device comprising:

an AC input component in functional communication with a driver board, the driver board comprising a rectifier, wherein the DC current is fed into a switch, the switch having a single input pole and multiple output poles and a plurality of selectable positions, wherein the switch directs the current through one of a plurality of selectable capacitors and/or resistors corresponding to one of a plurality of different DC output currents, wherein the selected DC output current is fed into at least one of a plurality of light emitting diodes, wherein the selected DC output current corresponds to the light output of the light emitting diodes, the device comprising at least two transistors wherein one transistor is in communication with the Zener diode so as to provide constant voltage to the current regulating device.

5. A switchable luminance LED light bulb device comprising:

an AC input component in functional communication with a driver board, the driver board comprising a rectifier, wherein the DC current is fed into a switch, the switch having a single input pole and multiple output poles and a plurality of selectable positions, wherein the switch directs the current through one of a plurality of selectable capacitors and/or resistors corresponding to one of a plurality of different DC output currents, wherein the selected DC output current is fed into at least one of a plurality of light emitting diodes, wherein the selected DC output current corresponds to the light output of the light emitting diodes, further comprising a bridge rectifier downstream of the AC input.

6. The device of claim 5 wherein voltage is regulated by use of a Zener diode.

7. The device of claim 6 wherein the regulated voltage is applied to a transistor and the drain of the transistor connects to a node while the source connects to the anode of a rectifier and wherein the cathode of the rectifier connects to a second, fixed voltage node connected to a filter capacitor, wherein the second node also connects to the input of a current regulator and to the common pole of a switch having a single input pole and a plurality of output poles corresponding to a plurality of capacitors and/or resistors, wherein the current regulator is a constant current controller that provides a regulated current for illuminating a light emitting diode.

8. A switchable luminance LED light bulb device comprising:

an AC input component in functional communication with a driver board, the driver board comprising a rectifier, wherein the DC current is fed into a switch, the switch having a single input pole and multiple output poles and a plurality of selectable positions, wherein the switch directs the current through one of a plurality of selectable capacitors and/or resistors corresponding to one of a plurality of different DC output currents, wherein the selected DC output current is fed into at least one of a plurality of light emitting diodes, wherein the selected DC output current corresponds to the light output of the light emitting diodes, wherein the driver board is mechanically attached to a cap adapted to be releasably fitted to an AC electrical output socket, and wherein said cap is bayonet-mount cap.

9. A switchable luminance LED light bulb device comprising:

an AC input component in functional communication with a driver board, the driver board comprising a rectifier, wherein the DC current is fed into a switch, the switch having a single input pole and multiple output poles and a plurality of selectable positions, wherein the switch directs the current through one of a plurality of selectable capacitors and/or resistors corresponding to one of a plurality of different DC output currents, wherein the selected DC output current is fed into at least one of a plurality of light emitting diodes, wherein the selected DC output current corresponds to the light output of the light emitting diodes, wherein the AC input component routes the input voltage across a noise suppression capacitor to a bridge rectifier, wherein one output of the bridge rectifier goes to ground while the positive output goes to a node wherein the voltage at the node is applied to a Zener diode via a resistor to produce a regulated voltage on the gate of an N-channel power MOSFET, wherein the drain of the MOSFET connects to the node while the source connects to the anode of a Schottky rectifier, wherein the cathode of the Schottky rectifier to a second, fixed voltage node connected to a filter capacitor, wherein the second also connects to the input of a current regulator and a switch having a single input pole and a plurality of output poles corresponding to a plurality of resistors, wherein the current regulator is a constant current controller that provides a regulated current for powering a light emitting diode.