Illuminating apparatus and control method for keeping a constant total brightness of ambient light and light produced by the illuminating apparatus

• US 9,220,153 B2
• Filed: 02/04/2013
• Issued: 12/22/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Luxell Technologies Incorporated (Lux Acquisition Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Luxell Technologies Incorporated (Lux Acquisition Corp.)
• Inventors: Pan, Cheng-Hung, Chen, Eric Wen-Chien
• Primary Examiner(s): Chang, Daniel D
• Application Number:
  US13/758,049
• Publication Number:
  US 20130257294A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,051 Days
• Field of Search: 315/158, 315/297, 315/134, 315/307
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/395 Linear regulators
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/10 Controlling the light source
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/11 by determining the brightness or colour temperature of ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 47/175 by remote control
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/30 Semiconductor lamps, e.g. solid state lamps [SSL] light emitting diodes [LED] or organic LED [OLED]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/40 Control techniques providing energy savings, e.g. smart controller or presence detection

Abstract

An illuminating apparatus and control method is adapted to keep a constant total brightness of the ambient light and light produced by the illuminating apparatus. The illuminating apparatus has a control module storing an objective brightness and detect the ambient brightness through an optical sensor. The control module turns on a lamp according to a comparison result of the objective brightness and the ambient brightness. Hence, a total brightness of the lamp'"'"'s brightness and the ambient brightness is adjustable to be equally bright as the objective brightness. The illuminating apparatus of the invention does not provide excessive brightness and accordingly conserves electric power energy.

Claims

1. An illuminating apparatus comprising:

a lamp;

an optical sensor generating a detection signal according to an ambient brightness; and

a control module electrically connected to the lamp and the optical sensor and storing an objective brightness and an objective current value, wherein the control module receives the detection signal to acquire the ambient brightness, compares the objective brightness with the ambient brightness to acquire a comparison result, calculates a ratio of the comparison result to the objective brightness, calculates a driving current value according to a product of multiplying the ratio and the objective current value, and generates a driving current based on the driving current value to activate the lamp.

2. The illuminating apparatus as claimed in claim 1 further comprising a dimmer electrically connected to the control module for setting the objective brightness.

3. The illuminating apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the lamp has a shell and an LED board mounted in the shell;

the optical sensor is mounted in the shell; and

the control module is mounted in the shell and is electrically connected to the LED board.

4. The illuminating apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein

the lamp has a shell and an LED board mounted in the shell;

the optical sensor is mounted in the shell;

the control module is mounted in the shell and is electrically connected to the LED board; and

the dimmer is mounted on the shell.

5. An illuminating apparatus comprising:

a lamp;

an optical sensor generating a detection signal according to an ambient brightness; and

a control module electrically connected to the lamp and the optical sensor and storing an objective brightness and an objective current value, wherein the control module receives the detection signal to acquire the ambient brightness, compares the objective brightness with the ambient brightness to acquire a comparison result, calculates a ratio of the comparison result to the objective brightness, calculates a driving current value according to a product of multiplying the ratio and the objective current value, and generates a driving current based on the driving current value to activate the lamp,

further comprising a dimmer electrically connected to the control module for setting the objective brightness, wherein

the lamp has a shell and an LED board mounted in the shell;

the optical sensor is mounted in the shell;

the control module is mounted in the shell and is electrically connected to the LED board; and

the dimmer is mounted on the shell; and

wherein the control module comprises;

a full-bridge rectifier electrically connected between an AC power and the LED board to provide a DC sine voltage to the LED board;

a voltage-controlled transistor having;

a first terminal electrically connected to a cathode terminal of the LED board;

a second terminal; and

a gate;

a current detector electrically connected between the second terminal of the voltage-controlled transistor and the full-bridge rectifier to form a current loop; and

a controller electrically connected to the optical sensor, the dimmer, the gate of the voltage-controlled transistor and the current detector through a low-pass filter, storing the objective brightness and the objective current value.

6. The illuminating apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein

the dimmer is a rotary switch;

and

the current detector is a resistor.

7. The illuminating apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein the full-bridge rectifier has:

two input terminals connected to the AC power;

a positive output terminal connected to an anode terminal of the LED board; and

a negative output terminal being grounded.

8. A method for automatically adjusting brightness, the method being executable by a controller comprising the steps of:

setting an objective brightness and an objective current value to a controller;

receiving a detection signal corresponding to an ambient brightness from an optical sensor;

acquiring a comparison result of the objective brightness and the ambient brightness;

calculating a ratio of the comparison result to the objective brightness;

calculating a driving current value according to a product of multiplying the ratio and the objective current value; and

outputting a driving current according to the driving current value to a lamp.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein in the step of calculating the driving current value, when the objective brightness is lower than the ambient brightness, the driving current value is set as zero by the controller.