Patent ID: 8044636
Filing Date: 2011-10-25
Classification: H02J,H05B,Y02B

Abstract:
1. A battery operated LED lamp and control comprising: a light source comprising at least one light-emitting diode; a manually operable switch; an electrochemical source of direct current; and a control circuit connectable to the light source, the switch, and the direct current source, the control circuit including a microcontroller; the control circuit being connectable to deliver operating current from said direct current source to the light source under the control of the microcontroller to operate the light source; the control circuit being alternatively connectable to deliver charging current from an external supply to the direct current source only when the control circuit is not connected to deliver operating current from said direct current source to the light source, in which: the microcontroller is programmed to effect delivery, by the control circuit, of pulses of current to the light source, at different duty cycles in response to successive operations of the switch; and the microcontroller is also programmed to monitor the voltage across the direct current source, and to deliver a charging current from the external supply to the direct current source at a constant level when said voltage is below a predetermined limit, and to regulate the charging current delivered from the external supply to the direct current source when said voltage rises above said predetermined limit so that the charging current decreases as the direct current source approaches a full charge.