Abstract:
A light switch dimmer device for operating and controlling a current supply to a lighting fixture up to seven hundred (700) watts wherein the light switch dimmer includes a mean for receiving power, a triac, a trigger diode electrically connected to the triac, an RC circuit component shunt, and a variable resistor between 300k ohms and 500k ohms for controlling the voltage to the trigger diode which controls the phase of the triac thereby dictating the voltage applied to a light fixture load. The dimmer may comprise a one-way or three-way switch.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]    N/A 
     
    
     
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
         [0002]    N/A  
         COPYRIGHT NOTICE  
         [0003]    A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or patent disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrights rights whatsoever.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0005]    The present invention relates generally to a dimmer light switch, and more particularly to a dimmer light switch device having higher efficiency in operating and controlling current supply to a lighting fixture up to seven hundred (700) watts.  
           [0006]    2. Description of the Background Art  
           [0007]    Dimmer switches for incandescent and fluorescent lights and inductive loads, such as fans, are well known in the art. Conventional dimmer switches typically use variable resistors, such as potentiometers connected to a manually operated dimmer knob, to vary the firing angle of a thyristor to control the AC power source delivered to a load. With respect to lighting fixtures, these types of dimmer switches are commonly used for low wattage lamps, such as sixty (60) watts to hundred (100) watts, and are ineffective and inefficient for larger resistive loads, such as lamp loads in the seven hundred (700) watt range.  
           [0008]    There are two types of dimmer switches known for controlling larger light fixture loads. The first dimmer uses a triac that can only control the current supply to lighting fixtures up to 600 watts. The second dimmer switch known uses a silicon-controlled rectifier (SCR), which is less efficient than the triac as it can only provide half wave control. Triacs provide the preferred full wave technology, but are limited to loads less than 600 watts. A dimmer switch capable of employing full wave technology for controlling incandescent and resistance loads up to 700 watts would be more efficient than dimmers known in the art. Accordingly, there exist a need for a more efficient dimmer switch that operates in the 700-watt range.  
           [0009]    While various advances have been made in dimmer technology to address problems related to energy conservation and efficiency, there still remains a need for a dimmer that can efficiently control current to lighting fixtures over 600 watts. The instant invention addresses this need by providing a dimmer switch for incandescent and resistance loads up to 700 watts that provides higher efficiency than conventional dimmer technology, such as that offered by circuit designs using SCR&#39;s.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0010]    Based on the foregoing, it is a primary object of the instant invention to provide a dimmer switch that can control the current supply to incandescent and resistance loads up to 700 watts.  
           [0011]    It is an object of the instant invention to provide a one-way, three-way combination dimmer switch that can control the current supply to incandescent and resistance loads up to 700 watts.  
           [0012]    It is another object of the instant invention to provide a dimmer switch that can employ full wave triac technology for efficiently operating current supply to loads up to 700 watts.  
           [0013]    It is also an object of the instant invention to provide a dimmer switch that can employ triac full wave technology in dimmer switches for loads up to 700 watts with more efficiency than dimmers circuits using SCR technology.  
           [0014]    It is a further object of the instant invention to provide a dimmer switch for lighting fixtures up to 700 watts that is lower in costs and higher in efficiency than conventional dimmers.  
           [0015]    It is an additional object of the instant invention to provide a dimmer switch for lighting fixtures up to 700 watts that is useable with single pole and three-way control lighting fixtures.  
           [0016]    In light of these and other objects the instant invention provides a dimmer switch for controlling the current supply to lighting fixtures having incandescent and resistance loads up to 700 watts. The dimmer switch preferably comprises a one-way, three-way combination, variable control dimmer for applications up to 700 watts. The dimmer switch preferably employs a full wave triac for controlling current supply to loads up to 700 watts, a housing that encloses the circuit and a switch for controlling a variable resistive load. The circuit preferably includes a triac rated at twelve (12) amps and six hundred (600) volts, a variable resistor in the range of 300k to 500k ohms and a 104/250 VAC capacitor connected to a 10k ohm resister. The triac in combination with the variable resistor and 104/250 VAC capacitor provides full wave control yielding higher efficiency than large load dimmers employing SCR&#39;s and half-wave technology. A variable 500k-ohm resistor is provided for fine adjustment of low setting outputs such as in the 230-260 watt range.  
           [0017]    In accordance with these and other objects, which will become apparent hereinafter, the instant invention will now be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0018]    [0018]FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the dimmer light switch device of the instant invention.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 2 is a bottom elevational view of the preferred embodiment of the dimmer light switch device of the instant invention illustrating the wire leads.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the preferred embodiment of the dimmer light switch device of the instant invention.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 4 is an electrical circuit diagram of the dimmer switch circuit in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the instant invention.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an alternative embodiment of the dimmer light switch device of the instant invention.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 6 is an electrical circuit diagram of the dimmer switch circuit in accordance with the alternative embodiment of the instant invention.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0024]    With reference to the drawings, FIGS.  1 - 6  depict the preferred embodiment of the dimmer light switch device of the instant invention, which is generally characterized as a dimmer switch or by reference numeral  10 . The instant invention  10  comprises a one-way, three-way combination dimmer for controlling high power loads up to approximately 700 watts. Accordingly, the dimmer switch  10  can operate incandescent and resistance loads and may be employed with single pole and three-way control lighting fixtures. Referring to FIG. 1, the dimmer switch  10  comprises an on/off switch  12 , slidable dimmer knob  14 , mounting plate  16 , housing  24 , face plate  30 , light emitting diode (LED)  36 , wire leads  11 ,  13  and  15 , and dimmer switch circuit  50  (shown in FIG. 3). In the preferred embodiment, the power switch  12  comprises a three-pole, multiple throw switch having four leads  11 ,  13   a ,  13   b  and  15 . The three pole switch  12  provides a first or “off” position and second, third and fourth “on” positions for three different levels of power. In the “off” position, the LED  36  is illuminated for facilitating the locating of the switch in a dark room. In an alternative embodiment, the power switch  12  may comprise a single pole, single throw (SPST) switch that may be alternated between a first or “off” position for powering the switch locator LED D 3 ,  36  and a second or “on” position for supplying power to the remaining portion of the circuit which controls the load.  
         [0025]    The power switch  12  preferably provides 110-120 VAC to the dimmer switch  10  circuit  50 . The housing  24  contains, conceals and protects the dimmer switch circuit  50  and facilitates electrical connection and communication with the circuit  50  through wire leads  11 ,  13   a ,  13   b ,  15  that project outward from the housing  24 , as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The wire lead denoted numeric character  15  comprises a ground wire and wire leads  13   a ,  13   b  and  11  are used for connecting to a source of AC power. The wire leads  11 ,  13   a ,  13   b  and  15  are preferably color coded in accordance with industry standards for identifying where and how they should be connected to a source of power. For instance, the ground wire lead  15  is preferably green and wire leads  11  and  13  are preferably red and/or black.  
         [0026]    Referring to FIG. 1, the mounting plate  16  includes a plurality of slots  22  and apertures  18 ,  20  that may be selectively used for mounting the dimmer switch  10  to a fixed structure, such as an existing wall plate or frame. The mounting plate  16  may also include a plurality of apertures  23  that may be used for creating, providing or facilitating a heat sink. The faceplate  30  has tabs (not shown) that snap into corresponding apertures defined by the mounting plate  16 . The faceplate  30  includes an elongated slot  32  that receives and facilitates slidable movement of the dimmer knob  14 , which is connected to a post (not shown) that intersects the slot  32 . The post is in mechanical communication with the circuit&#39;s  50  variable resister R 4  (shown in FIG. 3) so that movement of the dimmer knob  14  adjusts the power supplied to the triac D 1  and hence the controlled load. In order to facilitate receiving power, the power switch  12  must be actuated to one of the “on” positions, also referenced as the second, third and fourth positions. The dimmer switch  10  includes the LED  36 , which is illuminated when the power switch  12  is in the “off” or first position. This makes the dimmer switch  10  visible in a dark or dimly lit room so that the switch  10  may be easily located and accessed.  
         [0027]    With reference to FIG. 3, the dimmer switch circuit  50  preferably comprises a triac D 1  having first, second and third (gate) terminals rated at approximately twelve (12) amps and six hundred (600) volts, variable resistor R 4  in a range of approximately 300k-500k ohms, capacitor C 2  connected to ground and a resistor R 2  of approximately 10k ohms and additional signal conditioning components as referenced herein. Referring to FIG. 3, the power switch  12  has four positions. In an “off” position, power is supplied to LED  36 , D 3  and resistor R 5  to energize the LED  36 , D 3  light source when the dimmer switch  10  is off. This allows the switch  10  to be conveniently located in a dark room with minimum power consumption. In the second, third and fourth “on” positions, power is supplied at different levels to the remaining portion of the circuit  50  for providing three-way control. The circuit  50  also comprises an inductor L 1 , a capacitor C 1  connected to ground and inductor L 1 , resistor R 2  and capacitor C 2  connected in parallel to capacitor C 1 , variable resistor R 4  connected in parallel to resistors R 1  and R 6  and connected to resistor R 2  and capacitor C 2  at one end and resistor R 3  at the other end, a grounding capacitor C 3  connected to resistor R 3 , a diac D 2  connected to resistor R 3  and capacitor C 3  and triac D 1  connected to a two-terminal diac D 2 , ground and inductor L 1 . The inductor L 1  is preferably rated at approximately 28 micro-henrys and ten (10) amperes. Capacitors C 1  and C 2  are preferably rated at approximately 104/250 VAC. Resistor R 1  preferably comprises a 500k-ohm variable resistor to provide fine adjustments of the power output at lower settings, such as in the 230 to 260 watt range. Resistor R 6  preferably comprises approximately 100k ohms. Resistors R 2  and R 3  preferably comprise approximately 10k ohms and 5.6k ohms, respectively. Variable resistor R 4  is preferably rated at approximately 300k ohms to 500k ohms. Capacitor C 3  is preferably rated at approximately 473/250 VAC. Triac D 1  may comprise a triac sold as part number BTA12-500 and diac D 2  may comprise a diac sold as part number DB3.  
         [0028]    The dimmer switch  10  controls the current supply to incandescent and resistance loads up to 700 watts by controlling the firing voltage of the diac D 2  and triac D 1 . The capacitors C 2  and C 3  are charged to a particular voltage level and contribute to the firing voltage of the diac D 2 . The variable resistor R 4  controls the firing voltage of the trigger diode or diac D 2 , which controls the phase of the triac D 1 . By controlling the phase of triac D 1 , the triac D 1  changes the voltage applied to the load, such as a resistance lamp load, and hence the intensity of the light generated by the load. The inductor L 1  assists in providing a stable light intensity by maintaining the selected voltage levels. The triac D 1  uses full wave technology to control the voltage supplied to a load. The values of diac D 2 , triac D 1  and inductor L 1  provide for proper operation of the dimmer switch  10  of the instant invention.  
         [0029]    With reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, the alternative embodiment of the instant invention  10  comprises a single pole dimmer for use in high wattage applications, such as up to approximately 700 watts. The alternative switch  10  comprises three leads  11 ,  13  and  15 , as shown in FIG. 5. The alternative circuit  50  eliminates resistor R 6  and replaces resistor R 1  with a fixed resistor R 7  of approximately 226 k ohms. The switch  12  is also replaced by a single pole, single throw (SPST) switch.  
         [0030]    The instant invention has been shown and described herein in what is considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment. It is recognized, however, that departures may be made therefrom within the scope of the invention and that obvious structural and/or functional modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art.