Patent ID: 8210708

Claim:
An electronic candle system, comprising: (a) a plurality of artificial candles, each comprising a housing containing an LED light source, a rechargeable DC battery for energizing the LED light source, a transformer secondary winding, an AC to DC converter circuit coupled between the transformer winding and the DC battery, and a first semiconductor switch disposed between the AC to DC converter circuit and the battery; and (b) a plurality of box-like trays, each having a top surface, a bottom surface and four mutually perpendicular side surfaces defining a hollow interior, a first side surface having a laterally projecting plug member and an opposed side surface having a socket for receiving the plug member of an adjacently positioned tray therein, each said tray supporting a plurality of said artificial candles at defined locations thereon, said plurality of trays including a transformer primary winding proximate each of said defined locations; (c) means for applying a DC voltage to a string of such trays by having the plug member of one tray inserted into the socket of an adjacent tray and connecting the plug member of a first tray in the string to a DC voltage source; and (d) a DC to AC converter in each said tray comprising a pulse width modulator connected to receive said DC voltage and producing an AC output to the primary windings, wherein the primary windings have a center tap connected to a DC current source and a pair of outer terminals and further including semiconductor switching means connected between the pair of outer terminals and ground and where the semiconductor switching means are driven by the pulse width modulator, whereby an AC voltage is induced across the secondary winding of candles disposed at said defined locations, said AC to DC converter in each said candles thereby producing a DC current for recharging the DC battery in each such candles.