Patent ID: 8334640

Claim:
An apparatus for heat dissipation for a luminaire, comprising: a thermally-conductive housing having an exterior surface, an interior surface that forms a cavity, a first end with an opening to provide access to the cavity from an exterior of the housing, and a plurality of thermally-conductive protrusions that extend from the exterior surface of the housing and exposed to an ambient fluid on the exterior of the housing to at least one of convectively or radiantly thermally transfer heat from the housing to the ambient fluid on the exterior of the housing; an electronic ballast mounted in the cavity of the housing and thermally conductively coupled to the interior surface of the housing to allow the housing to at least conductively absorb at least a portion of heat generated by the electronic ballast during use, and an active heat transfer device mounted at least proximate the first end of the housing to sealingly enclose the electronic ballast in the cavity of the housing at least during use and operable to cause turbulence in the ambient fluid on the exterior of the housing at least about the thermally-conductive protrusions to enhance convective transfer of heat to the ambient fluid from the plurality of thermally conductive protrusions.