Patent ID: 7888879

Claim:
A circuit arrangement for operating at least one electric lamp (EL) having an inverter having at least one first bridge transistor (T 3 ) and one second bridge transistor (T 4 ) which are arranged in series with one another, a first drive circuit (AS 1 ) for the first bridge transistor (T 3 ); a second drive circuit (AS 2 ) for the second bridge transistor (T 4 ); the first drive circuit (AS 1 ) and the second drive circuit (AS 2 ) being designed to drive the first bridge transistor (T 3 ) and the second bridge transistor (T 4 ) such that they switch alternately completely on and off during normal operation of the lamp (EL); and at least one protective apparatus (TS 1 ; TS 2 ); characterized in that the at least one protective apparatus (TS 1 ; TS 2 ) is designed, in the case of a value for a reference voltage, which is correlated with the voltage across the bridge transistor (T 3 ; T 4 ) which has just been switched off, above a predeterminable limit value, to drive the bridge transistor (T 4 ; T 3 ), which has just been completely switched on, of the series circuit such that it is no longer completely switched on.