Patent ID: 8471485

Claim:
A dimmer switch for controlling the illumination level of a light, comprising: (a) an on/off switch having an “off” position and an “on” position, the on/off switch is in electrical series with the light, the on/off switch including a gate for selective conduction of current from a source to the light; (b) a trigger coupled to the gate for causing the on/off switch to conduct current when a trigger limit voltage is exceeded; (c) a variable phase shift network for adjusting the firing angle of the on/off switch, the network comprising a first phase shift circuit and a second phase shift circuit; and (d) a dimmer control switch which is operated independently of the on/off switch and coupled to the variable phase shift network, the dimmer control switch adjusting the illumination level of the light, and operable only when the on/off switch is in the “on” position.