Patent ID: 7474059

Claim:
A gas discharge lighting system comprising: a gas discharge lighting device; a source of input power; an electronic ballasting circuit having a regulated direct current requirement and coupled between said gas discharge lighting device and said source of input power comprising: an alternating current-to-direct current conversion means; a power regulator connected to said conversion means for converting the output of said alternating current-to-direct current to said regulated direct current required to operate said ballasting circuit; a controllable output direct current to alternating current inverter that operates with a nearly square wave output at a frequency above that of audible sound; an impedance network interposed between said inverter and said gas discharge device to modify said square wave output of said inverter to provide proper operation of said gas discharge lighting device; a controlling device that controls the operation of said inverter and thus, via said impedance network, the output to said gas discharge lighting device; a light sensing device for sensing an amount of illumination provided by said gas discharge lighting device and connected to said controlling device to allow said controlling device to maintain said amount of illumination at a preset level; and said light sensing device mounted internally within said ballasting circuit and including a fiber optic wire for conducting light from a user specified location outside said electronic ballasting circuit to said internally mounted light sensing device.