Patent ID: 8143805

Claim:
A lighting fixture adapted to be dimmable by a thyristor-based dimmer, the fixture comprising: a power conditioning unit adapted to accept an AC electrical input and having an output, the power conditioning unit comprising; a switching MOSFET; a control circuit adapted to output a switching clock cycle and duty cycle that are generally fixed during normal operation of the power conditioning unit, the duty cycle and clock cycle adapted to gate the switching MOSFET; a transformer having a primary winding configured to store electrical energy when the MOSFET is gated on, a secondary winding of the transformer receiving electrical energy from the primary winding and delivering it to the outlet; and an over-voltage protector configured to automatically adjust the duty cycle to prevent damage due to a non-normal operating condition in which the load voltage exceeds a rated voltage of the fixture; a lighting unit connected to the power conditioning unit output and adapted to receive electric power therefrom, the lighting unit comprising one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs); wherein the duty cycle, clock and transformer are chosen so that the primary winding discharges substantially all of the energy stored therein at least once per a predetermined number of clock cycles.