GB2398674A

GB2398674A - Dimmer/toggle switch

Info

Publication number: GB2398674A
Application number: GB0304130A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Matthew Paul Michael
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2003-02-24
Filing date: 2003-02-24
Publication date: 2004-08-25
Anticipated expiration: 2023-02-24
Also published as: GB2398674B; GB0304130D0

Abstract

A push button switch which toggles switch connectivity every time it is pushed (i.e.: you push the button and it switches on and push it again and it switches off). If the button is held for a prolonged period of time when switching on, the switch goes into dimmer mode. In this mode the switch cycles changing the output level until the button is released at the desired output level. The switch can also be camouflaged in its surroundings. This switch has a power supply which switches off if the bulb blows; the switch lines or the switch circuitry supply lines go high impedance; or if the switch lines go beyond intended operating current. For added safety if any of the above happens the switch has a delayed reset when normal operating conditions resume. The switch also has current limiting circuitry on its switch circuit supply lines.

Description

DIMMER/TOGGLE SWITCH Note to commercial people. As the power safety

circuits are safety circuits I may allow people to use them in their own ventures. Please contact me if you want to use them in your circuitry.

This invention relates to a push button switch which toggles switch connectivity every time the button is pushed. (i.e.: you push the button and it switches on and push it again and it switches off.). If the button is held for a prolonged period of time when switching on; the switch goes into dimmer mode. In this mode the switch cycles from a high impedance state to a low impedance state and this is repeated until the button is released at the desired impedance.

This switch is mainly intended to be used as a light switch/dimmer, however it can be used in many other applications as well.

Light switches are weld known however they suffer from the disadvantages of protruding from the wall, needing to be switched off when the bulb goes and difficulty in ascertaining which position is off when the bulb goes.

Push switches are also well known; however small push switches are mainly used in low voltage appliances and not for high voltage switching; they have bulky power supplies and do not have the power safety protections (see below) that my switch has.

Most importantly push switches have not been used as light switches or light dimmer switches.

I'he object of the switch is to provide a futuristic dimmer/toggle push switch that that does not protrude very much or does not protrude at all and is mainly camouflaged in its surrounding (e.g.: a wall) except for a small round button which is illuminated.

One very important feature is that it will have a power supply that has safety protection circuits.

Most electronic circuits are powered by power supplies containing enormous transformers and bulky components. I have invented a power supply which is part of my switch's circuitry which does away with the traditional transformer and is much smaller therefore, my switch is much smaller and can fit in places where other electronic circuitry would find impossible. (e.g.: a light switch back box so the switch could be used for electric lighting).

Most power supplies use mains Live, Neutral and Earth but my power supply can run on Live and Earth or Live and Neutral or Live and Light Return (i. e.: the return wire from a light switch to the light fitting) and so the switch can be used where there is less supply lines than normal. (e.g.: in a light switch back box) Most switches will stay on when switched on but my power supply safety circuits will make my switch switch off if: the switch lines or the switch circuitry supply lines go l ! high impedance; or the switch lines go beyond intended operating current. For added safety if any of the above happens the switch has a delayed reset when normal operating conditions resume. The switch also has current limiting circuitry on its switch circuit supply lines for added safety.

When used as a light switch the benefits of the above include a switch that switches offwhen the bulb goes (on certain light fittings) and then a delayed reset to allow the user to move away from the light fitting before the switch can be switched on.

Other protection benefits include a power supply that cuts out (to an extent) if the supply return wire (ie:neutral, earth or light return) becomes disconnected. This could protect the installer against shock if touching a supply return wire that has become disconnected from its source while the power is on.

Most switches usually protrude from their surroundings (e.g.: wall). My switch is concealed flush and is less of an eyesore.

Normally it is very difficult to see light switches in the dark when the light is off, my switch has a little Light Emitting Diode (LED) that comes on when it is offso you can see where the switch is in the dark and also so you can clearly see when the switch is off.

A detailed description follows:

The circuit is directly behind a thin plastic sheet or screen or housing. The switch sits flush with its surroundings and camouflaged with just its insulated button showing.

(Figure 1) Every time the button is pushed the switch will switch on or offalternately and every time the switch is off a Light Emitting Diode (LED) will come on.

If the button is held for a prolonged period of time when switching on; the switch goes into dimmer mode. In this mode the switch cycles dimming the output until the button is released at the desired output level.

A description of workings follow:

SWITCH CIRCUIT: Switch supply voltage is capacitor decoupled and smoothed and zoner rectified.

Supply voltage is fed via resistors to a momentary push switch and then capacitor coupled to a toggle bistable, the inverting output of which switches the LED on and off.

I he switch output is also fed to a capacitor delay circuit with no power discharge which is fed to a Schmitt which is reset by the inverting output ofthe bistable which also resets the ramp (see below). The output of the Schmitt switches on the memory fly back circuit which consists of a transistor zeroing switch fed to a inverting ramp generator fed to a comparator which resets the ramp. The output of the ramp feeds the IGBT.

The output of the bistable is capacitor coupled to a transistor zeroing switch that is fed to the ramp. The output of the ramp is fed to another comparator with switch on voltage just lower than the primary comparator. The output of this comparator is fed to another transistor zeroing switch which resets the capacitor. This gives the switch a soft start.

POWER CIRCUITS: The main power circuit consists of a zoner stabilizer circuit feeding the base of an emitter follower whose emitter resistor is the switch circuit's resistance and the collector connected to Live. The IGBT switch on voltage is set so that when the switch is fully on the IGBT will still have a certain voltage across it; another way is to set some zoners inline between live and the IGBT, if one switch line wire is live.

Current Limiter: The current limiter is set inline with the switch circuit. It consists of a transistor inline with a resistor. The end of the resistor and collector of the transistor form the current limiter terminals. The voltage across the resistor is fed to a second transistor set up as an inverter. The output from this transistor feeds the base of the first transistor and the collector voltage is formed from a rectified live, potential divided and capacitor smoothed.

Delayed Switch on:

-

Bistable reset is capacitor coupled to the positive switch circuit supply line and has a discharge resistor set to the negative supply line. An emitter follower's output feeds the bottom of the capacitor and the input of the emitter follower is now the new input to reset the bistable. (bistable reset refers to this new input for all other circuits) Switch Line High Impedance Switch Off: Set in parallel to the TGBT switching line. The circuit consists of a zener stabilizer capacitor smoothed and fed to an inverter whose collector voltage is supplied by the switch circuits positive supply line. The output is connected to bistable reset.

Switch Line Over Current Trip: A resistor is set inline between one switch line and the IGBT. The voltage across the resistor is fed across the LED of a optocopuler. The rest of this circuit is fed by the switch circuit supply lines. The transistor ofthe optocopuler is wired up as an inverter the output of which is fed to another invcrter. The output of this inverter is fed to

bistable reset.

Supply Return Wire Low Impedance Switch On: Secondary protection circuit: ! This consists of a potential divider placed across live and emitter of the transistor below. The output of the P.D is smoothed by a capacitor in parallel to the bottom resistor. The voltage from the capacitor is cut (using either a zoner or potential divider using the transistor emitter as zero line) leaving a transistor switch on voltage on output when the supply return wire is of low impedance. This voltage drives the base of a transistor whose other terminals is set inline with the switch circuit and the collector of the primary protection's inline transistor.

Primary protection circuit with delayed switch on: This consists of a potential divider placed across live and the supply return wire which will act as the zero line for this circuit. The output of the P.D is smoothed by a capacitor and is used as the positive supply voltage for the rest of this circuit. The voltage from the capacitor is cut (using either a zoner or potential divider) leaving a transistor switch on voltage on output when the supply return wire is of low impedance. This voltage drives two invertors in series. The output from the first inverter is connected to the bistable reset. The output from the second inverter is cut again and connected to a capacitor delay circuit and the gate of the following transistor. A depletion transistor is set across the capacitor. When the supply return wire is the Light Return wire a SPST switch connects the bistable output to the transistor gate via a diode. The output from the capacitor delay circuit powers the base of another transistor (the inline transistor) whose emitter is connected to the supply return wire and whose collector is connected to the emitter of the secondary protection's inline transistor.

Claims

1. A push switch that can be used as a light switch.

2. A toggle or dimmer push switch which can be used as a light switch as well as having many other applications.

3. A switch as in claim 2 that mounts flush with its surroundings so that it can be concealed and camouflaged.

4. A switch as in claim 2 with a Light Emitting Diode (LED) that lights when the switch is off so you can see where the switch is in the dark if it is used as a lighting switch.

5. A switch as in claims 2 and 4 that the user can easily and clearly know when the switch is switched off.

6. A switch as in claim 2 with a small push button that can be used for high voltage switching applications.

7. A switch as in claim 2 that has a power supply that does not include a transformer.

8. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply that can run on Live and Earth or Live and Neutral or Live and Light Return (i.e.: the return wire from a light switch to the light fitting) and so the switch can be used where there is less supply lines than normal.

9. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply with safety features that could power circuits other than this switch.

10. A switch as in claim 2 and 7 that when used as a light switch with certain types of light fittings will switch offwhen the bulb goes.

11. A switch as in claim 2 and 7 that when used as a light switch with certain types of light fittings will stay off when the bulb goes until after a delayed period after the bulb is changed.

12. A switch as in claim 7 with a switch circuit supply that has voltage across it when the switch is on and Light Return (i.e.: the return wire from a light switch to the light fitting) is used as the Supply Return Wire.

13. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply with a current limiter.

14. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply with delayed switch on.

15. A switch as in claim 7 with switch circuitry with delayed initial switch on and delayed reset switch on.

16. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply with switch line high impedance switch off.

17. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply with switch line over current trip.

18. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply with a supply return wire low impedance switch on.

19. A switch substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawing.

19. A switch substantially as described herein with reference to figure 1 and the

content on the description sheets.

Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows 1. A combined toggle/dimmer push switch that uses electronic circuitry.

2. A toggle/dimmer push switch as in claim I including means for it to be used separately as a toggle switch or separately as a dimmer.

3. A toggle/dimmer push switch as in claims 1 and 2 including means for it to be used as a light switch.

4. A switch as in claim 1 with a Light Emitting Diode (LED) that lights when the switch is offso you can see where the switch is in the dark.

5. A switch as in claims I and 4 including means for it to clearly indicate when the switch is switched off.

6. A switch as in claim I with a miniature or small (less than 1 5mm x 1 5mm in size), low current push button that is used ultimately for high voltage switching.

7. A switch as in claim 1 that has a power supply that does not include a transformer.

8. A switch as in claim 7 including means for it to be mounted flush with its surroundings and so it has the means to be concealed and camouflaged.

9. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply that that has the ability to be powered by Live and Earth or Live and Neutral or Live and Light Return (i.e.: the return wire from a light switch to the light fitting) whilst capable of supplying current in the milliamps and so the switch has the ability to be used in places where there is less supply lines or different supply lines than that which other (contemporary) power supplies use (eg: the back box of a light switch where a direct neutral line is not present).

10. A switch as in claim 3 and 7 that when used as a light switch has the ability to automatically switch offwhen the bulb blows on the light fitting it powers.

11. A switch as in claim 3 and 7 that when used as a light switch will stay offwhen there are no working bulbs left on the light fitting it powers until after a delayed period after a bulb is changed.

12. A switch as in claim 7 with a switch circuit power supply that is capable of staying on when the switch is on and the Light Return (i.e.: the return wire from a light switch to the light fitting) is used as the Supply Return Wire.

13. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply with a current limiter.

14. A switch as in claim 7 with switch circuitry with delayed power up and delayed reset switch on.

] 5. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply with switch line that switches offifthe output switch line does not maintain a low impedance state.

16. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply with switch line over current trip.

17. A switch as in claim 7 with a power supply with a supply return wire low impedance switch on that switches off if the return wire does not maintain a low impedance state.

18. A switch as in claim 17 including means for delayed switch on.