µC implements Pushbutton Light Dimmers:  06/18/98 EDN-Design Ideas / (added 08/05) A project required building a synchronous-demodulator circuit to track a line drawn on paper.  beauty of  synchronous-modulator/demodulator approach is its inherent noise rejection.  method rejects nearly all out-of-band noise, wher from internal drift or external illumination. This rejection is a boon in optical tracking, where  return signal is inevitably buried in 120-Hz ambient light, amplifier offsets, and temperature drifts.  circuit in Figure 1 is inexpensive, and it operates from 5V dc.  circuit scans eight LED/sensor pairs every 22 msec and stores  result in eight sample/hold (S/H) capacitors for interrogation by a µP-driven ADC.  purpose of  circuit is to determine which sensor is above  line.

12 Volt Lamp Dimmer:  dimming d1-by controlling  duty cycle of a astable555 Timer oscillator (added 4/02)

12 Volt Lamp Fader (Automatic ):  (electronic (schematic / circuit added 11/05)

120 VAC Lamp Dimmer (full wave SCR):  (electronic circuit added 10/05)

120 Volt AC Lamp Dimmer (full Wave SCR) :  (circuit added 7/02)

2 Wire DC Lamp Dimmer Replaces Rheostats:  10/23/97 EDN-Design Ideas / (added 08/05) Originally for use in commercial trucks, a low-cost dc lamp dimmer (Figure 1) can control more than 100W of incandescent panel lighting and replaces a high-power rheostat, whose heating darkens  instrument panel.  circuit has several unique advantages: A two-wire connection means no change to existing wire harnesses, high efficiency means minimal heat sinking, and a typical circuit costs less than  rheostat it replaces.

230 Volt Dimmer:  A reliable and efficient all-around performer. I bought  kit because it didn't cost me much more than  components were worth and I also got a nice professional-made PCB inside. As you can see, this is a tried-and-true diac & triac combination that offers both simplicity and high performance. With a load up to 3.5A,  power rating is 750W at 230V. A heat sink on  triac is a must!  Note: for 110V operation, add a 220k resistor in parallel with  470k pot. No or modification is necessary. But since  maximum allowed current is still 3.5A,  highest possible power output will drop to 380W.  (added 11/05)

25-Pin PC Serial Port to MIDI Synthesizer Interface Cable:  (circuit / schematic design added 6/06)

4 Channel dimmer rack:  (electronic circuit added 4/05)

8 Bit Digital Light Intensity Controller :  (design circuit added 8/02)

A Ballast that can Be Dimmed from a Domestic (Phase Cut) Dimmer.:  A system has now been developed, based around  IR2156, where  ballast is able to operate with minimal flicker over a considerable portion of  adjustment range of a dimmer and  light output may be controlled over this range from maximum output down to around 10%.  (added 6/06)

ABR-42021 / Control Interface for Standard 0 - 10VDC Dimmers:  Fairchild Application Notes / (app note added 6/06)

AN809: Digitally Addressable DALI Dimming Ballast App.:  Microchip Application Note Published 10-Apr-02   (app note added 6/06)

Ballast that can Be Dimmed from a Domestic (Phase Cut) Dimmer.:  A system has now been developed, based around  IR2156, where  ballast is able to operate with minimal flicker over a considerable portion of  adjustment range of a dimmer and  light output may be controlled over this range from maximum output down to around 10%.  (added 6/06)

Circuit Delivers Dimming Control for White LED Driver:  10/28/04 EDN Design Ideas  / (added 1/05)  The demand for power in color cell-phone handsets is constantly increasing. New applications steadily emerge, making it imperative to reduce power consumption in the design. Examination of usage data shows that more than 50% of the power consumed is in providing backlighting for the color screen. People use the phones for playing games and MP-3s and a multitude of other heavy-duty, multimedia f...

Circuit optimizes PhotoTransistor Bandwidth :  04/09/98 EDN-Design Ideas / (added 3/03)  

Control Interface for Standard 0 - 10VDC Dimmers / ABR-42021:  Fairchild Application Notes / (app note added 6/06)