Appeal No. 1997-3924
Application No. 08/571,634
a power source operative to supply a power line voltage
at a pair of power line terminals;
a first circuit assembly connected with the power line
terminals and operative to provide a DC voltage between a pair
of DC output terminals;
a gas discharge lamp having a pair of lamp terminals and
being functional to provide luminous output when supplied with
a usual amount of lamp current; and
a second circuit assembly having a pair of DC input
terminals connected with the DC output terminals and a pair of
AC output terminals connected with the lamp terminals; the
second circuit assembly being further characterized by:
(a) having a tuned L-C circuit connected with the AC
output terminals; the L-C circuit having a tank-inductor and a
tank-capacitor; the tank-capacitor being effectively connected
across the AC output terminals; and
(b) producing an AC output voltage across the AC output
terminals; the magnitude of the AC output voltage being
determined by: (i) a Q-multiplying effect associated with the
L-C circuit; (ii) the amount of power drawn by the lamp from
the AC output terminals; and (iii) an internal feedback effect
responsive to the magnitude of the AC output voltage and
operative to diminish the Q-multiplying effect by causing the
frequency of the AC output voltage to change away from the
natural resonance frequency of the L-C circuit; such that the
internal feedback effect is functional, under a condition when
no power is being drawn from the AC output terminals, to cause
the magnitude of the AC output voltage to be lower than it
would have been if determined solely by said Q-multiplying
effect;
such that the magnitude of the AC output voltage is: (i)
at a minimum level whenever the lamp is drawing its usual lamp
current; and (ii) at a maximum level whenever the lamp fails
to draw power, the maximum level being distinctly lower than a
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Last modified: November 3, 2007