This Non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) on Patent Application No(s). 097131770 filed in Taiwan, Republic of China on Aug. 20, 2008, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to an illumination device.
2. Related Art
Due to the progress of technology, various kinds of illumination devices have become one of the indispensable electronic products. In all kinds of the illumination devices, at least one driving circuit board is needed for providing a driving signal to drive the lighting unit in the illumination device. For example, the lighting unit can be a cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL).
As shown in
Accordingly, the driving signal outputted from the driving circuit board 13 can be transmitted through the connecting terminals 131 and 121 and the connecting line 12 to drive the CCFL 11.
However, if the CCFL 11 is breakdown, the driving signal transmitted between the connecting terminals 131 and 121 may cause the electric shock when replacing the broken CCFL 11. In addition, if the connecting terminals 131 and 121 are not improperly connected after replacing the broken CCFL 11, or if the electronic connection is abnormal due to the repeated replacement of the CCFL, the undesired arcing or electric leakage may occur.
Therefore, it is an important subject to provide an illumination device that can be maintained easily and can avoid the undesired arcing or electric leakage.
In view of the foregoing, the present invention is to provide an illumination device that can be maintained easily and can avoid the undesired arcing or electric leakage.
To achieve the above, the present invention discloses an illumination device including a first circuit board, a second circuit board and a lighting unit. The first circuit board has a controlling circuit, a switching circuit and a protection circuit, and the controlling circuit is electrically connected to the switching circuit and the protection circuit, respectively. The second circuit board has a transforming circuit and is electrically connected with the first circuit board. The lighting unit is electrically connected to the transforming circuit.
To achieve the above, the present invention also discloses an illumination device including a first circuit board, a second circuit board and a lighting unit. The first circuit board has a rectifying circuit and is electrically connected to the second circuit board. The second circuit board has a controlling circuit, a switching circuit and a transforming circuit electrically connected to each other. The lighting unit is electrically connected to the transforming circuit.
To achieve the above, the present invention further discloses an illumination device including a first circuit board, a second circuit board and a lighting unit. The first circuit board has a rectifying circuit and a controlling circuit electrically connected to each other. The second circuit board is electrically connected to the first circuit board and has a switching circuit and a transforming circuit electrically connected to each other. The lighting unit is electrically connected to the transforming circuit.
In addition, the present invention further discloses an illumination device including a first circuit board, a second circuit board and a lighting unit. The first circuit board has a rectifying circuit. The second circuit board is electrically connected to the first circuit board and has a transforming circuit. The lighting unit is electrically connected to the transforming circuit.
As mentioned above, the lighting unit is electrically connected to the transforming circuit of the second circuit board, and then the second circuit board is electrically connected to the first circuit board. Thus, if the lighting unit is breakdown, the replacement or repairing of the broken lighting unit can be performed by simply detaching the second and first circuit boards. This can avoid the user from contacting the driving signal transmitted between the transforming circuit and the lighting unit, so that the risk of electric shock during the replacement or repairing can be reduced.
Moreover, since the replacement or repairing can be performed by disconnecting or connecting the first and second circuit boards, the improper connection caused by improperly connecting of the first and second circuit boards or repeated replacement while directly replacing the lighting unit can be prevented. This can further avoid the undesired arcing or electric leakage due to the driving signal between the lighting unit and the second circuit board, thereby enhancing the reliability of the illumination device.
Furthermore, in the illumination device of the present invention, different circuits are separately configured at different circuit boards. This configuration can increase the efficiency of detecting the broken circuits. If only one circuit is damaged, it is not necessary to replace the entire circuit board, so that the maintain cost can be reduced. In addition, the illumination device of the present invention may further include a protection circuit for disabling the controlling circuit when the short circuit is happened between the first and second circuit boards. This can protect the illumination device from further damages as the switching circuit keeping outputting the power signal.
The invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description and accompanying drawings, which are given for illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:
The present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein the same references relate to the same elements.
The first circuit board 21 has a controlling circuit 211, a switching circuit 212 and a protection circuit 213. The controlling circuit 211 is electrically connected to the switching circuit 212 and the protection circuit 213, respectively. In the embodiment, the switching circuit 212 may contain a bipolar junction transistor (BJT) or a field-effect transistor (FET), and the protection circuit 213 can be a short circuit protection (SCP) circuit for example. In addition, the first circuit board 21 of this embodiment may, but not limited to, further include a rectifying circuit 214. For example, the rectifying circuit 214 may include a power factor correction (PFC) circuit, an AC-DC conversion circuit, a half-bridge rectifying circuit and/or a full-bridge rectifying circuit.
The second circuit board 22 has a transforming circuit 221 and is electrically connected to the first circuit board 21.
The lighting unit 23 is electrically connected with the transforming circuit 221 of the second circuit board 22. In the embodiment, the lighting unit 23 may include a light-emitting diode (LED) or a fluorescent lamp such as a hot cathode fluorescent lamp (HCFL) or a cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL). Furthermore, the lighting unit 23 may further include the ballast (not shown) for steadying the driving signal received by the fluorescent lamp.
To be noted that the illumination device 2 can include a plurality of second circuit boards 22 and a plurality of lighting units 23. In this case, the first circuit board 21 is electrically connected with the second circuit boards 22, and each the second circuit board 22 is electrically connected to one lighting unit 23.
As mentioned above, the rectifying circuit 214 generates a power source signal DC according to the inputted alternate-current power source signal AC. In the embodiment, the alternate-current power source signal AC can be an AC power source of 85V to 300V and 42 Hz to 72 Hz, and the power source signal DC can be a DC power source of about 400V. The switching circuit 212 receives the power source signal DC, and the controlling circuit 211 generates at least one control signal P according to the power source signal DC. The switching circuit 212 is opened or closed according to the control signal P generated by the controlling circuit 211, thereby outputting a power signal W, the transforming circuit 221. After receiving the power signal W, the transforming circuit 221 generates a driving signal D to the lighting unit 23 for driving the lighting unit 23 to emit light. In addition, if a short circuit is happened between the first and second circuit boards 21 and 22, the protection circuit 213 can disable the controlling circuit 21 so as to stop the switching 212 keeping outputting the power signal W.
Therefore, the lighting unit 23 can be repaired or replaced by detaching the first and second circuit boards 21 and 22. This can avoid the user from contacting the driving signal D transmitted between the transforming circuit 221 and the lighting unit 23, so that the risk of electric shock during the replacement or repairing can be reduced.
Moreover, since the replacement or repairing for the illumination device 2 can be performed by disconnecting or connecting the first and second circuit boards 21 and 22, the improper connection caused by improperly connecting of the first and second circuit boards 21 and 22 or repeated replacement while directly replacing the lighting unit 23 can be prevented. This can further avoid the undesired arcing or electric leakage due to the driving signal D between the lighting unit 23 and the second circuit board 22, thereby enhancing the reliability of the illumination device 2. Furthermore, in the illumination device 2 of the present embodiment, different circuits are separately configured at different circuit boards. This configuration can increase the efficiency of detecting the broken circuits. If only one circuit is damaged, it is not necessary to replace the entire circuit board, so that the maintain cost can be reduced.
In addition, the illumination device 2 of the present embodiment further includes the protection circuit 213 for disabling the controlling circuit 211 when the short circuit is happened between the first and second circuit boards 21 and 22. This can protect the illumination device 2 from further damages as the switching circuit 212 keeping outputting the power signal W. The circuit designs of the protection circuit 213 are shown in
Several aspects of the illumination device according to the present embodiment will be described herein below with reference to the related drawings.
Accordingly, the repairing or replacement of the lighting unit 23 can be performed by simply detaching the connector C1 between the first and second circuit boards 21 and 22. Thus, the efficiency of the repairing or replacement of the illumination device 2 can be sufficiently enhanced so as to increase the convenience thereof.
In this aspect, a portion of the controlling circuits for the LEDs 231 can be disposed on the third circuit board 24 so as to decrease the circuit complexity of the second circuit board 22 and reduce the production cost. Similarly, the repairing or replacement of the lighting unit 23 can be performed by simply detaching the first and second circuit boards 21 and 22. Thus, the efficiency of the repairing or replacement of the illumination device 2a can be sufficiently enhanced so as to increase the convenience thereof.
In this aspect, the lighting unit 23a includes fluorescent lamps 232 for example. The fluorescent lamp 232 can be a HCFL or a CCFL, and it may be U-shaped, W-shaped, C-shaped or linear. In this embodiment, the fluorescent lamp 232 is a U-shaped CCFL with a total length larger than 90 cm.
The fluorescent lamp 232 is connected to the second circuit board 22 by welding (as shown in
Referring to
In the embodiment, since the insulating housing 25 covers the second circuit board 22, the user can be avoided from contacting the driving signal between the transforming circuit 221 and the fluorescent lamp 232, and will not get hurt by the driving signal. Thus, the electric shock can be prevented when the user performing the repairing or replacement. In addition, the first circuit board 21 and the second circuit board 22 are connected through the connector C1, so that the efficiency of the repairing or replacement of the illumination device 2b can be sufficiently enhanced so as to increase the convenience thereof.
The material of the carrier 26 can be metal or alloy, and it has a reflective surface S with a size of 60 cm×60 cm or 60 cm×120 cm. The carrier 26 is connected to the insulating housings 25 through connecting members 261 and 251 by way of locking, wedging or hooking. In this embodiment, the carrier 26 is connected to the insulating housings 25 through the connecting members 261 and 251 by way of locking.
In addition, the carrier 26 may further include a holding member 262 for maintaining the relative positions of the lighting unit 23a and the carrier 26. Referring to
Referring to
To be noted, the fluorescent lamp 232 of this aspect is, for example but not limited to, a U-shaped fluorescent lamp and, of course, it can be a C-shaped fluorescent lamp, W-shaped fluorescent lamp or a linear fluorescent lamp.
To be noted, the fluorescent lamp 232 of this aspect is, for example but not limited to, a U-shaped fluorescent lamp and, of course, it can be a C-shaped fluorescent lamp, W-shaped fluorescent lamp or a linear fluorescent lamp.
In the embodiment, the rectifying circuit 311 generates a power source signal DC according to an inputted alternate-current power source signal AC, the switching circuit 322 receives the power source signal DC, and the controlling circuit 321 generates at least one control signal P according to the power source signal DC. The switching circuit 322 is opened or closed according to the control signal P generated by the controlling circuit 321, thereby outputting a power signal W. The transforming circuit 323 receives the power signal W and then generates a driving signal D to the lighting unit 33 for driving the lighting unit 33 to emit light.
In the illumination device 3 of this embodiment, the lighting unit 33 can be repaired or replaced by detaching the first and second circuit boards 31 and 32. This can avoid the user from contacting the driving signal D transmitted between the transforming circuit 323 and the lighting unit 33, so that the risk of electric shock during the replacement or repairing can be reduced. Moreover, since the replacement or repairing for the illumination device 3 can be performed by disconnecting or connecting the first and second circuit boards 31 and 32, the improper connection caused by improperly connecting or repeated replacement while directly replacing the lighting unit 33 can be prevented. This can further avoid the undesired arcing or electric leakage due to the driving signal D between the lighting unit 33 and the second circuit board 32, thereby enhancing the reliability of the illumination device 3.
Furthermore, in the illumination device 3 of the present embodiment, different circuits are separately configured at different circuit boards. This configuration can increase the efficiency of detecting the broken circuits. If only one circuit is damaged, it is not necessary to replace the entire circuit board, so that the maintain cost can be reduced.
To be noted, the structure of the illumination device 3 can be any of the structures shown in
In the embodiment, the rectifying circuit 411 generates a power source signal DC according to an inputted alternate-current power source signal AC, and the controlling circuit 412 generates at least one control signal P according to the power source signal DC. The switching circuit 421 is opened or closed according to the control signal P generated by the controlling circuit 412, thereby outputting a power signal W. The transforming circuit 422 receives the power signal W and then generates a driving signal D to the lighting unit 43 for driving the lighting unit 43 to emit light.
In the illumination device 4 of this embodiment, the lighting unit 43 can be repaired or replaced by detaching the first and second circuit boards 41 and 42. This can avoid the user from contacting the driving signal D transmitted between the transforming circuit 422 and the lighting unit 43, so that the risk of electric shock during the replacement or repairing can be reduced. Moreover, since the replacement or repairing for the illumination device 4 can be performed by disconnecting or connecting the first and second circuit boards 41 and 42, the improper connection caused by improperly connecting or repeated replacement while directly replacing the lighting unit 43 can be prevented. This can further avoid the undesired arcing or electric leakage due to the driving signal D between the lighting unit 43 and the second circuit board 42, thereby enhancing the reliability of the illumination device 4.
Furthermore, in the illumination device 4 of the present embodiment, different circuits are separately configured at different circuit boards. This configuration can increase the efficiency of detecting the broken circuits. If only one circuit is damaged, it is not necessary to replace the entire circuit board, so that the maintain cost can be reduced.
To be noted, the structure of the illumination device 4 can be any of the structures shown in
In addition, the voltage values of the above-mentioned alternate-current and direct-current power sources are for illustration only, and they can be adjusted according to different applications.
In summary, the lighting unit is electrically connected to the transforming circuit of the second circuit board, and then the second circuit board is electrically connected to the first circuit board. Thus, if the lighting unit is breakdown, the replacement or repairing of the broken lighting unit can be performed by simply detaching the second and first circuit boards. This can avoid the user from contacting the driving signal transmitted between the transforming circuit and the lighting unit, so that the risk of electric shock during the replacement or repairing can be reduced.
Moreover, since the replacement or repairing can be performed by disconnecting or connecting the first and second circuit boards, the improper connection caused by improperly connecting of the first and second circuit boards or repeated replacement while directly replacing the lighting unit can be prevented. This can further avoid the undesired arcing or electric leakage due to the driving signal between the lighting unit and the second circuit board, thereby enhancing the reliability of the illumination device.
Furthermore, in the illumination device of the present invention, different circuits are separately configured at different circuit boards. This configuration can increase the efficiency of detecting the broken circuits. If only one circuit is damaged, it is not necessary to replace the entire circuit board, so that the maintain cost can be reduced.
In addition, the illumination device of the present invention may further include a protection circuit for disabling the controlling circuit when the short circuit is happened between the first and second circuit boards. This can protect the illumination device from further damages as the switching circuit keeping outputting the power signal.
Moreover, the first and second circuit boards are connected through a connector, so that the efficiency of repairing or replacement of the illumination device can be sufficiently enhanced so as to increase the convenience thereof. In one aspect, the second circuit board is disposed in an insulating housing, so that the illumination device can be safer. In another aspect, the illumination device may further include a carrier for increasing the application scope thereof, and the reflective surface of the carrier can further increase the light utilization rate.
Although the invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiments, as well as alternative embodiments, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art. It is, therefore, contemplated that the appended claims will cover all modifications that fall within the true scope of the invention.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
097131770 | Aug 2008 | TW | national |