Light Dimmer

Light Dimmers are becoming very popular among the homeowners and builders. Light dimmers are taking the place of regular light switches and are being widely used for lighting control. Light dimmer is becoming a standard in homebuilding industry for light control. Light dimmer has many advantages over conventional light switches. Light dimmers come in many styles and control different types of light sources. The modern light dimmers offer convenience and flexibility. One of the most important feature of newer light dimmer is to offer 'presets'. This feature lets the user to set the light intensity according to the mood or need. This powerful feature made the light dimmers a very popular need of a house or a commercial building. This feature provides a real convenience in homes, hotels, restaurants where the mood of the atmosphere can be set at the touch of a button. This also saves the light dimmer from wear and tear in the long run.

History of Light Dimmer

Light dimmers were in use for the past several decades. The concept behind the light dimmer is to control the voltage to the light lamp or any source. Light dimmers regulate the voltage to the source they are connected to. This regulation of voltage increases or decreases the light intensity. Light dimmers first appeared in the market around 1960s. In the beginning light dimmers used adjustable power resistors and transformers to regulate the voltage. The use of transformers in early light dimmers did not prove a success. The light dimmers produced poor results and were expensive and non durable. As the electronics made progrss over the time, new methods and components were invented. Thyristors and triacs came to teh market and because of these components, new modern light dimmers were invented which were cheap, durable and gave better results. Today, modern light dimmer manufacturers use thyristors and triacs in their construction.

Important Features of Light Dimmer

Light dimmers are very inexpensive and ranges from $5-$30 depending on the model and manufacturer. Light dimmers are the best replacements for regular light switches because of there many features like durable, easy installation and different attractive styles. Light dimmers have the following important features.

• Inexpensive
• Durable
• Easy Installation
• Automated
• Stylish

A Simple Light Dimmer Circuit

We can build our own light dimmer circuit for fun or for our science project. Following is the circuit diagram of a 12V light dimmer switch. The circuit is constructed with 555 time oscillators and resistors. Two different circuits are shown for light dimmer. One shows the circuit when lamp is connected to the positive connection and the other connected to the negative side of the supply. The circuit uses the principle of capacitors which is when charged produces short positive interval and long negative interval which dims the intensity of the light.

Simple 12V Light Dimmer Circuit

Safety Measures for Light Dimmers

Light dimmers are connected to mains, therefore safety precautions should be taken during installation of light dimmer. During installation, it should be made sure that no part of the circuit can be touched. Always look in the instruction manual for safety measures where it says 'Safety Instructions for light dimmer'

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