Subject: UFTO Note — Dimmable Electronic Ballast
Date: Sun, 27 Oct 1996 19:13:45 -0800
From: Ed Beardsworth

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| * UFTO * Edward Beardsworth * Consultant
| 951 Lincoln Ave. tel 415-328-5670
| Palo Alto CA 94301-3041 fax 415-328-5675
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Dimmable Electronic Ballast

Most dimmable ballasts available on the market are too expensive and difficult to install, which has limited their use to only very specialized applications. Now, it appears that the long-sought cost and performance for dimmable ballasts has been reached, making wide scale application feasible.

Electronic Lighting, Inc. (ELI) is a startup company which is bypassing traditional distribution channels and the strong conservatism of the lighting supply industry, going direct to ESCOs and others ready to do “smart lighting”. They’ve had a number of successful commercial installations. Some of your companies already know about ELI’s ballast, but there hasn’t been much activity beyond the “test and evaluation” phase.

The following is adapted from company literature:

SmartStart Controllable Dimming Electronic Series 700 Ballasts cost significantly less than other dimming ballasts. They are the nucleus for practical daylight harvesting system, and systems controlled by low-voltage occupancy sensors, manual dimming controls, and building automation systems.

Installation of ELI control systems is easy and inexpensive with snap-together low voltage wiring and allows for multiple control functions. ELI’s retrofit Daylight Harvesting System can save up to 40% more energy than can be obtained with fixed output electronic ballast retrofits. Low inrush current results in long controller and lamp life.

ELI also offers a “standard” Electronic Ballast with Controlled Rapid Start

Until now, the choice was between rapid-start ballasts, which promise longer lamp life but consume more energy, or instant-start ballasts, which offer lower energy costs but shorten lamp life. ELI’s proprietary SmartStart® uses a unique driven-inverter circuit, rather than a self- oscillating circuit, to control the pre-heat interval and starting current.

It is no longer necessary to trade lamp life for energy savings. ELI’s SmartStart ballasts give both. Also, since the SmartStart ballast’s circuit design is more efficient, the ballast runs cooler than traditional rapid start ballasts.

ELI’s ballasts use only highly reliable, high- efficiency components which yield cooler operating temperatures (without potting) and lighter weight. ELI ballasts are built in an ISO 9002 certified facility to ensure manufacturing quality.

SmartStart ballasts compensate for system faults in a non-destructive manner to both the ballast and lamp. ELI’s patented technology handles a wide variety of system failures such as AC power input faults (brown- outs and voltage spikes), lamp operation faults, and ballast connection faults (including broken leads to the lamp, lamp replacement and restarting).