New Industry Products

Computer Controlled LED Dimming Optimizes Dimmer Compatibility

June 28, 2018 by Paul Shepard

ERP Power LLC today announced the world's smallest programmable drivers with innovative and disruptive Computer Controlled Dimming™ technology.  ERP Power's introduction of Computer Controlled Dimming is empowering architects and lighting designers to create the most interactive LED lighting experiences with the precision ambiance and scene control of an incandescent or halogen environment for high-end residential, retail, museum and hospitality applications.

The next generation PHB Series will be available for sampling in Q4 2018 and from ERP Power distributors in volume quantities in Q1 2019 for immediate shipment from Arrow, DigiKey, Future, Mouser and WPG in the Americas region.

"ERP Power has flipped the control model.  Rather than the dimmer controlling the driver, the driver is controlling the dimmer," said Michael Archer, CTO of ERP Power.  "Every lighting fixture designer who has tested our Computer Controlled Dimming tells us it delivers the best LED dimming performance they have ever seen."

The patent-pending Computer Controlled Dimming technology means ERP Power PHB Series TRIAC dimmer compatibility scores improve from 90% to 98+%, dramatically reducing any flicker, shimmer, and ripple issues.  Typical LED drivers deliver relatively constrained dimming performance at 20/40/60/80/100% output. The new PHB Series delivers programmable 1% TRIAC dimming granularity with startup and sustained operation at 1% to ensure architects and lighting designers have precise scene control.  Linear and logarithmic dimming profiles are fully programmable.

The patent-pending power electronics design includes 30W/40W/50W models in an aluminum housing to improve thermal performance while offering side lead, bottom lead or European terminal block configurations.  The PHB Series drivers help LED lighting fixture manufacturers meet the technical requirements of ENERGY STAR®, California Title 24 and the DesignLights Consortium (DLC) specifications.

Features of the UL Class P next generation PHB Series driver include:

  • One-fifth smaller than similar capacity drivers in the industry; programmable for flexible deployment in a broad range of constant current applications;
  • Connected with wired and wireless controls; and
  • High efficiency to reduce electricity consumption.

As with previous generations of ERP Power LED drivers, the PHB Series delivers Tri-Mode Dimming™ compatibility with 0-10V, TRIAC and ELV dimmers.  A unique 0-10V dimming profile programming feature offers 5 pre-programmed choices or a custom 0-10V dimming profile to be created. The new ERP drivers are designed in California and built to last with a 5-year limited warranty.

Programmable Output

Customers can deploy a single driver across multiple lighting fixtures if the power output is programmable.  This lowers inventory costs and provides LED supplier flexibility in the customer's supply chain while enabling adjustment of current and lumen output for specific lighting project installation requirements.

The ERP next generation driver output is high efficiency and fully programmable in a wide range of output currents while maintaining efficiency of 90% from 50-100% of load with power factor greater than 0.9 and THD less than 20%.