LED lamp with encapsulated driver and safety circuit
View Patent ↗A lamp assembly includes a base, a hermetically sealed outer jacket mounted on the base, and a driver circuit disposed within the hermetically sealed outer jacket and electrically coupled to the base. The lamp assembly may also include a safety circuit configured to interrupt electrical power to the lamp assembly if the hermetically sealed outer jacket is compromised.
1. A lamp assembly comprising:
a base;
a hermetically sealed outer jacket mounted on the base; and
a driver circuit (i) having a first end mounted on an end of a printed circuit board and (ii) being configured to provide power for driving a light source, the light source also being mounted on the printed circuit board;
wherein, the printed circuit board and the driver circuit are completely disposed within the hermetically sealed outer jacket, a second end of the driver circuit being electrically coupled to the base via a plurality of leads configured to provide power from the base to the driver circuit;
a safety circuit provided on a surface of the printed circuit board and configured to interrupt via an element the electrical power to the lamp assembly if the hermetically sealed outer jacket is compromised;
wherein the element is not oxygen sensitive prior to an activation of the element; and
wherein the element is configured to interrupt the electrical power when the activation has occurred, the activation rendering the element oxygen-sensitive.
2. The lamp assembly of claim 1 , wherein the hermetically sealed outer jacket is formed of glass.
3. The lamp assembly of claim 1 , wherein the hermetically sealed outer jacket comprises a polymer.
4. The lamp assembly of claim 1 , comprising one or more solid state light sources disposed within the hermetically sealed outer jacket and powered by the driver circuit.
5. The lamp assembly of claim 4 , wherein the one or more solid state light sources are LED light sources.
6. The lamp assembly of claim 4 , wherein the one or more solid state light sources are LED filaments.
7. The lamp assembly of claim 4 , comprising a circuit board on which the one or more solid state light sources and the driver circuit are mounted.
8. The lamp assembly of claim 1 , wherein the element is configured to become non-conducting upon exposure to oxygen.
9. The lamp assembly of claim 1 , wherein the element is configured to trip a fuse in the base upon exposure to oxygen.
10. The lamp assembly of claim 1 , wherein the safety circuit comprises a pressure transducer configured to trip a fuse in the base upon a change in atmospheric pressure within the hermetically sealed outer jacket.
11. The lamp assembly of claim 1 , wherein the safety circuit comprises an oxygen sensor configured to trip a fuse in the base upon a change in partial pressure of oxygen gas within the hermetically sealed outer jacket.
12. The lamp assembly of claim 1 , wherein the element is disposed within the hermetically sealed outer jacket and is configured to trip a fuse in the base if the hermetically sealed outer jacket is compromised.
13. The lamp assembly of claim 12 , wherein the element is configured to trip the fuse upon exposure to oxygen.
14. The lamp assembly of claim 12 , wherein the element is configured to become non-conducting upon exposure to oxygen.
15. The lamp assembly of claim 1 , further comprising an oxygen sensor configured to provide a first signal at a first partial pressure of oxygen and a second signal as at a second partial pressure of oxygen, the second partial pressure of oxygen being indicative of the outer jacket having been compromised.
16. The lamp assembly of claim 15 , wherein the second partial pressure is at about 0.2 atmosphere.