A solid-state two-wire dimmer solution was introduced by Amber Solutions and it works without the need for a neutral wire. It is compatible with most lighting and LED technology and allows for intelligent control and smooth dimming. Another major aspect of this solid two wire dimmer is its slim form factor, 3/4 inch – deep. Thar Casey, CEO of Amber, described the features of the new two-wire solution and also highlights the potential to eliminate TRIAC thanks to its controlled opacity that requires no additional wires. In some circumstances, the electrical infrastructure is outdated in old buildings, which poses a problem in implementing smart systems and limits the transition towards a full-fledged smart home. The theme of an effective smart home is the ability to smooth dimming at zero percent to the maximum dimming ability. “Amber’s solution enables restructuring of the architecture of common electrical products, increasing their performance and lamp compatibility while reducing size requirements to facilitate installation,” Casey Amber said in a solid-state redesign that includes intelligence that can be adapted to any load situation, providing a flicker-free dimming experience in a slim form Fits seamlessly into everyday electrical installations. The phenomenon of scintillation is defined as the perception of visual instability caused by a light stimulus whose luminosity or spectral distribution fluctuates over time. Owners and installers of these dimmers can take advantage of the original overvoltage and short circuit protection, save energy by reducing energy dissipation, and an integrated wireless device control option that also enables over-the-air updates of each type of new product via their smartphones. Problem and technology Since the early 20th century, the two-wire configuration has been widely used in everyday electrical infrastructure. In the 2000s, the introduction of energy-saving solutions, new LED solutions and dimming modes through TRIACs created quite a few problems due to the need for neutral wires. Most homes do not have a neutral wired system in the light switches’ electrical boxes, forcing manufacturers to adapt by choosing custom solutions, often with TRIACs. Unfortunately, TRIACs struggle to operate without neutral due to the power required, which affects the quality of today’s two-wire dimmer switches. The TRIAC functions as an AC switch, controlled by a small current at the gate end. This microcontroller pin can generate current well. The problem is that the gate is directly connected to the mains and the ground of the logical part of the circuit must be connected to a mains pole. The result is two-fold: the logical region of the circuit is brought into the mains voltage, which exposes the user to risks. A direct bridge consists of everything that passes through the network, that is, overvoltage and turbulence. This increases the likelihood of the microcontroller outage due to network pulses. TRIAC was invented in the late 1950s. It’s great technology and it’s still in use. But TRIAC technology is huge, and it’s outdated electromechanical architecture. We have a solid case so it is not electromechanical, which solves a lot of industry issues, such as improving the quality of the dimming experience, reducing the size for an easier and more flexible installation and more. This is why many companies are eliminating TRIAC with solid state solutions like ours, ”Casey said. Current TRIAC technologies are holding back the industry, especially while anticipating high minimum power requirements with limited conversion capacity and space requirements due to heat dissipation problems. In incompatibility with LEDs that cause brightness issues including shadows and flickering. “We are talking with several companies that are currently having trouble with their products, which are not affected well and fluctuate or have a reduction of 25% or 75% for example. Example. Or they stay in the shadows. Shadows means the light stays on – even when you’re in the dark mode, the light stays on, and you can see that the light is still lit a little. It is not a 100% discount. Now, this is because they are using a two-wire solution based on the old mechanical and electrical engineering. With a two-wire solution, there is no neutral. One wire goes in and one wire comes out. This is. There is no neutral. Many buildings around the world are considered old. And the electricity in these buildings doesn’t have a common wire – that white wire, which is called neutral. Therefore, it is very difficult to get enough power for products that do not have neutral, which makes good darkening difficult. It is also very difficult to integrate Wi Fi or Bluetooth, because there is not enough power to operate the smart connection. We have found a solution to operate a dimmer light switch without the neutral. In addition, we can program our technology to not flicker, enable maximum dimming range, and more. “We can even integrate energy monitoring and measurement,” Casey said. With the advent of LED technology, the new capabilities of light control have also led to more considerations about the quality of the emitted light. Inclusion of new lighting technology in systems or products designed around traditional technologies has a common flicker problem. Therefore, this phenomenon occurs when we realize, under constant conditions, that light does not remain static over time and tends to vibrate or flash. A candle flame is a typical source of light where this phenomenon is clearly visible. Every small movement of air tends to move the flame and change the intensity and direction of the light, resulting in unstable flash or light. The phenomenon is limited to the sensitivity of the human eye, which depends, according to studies and experiments, on the frequency of modulating light. We can clearly perceive the phenomenon of flickering at 10 Hz (maximum sensitivity), while the frequency increases, it becomes less perceptible until the frequency value reaches about 80 Hz. Beyond these frequencies, this phenomenon is no longer perceived, and this also explains why incandescent or discharge lamps usually do not appear to flash. One of the biggest challenges in electrical engineering is the dimmable performance of LEDs in TRIAC dimmers. The problem is that with TRIAC, dimmers are designed for use with incandescent bulbs, which have resistive loads. When I first started using LEDs with dimmers, the low current requirements, combined with the non-resistance nature of the devices, caused TRIACs to intermittently turn on and off because the electronics don’t provide enough current when the Triac is running, causing it to flicker. Amber’s smart solutions enable electricity management through MOSFET solutions, thus reducing problems of dissipation and energy consumption compared to TRIAC. This solution opens up new opportunities for auxiliary sensor and wireless integration in the smart home space thanks to its compact form factor. He added, “Amber’s technological innovations in digital control of electricity through a solid-state architecture provide the opportunity to improve the value of two-wire dimmer switches on the market today. The Amber AC / DC Enabler and Amber AC Switch are our two products to offer advantages in terms of electrical efficiency that cannot be achieved.” With the old standard infrastructure today, ”Casey said. Amber’s Two-Wire Dimmer Switch uses solid state engineering Amber Solutions Amber’s 2-Wire core Amber technologies, converting two-wire dimmer products into a new architecture. Casey highlighted, for example, how Amber’s AC Switch ™ with Amber’s AC-DC Enabler ™ provides higher reliability compared to TRIAC due to its solid-state architecture, eliminating all mechanical parts used in existing solutions and minimizing heat dissipation and energy waste. Amber’s solid-state architecture allows for a flicker-free dimming experience and a minimal power range to eliminate most shadows, which also ensures greater efficiency in LED applications. Looking to the future, our two-wire dimmer architecture will enable 3-way dimming using only one travel wire, offer intelligent automatic detection of load types, and create a wireless architecture by eliminating the need for wires or batteries in devices such as smart devices thermostats and doorbell cameras Smart, Happy Casey. The on-board AI support allows you to recognize the load, providing the flexibility to support dynamic rear edge dimming. Thanks to the small footprint, there is also plenty of room for third-party manufacturers to add sensors and other smart features within the electrical boxes. Focusing the Great Revolution Over replacing TRIACs, which are traditionally useful for bidirectional current control. Amber’s goal is to replace TRIACs with solid-state MOSFET technology with integrated intelligence. The two-wire dimmer can handle up to 1000 watts of current and is independent of the input voltage, making it compatible with any A power grid on the ground.Almost comprehensive compatibility with LED lighting solutions ensures interoperability with all electrical infrastructures of the past, present and future. An interesting insight can be summarized here: We are always looking for energy, rely on electricity, and electronic design is essential to maximize efficiency, utility, longevity and intelligence for the tools we use to provide energy to our cities, businesses, homes and appliances. Passwords for the home of tomorrow are: green and smart, or environment and technology. .
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