# US 5,705,808 A · Flash tube devices with a controllable electrical energy

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- Number: US 5,705,808 A
- Document ID: US5705808A
- Status: Granted
- Kind: A
- Application number: 08/597,928
- Filed: 1996-02-07
- Granted: 1998-01-06
- Earliest claimed: 1994-09-15
- Assignees: Dittler Brothers Incorporated; Simon Marketing, Inc.
- Inventors: Andrew S. Filo
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US5705808A

## CPC

- H05B 41/32: for single flash operation
- Y10S 283/903: Lottery ticket
- H05B: ELECTRIC HEATING; ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES, IN GENERAL
- Y10S: TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS

## Abstract

A flash device has a flash tube which generates light in response to electrical energy. The amount of light emitted by the flash tube is monitored by a circuit which is connected to means for adjusting the electrical energy supplied to said flash tube when a predetermined amount of light has been emitted to thereby increase the effective life span of the flash tube and maintain intensity level of the flash tube within a given tolerance.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A flash device comprising:
a. a source of electrical energy;
b. a flash tube adapted to emit light repeatedly in response to the electrical energy; and
c. means for adjusting the electrical energy in response to light emission of the flash tube, comprising:
i. means for determining the number of light emissions of the flash tube; and
ii. means, comprising an electrical circuit, for increasing the electrical energy to the flash tube in response to the number of light emissions determined by the determining means.

### Claim 2

A flash device comprising:
a. a source of electrical energy;
b. a flash tube emitting light in response to the electrical energy, the electrical energy resulting in current of a first amount flowing to the flash tube; and
c. means, comprising a shunting circuit, for adjusting the electrical energy in response to light emission of the flash tube by diverting away from the flash tube a second amount of current, which second amount of current is only a portion of the first amount of current.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

A flash device according to claim 2 in which the shunting circuit (i) consists of an SCR connected to a resistor and (ii) is connected in parallel with the flash tube.