Lighting system power adaptor

An adaptor for supplying power to a lighting unit, comprising:

• a sensing means for monitoring a duty cycle of an input received from a main power supply;
• and
• a control means responsive to the input duty cycle and operable to provide at least two independent electrical outputs, each having a duty cycle based on the input duty cycle each output having a power level that is a function of
• (i) the power presently available at the input and
• (ii) a lighting profile, said lighting profile comprising a transfer characteristic defining a relationship between the power available at the input and the independent electrical outputs;
• wherein the control means is programmed to operate in response to movement of a dimmer control switch, the controller having at least two modes of operation, a first mode being in response to a conventional dimmer switch operation to gradually change a lighting intensity signal at least one of said two independent electrical outputs and wherein the controller is programmed in a second mode to select sequentially a successive one of a plurality of lighting profiles in response to movement of the dimmer control switch back and forth within a predetermined time interval.

A lighting system comprising:

• a solid state lighting unit including at least two separately controllable light emitters of different colours;
• a lighting controller for controlling the output of an electrical power supply for the lighting unit:
• and a power adaptor including:
• an input for receiving the output of the electrical power supply;
• and a controller adapted to monitor the input and operable to provide at least two independent electrical outputs, each output having a power level based on an amount of power available at the input;
• wherein each light emitter is adapted to receive a respective one of the electrical outputs to control an intensity and/or variable colour output characteristic of the lighting unit,
• said at least two independent electrical outputs having power levels that are a function of
• (i) the power presently available at the input and
• (ii) a lighting profile, said lighting profile comprising a transfer characteristic defining a relationship between the power available at the input and the independent electrical outputs;
• wherein the controller is programmed to operate in response to movement of a dimmer control switch, the controller having at least two modes of operation, a first mode being in response to a conventional dimmer switch operation to gradually change a lighting intensity signal at least one of said two independent electrical outputs and wherein the controller is programmed in a second mode to select sequentially a successive one of a plurality of lighting profiles in response to movement of the dimmer control switch back and forth within a predetermined time interval.