Recovering energy from an IrDA/remote control transmitter circuit

A circuit comprising:

• a light emitting diode (LED);
• a switch;
• an inductor that absorbs energy when an LED drive current is flowing from said inductor through said LED and then through said switch;
• a power supply;
• and
• an energy-transferring circuit that transfers at least a portion of said energy from said inductor and to said power supply, wherein said energy-transferring circuit is part of a portable electronic device taken from the group consisting of:
• a personal digital assistant (PDA), a cell phone, a portable MP3 player, a pager, a digital camera and a laptop computer.

A circuit comprising:

• a light emitting diode (LED), wherein said LED is powered by a drive current that, at least in part, flows from an inductor, through said LED and then through a switch as radiation is being emitted from said LED;
• and
• means for transferring energy from said inductor to a power supply, wherein said power supply powers a portable electronic device taken from the group consisting of:
• a personal digital assistant (PDA), a cell phone, a portable MP3 player, a pager, a digital camera and a laptop computer.