Ignitor

Ignitors for generating the ignition voltages needed by metal halide lamps and sodium lamps without internal starters use either superimposed-pulse or pulse technology. The innovative range of ignitors from TridonicAtco includes standard ignitors suitable for all commercially available high-pressure discharge lamps with wattages from 35 W to 3,500 W, which require an ignition voltage between 800 V and 5,000 V depending on the type of lamp. The special feature of superimposed-pulse ignitors is that the ignition voltage is generated without placing a high-voltage load on the choke. Superimposed-pulse technology leads to a reproducible ignition response which does not depend on the control gear used and is unaffected by voltage fluctuations. Pulse ignitors are operated with chokes tailored specifically for them. Integrated shutdown of defective lamps reduces the load on the ballasts to a minimum. Restart attempts in pulse-pause mode reduce the load on the chokes still further. TridonicAtco ignitors ensure lamps start reliably even if the mains voltage is as low as 198 V (switch-on voltage). The ignitor is switched off as soon as the lamp starts to prevent damage to the lamp. Because of the high-quality narrow-tolerance components the switch-off voltage reaches the high value of 185 V. The increase in temperature in the ignitor determines its area of application and is therefore an important criterion. TridonicAtco ignitors are characterised by minimal self-heating, which in turn gives luminaire designers extra creative freedom.