AN - Example LED Driver Circuit.pdf

AN - Example LED Driver Circuit.pdf
Example LED Driver Circuit
Running an LED with pulses to get maximum brightness




To give maximum brightness an LED needs to be driven by a pulse circuit. In this way,
it is possible to put 0.5 Amp current pulses through an LED at a frequency of around
100Hz which fools the eye into thinking that it sees a continuous light.

If the LED is run at 0.5 Amps for very long, it will burn out (usually within a fraction of
a second). By keeping the pulse duration relatively short, we can avoid overheating the
LED.

This circuit allows adjust ment of the pulse width so that the maximum average current
is no more than 50mA.
To ensure long LED life, it should be adjusted for maximum brightness then reduced
slightly to an average current of around 40mA. One or two LEDs can be driven
simultaneously.