01-02 lecture indn 212 01 Intro 2011 - School of Design - Victoria ...

Control Gear
Fluorescent lamps are not designed to be operated directly from the mains supply.
All fluorescent lamps require a device to generate a high voltage (more than 240V) to initiate
the discharge and an additional device to control the discharge current. Unlike incandescent
lamps, fluorescent lamps cannot on their own control the current and would draw such high
currents from the mains that they would destroy themselves.
These devices are collectively referred to as ‘control gear’. A brief introduction to basic
magnetic, and more sophisticated electronic, control gear for operating a fluorescent tube
was given in Module 1 (Basic Electrical Principles). There is more detailed coverage of the
topic in the Control Gear module.
FLUORESCENT LAMPS