A light dimmer is quite unusual in a caravan or on a boat. Here we describe how you can make one.

So
if you would like to be able to adjust the mood when youre entertaining friends and acquaintances,
then this circuit enables you to do so. Designing a dimmer for 12 V is tricky business.
The dimmers you find in your home are designed to operate from an AC voltage and use this AC
voltage as a fundamental characteristic for their operation. Because we now have to start with 12 V
DC, we have to generate the AC voltage ourselves. We also have to keep in mind that were dealing
with battery powered equipment and have to be frugal with energy.
The light dimmer circuit that we finally arrived at can easily drive 6 lamps of 10 W each. Fewer are also
possible, of course. In any case, the total current has to be smaller than 10 A. L1 and S1 can be
adapted to suit a smaller current, if required. Note that the whole circuit will also work from 6 V. IC1 is
a dual timer. You could also use the old faithful NE556, but it draws a little more current. IC1a is wired
as an astable multivibrator with a frequency of 180 Hz. IC1b is configured as a monostable and is
triggered, via D2, from the positive edge at the output of IC1a.
The length of the pulse that now appears at the output of IC1b is dependant on the position of P1.
IC1b will be reset whenever the output of IC1a goes low, independent of the pulse duration, set with
P1, R4 and C4. This guarantees that the dimming is smooth, even when the brightness is set to
maximum.
12 Volts light dimmer circuit diagram


The output of IC1b (pin 9) drives the gate of MOSFET T1. When the duration of the pulses at the gate
increases, the average time that the MOSFET is in conduction will also increase. In this way the
brightness of the lamps is controlled. T1 conducts about 96 % of the time when the brightness is set to
maximum. In this configuration, this can never be 100 %, because the 4 % of the time that the FET
does not conduct is necessary to charge C6.
If the FET were to conduct with 100 % duty cycle, the power supply for the circuit would be effectively
short-circuited. C6 allows the circuit to ride through the conduction period of the FET. D1 ensures that
the charge cannot leak away via the FET during the on period.
In the schematic, an IRL2203N is indicated for T1, but in principle you could use just about any power
transistor (for example, BUK455, BUZ10, BUZ11 or BUZ100). The IRL2203 does however, have a very
low on resistance (RDS ON) of only 7 m and can switch 12-V loads up to 5 A without a heatsink. If
you choose a different MOSFET (with higher RDS ON) or use the circuit in a 6-V system then you will
likely need a heatsink.
Using the IRL2203N with six lamps rated 12 V / 10 W, T1 dissipates only 170 mW. At 6 V and 10 A this
becomes 680 mW. The circuit itself consumes about 0.35 mA at maximum brightness and about 1.25
mA at minimum.
12 Volt light dimmer pcb layout

The power supply is derived from the power system via D1 and C6. Zener diode D3 provides protection
against voltage surges. The main purpose of R5 is to limit the current through D3, in the event it
becomes active. L1 reduces interference that could be caused by the fast switching of the transistor.
We have designed a small printed circuit board for the circuit. The construction of the light dimmer is
very simple. The PCB is quite compact in order to facilitate the replacement of existing switches. Keep
in mind that the CMOS-parts, IC1 and T1, are sensitive to static electricity.