what is a led igniter for?

So I have Philips DRL 5. The igniter box is supposed to judge when the car is on (based on the voltage increase I suppose) and ignite the leds. The idea is that you can hook it up straight to the battery, you dont need an ignition source. Its a bit finicky and sometimes stays on when I turn the car off, so I hooked it up straight to an ignition source. I thought I didnt need the igniter box anymore, but they wont work without it! Since when do leds need to be ignited?! Im very confused...

Ah well... voltage sensing circuits have the usual problems of voltage sensing circuits... These are (or should be!) well understood wrt to accessories or systems like dual/multi-battery installations etc.    The normal or best "engine running" sensor is the charge light output from traditional alternators else air-flap etc sensors from modern vehicles, or spark sensors for petrol engines. Oil pressure might be an alternative for DRLs (or multi-batteries, but not fuel pumps!). Failing the above, for DRLs IMO IGN is probably the best trigger. As to what the 'ignitor box' does, F'dIIK other than I assume it is the voltage sensor that gates (turns on) the LEDs. I'd be using normal DRLs or LEDs triggered by the charge light (search 'UIBI') else IGN +12V.

oldspark wrote: Ah well... voltage sensing circuits have the usual problems of voltage sensing circuits... These are (or should be!) well understood wrt to accessories or systems like dual/multi-battery installations etc.    The normal or best "engine running" sensor is the charge light output from traditional alternators else air-flap etc sensors from modern vehicles, or spark sensors for petrol engines. Oil pressure might be an alternative for DRLs (or multi-batteries, but not fuel pumps!). Failing the above, for DRLs IMO IGN is probably the best trigger. As to what the 'ignitor box' does, F'dIIK other than I assume it is the voltage sensor that gates (turns on) the LEDs. I'd be using normal DRLs or LEDs triggered by the charge light (search 'UIBI') else IGN +12V.

I very happy using an ignition source. That is how I did my DRLs in my old car. The real question is though... what are its properties that makes it an igniter and not a voltage sensing activated switch? And beyond that, why wont they light up without it? I thought it must have its own resistor, but I tested for resistance on either side of the positive and negative and all I got was .2 of an ohm. So Im very lost!

I don't know - I can't find enough info about them apart from youtube etc installation downloads that I'm not in the mood to view. The ignitor may be an entire trigger source (voltage) AND voltage conversion -cum- current (limiting?) source for the LEDs. If I understand correctly, the Philips DRL 5 is supposed to be a simple battery addon that uses voltage sensing to determine when the vehicle is running (ie, battery voltage above 13.0 or 13.5V etc) and turns off when not running. It presumably does not have the same constraints as battery isolators (ie, turn off with voltage dips under 13.0V or 12.7V etc), but as to other features like voltage conversion or current limiting depends on the LEDs or LED strings that are used. The DRLs I know of are mere automotive 12V LED strings that are connected to IGN or other car/engine running sources. If you can supply additional wiring or circuit info I might be able to figure it out - provided it has more info than merely connecting to the battery.

I am going absolutely nuts! First I tried to remove the ignitor and they wouldnt light. So I tried to connect it all back up the original way it come and one of the two led arrays is lighting up, the other one... just! Almost like something is wrong with the ignitor. Then I somehow managed to bypass the ignitor but the leds arent at max brightness. So I am wondering now... Should I hook up a driver, something like this? Or what else might help? I cant find any information on the net about this issue. I did open the ignitor up and its got a silicone seal over the components, but I did see two capacitors inside. Would that support the driver theory I had in the previous paragraph?

Find out what voltage and current is required by each LED or DRL assembly. If it's a typical 12V (or less) string then voltage upping shouldn't be necessary. But they might be PWMing the LEDs - ie, pulsing a LED at 10% or lower duty cycle above it's normal (ie, 100& duty cycle) rating can mean brighter output. If it's a voltage & current converter like the one you linked, then it will be one ignitor output per LED string or assembly - you can't add extra LEDs. (Well there are ways, but not for such units.) Otherwise it might simply be a voltage booster to run their (say) 15V or 24V LED strings. Caps don't really say much. The linked driver has 2 caps as do most SMPS converters whether buck or boost and/or constant current drivers. It will probably be an SMPS ignitor for efficiency, lowest heat, and reliable LED operation. You have to get the LED specs else do current & voltage checks using a scope/CRO or equipment that can provide true-RMS & duty cycle values.