A lamp system, and a method of operating the lamp system, are provided. The lamp system includes a gas discharge lamp, an electronic ballast and a control unit. A performance influencing control variable of the lamp system is used. The method allows operation with a high emission performance independent of the design thereof and of any potential changes caused by lamp aging and without any knowledge of the optimal operating temperature. According to the invention a light intensity control is provided, in which an actual value of a light intensity emitted by the gas discharge lamp is measured using a light sensor and the emitted light intensity is used as an actuating variable.

A light-emitting plasma lamp bulb for solar ultraviolet simulation includes a bulb cover having a spherical shape or a rod shape through which ultraviolet rays are transmittable, discharge gas contained in the bulb cover, and a first light-emitting material and a second light-emitting material, wherein the first light-emitting material includes at least one of mercury (Hg) and mercury iodide (HgI.sub.2), and the second light-emitting material includes sulfur (S.sub.8), wherein light emitted from the bulb has a maximum optical power intensity in a range of 395 to 455 nm which is an ultraviolet-visible boundary region, wherein, when compared using a same ultraviolet dose in an ultraviolet region of 290 to 400 nm, an integrated intensity of a visible and infrared region of 400 to 850 nm is equal to or less than of an integrated intensity of a visible and infrared region of a standard solar spectrum (ASTM G173, AM 1.5G).

A heating bulb for a liquid boiler includes a metal pressure shell of titanium or the like and contains an inner pressure plenum that stores pressurized inert gas, such as argon. The inner pressure plenum is sealed with a ceramic isolation plug that also contains a power conduit supplying a resistance heating element within the inner pressure plenum. Preferably, from approximately five to 100 atmospheres of pressure may be used to make the heating of the pressurized inert gas more efficient for heating a liquid within a boiler into which the heating bulb is placed. Thermocouples are used to control the flow of power to the resistance heating element.

A light source is composed of a discharge lamp, a resistor and a reflector container. The discharge lamp is provided as a source of light. The resistor increases a resistance in elevation of a temperature thereof, and reduces the resistance in lowering of the temperature thereof. The reflector container is a constituent element to which the discharge lamp and the resistor are attached. Additionally, the resistor is caused to heat an outer surface of the reflector container in accordance with elevation of a temperature of the discharge lamp in activation of lighting of the discharge lamp.

An RF fluorescent lamp comprising an electric ballast comprising an inverter circuit operating at a first frequency that provides the voltage and current with reference to local ground to a switching node connected to a first end of a winding of a power coupler, a timing circuit operating at a second frequency equal to or less than half the first frequency, and an enable circuit activated by the timing circuit that enables and disables the inverter circuit.

A system, method, and computer program product for optimizing the cooling of a UV bulb during a UV irradiation process is described. A power level in which to operate the UV bulb is received. In addition, a particular type of UV bulb being used in the UV irradiation process is received. Thereafter, at least one optimal UV cooling parameter that corresponds to the power level and the type of UV bulb is retrieved from a UV source parameters database. At least one control signal is then sent to a cooling device that is based on the retrieved optimal UV cooling parameter, and the control signal instructs the cooling device to cool the particular type of UV bulb according to the retrieved optimal UV cooling parameter during the UV irradiation process.

Sulfur arc lamp includes an arc chamber that has a cathode and an anode both made of refractory metals that include pure tungsten, pure molybdenum, tungsten alloy, molybdenum alloy or a composite in which tungsten is at least 90%, or a composite in which molybdenum is at least 90%; a plasma initiation gas filling the plasma chamber; power supply configured to switch on and off electric arc discharge between the cathode and anode; second chamber connected to the arc chamber for releasing sulfur vapor into the plasma arc chamber, thereby creating a sulfur-containing plasma gas when the discharge occurs, and configured to selectively remove the sulfur vapor from the sulfur-containing plasma gas when the discharge occurs, wherein the second chamber is configured to reduce a concentration of the sulfur vapor in the arc chamber below 10.sup.13 molecules per cm.sup.3 before the electric arc discharge is off.

A system and method of extracting or inspecting a feature of an object using thermal imaging, and a method of inspecting an object of a garment product. The system includes a source of thermal influence arranged to heat or cool an object; an imager arranged to capture a plurality of images of the object when the object is subjected to the thermal influence; and an image processor arrange to processing the plurality of images and to distinguish a feature of interest from the other portions of the object presented on the plurality of images.

A lamp system, and a method of operating the lamp system, are provided. The lamp system includes a gas discharge lamp, an electronic ballast and a control unit. A performance influencing control variable of the lamp system is used. The method allows operation with a high emission performance independent of the design thereof and of any potential changes caused by lamp aging and without any knowledge of the optimal operating temperature. According to the invention a light intensity control is provided, in which an actual value of a light intensity emitted by the gas discharge lamp is measured using a light sensor and the emitted light intensity is used as an actuating variable.

An RF fluorescent lamp comprising an electric ballast comprising an inverter circuit operating at a first frequency that provides the voltage and current with reference to local ground to a switching node connected to a first end of a winding of a power coupler, a timing circuit operating at a second frequency equal to or less than half the first frequency, and an enable circuit activated by the timing circuit that enables and disables the inverter circuit.