CONTROL CIRCUIT FOR A SOLAR-POWERED RECHARGABLE POWER SOURCE AND LOAD

An inexpensive circuit for controlling the recharging of a rechargeable power source by a photovoltaic panel is used for powering a load such as the lamp of a walk light. Using a minimum number of components, the circuit can charge a rechargeable battery anytime sunlight is sufficient to place a potential across the battery that is greater than the present potential of the battery, can sense a decrease in voltage across the photovoltaic panel with diminishing ambient light and energize the load, can prevent the load from being energized when the ambient light level is sufficient to re-charge the battery, can provide positive feedback at turn-on of the load, thereby hastening turn-on and providing hysteresis, can provide for adjusting the hysteresis bands, can shift the turn-on and turn-off thresholds, and can provide an adequate current to guarantee turn-on when using low leakage solar panels. A further embodiment can additionally exhibit hysteresis at load turn-off so that the load does not cycle on and off and can further raise the load turn-off threshold above the level where the battery is substantially discharged, thereby hastening recharging of the battery. A still further embodiment provides temperature compensation for improved performance.