Three Way Touch Lamp

A three-way switch to control a lamp (off-dim-bright, etc.) uses an NE555 timer to generate a one-second pulse, triggered by ambient ac fields that are picked up by the human body. C1 and D1 form an input network. U2 is a decode counter/divider and drives one of 10 outputs (three are used). The logic outputs drive various resistors in series with the LED in the optocoupler. The optocoupler controls a triac that is in series with a load (lamp, etc.).

By reconfiguring the outputs of U2, more than three brightness levels can be obtained, up to 10. An 1N914 and resistor will be required for each output.