I am designing a circuit to control a set of 0-10v dimmable lights. The lights have two lines, Dim+ and Dim-. Dim+ will be at 10 volts, and the brightness is controlled based on how much is drained to Dim-. Right now I am controlling the lights with an n-channel mosfet connected to a microcontroller. The microcontroller sends a pwm signal, rapidly turning on and off the mosfet, dimming the lights. Right now, the microcontroller is being powered off of a 5v usb, but I would like to change it so that the microcontroller is also being powered by Dim+, but still have it so that all of Dim+ can be drained to Dim-. Is this possible?
My initial assumption was that it would not be possible, as if all 10v is drained to Dim-, then there is 0v of potential to power the microcontroller. Is it possible to power the microcontroller, so that there is always 3v between 1 and 2, but also 0v between 1 and 3? I know it isn't possible with the configuration I have drawn, but is it with any other config?
Edit: Here is how 0-10v dimming works, and here is the schematic I am currently using. Dim+ can connect to pin 1, 2, or 3, and Dim- connects to pin 6
how much is drained to Dim-.
... what do you mean bydrain
? ... what are you draining? \$\endgroup\$