LED Control Relay

[kulshyn]

Hi everyone. I need to accomplish one task. I am looking for a way to connect 10-20 LED bulbs to a battery and be able to light them with a press of a button. However, same button should light each addition LED light. For example, first push of a button lights one LED, second push lights one more LED, and so on.
After doing some research I didn't really find any good solution. One of them is building PCB with programmable chip. However, I am looking for smaller (in size) solution. Perhaps some kind of relay where I can connect LEDs on extended wires.
Another solution I was thinking connecting lights in serial and controlling power with slider. For that I will need special LEDs that will turn on only when certain power level is reached. Don't really know if its possible, since I don't have enough knowledge in LED.

I want to also explain what it is for so maybe someone have better solution. I need to be able to put 10-20 LED lights in the beer mug with frosted walls. Put a little push button (or slider) on handle. And be able to control amount of LEDs on with just one hand.

Thank you in advance

 

[Marduke]

Do you really need to controll the number of LED's on, or just the brightness? The latter is MUCH simpler to do.

 

[kulshyn]

I need to control number of LEDs ON. But the way I see second solution work, and I might be wrong, is have LED with different power ratings. So at lower power only first light up, at slightly higher first and second, and so on.
Don't know if it's possible.

 

[Marduke]

Just so you know, it is of no consequence to power a LED at a range of power levels between barely glowing, and the maximum rating. Turning on or off a varying number of them is not an ideal method of changing brightness, and is only really common with the cheap multi-5mm lights.

However, a small 4 position slider switch could easily wire up to 3 different strings of parallel wired LED's direct driven off 3xAAA in the base with the appropriately sized resistors to throttle the power.