Electronic Projects

new collections
Volume 5

More than constructional

50 projects
circuit
ideas

Electronic Candles edi

s.c. dwiv
 Raj K. Gorkhali
gate trigger circuit components. It is

H
ere is a simple circuit that basically half-wave AC power being
can produce the effect of supplied to the electric bulb.
candle light in a normal The third part is the power sup- to provide better flickering effect in
electric bulb. A candle light, as we ply circuit to generate regulated 5V the bulb.
all know, resembles a randomly DC from 230V AC for random signal The random signal triggers the
flickering light. So, the objective of generator. It comprises a stepdown gate of SCR1. The electric bulb gets
this project activity is to produce a transformer (X1), full-wave rectifier AC power only for the period for
randomly flickering light effect in an (diodes D3 and D4), filter capacitor which SCR1 is fired. SCR1 is fired
electric bulb. (C9), followed by a regulator (IC5). only during the positive half cycles.
To achieve this, the entire circuit The random signal generator of Conduction of SCR1 depends upon
can be divided into three parts. The first the circuit is built around an 8-bit the gate triggering pin 3 of IC2, which
part comprises IC1 (555), IC2 (74LS164), serial in/parallel out shift register is random. Thus, we see a flickering
IC3 (74LS86), IC4 (74LS00) and the as- (IC2). Different outputs of the shift effect in the light output.
sociated components. These generate a register IC pass through a set of logic Assemble the circuit on a general-
randomly changing train of pulses. gates (N1 through N5) and final out- purpose PCB and enclose it in a suitable

Fig. 1: Circuit diagram for electronic candle

The second put appearing at pin 6 of gate N5 is case. Fix bulb and neon bulb on the
part of the circuit fed back to the inputs of pins 1 and front side of the cabinet. Also, connect
consists of SCR1 2 of IC2. The clock signal appears a power cable for giving AC mains
(C106), an electric at pin 8 of IC2, which is clocked by supply to the circuit for operation. The
bulb connected an astable multivibrator configured circuit is ready to use.
between anode of around timer (IC1). The clock fre- Warning. Since the circuit uses
Fig. 2: Pin configurations
SCR1 and mains quency can be set using preset VR1 230V AC, care must be taken to avoid
of C106 and 7805 live wire, and and VR2. It can be set around 100 Hz electric shock. 

1 4 2 • J a n ua ry 2 0 1 0 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
circuit
ideas

Security System Switcher

T.K. Hareendran of small signal preamplifier built edi
s.c. dwiv

around transistor T1. Biasing resistor

A
n audio signal can be used as R1 determines to a large extent the
a form of input to control any microphone sensitivity. A microphone
security system. For example, usually has an internal FET which Indicator LED1 is provided to display
an automatic security camera can be requires a bias voltage to operate. The the relay activity. Any AC/DC oper-
configured to respond to a knock on sound picked up by the microphone ated security gadget is activated or
the door. The circuit described here is amplified and fed to input pin 2 of deactivated through a security switch.
allows the security system to automati- IC1 (LMC555) wired in monostable Thus, the security switch of the gadget

Fig. 1: Security system switcher

configuration. is connected in the n/o contacts of

+5V ADAPTOR
FOR POWER
CONNECTOR IC2 (CD4538B) is a dual, the relay. you can also operate high-
FOR
SUPPLY SECURITY precision monostable mul- power beacons, sirens or hooters in
GADGET
tivibrator with independent place of the security switch for any
trigger and reset controls. The AC/DC operated security gadget.
output of IC1 is connected to Assemble the circuit on a gen-
the first trigger input pin 4 of eral-purpose PCB and enclose it in
IC2(A) through switch S1. If a cabinet as shown in Fig. 2 along
an intruder opens or breaks with 5V adaptor for powering the
the door, IC1 is triggered by circuit. Connect the security switch
sound signals; the timer out- according to the circuit diagram and
put pin 3 of IC1 goes high and use appropriate AC/DC power sup-
enables first monostable multi ply required to operate the security
Fig. 2: Proposed cabinet vibrator IC2(A). IC2(A) pro- gadget.
vides a time period of around Warning! All relevant electrical
cally switch on when a master switch 5 to 125 seconds, which is adjusted safety precautions should be taken
is in on state. It uses a transducer to with preset VR1. when connecting mains power supply
detect intruders and a 5V regulated Another monostable multivibrator to the relay contacts. With the help
DC power supply provides power to IC2(B) also provides a time period of of single pole double throw (SPDT)
the circuit. around 25 to 600 seconds, which is switch S1, internal or external trig-
As shown in Fig. 1, a condenser adjusted with preset VR2. The output ger input (active high signal) can be
microphone is connected to the input of IC2(B) is used to energise relay RL1. selected. 

1 4 0 • J a n ua ry 2 0 1 0 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
circuit
ideas

Antisleep Alarm for Students

 Suresh Kumar K.B. BC547, relay RL1 and buzzer.
The Schmitt-trigger NAND gate

T
edi
his circuit saves both time and (IC1) is configured as an astable multi- s.c. dwiv
electricity for students. It helps vibrator to generate clock for the timer
to prevent them from dozing (IC2). The time period can be calcu-
off while studying, by sounding a beep lated as T=1.38×R×C. If R=R1+VR1=15
at a fixed time interval, say, 30 minutes. kilo-ohms and C=C2=10 µF, you’ll get D3, further counting stops and relay
If the student is awake during the beep, ‘T’ as 0.21 second. Timer IC CD4020 RL1 energises to deactivate all the ap-
he can reset the circuit to beep in the (IC2) is a 14-stage ripple counter. pliances. This state changes only when
next 30 minutes. If the timer is not reset Around half an hour after the reset IC1 is reset by pressing switch S1.
during this time, it means the student of IC1, transistors T1, T2 and T3 drive Assemble the circuit on a general-
is in deep sleep or not in the room, and the buzzer to sound an intermediate purpose PCB and enclose it in a suit-
the circuit switches off the light and fan beep. If IC2 is not reset through S1 able cabinet. Mount switch S1 and the
in the room, thus preventing the wast- at that time, around one minute later buzzer on the front panel and the relay
age of electricity. the output of gate N4 goes high and at the back side of the box. Place the
The circuit is built around Schmitt- transistor T4 conducts. As the output 12V battery in the cabinet for powering
trigger NAND gate IC CD4093 (IC1), of gate N4 is connected to the clock the circuit. In place of the battery, you
timer IC CD4020 (IC2), transistors input (pin 10) of IC2 through diode can also use a 12V DC adaptor. 

9 8 • M a r c h 2 0 1 0 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
circuit
ideas

Automatic Light Controller s.c. dwiv

edi

Using 7806
 M.K. Chandra Mouleeswaran of the transistor. In this way, the volt- Normally, the resistance of LDR1
age regulator is able to operate a light is low during daytime and high dur-

V
oltage regulator ICs (78xx se- bulb automatically as per the ambient ing nighttime. During daytime, when
ries) provide a steady output light. light falls on LDR1, pnp transistor T1
voltage, as against a widely To derive the power supply for conducts. The common terminal of IC1
fluctuating input supply, when the the circuit, the 50Hz, 230V AC mains connects to the ground and IC1 outputs
common terminal is grounded. Any is stepped down by transformer X1 6V. As a result, transistor T2 does not
voltage about zero volt (ground) con- to deliver a secondary output of 12V, conduct and the relay remains de-en-
nected in the common terminal is add- 250 mA. The secondary output of the ergised. The light bulb remains ‘off’ as
ed to the output voltage. That means transformer is applied to a bridge rec- the mains connection is not completed
the increase in the common terminal tifier comprising diodes D1 through through the relay contacts.
voltage is reflected at the output. On D4, filtered by capacitor C1 and fed During nighttime, when no light
the other hand, if the common terminal to the input terminal of the regulator falls on LDR1, it offers a high resist-
is disconnected from the ground, the (IC1). ance at the base junction of transistor
full input voltage is available at the The common terminal (pin 2) of IC1 T1. So the bias is greatly reduced and
output. is connected to the ground line of the T1 doesn’t conduct. Effectively, this
This characteristic is utilised in the circuit through transistor BC557 (T1). removes the common terminal of IC1
present circuit. When the common The transistor is biased by R2, R3, VR1 from ground and it directs the full
terminal is connected to the ground, and LDR1. The grounding of IC1 is input DC to the output. Transistor T2
the regulator output is equivalent to controlled by transistor T1, while light conducts and the relay energises to
the rated voltage, and as soon as the is sensed by LDR1. Using preset VR1, light up the bulb as mains connection
terminal is disconnected from the you can adjust the light-sensing level completes through the relay contacts.
ground, the output increases up to the of transistor T1. As LDR1 is in parallel to VR1+R3
input voltage. The output of IC1 is fed to the base combination, it effectively applies
The common terminal is control- of transistor T2 (through resistor R4 only half of the total resistance of
led by a transistor, which works as a and zener diode ZD1) and relay RL1. the network formed by R3, VR1 and
switch on the terminal. For automatic LED1 connected across the positive LDR1 to the junction at T1 in total
control of light, a light-dependent re- and ground supply lines acts as a darkness. In bright light, it greatly
sistor (LDR1) is connected to the base power-‘on’ indicator. reduces the total effective resistance
at the junction.
The circuit is
simple and can be
assembled on a small
general-purpose
PCB. Use a heat-sink
for IC1. Make sure
that LDR1 and the
light bulb are well
separated.
The circuit can be
used for streetlights,
tubelights or any
other home electri-
cal lighting system
that needs to be au-
tomated. 

9 2 • A p r i l 2 0 1 0 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
 cONSTRUCTION

Eight-Channel Data Acquisition &

Logging System
o
sani the
 Devesh Samaiya port of the PC and displayed on the
screen of the PC monitor

I
n environments like factories, 3. Precise analogue signal conver-
power plants and transformers in sion using AVR analogue-to-digital works with the internal RC oscillator
electricity substations, controlling converter with 10-bit resolution at 1 MHz. Here, fuse bits of the AVR
temperature to a safe value is impor- 4. All data acquired by the system are set to operate an external oscilla-
tant. Supervisory and control systems is logged into a database for future tor. We have used an external stable
are used to monitor the temperature reference with date and time of sam- crystal oscillator to run at a frequency
of 16 MHz.
The AVR has internal
power-on reset facility. Re-
sistor R2 (10-kilo-ohm), ca-
Fig. 1: Block diagram of 8-channel data acquisition and logging system pacitor C5 (10µF) and switch
S1 make up the external reset
pling circuitry. Switch S1 allows you to reset
5. The internal the system at run time.
analogue-to-digital Analogue reference voltage pin
conversion (ADC) VREF (pin 32) is connected to the vari-
channels of the AVR able terminal of the 10-kilo-ohm preset.
are used to acquire Using this preset, you can adjust the
real-time data in the ADC reference voltage.
form of analogue sig- We have used all the eight chan-
nal. The data is sent nels of the 10-bit ADC for acquiring
to the PC via UART the analogue voltage proportional
channel. to the environmental temperature of
temperature sensors.
Circuit The in-built UART channel of
description ATMega32 is used to send the current
Fig. 2: Author’s prototype Fig. 3 shows the cir- data to the host PC. UART works on
cuit of the eight-chan- 9600 bauds per second. The length of
and other physical parameters on a nel data acquisition and logging system RS-232 serial cable is tested for opera-
centralised machine whereby one can using AVR. At the heart of the circuit is tion up to 10 metres but it should work
monitor and control the remote de- ATMega32 AVR microcontroller from up to 15 metres.
vices. The AVR microcontroller-based Atmel.
system described here does the same The AVR microcontroller has 32 Data acquisition
job of acquiring the analogue data and kB of flash program memory, 2 kB
and logging
sending it to a remote terminal for of SRAM, internal analogue-to-dig- Temperature sensor. Temperature sen-
monitoring. ital converter with 10-bit resolution, sor LM335 from National Semiconduc-
Fig. 1 shows the block diagram of internal EEPROM and full-duplex tors has been used in this project. Its
the eight-channel data acquisition and UART channel. This data logger uses pin details are shown in Fig. 4.
logging system using AVR microcon- ADC channels of the AVR to acquire LM335 has a breakdown voltage
troller and Fig. 2 shows the author’s real-time data in the form of analogue directly proportional to absolute tem-
prototype. The key features of this signal and sends this data to the PC via perature at 10 mV/°K with less than
system are: UART channel. 1-ohm dynamic impedance. The device
1. User-friendly software written Vcc (pin 10) and AVcc (pin 30) operates over a current range of 400
in VB 6.0 of the AVR are connected to +5V for µA to 5 mA with virtually no change
2. Data is acquired through serial its operation. By default, this AVR in performance. LM335 can be used

7 4 • A p r i l 2 0 1 0 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
 Construction

Fig. 3: Circuit of 8-channel data acquisition and logging system

in any kind of tempera-

ture sensing application
within the range of -55°C
to 150°C. Low imped-
ance and linear output
make it easier to inter-
face with the readout
Fig. 4: Pin
details of LM335 and control circuitry. It
is not internally calibrat-
ed for degree
Celsius (°C),
so you need
some external
circuitry in
the form of a
10-kilo-ohm
preset and a
1-kilo-ohm
Fig. 5: Calibrate for 2.982V
pull-up resis-
at 25°C tor as shown
in Fig. 5. Fig. 6: GUI program output
Calibration. Careful calibration is
done to map voltage values exactly When calibrated at 25°C, LM335 standard specifies different voltage
into temperature in degree Celsius. has typically less than 1°C error over levels of the digital logic. So you need a
Calibration procedure is simple. Volt- a range of 100°C. Most of all, it has a signal-level converter for communica-
age values are measured for different linear output. The voltage across the tion between the microcontroller and
temperature conditions and a constant output terminal of LM335 is 2.982V the PC over RS-232 port.
multiplying factor is obtained. This at 25°C. Signal-level conversion. MAX232 is
constant is multiplied every time with This microcontroller works with used as the signal-level converter. Four
the current ADC value. TTL digital logic, while the RS-232 electrolytic capacitors (10µF, 16V) are

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • A p r i l 2 0 1 0 • 7 5
 cONSTRUCTION
ing data of eight different
analogue channels.
The GUI software is writ-
ten in Visual Basic and has
ActiveX controls for commu-
nication with the serial port
of the PC. It is programmed
to scan the real-time incom-
ing data from external hard-
ware. The entire working log-
ic is asynchronous; it doesn’t
matter which channel has
what data. The software can
capture the data from a par-
ticular channel and put into
Fig. 7: A single-side, actual-size PCB layout for eight-channel data acquisition & logging system an appropriate location in the
database. A special protocol
is used to synchronise the
software with the hardware
in order to make the program
identify the data and channel
number currently active on
the serial port.
The software is calibrated
such that it shows the tem-
perature directly in degree
Celsius by multiplying a
calibration constant to the
incoming analogue voltage.
The software is config-
ured to work on fixed values
such as ‘com1’ for the serial
Fig. 8: Component layout for the PCB port and ‘9600’ for the baud
rate by default. But you can
Parts List used with MAX232 for voltage-level easily configure it to work with dif-
conversion. ferent serial ports (like com2, com3 or
Semiconductors:
IC1 - MAX232 RS-232 converter There are eight input lines (IN0 com4) and different baud rates.
IC2 - 7805, 5V regulator through IN7) through which analogue The software can save the data of
IC3 - Atmega32 AVR inputs are fed into the circuit. The different input channels into a ‘daq.
microcontroller
analogue input is converted into digital mdb’ database with time and date of
IC4 - LM335 temperature sensor
LED1 - 5mm light-emitting diode level by the AVR and transmitted to each channel input data. Start/Stop
Resistors (all ¼-watt, ±5% carbon): the PC through a 9-pin, D-type serial buttons are provided to start or stop
R1 - 470-ohm com port connector. Here, we have logging activity anytime by the user.
R2 - 10-kilo-ohm used only three pins of the connector The GUI program output is shown in
R3-R10 - 1-kilo-ohm
(Rx, Tx and Gnd) for communication Fig. 6.
VR1, VR2 - 10-kilo-ohm preset
with the PC.
Capacitors: Construction
C1-C5 - 10µF, 16V electrolytic
C6, C7 - 33pF ceramic
PC GUI software A single-side, solder-side PCB layout
Miscellaneous: The graphic user interface (GUI) dis- of the circuit is shown in Fig. 7 and its
XTAL1 - 16MHz crystal oscillator plays the stored data on the dashboard component layout in Fig. 8. A 9V PP3
CON1 - 9-pin D-type female
with date and time of logging. This battery is used to power the circuit.
connector
BATT. - 9V PP3 battery can be useful to analyse the trend of 9V is converted into 5V using a 7805
S1 - Push-to-on switch temperature change. The software regulator. The glowing of LED1 indi-
dashboard has eight blocks for display- cates the presence of 5V supply in the

7 6 • A p r i l 2 0 1 0 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
 Construction
circuit. The circuit acquires analogue purpose PCB for each channel input. proper display on the dashboard from
data from eight channels through IN0 10-kilo-ohm preset should be used for your PC’s monitor screen. Also adjust
through IN7 inputs. The temperature calibration for each temperature sensor ADC reference voltage VR1 to make
analogue data input at IN0 channel is as shown in Fig. 5. sure that it is exactly 5V across pin 32
acquired from the IC4 LM335 tempera- Calibrate each temperature sen- of IC3.
ture sensor. Temperature calibration sor (LM335) before connecting the
for IC4 is done using 10-kilo-ohm VR2 circuit to the PC. After calibration is Microcontroller firmware
preset. The remaining inputs can be done, install the sensor at an appropri- The main.c source code for ATMega32,
fed from external temperature sources ate location or on the device where listed at the end of this article, is writ-
through the input terminals IN1 temperature is to be monitored. (We ten in ‘C.’ It is compiled using avr-gcc
through IN7 marked on the PCB. have placed all the relevant files of the cross-compiler to generate hex code.
Assemble the temperature sensor GUI software under ‘EFYproject/VB Avrdude is used to burn hex code into
along with preset separately on a small Project’ folder in ‘D’ drive.) Now, run the AVR microcontroller.
general-purpose PCB for each chan- the datalogger8chnl.exe GUI software For details of AVR programming
nel. Extend two wires from each of and click ‘start’ button to start the hardware and software, visit ‘www.
the general-purpose PCB to respective data acquisition and logging process. electroons.com’
input points IN1 through IN7 in the If the data display on the dashboard EFY note. All the relevant source
main PCB. 2-pin SIL male and female is not proper, press reset switch S1 codes of this project have been includ-
pair connector may be used for connec- momentarily, or switch off the power ed in this month’s EFY-CD.
tions between the PCB and the general- supply and then switch on, to check

main.c
#include<avr/io.h> nels int main(void)
#include<util/delay.h> ADCSRA=0xE7; // ADC free running {
mode, 128 prescaling division factor
void UART_transmit(unsigned char data) temp=(ADC)*(48); DDRA=0x00;
{ temp=temp/10; PORTA=0x00;
while(!(UCSRA & (1<<UDRE))); temp=temp-2280;
UDR=data; temp=temp/10; UCSRA=0;
} _delay_us(1000); UCSRB=1<<TXEN; // UART transmit enable
UART_transmit(ch+’0’); // Sending UCSRC=1<<URSEL | 1<<UCSZ1 | 1<<UCSZ0;
void adc_getdata(void) channel number for synchronization // 8 data bit, a stop, none parity
{ _delay_ms(10); UBRRH=0;
unsigned int temp; UART_transmit(temp); // Sending UBRRL=103; // for 9600 baud at 16MHz
unsigned char ch=0; temperature value
while(1) _delay_ms(1000); adc_getdata();
{ }
for(ch=0;ch<8;ch++) } return 0;
{ }
ADMUX=0x00+ch; // Selecting Chan- }

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • A p r i l 2 0 1 0 • 7 7
 circuit
ideas

SPY EAR s.c. dwiv

edi is designed for operation
with power supplies in
the 4-15V DC range. It
 T.K. HAREENDRAN
is housed in a standard
8-pin DIL package, con-

W
hat binoculars do to im- ed components amplify the sumes very small quies-
prove your vision, this sound signals picked up by cent current and is ideal
personal sound enhancer the condenser microphone for battery-powered
circuit does for listening. This light- (MIC). The amplified signal portable applications.
weight gadget produces an adjustable from the preamplifier stage The processed out-
gain on sounds picked up from the is fed to input pin 3 of IC put signal from capaci-
built-in high-sensitivity condenser LM386N (IC1) through Fig. 2: Compact unit of spy ear tor C2 goes to one end
microphone. So you can hear what you capacitor C2 (100nF) and of volume control VR1.
have been missing. With a 6V (4×1.5V) volume control VR1 (10-kilo-ohm log). The wiper is taken to pin 3 of LM386N
battery, it produces good results. A decoupling network comprising re- audio output amplifier. Note that the
As shown in Fig. 1, a small signal sistor R5 and capacitor C3 provides the R6-C4 network is used to RF-decouple
amplifier is built around transistor preamplifier block with a clean supply positive-supply pin 6 and R8-C7 is an
BC547 (T1). Transistor T1 and the relat- voltage. optional Zobel network that ensures
Audio amplifier IC LM386N (IC1) high frequency stability when feeding
an inductive headphone load.
Capacitor C6 (22µF, 16V) wired
between pin 7 and ground gives ad-
ditional ripple rejection. The output of
LM386N power amplifier can safely
drive a standard 32-ohm monophonic
headphone/earphone.
Assemble the circuit on a small
general-purpose PCB and house in
a suitable metallic enclosure with an
integrated battery holder and head-
phone/earphone socket as shown in
Fig. 2. Fit the on/off switch (S1), vol-
ume control (VR1) and power indicator
(LED1) on the enclosure. Finally, fit the
condenser microphone (MIC) on the
front side of the enclosure and link it to
the input of the preamplifier via a short
Fig. 1: Circuit for spy ear length of the shielded wire. 

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • A p r i l 2 0 1 0 • 9 3
circuit
ideas

Digital Timer Enhancement s.c. dwiv

edi

 Raj K. Gorkhali circuit can be used:

1. You want an appliance or gadget and relay RL1 de-energises to discon-

T
his simple circuit automatically to switch on automatically at a preset nect the load from mains power supply
activates or deactivates an elec- time through its contacts. At this time, you
tronic device at the time of alarm 2. You switch on an appliance or need to pause the alarm using pause
preset in a clock. When the alarm rings, gadget manually at a particular time switch of the clock.
the tone burst generated at the terminal and want it to switch off automatically When you press reset switch S1,
of the buzzer triggers the circuit and the at a preset time LED1 glows to indicate that the circuit
relay energises or de-energises to switch Let us see how it works when you is ready to work. When you press start
on or switch off the load. want your appliance to switch on at a switch S2, LED2 glows to indicate start
The circuit is built around ICs preset time, say, 3 pm. Set the alarm in mode. Glowing of LED3 means that
CD40106 (IC1) and CD4017 (IC2) and your clock to 3 pm and slide switch S3 the counter has stopped counting and
a few discrete components. IC1 is a hex towards Q1. When the alarm sounds needs to be reset before use.
Schmitt trigger, while IC2 is a decade at 3 pm, Q0 output of IC2 advances to When the counter is in stop mode,
counter. The circuit works off regulat- Q1 and relay RL1 energises to connect Q2 output of IC2 remains high. As this
ed 6V power supply, while the alarm the load (appliance) to mains power pin is connected to the clock-enable
clock runs off its own 1.5V battery. supply through its contacts. The load input (pin 13) of IC2, the clock input
The tone burst generated at the remains ‘on’ until you reset IC2 by is inhibited. In this condition, any tone

piezobuzzer is tapped from its connec- momentarily pressing S1. At this time, burst signal arriving from the clock
tion points. The positive terminal of the you need to pause the alarm using has no effect on IC2 and therefore the
clock buzzer is connected to the base of pause switch of the clock. circuit remains in stop mode. You can
transistor T1 and the negative terminal Now suppose you manually start now set the alarm time in the clock.
is connected to ground of the circuit. the load at 3 pm and want it to stop Assemble the circuit on a general-
When the alarm clock sounds, the automatically at 6 pm. First, reset IC2 purpose PCB and enclose in a small
signal from the clock buzzer makes by momentarily pressing S1 and slide cabinet. Connect the base of transistor
transistor T1 conduct. As a result, pin switch S3 towards Q2. Set the alarm in (T1) to positive terminal of the alarm
1 of gate N1 goes low and it outputs your clock to 6 pm. To start the load, clock and negative terminal to ground
high at pin 2. This low-to-high transi- press switch S2 momentarily at 3 pm. of the circuit. Put the alarm clock at a
tion clocks the counter (IC2) at pin 14 The Q0 output of IC2 advances to Q1 convenient place. If you do not want to
through diode D1 and gate N2. In this and relay RL1 energises to connect the use a 6V battery, replace it with a 6V
way, IC2 advances by one at each clock load to mains power supply through adaptor to power the circuit. Mount
produced due to the sounding alarm. its contacts. When the alarm sounds at the LEDs and the pushbutton on the
There are two situations where this 6 pm, Q1 output of IC2 advances to Q2 front panel of the cabinet. 

9 8 • M ay 2 0 1 0 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
 circuit
ideas

Water-Level Indicator s.c. dwiv

edi

using 7-segment display

 Riju Thazhathu Veettil
a high voltage at the input pin of the 10 also goes high. Now as both pins 9

T
his water-level indicator uses NOT gate, it outputs a low voltage. and 10 of gate N9 are high, its output
a 7-segment display, instead Similarly, for a low voltage at the input pin 8 also goes high. As a result, posi-
of LEDs, to indicate the water pin of the NOT gate, it outputs a high tive supply is applied to DIS3 and it
level (low, half and full) in the tank. voltage. shows ‘L’ indicating low level of water
Moreover, a buzzer is used to alert you When the tank is empty, the input in the tank.
of water overflowing from the tank. pins of IC 7404 are pulled high via a Similarly, when water in the tank
The circuit shows the water level by 1-mega-ohm resistor. So it outputs a touches the half level, pins 4 and 5
displaying L, H and F for low, half and low voltage. As water starts filling the of AND gate N8 become high. As a
full, respectively. tank, a low voltage is available at the result, its output also goes high and
The circuit uses five sensors to input pins of the gate and it outputs a DIS2 shows ‘H’ indicating half level of
sense the different water levels in the high voltage. water in the tank. At this time, pin 9 of
gate N9 also goes low
via gate N4 and DIS3
stops glowing.
When the water
tank becomes full,
the voltage at pin 1
of gate N1 and pin 3
of gate N2 goes low.
Output pin 3 of gate
N7 goes high and
DIS1 shows ‘F’ indi-
cating that the water
tank is full.
When water starts
overflowing the tank,
pin 13 of gate N6 goes
low to make output
pin 12. The buzzer
sounds to indicate
that water is over-
flowing the tank and
you need to switch off
the motor pump.
Assemble the cir-
cuit on a general-pur-
pose PCB and enclose
tank. Sensor A is connected to the When the water in the tank rises in a suitable box. Use a non-corrosive
negative terminal (GND) of the power to touch the low level, there is a low material such as steel strip for the five
supply. The other four sensors (B voltage at input pin 5 of gate N3 and sensors and hang them in the water tank
through E) are connected to the inputs high output at pin 6. Pin 6 of the gate is as shown in the circuit diagram. Use
of NOT gate IC 7404. When there is connected to pin 10 of gate N9, so pin regulated 5V to power the circuit. 

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • M ay 2 0 1 0 • 1 0 1
 circuit
ideas

Digital Thermometer s.c. dwiv

edi

 Raj K. Gorkhali through the base-emitter junction of

npn transistor BC108 (T1). The volt-

T
his digital thermometer can age across the base-emitter junction before the temperature is displayed
measure temperatures up to of the transistor is proportional to its on the meter. Preset VR1 is used to
150°C with an accuracy of ±1°C. temperature. The transistor used this set the zero-reading on the meter and
The temperature is read on a 1V full way makes a low-cost sensor. You can preset VR2 is used to set the range of
scale-deflection (FSD) moving-coil use silicon diode instead of transistor. temperature measurement.
voltmeter or digital voltmeter. The small variation in voltage across Operational amplifiers IC3 and IC4
Operational amplifier IC 741 (IC3) the base-emitter junction is amplified operate off regulated ±5V power sup-
provides a constant flow of current by second operational amplifier (IC4), ply, which is derived from 3-terminal
positive voltage regula-
tor IC 7805 (IC1) and
negative low-dropout
regulator IC 7660 (IC2).
The entire circuit works
off a 9V battery.
Assemble the cir-
cuit on a general-pur-
pose PCB and enclose
in a small plastic box.
Calibrate the thermom-
eter using presets VR1
and VR2. After calibra-
tion, keep the box in
the vicinity of the object
whose temperature is
to be measured. 

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circuit
ideas

Mobile Electronic Workbench

 Abhijeet Deshpande setup non-portable. Here we present
a mobile electronic workbench that

T
edi
ypically, implementing and makes it easier for you to assemble and s.c. dwiv
testing even a small circuit test circuits.
requires an elaborate setup This mobile workbench is useful
that includes breadboards, a dual DC for students in schools, colleges, re-
power supply, hookup wires, ICs and search institutions and industries alike. voltage is noise-free.
resistors of different values. This setup It can be used conveniently wherever Fig. 1 shows the circuit of the
can be quite messy and difficult to you want. It is also cost-effective and mobile electronic workbench. Two
clean up at the end of the experiment. very useful for giving demos. As the low-drop-out (LDO) regulators (one
Also, the power supply can make the power is supplied by the batteries, the positive and the other negative) are
used here to provide regulated +5V
and -5V for digital ICs.
When switch S1 is pushed to ‘on’
position, LEDs indicate the availability
of voltages on the breadboard. When it
is in ‘off’ position, the battery terminals
connect to the sockets for charging the
batteries. Apart from +6V and +5V
supplies, you can also have a 12V
source between +6V and -6V terminals.
As shown in Fig. 2, the mobile
workbench consists of a big mela-
mine tray. At the centre of this tray,
mount the breadboard. On the sides
of the breadboard, stick two 6V, 4.5Ah
maintenance-free lead-acid batteries
(Batt.1 and Batt.2). On a wooden bat-
ten, mount two-pole, two-way toggle
switch S1 and two fuses and two sock-
Fig. 1: Circuit for mobile electronic workbench ets symmetrically. Mount LED1 and
LED2 on the sides of S1.
If you do not want this mobile
workbench on a breadboard, you can
assemble it on a general-purpose PCB
and enclose in a suitable cabinet. Fix
LEDs and switch S1 on the front panel
of the cabinet and the fuses at the back
side of the box.
In place of LM2990-5, you can
use a 5.1V, 2W zener diode with 100-
ohm, 2W series
limiting resis-
tor as shown in
Fig. 3. During
testing, we used
a zener diode for
negative 5V regu-
Fig. 3: Alternative –5V
lation instead of
Fig. 2: Photograph of electronic workbench circuit LM2990-5. 

9 6 • J u ly 2 0 1 0 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
 circuit
ideas

Motion Sensor for Security Light

 George Varkey
The working of the circuit is sim-
ple. When you power-on the circuit

H
edi
s.c. dwiv
ere is a system based on after assembling all the components
PIR motion detector mod- including the CFL, the CFL will glow
ule BS1600 (or BS1700) that for 10 seconds, turn off for 30 seconds,
position, the light will remain
‘on’ for about ten seconds (as
programmed in the motion
sensor). In short, when there
is a movement near the sensor,
the CFL glows for about ten
seconds. It will remain ‘on’ if
switch S1 is in ‘hold’ position.
Assemble the circuit on
a general-purpose PCB and
enclose in a suitable cabinet.
Use a three-pin connector for
Fig. 1: Circuit of motion sensor for security light
connecting the PIR sensor in the
circuit with correct polarity. The
can be used glow for 10 seconds and then turn off. motion detector is embedded onto the
for security or Now the circuit is ready to work. transparent cover of the light assembly
corridor light- When any movement is detected, as shown in Fig. 2
ing in power- around 3.3V appears on the base of An arrangment of CFL assembly
saving mode. relay-driver transistor T1 and it con- in the author’s prototype (Fig. 3) is
Fig. 2: PIR motion detector The 12V DC ducts to energise relay RL1. As a result, shown in Fig. 4. In this arrangement, a
module (BS1600 or BS1700)
power supply Triac1 (BT136) fires to provide full PIR sensor and 23W, 230V AC CFL are
required for the motion detector and 230V and light up the CFL. Another used. Seal all four sides with Blue Tac
the relay driver is derived from 230V, normally-opened contact of the relay for water-tightness. Insulate the track
50Hz mains using a transformerless (N/O2) is used here to hold the output side of the PCB using an insulating
circuit as shown in Fig. 1. until reset. If the switch is not in ‘hold’ foam and glue to the base. 

Waterjet cutting
23×23 mm

TERMINAL water-
BLOCK tight
fitting
using
blue
tac

PCB INSULATED FROM LAMP FITTING

Fig. 3: Author’s prototype Fig. 4: CFL assembly

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • s e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 0 • 1 1 9
circuit
ideas

Smart Laptop Docking Station

 T.K. HAREENDRAN the reset input independent of clock.
Power supply to the circuit is

Y
edi
s.c. dwiv
ou can easily convert your derived from AC mains by using step-
ordinary docking station into a down transformer X1. The transformer
smart electronic laptop docking output is rectified by a full-wave
station with antitheft alarm. bridge rectifier comprising diodes D1 reflected by the laptop surface. The
The add-on sensor circuit required through D4 and smoothed by capaci- phototransistor conducts to make re-
for this is built around IC CNY70 (IC1) tor C1. set pin 12 of IC2 high, so IC2 does not
and IC CD4060 (IC2) as shown in Fig. When power switch S1 is in ‘on’ oscillate.
1. IC CNY70 is an integrated reflective- position, the circuit gets power supply When someone lifts up the laptop
type opto-sensor that contains a pho- and power-on indicator LED1 lights from the docking station, the photo-
totransistor and an infrared LED. The up. At the same time, the mains socket transistor cuts off and pin 12 of IC2
LED emits infrared light and the tran- also gets the AC mains supply. This goes low. As a result, IC2 starts oscil-
sistor works as a receiver. The current mains socket can be used to connect lating. After a few seconds, delay pin
flowing through the phototransistor the laptop charger and/or a desktop 3 of IC2 goes high to drive transistor
depends on the intensity of the light lamp, etc. T1. The piezobuzzer starts beeping to
detected. Working of the circuit is simple. raise an alert and the LED2 glows to
IC CD4060 is a 14-stage ripple-car- When the laptop is in the docking indicate that someone has stolen the
ry binary counter. The counter is reset station, the phototransistor inside IC1 laptop from the dockyard.
to zero by a gating positive voltage at receives the IR light from the LED, The simplicity of the circuit makes

Fig. 1: Circuit for laptop docking station with antitheft alarm

it ideal for construction on a small

PCB. After completion of wiring, check
the circuit for proper functioning of all
the sections and enclose the unit in a
suitable ABS case. Mount the finished
unit beneath the docking station using
small screws/double-sided glue pads
so that the opto-sensor is exactly at
the centre of the docking-station base
plate. Refer Fig. 2 for the arrangement.
If your laptop computer is black in
colour, it will reflect far less IR light.
Fig. 2: Proposed assembly for docking station You can overcome this drawback by

1 1 2 • N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
 circuit
ideas
attaching a white sticker suitably at the remove the laptop from the docking Similarly, you are free to experiment
bottom of the laptop. station, ensure that IC2 is enabled with the values of IC2 timing compo-
Calibrate the circuit before first (pin 12 is low) and wait for the alarm nents C5, R3 and R4 for increasing or
use. Set preset VR1 at the centre and sound. Repeat the process and adjust decreasing the delay time.
place the laptop in the docking station. VR1 until you get the correct result. EFY note. During testing at EFY
Now turn VR1 slowly until IC2 goes to Note that the LED in the opto-sensor is Lab, we used CX sensor from OMRON
standby (no-oscillation) mode. Then permanently powered via resistor R2. in place of CNY70. 

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 • 1 1 3
 circuit
ideas

Flasher For Deepawali s.c. dwiv

edi

 Sunil Kumar The output of IC1 drives transistor T1.

Working of the circuit is simple.

H
ere is the circuit for a port- When output pin 3 of IC1 goes high,
able electric lamp-cum-LED transistor T1 conducts to fire triac1 currents.
flasher. It uses a 25W, 230V and the bulb glows. Bulb L1 turns off In brief, the bulb and the LEDs
AC bulb and nine LEDs. When the when output pin 3 of IC1 goes low. flash alternately depending on the
bulb glows all the LEDs remain ‘off,’ The collector of transistor T1 is con- frequency of IC1. Flashing rates of the
and when the LEDs glow the bulb nected to anodes of all the LEDs (LED1 bulb as well as LEDs can be varied by
remains ‘off.’ through LED9). So when T1 is cut-off adjusting potmeter VR1. Connect the
The circuit is built around timer IC the LEDs glow, and when T1 conducts power supply line (L) of mains to bulb
555 (IC1), which is wired as an astable the LEDs go off. Current-limiting resis- L1 via switch S1 and neutral (N) to
multivibrator generating square wave. tor R4 protects the LEDs from higher MT1 terminal of triac1.
A 12V, 200mA AC adaptor is
used to power the circuit. Using
switch S1, you can switch off the
bulb permanently if you do not
want it to flash.
Assemble the circuit on a
general-purpose PCB and en-
close in a circular plastic cabinet
keeping the bulb at the centre
and LEDs at the circumference.
Drill holes for mounting the
‘on’/‘off’ switch. Use a bulb
holder for bulb L1 and LED
holders for the LEDs. Also use
an IC socket for timer IC 555.
Warning. While assembling,
testing or repairing, take care to
avoid the lethal electric shock. 

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 • 1 1 5
circuit
ideas

Automatic sprinkler edi

control system s.c. dwiv

 Raj K. Gorkhali
filtered by capacitors C1 and C2. The
rectified DC is fed to the timer circuit conducts to forward-bias the internal

I
f you have an automatic sprinkler through resistor R1 and zener diode LED of optocoupler IC3. Triac1 is
control system, chances are that ZD1 to produce 12 volts to enable the controlled through IC3, which pro-
you are currently using all of its timer circuit. vides gate current through resistor
outputs controlling sprinklers. The IC 555 (IC1) is wired as an astable R12 to turn it on. As a result, solenoid
problem arises when you want to add mutivibrator producing about 7Hz valve-1 activates to provide path for
another sprinkler control solenoid pulses. You can change this frequency water to flow.
valve. Using this circuit, you can add by changing the values of timing com- After 20 minutes, Q14 of IC2 goes
an expansion module to the control- ponents R2, R3 and C4. The output high, making transistor T1 conduct.

ler without upgrading the controller of IC1 is fed to clock pin 10 of IC2. Transistor T2 cuts off and the internal
or running new wiring. The circuit is The 7Hz frequency is further divided LED of optocoupler IC4 is forward-bi-
fitted in place of an existing solenoid by IC2, which is a 14-stage binary ased. Triac2 is controlled through IC4,
and allows the controller to switch counter. which provides gate current through
on two valves (hence two sprinklers) IC2 is reset through capacitor C6 resistor R9 to turn it on. As a result,
instead of one. and resistor R4 when power switch solenoid valve-2 activates to give path
Designed for use with standard S1 is closed. Output pin 3 of IC1 goes for water flow.
24V AC controller systems, the circuit low when it resets. Counter IC2 is then Timer IC1 is disabled as soon as
uses the 24V output to power a timer clocked at 7 Hz, with its final output the output of IC2 goes high, making its
which activates one of the valves for, (Q14) going high after 20 minutes. reset pin 4 low to stop clocking to IC2
say, 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, the This high output of IC2 activates the and so its output remains high. Triac2
circuit switches this valve ‘off’ and the solenoid valves via optocoupled triacs has a snubber circuit built around R10
other valve ‘on.’ The second valve is built around IC3 and IC4. and C6. Triac1 too has a snubber circuit
activated for the remainder of time that Working of the circuit is simple. built around R13 and C7. The snubber
the controller is programmed to give When you power-on the circuit using circuit is used to suppress any voltage
for that station. switch S1, IC1 is enabled and IC2 re- spike produced by switching the sole-
The 24V AC from the controller is sets. Q14 of IC2 remains low, making noid valve coils.
half-wave-rectified by diode D1 and transistor T1 cut-off. Transistor T2 Assemble the circuit on a general-

1 2 0 • J a n ua ry 2 0 1 1 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
 circuit
ideas
purpose PCB and house in a water- using suitable light bulbs as loads on to the solenoid valve as shown in the
proof plastic box with an outlet hole the output. circuit.
cut in it for the wiring. Seal the wiring Once the timer is ready for instal- The timer is set here such that
hole and box lid with a generous ap- lation, remove one control valve from valve 1 remains open for 20 minutes
plication of silicon sealant. the controller and replace it with 24V and after 20 minutes, valve 1 closes
before installing the circuit in the AC input of this circuit (terminals ‘A’ and valve 2 opens for the following 20
sprinkler control system, test it by and ‘B’ in the circuit diagram). Con- minutes. valve 2 remains open until
providing 24V AC as the input and nect the ground terminal of the circuit switch S1 is closed. 

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • J a n ua ry 2 0 1 1 • 1 2 1
 circuit
ideas

Gas Leakage Alarm s.c. dwiv

edi

 Sani Theo Fig. 1 shows the circuit of the gas

leakage alarm. The circuit operates off also be used to

L
PG gas is supplied in pressur- a 9V PP3 battery. Zener diode ZD1 is detect combusti-
ised steel cylinders. As this gas used to convert 9V into 5V DC to drive ble gases, espe-
is heavier than air, when it leaks the gas sensor module. cially methane.
from a cylinder it flows along floor The SEN-1327 gas sensor mod- This circuit has
and tends to settle in low spots such ule from RhydoLABZ is used in this been tested with
circuit. Its out- LPG gas and was
put goes high found to work
when the gas satisfactorily.
level reaches or Whenever
exceeds certain Fig. 2: Pin details of gas
there is LPG con-
point. A preset sensor module centration of 1000
in the module is ppm (parts per
used to set the million) in the area, the OUT pin of
threshold. Inter- the sensor module goes high. This
facing with the signal drives timer IC 555, which is
sensor module is wired as an astable multivibrator. The
done through a multivibrator basically works as a tone
4-pin SIP head- generator.
er. Output pin 3 of IC 555 is connected
Pin details to LED1 and speaker-driver transistor
Fig. 1: Circuit for gas leakage alarm of the gas sen- SL100 through current-limiting resis-
sor module are tors R5 and R4, respectively. LED1
as a basement. This can cause fire or shown in Fig. 2. An MQ-6 gas sensor glows and the alarm sounds to alert
suffocation if not dealt with. is used in the gas sensor module. As the user of gas leakage. The pitch of
Here is a circuit that detects the per its datasheet, it has high sensitiv- the tone can be changed by varying
leakage of LPG gas and alerts the user ity to propane, butane, isobutene, preset VR1. Use a suitable heat-sink for
through audio-visual indications. LPG and natural gas. The sensor can transistor SL100. 

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • M a r c h 2 0 1 1 • 1 3 1
 circuit
ideas

Transistorised Code Lock

With Torch sunil ku
mar

 S.C. Dwivedi and power-on LED1 glows to indi-

cate that the circuit is enabled. door lock connected between the pole

T
his electronic lock for domes- The control section is built around and normally-open contacts of relay
tic use opens only when you switches S1 through S12, transistor T1 RL1 opens.
connect the right combination and relay RL1. Relay driver transistor If you connect a wrong combina-
of five switches. There are twelve T1 is used to energise/de-energise the tion, say, switches S4, S10, S11 and
switches in total. If you connect a relay. S6, transistor T1 does not conduct and
wrong combination, the lock remains The torch section is built around six relay RL1 remains de-energised. As a
closed. At night, flip switch S3 to ‘on’ white LEDs (LED2 through LED7) and result, the door lock remains closed.
position in order to enable the torch. resistors R3 and R4. Assemble the circuit on a general-
In the daytime, flip it back to ‘off’ Working of the circuit is simple. To purpose PCB and house it in a small
position. open the door, you should know the cabinet. Fig. 2 shows the proposed
Fig. 1 shows the circuit of the tran- connection code. Here the connection cabinet arrangement for switches and
sistorised code lock with torch. For code is switches S1, S7, S2, S11 and S9. LEDs. Install the cabinet at the front
easy understanding, the entire circuit This means you need to connect these door of your house.
can be divided in three sections: power switches to each other by flipping them As mentioned in the beginning,
supply, control and torch. to ‘on’ position. As the connection switch S3 is used to enable the torch.
The power supply section is built completes, transistor T1 conducts and When it is flipped to ‘on’ position, all
around transformer X1, bridge recti- relay RL1 energises. As a result, the the LEDs (LED2 through LED7) glow.
fier comprising diodes D1 through Switches S4, S5, S6, S8, S10
D4 and regulator IC 7812 (IC1). The and S12 are used just to con-
230V AC, 50Hz AC mains is stepped fuse the intruders and play no
down by transformer X1 to deliver role in opening the door.
a secondary output of 15V, 250 mA. You can also use a 12V
The transformer output is rectified battery to power the circuit. In
by the bridge rectifier, filtered by that case, remove transformer
capacitor C1 and regulated by IC1. X1, diodes D1 through D4,
Capacitor C2 bypasses the ripples capacitor C1 and regulator IC2
present in the regulated supply. (7812) and connect the battery
When mains power is available, IC1 inside the cabinet with proper
provides regulated 12V to the circuit Fig. 2: Proposed cabinet arrangement for switches and LEDs polarity. 

Fig. 1: Circuit of transistorised code lock with torch

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • M a r c h 2 0 1 1 • 1 3 5
 circuit
ideas

AC Mains Bistable Switch s.c. dwiv

edi

 T.A. Babu The neon lamp (NL1) and the

push-to-on switch (S1) are directly con-

T
his AC mains-operated bistable nected to 230V AC mains. The 12V DC switch S1 is pressed, the output of IC1
switch turns on or turns off a supply for timer 555 (IC1) is derived goes high and LED1 glows. Pressing S1
device using a miniature neon from 230V AC mains through capaci- again makes the output of IC1 low and
lamp and a few discrete components. tive dropper C1, resistor R1 and a 12V LED1 stops glowing.
This switch can be used for control pan- zener diode. IC1 works as a flip-flop In place of LED1, you can use an
els, appliances and lighting controls. circuit, with the signal at its output opto-diac or suitable relay (not shown
A push-to-on switch is used to pin 3 toggling every time it receives a in the circuit) along with a suitable
light up the neon lamp. The light emit- pulse at its pins 2 and 6. driver circuit to drive AC loads.
ted by the neon lamp, in turn, enables The operation of the circuit is sim- Assemble the circuit on a general-
the switching action of the circuit. Use ple. When you press switch S1 momen- purpose PCB with the neon lamp and
of a 555 timer wired for bistable opera- tarily, the neon lamp glows, making the phototransistor housed in a small
tion makes the circuit act as a bistable phototransistor T1 conduct to provide black tube isolated from the external
switch. a pulse at pins 2 and 6 of IC1. when light source, and enclose in a suitable
cabinet. Fix switch S1 on the
front panel of the cabinet,
and mains power cord at
the rear. At the rear, also fix
a 3-pin socket to connect the
AC load.
Caution. Take care
when operating this circuit
as it is directly connected to
230V AC mains. Better still,
don’t attempt this circuit
if you have no experience
in handling high-voltage
circuits. 

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • A p r i l 2 0 1 1 • 1 0 9
circuit
ideas

LASER-BASED INTRUDER ALARM

 Raj K. Gorkhali The receiver circuit (shown in Fig.
2) is basically a current-to-voltage con-

Y
edi
ou can use this laser-based verter built around IC LM356 (IC3). s.c. dwiv
intruder alarm conveniently The output of IC3 is fed to the mon-
at the entrance of a hall or any ostable built around 555 timer (IC4).
other similar location to protect the The high output of the monostable
same from unauthorised access as and drives the piezobuzzer to sound an phototransistor T1 is interrupted by
when desired. Its range can be extend- someone, the output of op-amp IC3
ed further to protect the perimeter of a goes low and IC3 produces a pulse.
building from unauthorised intrusion This pulse triggers monostable IC4
by using a cascade arrangement of and its output goes high to sound
multiple alarms. the alarm for a time period of about
The circuit consists of a transmitter R8xC8.
and a receiver. Assemble the transmitter and
The transmitter circuit (shown in receiver circuits on separate general-
Fig. 1) is nothing but a laser diode Fig. 1: Transmitter circuit purpose PCBs and enclose in suitable

Fig. 2: Receiver circuit

(LD1) driven by a 9V PP3 battery. The audio alarm. cabinets. Mount the transmitter and
output of IC1 is regulated 5V as long as The receiver section operates off 5V receiver units on opposite pillars of the
its input remains equal to or more than DC generated from another 9V battery entrance, aligning the two such that
7.5V, thus ensuring a constant drive and voltage regulator IC 7805 (IC2). the laser beam from the transmitter
current for the laser diode. The bat- The battery (Batt.2) is connected to the directly falls on the phototransistor.
tery (Batt1) is connected to the circuit circuit through switch S2. Block the laser beam with your hand
through switch S1. When the laser light transmitted and measure the op-amp output. It
The laser diode (LD1) can be through LD1 falls on phototransistor should not be low. At pin 3 of IC4, you
replaced with a laser pointer (torch) T1, the output of the op-amp (IC3) at should get a positive-going pulse of
emitting red laser beam. The laser its pin 6 remains high. In this condi- one-second duration beginning with
pointer itself can be used as a trans- tion, the output of IC4 remains low high-to-low edge of the trigger pulse
mitter. The pointer has in-built series and the buzzer does not sound. appearing at pin 2 of IC4 or collector
resistance, on/off switch and battery. When the laser beam falling on of transistor T2. 

1 1 0 • A p r i l 2 0 1 1 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
circuit
ideas

Telephone Line In-Use Indicator

 T.K. Hareendran
Fig. 1 shows the circuit of the
telephone line indicator. When the

T
edi
his circuit gives a visual indica- telephone is not in use (the handset is s.c. dwiv
tion of whether a telephone line on hook), the line voltage is 48-60V.
is in use or not, helping two or This voltage passes through the sim-
more people sharing the line to avoid ple polarity guard built around the
interrupting each other’s calls. As the bridge rectifier comprising diodes D1 the line is not in use.
circuit connects in parallel with the through D4 and fed to the remaining When the telephone line is in use
telephone line, it can also detect phone circuit. Zener diode ZD1 breaks down (the handset is off-hook), the line volt-
tapping/misuse attempts. The circuit and transistor T1 conducts. As a result, age drops to a level below the zener
draws negligible current from the tel- transistor T2 does not conduct and voltage of ZD1. Transistor T1 cuts
ephone line for its operation. LED1 does not glow, indicating that off and transistor T2 conducts. As
a result, LED1
lights up to in-
dicate a busy/in
use/tap/misuse
condition.
Assemble
the circuit on a
Fig. 2: Pin configurations general-purpose
of MPSA42 and LED
PCB and en-
close in a suit-
able cabinet. Refer Fig. 2 for the pin
configuration of transistor MPSA42
Fig. 1: Telephone line indicator circuit
and LED. 

1 3 2 • M ay 2 0 1 1 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
 circuit
ideas

Remote Control for Toy Car

edi
s.c. dwiv
 Rohan B. Rebello
while the receiver needs 6V DC.

M
ake any battery-operated toy Fig. 1 shows the transmitter circuit.
car remote-controlled using It is built around two BC558 transistors
this circuit. The circuit, con- (T1 and T2), three BC548 transistors built around transistors T1 and T2,
sisting of an infrared transmitter-re- (T3, T4 and T5), IR LED1 and a few produces a frequency of about 1.2 kHz.
ceiver pair, uses IR beam transmission discrete components. The second, built around transistors
to switch the toy car ‘on’ or ‘off.’ To Fig. 2 shows the receiver circuit. T3 and T4, produces about 38 kHz. IR
operate the toy car, you need to hold It is built around IR receiver module LED1 is used to transmit the 38kHz
the transmitter in your hand, keeping TSOP1738, two BC548 transistors (T6 frequency.
it pointed at the toy car which has the and T7) and a few discrete compo- In the receiver circuit, TSOP1738
receiver fitted inside, and simply press nents. receives the IR signal transmitted by
a switch provided on the transmit- In the transmitter circuit, there are IR LED1 of the transmitter circuit. The
ter. The transmitter works off 9V DC, two astable multivibrators. The first, output of TSOP1738 is fed to transistor
T6 via diode D1. The amplified signal
is further given to relay-driver transis-
tor T7. Relay RL1 energises to control
the toy car.
Working of the circuit is simple.
Initially, when no IR beam is fall-
ing on sensor TSOP1738, the relay
remains de-energised and the toy
car doesn’t move. When switch
S1 is pressed, the IR beam falls on
TSOP1738 and its output goes low.
Transistor T6 cuts off and transistor
T7 conducts to energise relay RL1 and
move the toy car.
Fig. 1: Transmitter circuit
Assemble both the circuits on sepa-
rate PCBs. Enclose the transmitter PCB
in a suitable cabinet, with IR LED1
affixed on the front side and switch S1
on the top of the cabinet. Keep the 9V
battery inside the cabinet.
Enclose the receiver PCB inside
the toy car, with TSOP1738 fitted such
that the transmitted IR beam directly
falls on it. Fix switch S2 on the body
of the car and the relay inside the car.
Use a 6V battery to operate the toy car
receiver unit. 
Fig. 2: Receiver circuit

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • J u n e 2 0 1 1 • 1 1 7
 circuit
ideas

Laser Communication System s.c. dwiv

edi

 Dileep Chacko The circuit consists of a transmitter is fixed by capacitor C7. Preset VR4 is
and a receiver. Both the transmitter used to change the signal level from

T
his laser communication sys- and the receiver are built around IC the solar panel. This
tem transmits sound or music LM386, powered by a 9V battery. signal is fed to input
signals through a laser beam. Fig. 1 shows the transmitter circuit. pin 3 of IC2 through
The intensity of the laser beam changes Here a laser diode (LD1) with maxi- coupling capacitor
with the amplitude of the sound signal. mum operating voltage of around 2.6V C5 so that the DC
The variation in the intensity of the DC and maximum operating current value from the solar
laser beam is converted into a variation of 45 mA is used to transmit the audio panel can be elimi-
in the voltage level by using a calcula- signal. The voltage divider network Fig. 3: Laser pointer nated. The amplified
tor’s solar panel. The voltage variation formed by R2, R3 and VR3 keeps the output from IC2 is
on the solar panel is amplified by a voltage as well as the current for the fed to the speaker,
low-voltage audio power amplifier laser diode in the safe region. which plays the
LM386 and reproduced by a speaker. In place of the laser diode, you can music from the CD
The maximum output of audio ampli- also use a laser pointer. Remove the player connected at
fier LM386 is 1 watt, while its voltage battery from the laser pointer. Extend the input (Vin) of
gain is 20 to 200. two wires from terminals of LD1 and IC1.
connect them to the battery Fig. 4: Solar panel Asse mb le th e
terminals of laser pointer. The transmitter and re-
spring inside the laser pointer is ceiver circuits on separate PCBs and
the negative terminal. The out- enclose in suitable cabinets. In the
put power of the laser pointer is transmitter cabinet, fix two terminals
5 mW. Take care while working for connecting the audio signal. Fix
with laser, as direct exposure to switch S1 on the front panel and the
the laser beam can be hazard- laser diode (LD1 or laser pointer) to
ous to your eyes. Point the laser the rear side of the cabinet. Keep the
beam to the solar panel. 9V battery inside the cabinet.
Potmeter VR1 (10-kilo-ohm) In the receiver cabinet, fix the cal-
is used to change the level of culator’s solar panel to the rear side
Fig. 1: Transmitter circuit
the input audio signal. The such that the transmitted beam directly
audio input (Vin) is taken from falls on it. Fix switch S2 on the front
the preamplifier output of the panel and the speaker to the rear side.
music system (CD player, DVD Keep the 9V battery inside the cabinet.
player, etc). Capacitor C2 and Refer Figs 3 and 4 for the laser pointer
preset VR2 are used to vary the and calculator’s solar panel.
gain of the LM386. After assembling both the circuits,
Fig. 2 shows the receiver orient the laser diode (or laser pointer)
circuit. The audio signal trans- such that the transmitted laser beam
mitted by the laser diode (LD1) directly falls on the solar panel. Use
is received by the calculator’s shielded wires for connecting to audio
solar panel and amplified by input and solar panel to reduce noise
Fig. 2: Receiver circuit IC2. The gain of the amplifier pickup. 

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • J u n e 2 0 1 1 • 1 1 5
circuit
ideas

CCFL Tester for LCD Screens

edi
s.c. dwiv
 T.K. Hareendran backlight mainly consists of a light
source, diaphragm, light-leading

L
iquid crystal displays (LCDs) board and plastic frame. It has high
are used in a wide range of brightness, long lifetime and good to speed up the repair work. This basic
products including flat-screen uniformity features. circuit (go/no go test) is portable, 6V
computer monitors, laptop computers, CCFL frequently employs fluores- battery operated and can be used to
tablet PCs, PDAs, digital cameras and cent lamps, which have a phosphor- test almost all types of LCD backlight
portable instruments. Compact cold coated glass cylinder with cathodes CCFL tubes.
cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL)- at each end. CCFL tube is powered The working of the CCFL circuit
based backlight (illumination source by a small electronic inverter (CCFL is shown in Fig. 2. A timer IC NE555
for the LCD screen) arrangement in inverter) circuit that glows the screen (IC1) is wired as an astable multivibra-
these applications enables a well- electronically. The inverter circuit ac- tor (AMV) to drive a standard MOS-
viewable display in both dim and cepts a low-level DC input voltage and FET T1 (IRF 512/IRF 830). Components
bright ambient light conditions. LCD provides a high-level AC output to run R2, R3 and C3 determine the operating
the backlight CCFL tube(s). frequency of the AMV. MOSFET T1
Fig. 1 shows the CCFLs for switches the inverter output transform-
LCD. Often a need arises to er (X1) to produce high-voltage AC
check a faulty LCD backlight supply at its output terminals. Here
circuit for finding the dead an ordinary step-down transformer
components. Absence of back- is used as the inverter transformer by
light means either the CCFL reversing its primary and secondary
inverter and/or the CCFL tube windings.
is in dead state. Assemble the circuit on a general-
Here is a simple circuit to purpose PCB and enclose in a suitable
test the CCFL tube in a LCD cabinet. Fix the 2-pin connector on
backlight unit, which might front side of the cabinet in such a way
Fig. 1: CCFLs for LCD help the hardware technician that the CCFL under test can easily be
connected here. Fix the test switch on
top of the frame. Keep the 6V battery
in side the cabinet.
To test a CCFL, connect its ter-
minals to the primary leads of trans-
former X1 and press test switch S1
momentarily. If the CCFL is good,
you will notice a dim/bright glow in
it (depends on the wattage rating of
the CCFL under test). Always try to
keep the test time as short as possible.
Warning. Repairing the LCD back-
light unit is not an easy task even for
experienced technicians. If you do
something wrong you may perma-
nently damage the LCD screen and
Fig. 2: Circuit diagram of CCFL tester have to buy a new one! 

1 2 2 • Au g u s t 2 0 1 1 • e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u w w w. e f y m ag . co m
 circuit
ideas

Home Appliance Control

Using TV Remote s.c. dwiv
edi

 R. Mahendranathan switch S1 is pressed momentarily.

Threshold and trigger input pins 6 connected at the contacts of relay RL1

T
his circuit is designed to switch and 2 of IC2 are held at one-half of the remains switched off.
on/off any home or industrial power supply voltage (5V) by resistors When you press any remote key
appliance by using the TV/ R2 and R3. When output pin 3 of IC2 for the first time, IR receiver module’s
DVD remote controller. The circuit can is high, capacitor C4 charges through output goes low and collector of the
be operated up to a distance of 5-10 resistor R4, and discharges when the transistor T2 goes high. Relay RL2
metre depending on the remote used. output pin 3 is low. When switch S1 is energises and triggers IC2. Output of
The circuit consists of a step- pressed, capacitor C4 voltage is applied IC2 goes high and relay RL1 energises
down transformer X1 (6V-0-6V, to pins 2 and 6 of IC2, which causes to switch on the appliance. Once relay
250mA secondary), 5V regulator 7805 the output of IC2 to change from low RL1 is energised it remains in that
(IC1), two 5V, 1 change-over (C/O) to high, or high to low. When switch state. So the appliance which is con-
relay, a timer NE555 IC (IC2), an IR S1 is released capacitor C4 charges or nected at the contacts of relay RL1
receiver module (IRX1 TSOP1738) discharges to the original level at the remains switched on.
and some discrete components. The output pin 3 of IC2. Now when you press any remote
circuit works on regulated 5V, which At normal condition, when IR rays key the second time, relay RL2 ener-
is derived from X1 and regulated by are not incident on TSOP1738, its out- gises and re-triggers IC2. Output of IC2
IC1. Home appliance is controlled put at pin 3 remains high. When any goes low and relay RL1 de-energises
either by pressing any key on the re- TV remote key is pressed, IR rays fall to switch off the appliance. Once relay
mote or by manually pressing switch on the TSOP1738 and its output goes RL1 de-energises it remains in that
S1 to ‘on’ state. low. At the same time relay RL2 ener- state. So the home appliance remains
The TV/DVD remote controller gises for a few seconds through pnp off. This cycle repeats when any key of
produces 38kHz frequency. The IR transistor T2 (BC558). the TV remote is pressed to switch on/
receiver module operates at this fre- The working of the circuit is sim- off the home appliance.
quency. It is used to control relay RL2. ple. Initially, when there are no IR rays Assemble the circuit on a general-
The relay triggers IC2, which is wired falling on the IR receiver module, its purpose PCB and enclose in a suitable
in a bistable mode to control the home output remains high. Transistor T2 is cabinet. Fix TSOP1738 and switch S1
appliance connected at the contacts of in cut-off condition. Relay RL2 does on front side of the cabinet. Place trans-
relay RL1. not energise and hence IC2 does not former inside the cabinet and mains
Timer IC2 toggles relay RL1 when toggle. As a result home appliance power cord at the back of the cabinet. 

w w w. e f y m ag . co m e l e c t ro n i c s f o r yo u • Au g u s t 2 0 1 1 • 1 2 1
 circuit ideas

Constant-Current Battery Charger

Raju Baddi current Iref flowing through the base- edi
s.c. dwiv
emitter junction of T2. Iref is multiplied

T
his circuit provides constant- by the current gain (β) of T2 and flows
current charging for batteries through its collector. As the reference
like nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cd), current is constant, the collector cur- below:
nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH) and rent (IBatt) of T2 is also constant. The Iref = (Vz-0.6)/VR1
lithium-ion (Li-ion). The charger collector current is used to charge the IBatt ≈ βT2Iref
maintains constant current flow by battery. The relationship between Iref where Vz is the voltage across zener
using the property of the and I Batt (charging diode ZD1. The calculated values are
transistor that allows the current) is as given approximate. Using this circuit, you
current through the col- can charge any battery as long as the
lector to be almost equal charging voltage is at least 2V higher
to the current through the than the battery’s terminal voltage.
emitter. However, a minimum terminal voltage
Zener diode ZD1 pro- of 5.5V is recommended.
vides constant voltage VR1 can also be adjusted by meas-
across the base-emitter uring the current flowing through the
junction of transistor T1. battery and setting it to the desired
Using variable resistor value. Transistors T1 and T2 should be
Fig. 2: Pin configurations
VR1 at the emitter of Fig. 1: Circuit of constant-current battery of TIP127 and BC547
isolated thermally. Use a suitable heat-
T1, one can set reference charger transistors sink for T2. 

www.efymag.com Electronics For You | January 2012 129

 circuit ideas

Solar Tracking System s.c. dwiv

edi
Sunil Kumar ensuring that the maximum amount
of sunlight is incident on the panel

G
enerally, solar panels are throughout the day. The solar tracker IC2 to move the solar panel in the sun’s
stationary and do not follow starts following the sun right from direction. LDR1 and LDR2 are fixed at
the movement of the sun. dawn, throughout the day till even- the edges of the solar panel along the
Here is a solar tracker system that ing, and starts all over again from the X axis, and connected to comparators
tracks the sun’s movement across the dawn next day. A1 and A2, respectively. Presets VR1
sky and tries to maintain the solar Fig. 1 shows the circuit of the solar and VR2 are set to get low comparator
panel perpendicular to the sun’s rays, tracking system. The solar tracker com- output at pins 2 and 1 of comparators A1
prises compara- and A2, respectively, so as to stop motor
tor IC LM339, M1 when the sun’s rays are perpendicu-
H-bridge motor lar to the solar panel.
driver IC L293D When LDR2 receives more light
(IC2) and a few than LDR1, it offers lower resistance
discrete com- than LDR1, providing a high input to
ponents. Light- comparators A1 and A2 at pins 4 and
dependent re- 7, respectively. As a result, output
sistors LDR1 pin 1 of comparator A2 goes high
through LDR4 to rotate motor M1 in one direction
are used as sen- (say, anti-clockwise) and turn the
sors to detect the solar panel.
panel’s position When LDR1 receives more light
relative to the than LDR2, it offers lower resistance
sun. These pro- than LDR2, giving a low input to
vide the signal comparators A1 and A2 at pins 4 and
to motor driver 7, respectively. As the voltage at pin 5
of comparator A1 is now
higher than the voltage
at its pin 4, its output pin
2 goes high. As a result,
motor M1 rotates in the
opposite direction (say,
clock-wise) and the solar
panel turns.
Similarly, LDR3
and LDR4 track the
sun along Y axis. Fig.
2 shows the proposed
assembly for the solar
Fig. 2 Proposed assembly for the tracking system. 
Fig. 1: Circuit of solar tracking system solar tracking system

128 January 2012 | Electronics For You www.efymag.com

 circuit ideas

Ultrasonic Transmitter and Receiver

Pradeep G. the ultrasonic transducer.
The ultrasonic transmitter and

M
edi
ost ultrasonic transmit- receiver circuits described here use s.c. dwiv
ters and receivers are built CD4017 decade counter ICs.
around timer IC 555 or The transmitter circuit (Fig. 1) is
complementary metal-oxide semicon- built around two CD4017 decade coun-
ductor (CMOS) devices. These devices ter ICs (IC1 and IC2), D-type flip-flop (IC3) divides 80kHz signal by 2 to give
are preset-controlled variable oscil- IC CD4013 (IC3) and a few discrete 40kHz signal, which is transmitted by
lators. The preset value of the work- components. The arrangement gener- ultrasonic transducer TX.
ing frequency is likely to drift due to ates stable 40kHz signals, which are Coil L is made with 36SWG enam-
mechanical vibrations or variations in transmitted by transducer TX. elled copper wire that is wound 15
temperature. This drift in frequency The crystal-controlled radio-fre- times around an 8mm-diameter plastic
affects the range of transmission from quency (RF) oscillator built around former as used for radio oscillators,
which has a ferrite
bead.
The transmit-
ter circuit works off
9-12V DC.
The receiver cir-
cuit (Fig. 2) is built
around a single dec-
ade counter CD4017
(IC4) and a few dis-
crete components.
To check the work-
ing of the transmit-
ter, it is necessary
to down-convert the
40kHz signal into
4kHz to bring it in
Fig. 1: Transmitter circuit the audible range.
By using the receiv-
transistor T1 er, the 40kHz ultrasonic transmitter
(BC549) generates can be tested quickly. The receiver’s
an 8MHz signal, transducer unit (RX) is kept near the
which serves as in- ultrasonic transmitter under test. It
put to the first dec- detects the transmitted 40kHz signal,
ade counter built which is amplified by the amplifier
around IC1. The built around transistor BC549 (T2).
decade counter di- The amplified signal is fed to dec-
vides the oscillator ade counter IC4, which divides the
frequency to 800 frequency to 4 kHz. Transistor T3
kHz. The output (SL100) amplifies the 4kHz signal to
of IC1 is fed to drive the speaker.
the second CD4017 Use a 9V PP3 battery to power the
decade counter receiver circuit.
(IC2), which fur- House the transmitter and receiver
ther divides the circuits in separate small cabinets. If
frequency to 80 the 40kHz transducer under test is
kHz. working, the receiver circuit produces
Fig. 2: Receiver circuit The flip-flop audible whistling sound. 

www.efymag.com Electronics For You | January 2012 123

 IDEAS

There is a wide range of low-power

mains transformers available with one

U
sually, LED lamps require or more secondary voltages like 2.5
recti ers when connected to Vrms (3.5 Vpeak), 3 Vrms (4.2 Vpeak),
the AC mains power supply. 3.3 Vrms (4.7 Vpeak), 4.5 Vrms (6.4
Electrical isolation of the LED lamps Vpeak), 5 Vrms (7.1 Vpeak), 6 Vrms
from the mains is also required in most (8.5 Vpeak), 6.3 Vrms (8.9 Vpeak) and and for a small room. Most LEDs today
cases. But recti ers create a switching with power rating from 1.3 VA up to have forward drop voltage of 1.6 V to
noise and also add to their cost. Pre- 12 VA. The primary current of these 3.7 V depending on the technology and
sented here is a simple circuit for LED transformers is relatively low—around the colour. The working current for
lamps that doesn’t require the use of 15 to 80 mA—and, when needed, can these LEDs is usually 20 mA to 100 mA
recti ers. be limited with resistors without pro- and sometimes higher. The parameters
ducing a lot of heat. of the LEDs match very well with the
Test Points Most of these transformers are parameters of small 2.5Vrms-6.3Vrms
Test point Details PCB-mounted and easy to use. On the transformers mentioned above.
other hand, LED lamps with power
Across TP0 and TP1 Around 4.5V AC
rating of 1 W to 10 W are good enough Circuit and working
Across TP2 and TP3 Around 230V AC
to produce light for your workstation This LED lamp with transformer does
not need recti ers. The
circuit uses the inter-

nal resistance of the
    
  transformer and low-
 
    
 cost protecting resis-

 

tors to limit the current
    
  through the LEDs. The
LED lamp with four

levels of power is de-
 
 scribed here.
 
   Fig. 1 shows the
  circuit of an LED lamp
      using transformer X1
  with secondary volt-

  age of 4.5 V. Resistor
     R1 limits the voltage
and current peaks over
 
transformer X1. Resis-
Fig. 1: Circuit of an LED lamp tor R2 and capacitor

Fig. 2: An actual-size, single-side PCB for the AC-powered lamp Fig. 3: Component layout for the PCB

96 MAY 2013 | ELECTRONICS FOR YOU WWW.EFYMAG.COM

 IDEAS
C1 protect the transformer from the After the selection of LEDs and PARTS LIST
noise from the mains. Although R1, R2 transformer X1, simple calculations Semiconductors:
and C1 are not strictly necessary for are needed to determine the values LED1-LED12 - 5mm white LED
the lamp, they should not be removed, of current-limiting resistors and their Resistors (all ¼-watt, ±5% carbon):
R1 - 100-ohm, 0.5W
especially in noisy urban or industrial power dissipations. The circuit does
R2 - 100-ohm, 2W
environment. not require any adjustment and will R3 - 1-kilo-ohm, 1W
The power for the LEDs is con- start working immediately when R4 - 2-kilo-ohm, 1W
R5 - 3.9-kilo-ohm, 2W
trolled with switch S2. In position 4 full switch S1 is switched on.
R6-R8 - 10-ohm
power supply is applied, whereas in
other positions (3, 2 and 1) the power Construction and testing Capacitors:
C1 - 100nF, 630V polyester
and the light will be lower. An actual-size, single-side PCB for the C2 - 100nF ceramic disk
The LEDS are connected in a se- AC-powered lamp is shown in Fig. Miscellaneous:
X1 - 230V AC primary to 4.5V,
ries and in couples in order to take 2 and its component layout in Fig. 3.
150mA secondary
the full power supply from the trans- After assembling the circuit on a PCB, transformer
former as the forward voltage drop enclose it in a suitable case. Fix all the S1 - On/off switch
S2 - 4-way rotary switch
of LEDs is around half the secondary LEDs in such a way that they stick out
CON1 - 2-pin connector
output voltage of the transformer. of the enclosed case. Use external wires F1 - 150mA fuse
In one branch, the LEDs should be to connect four-way rotary switch S2
of the same type in order to have to the PCB. 230V AC mains, which is potentially
consistent forward voltage drop. The To test the circuit, power it on lethal! So take all necessary precau-
number of the branches of the LEDs using switch S1 and keep switch S2 tions while assembling the circuit!
depends on the type of the LEDs and at position 4. Now measure voltages
transformer X1. The values of resis- across the test points shown in the The author worked as a researcher and assistant
professor in Technical University of Sofia (Bulgaria)
tors R6 through R8 is selected based table.
and as a lecturer and expert-lecturer in Kingdom
on the forward current rating of the Warning. The input section of of Morocco. Now he is an electronics engineer in
LEDs. this circuit is directly connected to the private sector in Bulgaria

WWW.EFYMAG.COM ELECTRONICS FOR YOU | MAY 2013 97