Signals when an on-circuit battery is exhausted 5V to 12V operating voltage

A Battery-status Indicator circuit can be useful, mainly to monitor portable Test-gear instruments and similar devices. LED D1 flashes to attire the users attention, signaling that the circuit is running, so it will not be left on by mistake. The circuit generates about two LED flashes per second, but the mean current drawing will be about 200µA. Transistors Q1 and Q2 are wired as an uncommon complementary astable multivibrator: both are off 99% of the time, saturating only when the LED illuminates, thus contributing to keep very low current consumption. 

Circuit diagram :

Flashing-LED Battery-status Indicator Circuit Diagram

The circuit will work with battery supply voltages in the 5 - 12V range and the LED flashing can be stopped at the desired battery voltage (comprised in the 4.8 - 9V value) by adjusting Trimmer R4. This range can be modified by changing R3 and/or R4 value slightly.

When the battery voltage approaches the exhausting value, the LED flashing frequency will fall suddenly to alert the user. Obviously, when the battery voltage has fallen below this value, the LED will remain permanently off. To keep stable the exhausting voltage value, diode D1 was added to compensate Q1 Base-Emitter junction changes in temperature. The use of a Schottky-barrier device (e.g. BAT46, 1N5819 and the like) for D1 is mandatory: the circuit will not work if a common silicon diode like the 1N4148 is used in its place.

Parts :

R1,R7__________220R  1/4W Resistors
R2_____________120K  1/4W Resistor
R3_______________5K6 1/4W Resistor
R4_______________5K  1/2W Trimmer Cermet or Carbon
R5______________33K  1/4W Resistor
R6_____________680K  1/4W Resistor
R8_____________100K  1/4W Resistor
R9_____________180R  1/4W Resistor
C1,C2____________4µ7  25V Electrolytic Capacitors
D1____________BAT46  100V 150mA Schottky-barrier Diode
D2______________LED  Red 5mm.
Q1____________BC547   45V 100mA NPN Transistor
Q2____________BC557   45V 100mA PNP Transistor
B1_______________5V to 12V Battery supply
Notes :

• Mean current drawing of the circuit can be reduced further on by raising R1, R7 and R9 values.

Source : Red Circuits

Remote Audio Level Indicator

The normal level-indicator circuits which are available in the market require connections to be made to the output of the player, which may not be easily accessible. The audio level indicator circuit described here removes this restriction as it may be placed close to the player’s speakers and yet the desired effect can be realised. 

Circuit diagram :

Remote Audio Level Indicator Circuit Diagram

As shown in the circuit, signals are picked up by the condenser microphone, which get further amplified by the noninverting amplifier built around one of the four op-amps of LM324. The remaining three, along with four op-amps of the second LM324, are used as seven comparators to work as the level detector, giving seven output levels through seven coloured LEDs. 

The sensitivity of the audio level indicator circuit may be improved by varying the 220k potentiometer. If a fine adjustment is desired, a 4.7-kilohm potentiometer may be connected in series resistors with the 220k potentiometer.

Copyright : EFY

Cheapest Ever Motion Sensor

The RS-455-3671 sensor used in the Automatic Rear Bicycle Light project published in  the July/August 2010 edition can be replaced by a motion sensor that costs nothing instead of a fiver or thereabouts. 

 

The replacement is a homemade device, built from components easily found in the workshop of any electronics enthusiast. Effectively it works as a variable resistor, depending on the acceleration force to which the device is  submitted. A prototype presented a resistance of 200 kΩ when not moving, and 190 kΩ when dropping about 1 cm.

Constructing is easy. Cut off a piece of about 10 mm of copper tubing. Take a piece of conductive foam, the kind used to protect integrated circuits. Cut a rectangular piece of 10  x 50 mm. Roll up firmly until it can be push-fitted securely into the copper cylinder. Then insert a conductive wire through the centre of the cylinder, bend it and (optionally) add protective plastic sleeving to each side. This is the first contact. Finally, solder a thin wire to the copper cylinder. This is the second contact. The foam resistance is pressure dependent. 

Consequently, when the device moves due to an external force, the inertia of the cylinder causes varying pressure in the foam, resulting in a small change of resistance between the inner conductor and  the cylinder. Because of that, it’s important to ensure the cylinder vibration is not restricted in any way by the connecting wire or the PCB. 

The comparator circuit shown here is capable of resolving the resistance change of the proposed foam/wire/copper sensor, allowing it to detect the motion of a vehicle for alarm or other purposes. 

Author : Antoni Gendrau – Copyright : Elektor

Mains Slave Switcher

There are many situations where two or more pieces of equipment are used together and to avoid having to switch each item on separately or risk the possibility of leaving one of them on when switching the rest off, a slave switch is often used. Applications which spring to mind are a computer/printer/scanner etc or audio amplifier/record deck/tuner combinations or perhaps closest to every electronics enthusiast’s heart, the work bench where a bench power supply/oscilloscope/soldering iron etc are often required simultaneously.

The last is perhaps a particularly good example as the soldering iron, often having no power indicator, is invariably left on after all the other items have been switched off. Obviously the simplest solution is to plug all of the items into one extension socket and switch this on and off at the mains socket but this is not always very convenient as the switch may be difficult to reach often being behind or under the work bench. Slave switches normally sense the current drawn from the mains supply when the master unit is switched on by detecting the resulting voltage across a series resistor and switching on a relay to power the slave unit(s).

This means that the Live or Neutral feed must be broken to allow the resistor to be inserted. This circuit, which is intended for switching power to a work bench when the bench light is switched on, avoids resistors or any modifications to the lamp or slave appliances by sensing the electric field around the lamp cable when this is switched on. The lamp then also functions as a ‘power on’ indicator (albeit a very large one that cannot be ignored) that shows when all of the equipment on the bench is switched on.

The field, which appears around the lamp cable when the mains is connected, can be sensed by a short piece of insulated wire simply wrapped around it and this is amplified by the three stage amplifier which can be regarded as a single super-transistor with a very high gain. The extremely small a.c. base current results in an appreciable collector current which after smoothing (by C3) is used to switch on a relay to power the other sockets. Power for the relay is obtained from a capacitor ‘mains dropper’ that generates no heat and provides a d.c. supply of around 15 volts when the relay is off.

Circuit diagram:

Mains Slave Switcher Circuit Diagram

The output current of this supply is limited so that the voltage drops substantially when the relay pulls in but since relays require more current to operate them than they do to remain energized, this is not a problem. Since the transistor emitter is referenced to mains Neutral, it is the field around the mains Live which will be detected. Consequently, for correct operation the Live wire to the lamp must be switched and this will no doubt be the case in all lamps where the switch is factory fitted. In case of uncertainty, a double-pole switch to interrupt both the Live and Neutral should be used.

The sensitivity of the circuit can be increased or decreased as required by altering the value of the T2 emitter resistor. The sensing wire must of course be wrapped around a section of the lamp lead after the switch otherwise the relay will remain energized even when the lamp has been switched off. The drawing shows the general idea with the circuit built into the extension socket although, depending on the space available an auxiliary plastic box may need to be used.

Warning:

The circuit itself is not isolated from the mains supply so that great care should be taken in its construction and testing. The sensor wire must also be adequately insulated and the circuit enclosed in a box to make it inaccessible to fingers etc. when it is in use.

http://www.ecircuitslab.com

Speech Filter

In communications receivers and microphone amplifiers for transmitting equipment, there is frequently a need for a narrow, low-frequency band-pass filter that lets only the voice band through. This band is usually defined to be the portion of the audio frequency spectrum between approximately 300 Hz and 3300 Hz. In order to implement such a filter, we have calculated the values for two fifth-order Butterworth filters having these corner frequencies and connected them in series. The result is a band-pass filter for the desired pass-band with a skirt steepness of 100 dB/decade.  The first opamp (IC1) acts as a buffer.

Speech Filter Image :

The circuit can be powered by a unipolar supply voltage between 5 V and 18 V, which is a broad enough range that it should always be possible to find a suitable voltage when building the filter into existing equipment. The current consumption of the filter is only a few milliampères, which should rarely pose a problem. There is fairly wide selection of suitable candidates for the opamps, since the circuit is not critical in this regard. In addition to the indicated OP27A, you could consider using a TL081N or even an old-fashioned 741.

Circuit diagram : 

Speech Filter Circuit Diagram

Due to unavoidable spreads in component values, the pass-band curve of the filter will never be completely perfect in actual practice. However, the deviations will be very small and in any case inaudible. In the pass-band region, the gain is approximately unity. The printed circuit board design shown here allows the speech filter to be built in a very compact form, which can be an important factor if it must be fitted into existing equipment. You can quickly check the fully assembled circuit by momentarily measuring the voltages at the inputs and out-puts of the three opamps. Half of the supply voltage should be present at all of these locations.

PCB Layout :

Parts LIST:
Resistors:
R1.R2 = 22kΩ
R3,R11,R12,R18,R19 = 100kΩ
R4 = 470Ω
R5 = 150Ω
R6 = 10kΩ
R7 = 18kΩ
R8 = 15kΩ
R9 = 33kΩ
R10 = 82kΩ
R13-R17 = 3kΩ3
Capacitors:
C1,C8,C14,C15 = 100nF
C2 = 1µF MKT
C3-C7,C11 = 22nF
C9 = 33nF
C10 = 18nF
C12 = 10nF
C13 = 4nF7
C16,C17 = 10µF 16V
Semiconductors:
IC1,IC2,IC3 = OP27A, TL081CN
Miscellaneous:
Bt1 = 9-V battery

Author: G.Baars

Mains Manager

Very often we forget to switch off the peripherals like monitor, scanner, and printer while switching off our PC. The problem is that there are separate power switches to turn the peripherals off. Normally, the peripherals are connected to a single of those four-way trailing sockets that are plugged into a single wall socket. If that socket is accessible, all the devices could be switched off from there and none of the equipment used will require any modification. 

Here is a mains manager circuit that allows you to turn all the equipment on or off by just operating the switch on any one of the devices; for example, when you switch off your PC, the monitor as well as other equipment will get powered down automatically. You may choose the main equipment to control other gadgets. 

The main equipment is to be directly plugged into the master socket, while all other equipment are to be connected via the slave socket. The mains supply from the wall socket is to be connected to the input of the mains manager circuit. The unit operates by sensing the current drawn by the control equipment/load from the master socket. On sensing that the control equipment is on, it powers up the other (slave) sockets.

The load on the master socket can be anywhere between 20 VA and 500 VA, while the load on the slave sockets can be 60 VA to 1200 VA. During the positive half cycle of the mains AC supply, diodes D4, D5, and D6 have a voltage drop of about 1.8 volts when current is drawn from the master socket. Diode D7 carries the current during negative half cycles. Capacitor C3, in series with diode D3, is connected across the diode combination of D4 through D6, in addition to diode D7 as well as resistor R10. Thus current pulses during positive half-cycles, charge up the capacitor to 1.8 volts via diode D3. 

This voltage is sufficient to hold transistor T2 in forward biased condition for about 200 ms even after the controlling load on the master socket is switched off. When transistor T2 is ‘on’, transistor T1 gets forward biased and is switched on. This, in turn, triggers Triac 1, which then powers the slave loads. Capacitor C4 and resistor R9 form a snubber network to ensure that the triac turns off cleanly with an inductive load.

Circuit diagram:

Mains Manager Circuit Diagram

LED1 indicates that the unit is operating. Capacitor C1 and zener ZD1 are effectively in series across the mains. The resulting 15V pulses across ZD1 are rectified by diode D2 and smoothened by capacitor C2 to provide the necessary DC supply for the circuit around transistors T1 and T2. Resistor R3 is used to limit the switching-on surge current, while resistor R1 serves as a bleeder for rapidly discharging capacitor C1 when the unit is unplugged. LED1 glows whenever the unit is plugged into the mains. Diode D1, in anti-parallel to LED1, carries the current during the opposite half cycles. Don’t plug anything into the master or slave sockets without testing the unit.

If possible, plug the unit into the mains via an earth leakage circuit breaker. The mains LED1 should glow and the slave LED2 should remain off. Now connect a table lamp to the master socket and switch it ‘on’. The lamp should operate as usual. The slave LED should turn ‘on’ whenever the lamp plugged into slave socket is switched on. Both lamps should be at full brightness without any flicker. If so, the unit is working correctly and can be put into use.

Note:

1. The device connected to the master socket must have its power switch on the primary side of the internal transformer. Some electronic equipment have the power switch on the secondary side and hence these devices continue to draw a small current from the mains even when switched off. Thus such devices, if connected as the master, will not control the slave units correctly. 
    
2. Though this unit removes the power from the equipment being controlled, it doesn’t provide isolation from the mains. So, before working inside any equipment connected to this unit, it must be unplugged from the socket.

http://www.ecircuitslab.com/2011/05/mains-manager.html

Multitasking Pins Circuit

It’s entirely logical that low-cost miniature microcontrollers have fewer ‘legs’ than their bigger brothers and sisters – sometimes too few. The author has given some consideration to how to economise on pins, making them do the work of several. It occurred that one could exploit the high impedance feature of a tri-state output. In this way the signal produced by the high impedance state could be used for example as a CS signal of two ICs or else as a RD/ WR signal. 

Circuit diagram:

Multitasking Pins Circuit Diagram

All we need are two op-amps or comparators sharing a single operating voltage of 5 V and outputs capable of reaching full Low and High levels in 5-V operation (preferably types with rail-to-rail outputs). Suitable examples to use are the LM393 or LM311.The resistances in the voltage dividers in this circuit are uniformly 10 kilo ohms. Consequently input A lies at half the operating voltage (2.5 V), assuming nothing is connected to the input – or the microcontroller pin connected is at high impedance. 

The non-inverting input of IC1A lies at two thirds and the inverting input of IC1B at one third of the operating voltage, so that in both cases the outputs are set at High state. If the microcontroller pin at input A becomes Low, the output of IC1B becomes Low and that of IC1A goes High. If A is High, everything is reversed.

Fuel Reserve Indicator For Vehicles

Here is a simple circuit for monitoring the fuel level in vehicles. It gives an audiovisual indication when the fuel level drops alarmingly below the reserve level, helping you to avoid running out of petrol on the way. Nowadays vehicles come with a dash-mounted fuel gauge meter that indicates the fuel levels on an analogue display. The ‘reserve’ level is indicated by a red marking in some vehicles, but the needle movement through the red marking may be confusing and not precise. This circuit monitors the fuel tank below the reserve level and warns through LED indicators and audible beeps when the danger level is approaching. 

Circuit diagram :

Fuel Reserve Indicator For Vehicles Circuit Diagram

The fuel sensor system consists of a tank-mounted float sensor and a current meter (fuel meter), which are connected in series. The float-driven sensor attached to an internal rheostat offers high resistance when the tank is empty. When the tank is full, the resistance decreases, allowing more current to pass through the meter to give a higher reading. The fuel monitoring circuit works by sensing the voltage variation developed across the meter and activates the beeper when the fuel tank is almost empty. Its point A is connected to the input terminal of the fuel meter and point B is connected to the body of the vehicle. The circuit consists of an op-amp IC CA3140 (IC1), two 555 timer ICs (IC2 and IC3) and decade counter CD4017 (IC4). 

Op-amp IC CA3140 is wired as a voltage comparator. Its inverting input (pin 2) receives a reference voltage controlled through VR1. The non-inverting input (pin 3) receives a variable voltage tapped from the input terminal of the fuel meter through resistor R1. When the voltage at pin 3 is higher han at pin 2, the output of IC1 goes high and the green LED (LED1) glows. This condition is maintained until the voltage at pin 3 drops below that at pin 2. When this happens, the output of IC1 swings from high to low, sending a low pulse to the trigger pin of the monostable (usually held high by R3) via C1. The monostable triggers and its output goes high for a predetermined time based on the values of R5 and C2. With the given values, the ‘on’ time will be around four minutes. 

The output of IC2 is used to power the astable circuit consisting of timer 555 (IC3) via diode D2. Oscillations of IC3 are controlled by R6, R7, VR2 and C4. With the given values, the ‘on’ and ‘off’ time periods are 27 and 18 seconds, respectively. The pulses from IC3 are given to the clock input (pin 14) of decade counter CD4017 (IC4) and its outputs go high one by one. When the circuit is switched on, LED1 and LED2 glow if your vehicle has sufficient petrol in the tank. 

When the fuel goes below the reserve level, the output of IC1 goes low, LED1 turns off and a negative triggering pulse is received at pin 2 of IC2. The output of IC2 goes high for around four minutes and during this time period, clock pin 14 of IC4 receives the clock pulse (low to high) from the output of IC3. For the first clock pulse, Q0 output of IC4 goes high and the green LED (LED2) glows for around 50 seconds. On receiving the second clock pulse, Q1 goes high to light up the yellow LED (LED3) and sound the buzzer for around 45 seconds. This audio-visual signal warns you that the vehicle is running out of fuel. On receiving the third clock pulse, LED3 and the buzzer go off. There is a gap of around two-and-a-half minutes before Q5 output goes high.

By the time Q5 goes high and the red LED (LED4) glows, four minutes elapse and the power supply to IC3 is cut off. The output state at Q5 will not change unless a low-to-high clock input is received at its pin 14. Thus LED4 will glow continuously along with the beep. The continuous glowing of the red LED (LED4) and the beep from the buzzer indicate that the vehicle will run out of fuel very shortly. Q6 output of IC4 is connected to its reset pin 15 via diode D3. This means that after ‘on’ state of Q5, the count will always start from Q0. Capacitor C5 provides power-on reset to IC4 when switch S1 is closed. The output of IC1 is also connected to reset pin of IC4 via diode D1 (1N4148). So when your vehicle is refueled above the reserve level, LED2 glows to indicate that the tank has sufficient fuel.

IC5 provides regulated 12V DC for proper functioning of the circuit even when the battery is charged to more than 12V. The circuit can be assembled on a perforated board. Adjust VR1 until the voltage at pin 2 of IC1 drops to 1.5V. When point A is connected to the fuel meter (fuel gauge) terminal that goes to the fuel sensor, green LEDs (LED1 and LED2) glow to indicate the normal fuel level. VR2 can be varied to set the ‘on’ time period of IC3 at around 20 seconds. Enclose the circuit in a small case and mount on the dashboard using adhesive tape. The circuit works only in vehicles with negative grounding of the body.

Author : D. Mohan Kumar

AVR Dongle Circuit

This circuit is intended to program AVR controllers such as the AT90S1200 via the parallel port. The circuit is extremely simple. IC1 provides buffering for the signals that travel from the parallel port to the microcontroller and vice versa. This is essentially everything that can be said about the circuit. The two boxheaders (K2 and K3) have the ‘standard’ ISP (in system programming) pinout for the AVR controllers. The manufacturer recommends these two pinouts in an attempt to create a kind of standard for the in-circuit programming of AVR-controllers. These connections can be found on many development boards for these controllers. The software carries out the actual programming task.

Circuit diagram :

AVR Dongle Circuit Diagram

It is therefore necessary to have a program (ATMEL AVR ISP), which is available as a free download from http://www.atmel.com. The construction of the circuit will have to made on standard prototype board, since we didn’t design a PCB for this circuit. This should not present any difficulties considering the small number of parts involved. We recommend that inexperienced builders first make a copy of the circuit and cross off each connection on the schematic once it has been made on the board. This makes it easy to check afterwards whether all connections have been made or not.

http://www.ecircuitslab.com

12V Speed Controller Dimmer

This handy circuit can be used as a speed controller for a 12V motor rated up to 5A (continuous) or as a dimmer for a 12V halogen or standard incandescent lamp rated up to 50W. It varies the power to the load (motor or lamp) using pulse width modulation (PWM) at a pulse frequency of around 220Hz.  SILICON CHIP has produced a number of DC speed controllers over the years, the most recent being our high-power 24V 40A design featured in the March & April 2008 issues. Another very popular design is our 12V/24V 20A design featured in the June 1997 issue and we have also featured a number of reversible 12V designs.

 

Project Image :

 12V Speed Controller/Dimmer Project Image

For many applications though, most of these designs are over-kill and a much simpler circuit will suffice. Which is why we are presenting this basic design which uses a 7555 timer IC, a Mosfet and not much else. Being a simple design, it does not monitor motor back-EMF to provide improved speed regulation and nor does it have any fancy overload protection apart from a fuse. However, it is a very efficient circuit and the kit cost is quite low.

Parts layout:

Connection diagram:

There are many applications for this circuit which will all be based on 12V motors, fans or lamps. You can use it in cars, boats, and recreational vehicles, in model boats and model railways and so on. Want to control a 12V fan in a car, caravan or computer? This circuit will do it for you. The circuit uses a 7555 timer (IC1) to generate variable width pulses at about 210Hz. This drives Mosfet Q3 (via transistors Q1 & Q2) to control the speed of a motor or to dim an incandescent lamp.

Circuit diagram :

12V Speed Controller/Dimmer Circuit Diagram

While the circuit can dim 12V halogen lamps, we should point out that dimming halogen lamps is very wasteful. In situations where you need dimmable 12V lamps, you will be much better off substituting 12V LED lamps which are now readily available in standard bayonet, miniature Edison screw (MES) and MR16 halogen bases. Not only are these LED replacement lamps much more efficient than halogen lamps, they do not get anywhere near as hot and will also last a great deal longer.

Source : Silicon Chip

Wiring Diagram Protection For Telephone Line

However, if
you have the good fortune to live in the countryside in a building
served by overhead telephone lines, there’s an obvious risk of very high
voltages being induced on the lines during thunderstorms. While we
have lost count today of all of the modems, fax machines and other
telephones that have been destroyed by a ‘bolt of lightning’,
surprisingly you only have to invest a few pounds to get a remarkably
efficient protection device like the one we are proposing here.

During
a storm, often with lightning striking near a telephone line, the line
carries transient voltages up to several thousands of volts. Contrary
to the HV section of television sets or electrical fences, on which
practically no current is running, in the case of lighting striking
current surges of thousand of amps are not uncommon. To protect oneself
from such destructive pulses, traditional components are not powerful
or fast enough.

As you can see on our drawing, a (gas-filled)
spark gap should be used. Such a component contains three electrodes,
insulated from each other, in an airtight cylinder filled with rare gas.
As long as the voltage present between the electrodes is below a
certain threshold, the spark gap remains perfectly passive and presents
an impedance of several hundreds of MW. On the other hand, when the
voltage rises above this threshold, the gas is very rapidly ionized and
the spark-gap suddenly becomes a full conductor to the point of being
able to absorb colossal currents without being destroyed.

The
one we are using here, whose size is of the same magnitude as an
ordinary one watt resistor, can absorb a standardized 5,000 amps pulse
lasting 8/20 ms! Since we are utilizing a three-electrode spark gap, the
voltage between the two wires of the line or between any wire and
ground, cannot exceed the sparking voltage, which is about 250 volts
here. Such protection could theoretically suffice but we preferred to
add a second security device made with a VDR (GeMOV or SiOV depending on
the manufacturer), which also limits the voltage between line wires to
a maximum of 250 volts.

Even if this value seems high to you,
we should remember that all of the authorized telephone equipment,
carrying the CE mark must be able to withstand it without damage. This
is not always the case however with some low-end devices made in China,
but that’s an entirely different problem. Since pulses generated by
lightning are very brief, the ground connection of our assembly must be
as low-inductance as possible.

It must therefore be short, and
composed of heavy-duty wire (1.5 mm2 c.s.a. is the minimum). If not, the
coil, composed of the ground connection, blocks the high frequency
signal that constitutes the pulse and reduces the assembly’s
effectiveness to nothing. Finally, please note that this device
obviously has no effect on the low frequency signals of telephones and
fax machines and it does not disturb (A)DSL signals either.

Call Bell with Welcome Indication

Here is a simple call bell circuit that displays a welcome message when somebody presses the call bell switch momentarily. the alphanumeric display can be fitted near the call bell switch. the circuit is built around two 555 ICs (IC1 and IC2), seven KLA511 common-anode alphanumeric displays (DIS1 through DIS7) and a few discrete components. For easy understanding,  the entire circuit can be divided into  two sections: controller and display. the controller section is built around  IC1 and IC2, while the display section is built around alphanumeric displays (DIS1 through DIS7). 

As shown in the circuit, both IC1 and IC2 are wired as monostable  multivibrators having time periods of around 5 seconds and 2 minutes, respectively. You can change the time period of IC1 by changing the values of resistor R12 and capacitor  C3. Similarly, the time period of IC2  can be changed by changing the values of resistor R2 and capacitor C1. Alphanumeric displays DIS1 through DIS7 are wired such that they show ‘WELCOME’ when the output of IC2  goes high. the circuit is powered by a 6V battery. Else, you can use the 6V, 300mA power adaptor that is readily available in the market. the 6V battery or power adaptor provides regulated 6V required to operate the circuit. 

Circuit diagram :

Call Bell with Welcome Indication Circuit Diagram

 

A 6V DC socket is used in the circuit to connect the output of the adaptor if you don’t use the battery. Working of the circuit is simple. First, power-on the circuit using switch S2. LED1 glows to indicate presence of power supply in the circuit. Now if you press call bell switch S1  momentarily, it triggers  both the timers (IC1 and  IC2) simultaneously. IC1 produces a high output at its pin 3 for about five seconds. transistor t2 conducts and piezobuzzer PZ1 sounds for about five seconds indicating that there is  somebody at the door. At the same time, IC2  too produces a high out-put at its pin 3 for about two minutes. transistor  t1 conducts to enable the alphanumeric displays. the word ‘WEL-COME’ is displayed  for about two minutes  as DIS1 through DIS7  ground via transistor T1.

If switch S1 is pressed again within these two minutes, piezobuzzer PZ1 again  sounds for five seconds and the display continues to show ‘WEL-COME’. Assemble the complete circuit on a general purpose PCB and house in a small cabinet with call bell switch S1 and LED1 mounted on the front panel. At the rear side of the cabinet, connect a DC socket for the adaptor. Install the complete unit (along with the display) at the entrance of your house. Connect the 6V battery or 6V adaptor for powering the circuit. Configure switch 2 (used to enable/disable the call bell) in a switch board at a suitable location inside your house. If you don’t use a battery, connect the power adaptor to the DC socket on the rear of the cabinet. Close switch S2 only when you want to activate the circuit with  battery. Otherwise, keep it open when the 6V adaptor is in use.

EFY note. 

1. To avoid any shorting  during rain, waterproof the entire circuit assembly including alphanumeric displays (installed at the entrance) by covering it properly.

2.  the complete kit for this circuit is available with EFY associates  kits’n’spares. 

Author : S.C. Dwivedi - Copyright : EFY