Newbie to wiring/circuit building...need help asap!!

[Anonymous]

:D Hi, i'm a student and i have this project which involves making a solar panel environmental light. (something that looks like a traffic light..but it's solar and has 3 lights saying if the air quality is HIGH/MEDIUM/LOW danger)...

I'm wondering how i would build circuit and wire the whole thing!?? I'm totally clueless and hope i can get some help from the experts! :D

So, yeah, what i'm thinking is

SolarPanel ->diode -> RechargeableBatteries -> VoltageAmplifier(maybe??) -> switch(to control which light goes on) -> lights

but what i'm missing is how to set up the grounding with it...also, resistors and maybe transistors.

If possible, can someone draw out a simple sketch for me, so i can understand better....or tell me if this that circuit up there works or not...

Thanks a million!!!! :):)

byebye

[dkerr]

http://www.discovercircuits.com/S/solar-cell.htm
http://www.uoguelph.ca/~antoon/circ/circuits.htm
http://www.lindsaybks.com/bks3/solar/index.html
http://www.solorb.com/elect/
http://www.uoguelph.ca/~antoon/circ/circuits.htm
http://www.solarbotics.net/library/circuits/se_noct_SIMD1SR.html
http://www.solarbotics.net/library/circuits/se_t1_1381.html
http://www.discovercircuits.com/list.htm
http://control.gsnu.ac.kr/~f007dan/cicuit/homepage.htm
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Bill_Bowden/
http://www.techlib.com/electronics/index.html
http://www.imagineeringezine.com/e-zine/hcircuits.html
http://www.amasci.com/amateur/elehob.html
http://www.epanorama.net/circuits/teleinterface.html
http://www.hut.fi/Misc/Electronics/circuits/teleinterface.html
http://www.egyptvolt.com/Circuits.htm
http://www.howstuffworks.com/solar-cell.htm
http://garnet.berkeley.edu/~phylabs/bsc/Manual.html

In my searches I never came across a specific solar powered enviromental air quality circuit, check out the above links will may be of some help , there are tons of electronic circuits /schematics , etc in these links.

I would imagine that such a device would be similiar in some respects to a smoke detector, that can detect particles in the air by either inozation or thru a light / detector that is very sensitive to any particales that reduces transmission of light thru the air.

To have 3 different warning lights, an ic or a transitter would likely be used and thru different resisters would have a different level threshold of saturation/switch on. Solar cells are not as efficient . or work on a cloudy day, that is where batteries come in, posssible a solar cells could be a source to charge the battery and the battery would be feeding the power to the circuit ?

you said:

SolarPanel ->diode -> RechargeableBatteries -> VoltageAmplifier(maybe??) -> switch(to control which light goes on) -> lights

Baring having a specific cirsuit to meet what you want. Here are just some thoughts...

1. solor panel - to recharge the batteries.
2. diode may or may not be needed but won't hurt having one, if I remember right solar panel have current running in one direction only + and - outputs.

Now if this is simply a manual on off of the lights , then the power/batteries can be connected to the lights directly thru 3 switches or relays if the lights are using a different power source.

If you want a smog/air quality sensor controlling automaticly the light ...

3. the battery then be powering the "sensor" which would likely cause a variation in the current/voltage of the sensors output,

4. this would thru different resisters be feeding 3 different transisters, the threshold /saturation triggers (on/off)n would be different depending on the outpuit of the sensor, and when the transister turns on it would either power a light directly or trigger a relay (either metanical or triac) , now this would turn on one light , then 2 light then 3 lights depending on the sensor output. Now if you want only one light at a time, one metanical way to do it would be to have 3 relays , with muliple contact sets , so that when the second relay triggers that trigger power to the first one gets cut.
There is an electronic means also to shunt the first transitter output to ground thru a resister when the second transitter satuates and turns on.

If you are using a air quality sensor then only one switch is likely neede to turn it all on or off. if you only want to power 3 lights to manually switch on or off then it becomes quite more simplisitic.

I wish I could be more precise, it is not the usual question we deal with on this forum

[Wgoodrich]

Don

I am impressed !

Wg

[Anonymous]

w00ps... :lol: i think i pointed out the topic a little too vague :shock:

Here's a more detailed description of this project:

Design an environmental/emergency light beacon has been suggested to help the City communicate effectively and rapidly. The beacons are to respond to a pager signal sent by the City.
Your task is to design and build, a solar-powered, environmental/emergency light beacon.
Your beacon must:
! work 24 hours per day, 365 days per year in an outdoor environment (assume there's no clouds)
! use solar energy as its only external source of power
! be portable & stored by you
! convey with lights emergency status (on-off), water status (3 categories; 3 levels of water quality) and air status (4 categories; Low, Low-Medium, Medium, High)

Pager Signal
For each individual light that could be on or off ...
there will be a 1 volt, 0.1mA signal

You are to provide connection points. We
will provide flexibility in our connections
provided you give us sufficient notice of
your requirements.

So, since the solar panel outputs 1Volt, i'm wondering how would i make the circuit board?

I'm thinking:

Solar panel (charge 2 AA batteries) -> DIODE (maybe!?) -> VoltageAmplifier(maybe?!?) & Pager Signal -> switch(to control which light goes on) -> LED's

where -> is the connection point (from - to)...

Sorry to keep bothering ya....but thank you for your time! :)

Kinmon

[dkerr]

1. define beacon - something that can be seen from afar (need large power source) or just light up a neon or led (small voltage light)

2. the 1 volt, 0.1mA signal trigger signal, this assume is a steady dc voltage, and you only need the circuit from this point on, not a decoding circuit for tones or radio circuits to decode the radio pager signal ?

3. this is based on a usage with no clouds (no night time senereos)

Is this a high school project or college /university/technical school.

I may be able to provide help if based on a low voltage light, and we are not dealing with decoding circuits for pager tones / or rf transmission decoding.

So I am assuming that you want to find a way to take a 1 volt, 0.1mA signal (assuming dc in nature) to trigger a light that is solar powered ?

Answer these questions and we will what we can do from there.

[Anonymous]

1. no need to decode pager signal...powering up LED's only

2. steady signal

3. assume there's no clouds..but there's night time

4. Algonquin college

5. we are dealing with low voltage LED

6. yes + the solar panel powers the LEDs indirectly, through batteries...

Thanks again! :D

[dkerr]

I must warn you that it has been a long time since I have made any electronic circuits, so I am not sure how much help I will be,

http://www.homewiringandmore.com/storage/forum/solarrelay.jpg

this is what I first thought of with the 1v .1 trigger coil voltage to the relay, however I can't seem to come across any relay that will trigger from such a small voltage, so it will likely have to be some kind of optic relay or an solid state/transister type relay.

http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Bill_Bowden/r_ctrl.htm

this above link provides transister circuits that work on digital level signals, look at option C , might work in your sitaution.

Also look at these links
http://www.uoguelph.ca/~antoon/gadgets/solar1g.htm
http://www.circuitos.terra.cl/schem/r96.gif

likely the 1st link may be what you are looking for and tap the battery outputs to supply the rest of the circuit.

the diagram at the top of this message is over simpified , but is just give ideas or starting thoughts. i would also browse thru the links in my first message to see if any info there is of any use.

Also I am having trouble finding leds less than 1.7 to 2 volt ratings, more than one photo cell in series could increase the voltage, there may be other means also.

Just some thoughts, wish I could be more precise on this.

[Wgoodrich]

I saw no limit to voltage in the instructions you provided in your challenge. I suspect Don has the right idea of increasing voltage. However I suspect you will have to parllel the solar boards or they will fight each other. Then if you parallel your boards you are increasing load capabilities yet not voltage. When you get enough solar boards together in parallel to carry say three times the watts required to run the project you should be able to convert this 1 volt high watt power source to a/c then transform to a higher voltage by using a 50/100 input out put boosting the voltage to 2 amps with half the watt power. Then you can use your diode to convert back to dc power. This way you can use multiple solar panels in sync with each other to get enough power to oscillate into a/c current then tranform to double the voltage by using your input output windings of your transformer as a step up transformer. However when you do this you watt power will be cut in half due to the voltage increased by double.

With the voltage increased to double then you have the voltage available to match the 2 volt equipment Don was talking of finding.

Just remember the low voltage needs twice the watt output of the solar panel to be able to transform using a/c power to the higher voltage which reduces in eqal value the watt output at the higher voltage on the secondary side of htat transformer. Then diodes to get it back to dc to be compatable with your equipment available.

Just some thoughts to add to Don's

Wg