0 Non-Contact Power Monitor circuit

Here is a simple non-contact AC power monitor for home appliances and laboratory equipment that should remain continuously switched-on. A fuse failure or power breakdown in the equipment going unnoticed may cause irreparable loss. The monitor sounds an alarm on detecting power failure to the equipment. The circuit is built around CMOS IC CD4011 utilising only a few components. NAND gates N1 and N2 of the IC are wired as an oscillator that drives a piezobuzzer directly. Resistors R2 and R3 and capacitor C2 are the oscillator components. The amplifier comprising transistors T1 and T2 disables the oscillator when mains power is available. In the standby mode, the base of T1 picks up 50Hz mains hum during the positive half cycles of AC and T1 conducts.

Non-Contact Power Monitor Circuit diagram:

   

Non-Contact Power Monitor circuit diagram

  

This provides base current to T2 and it also conducts, pulling the collector to ground potential. As the collectors of T1 and T2 are connected to pin 2 of NAND gate N1 of the oscillator, the oscillator gets disabled when the transistors conduct. Capacitor C1 prevents rise of the collector voltage of T2 again during the negative half cycles. When the power fails, the electrical field around the equipment’s wiring ceases and T1 and T2 turn off. Capacitor C1 starts charging via R1 and preset VR and when it gets sufficiently charged, the oscillator is enabled and the piezobuzzer produces a shrill tone. Resistor R1 protects T2 from short circuit if VR is adjusted to zero resistance.

The circuit can be easily assembled on a perforated/breadboard. Use a small plastic case to enclose the circuit and a telescopic antenna as aerial. A 9V battery can be used to power the circuit. Since the circuit draws only a few microamperes current in the standby mode, the battery will last several months. After assembling the circuit, take the aerial near the mains cable and adjust VR until the alarm stops to indicate the standby mode. The circuit can be placed on the equipment to be monitored close to the mains cable.

Detail: Non-Contact Power Monitor circuit

0 12KV High Voltage Generator

The hobby circuit below uses an unusual method to generate about 12,000 volts with about 5uA of current. Two SCRs form two pulse generator circuits. The two SCRs discharge a 0.047uF a 400v capacitor through a xenon lamp trigger coil at 120 times a second.

 12KV High Voltage Generator Circuit Diagram

The high voltage pulses produced at the secondary of the trigger coil are rectified using two 6KV damper diodes. The voltage doubler circuit at the secondary of the trigger coil charges up two high voltage disc capacitors up to about 12KV. Although this circuit can’t produce a lot of current be very careful with it. A 12KV spark can jump about 0.75 of an inch so the electronic circuit needs to be carefully wired with lots of space between components.

Source: DiscoverCircuits

Detail: 12KV High Voltage Generator

0 Mains Slave Switcher II

As a guide, a one-inch reed switch with 40 turns reliably switched on with the current flowing through a 150-watt lamp (approx. 625 mA) but larger reeds may require more turns. If the master appliance draws less current (which is unlikely with power tools) more turns will be required. The reed switch is used to switch on transistor T1 which in turn switches the relay RE1 and powers the slave appliance. Since reed switches have a low mechanical inertia, they have little difficulty in following the fluctuations of the magnetic field due to the alternating current in the coil and this means that they will switch on and off at 100 Hz.

Mains Slave Switcher II Circuit diagram:

Mains Slave Switcher II Circuit Diagram

C3 is therefore fitted to slow down the transistor response and keep the relay energised during the mains zero crossings when the current drawn by the appliance falls to zero and the reed switch opens. C1 drops the mains voltage to about 15 V (determined by zener diode D1) and this is rectified and smoothed by D2 and C2 to provide a d.c. supply for the circuit. The relay contacts should be rated to switch the intended appliance (vacuum cleaner) and the coil should have a minimum coil resistance of 400 R as the simple d.c. supply can only provide a limited current. C1 drops virtually the full mains voltage and should therefore be a n X2-class component with a voltage rating of at least 250V a.c.

Warning:

The circuit is by its nature connected directly to the mains supply. Great care should therefore be taken in its construction and the circuit should be enclosed in a plastic or earthed metal box with mains sockets fitted for the master and slave appliances.

Detail: Mains Slave Switcher II

0 Diode Cmos Stabilizer Circuit Diagram

The simple diode network can stabilize the voltage supplied to CMOS circuitry from a battery. D1 and D2 must have a combined forward-voltage drop of about 1.5 V. And D3 is an LED with a forward-voltage drop of about 1.7 V. The table shows the network`s output voltage as the battery`s voltage declines. [Link]

 Diode Cmos Stabilizer Circuit Diagram

Detail: Diode Cmos Stabilizer Circuit Diagram

0 Two Mounting Methods were Devised to protect

 These two mounting methods were devised to protect PC boards from vibration when installed in the engine compartment of a car. They could also be used in other applications where vibration is a problem. Method 1 involves rigidly mounting the PC board inside a diecast box and then mounting the box itself to provide vibration isolation. As shown, small grommets are installed in suitably sized holes in the sides of the box.

The box is then secured to angle mounting brackets using M4 screws, washers and nylock nuts. Method 2 involves mounting the diecast case onto the chassis of the car and then mounting the PC board as shown, using M3 screws, grommets, hollow spacers and nylock nuts. In this case, the grommets are fitted into suitably sized holes in the PC board itself. Once the nuts are tightened, the PC board should be able to move slightly, relative to the box. If there is not enough space on the board to fit the grommets, then Method 1 is the way to do it.

Author: David Boyes - Copyright: Silicon Chip Electronics

Detail: Two Mounting Methods were Devised to protect

0 Circuit - Cat And Dog Repellent

The electronic dog repellent circuit diagram below is a high output ultrasonic transmitter which is primarily intended to act as a dog and cat repeller, which can be used individuals to act as a deterrent against some animals. It should NOT be relied upon as a defence against aggressive dogs but it may help distract them or encourage them to go away and do not consider this as an electronic pest repeller. The ultrasonic dog repellant uses a standard 555 timer IC1 set up as an oscillator using a single RC network to give a 40 kHz square wave with equal mark/space ratio.

This frequency is above the hearing threshold for humans but is known to be irritating frequency for dog and cats. Since the maximum current that a 555 timer can supply is 200mA an amplifier stage was required so a high-power H-bridge network was devised, formed by 4 transistors TR1 to TR4. A second timer IC2 forms a buffer amplifier that feeds one input of the H-bridge driver, with an inverted waveform to that of IC1 output being fed to the opposite input of the H-bridge.

Circuit diagram:

Cat And Dog Repellent Circuit Diagram

This means that conduction occurs through the complementary pairs of TR1/TR4 and TR2/TR3 on alternate marks and spaces, effectively doubling the voltage across the ultrasonic transducer, LS1. This is optimised to generate a high output at ultrasonic frequencies. This configuration was tested by decreasing the frequency of the oscillator to an audible level and replacing the ultrasonic transducer with a loudspeaker; the results were astounding. If the dog repellent circuit was fed by a bench power supply rather than a battery that restrict the available current, the output reached 110dB with 4A running through the speaker which is plenty loud enough!

The Dog and Cat repellant was activated using a normal open switch S1 to control the current consumption, but many forms of automatic switching could be used such as pressure sensitive mats, light beams or PIR sensors. Thus it could be utilise as part of a dog or cat deterrent system to help prevent unwanted damage to gardens or flowerbeds, or a battery powered version can be carried for portable use. Consider also using a lead-acid battery if desired, and a single chip version could be built using the 556 dual timer IC to save space and improve battery life.

Detail: Circuit - Cat And Dog Repellent