LED's for Home Lighting

[root.king]

nice thread also nice tutorial

 

[kARTechnology]

I talked to a local dealer for led pop ceiling lights, he showed me a led down panel light of 15w and 5 year warranty for fitting and 1 year for choke for 1.9k...

 

[CyberKID]

I talked to a local dealer for led pop ceiling lights, he showed me a led down panel light of 15w and 5 year warranty for fitting and 1 year for choke for 1.9k...

I think 1.9K is a bit more than what it should be. BTW which brand is he offering? Can you post some pics?

 

[kARTechnology]

I think 1.9K is a bit more than what it should be. BTW which brand is he offering? Can you post some pics?

Well it is FM LIGHTS LAVOV
For showroom, as if I do diy there it will look ugly
It's really slim(2-4cm only)

He is forcing me to take CDM-T 35W also (10pcs, and use occasionally) he says it provides really good lights for showroom and each bulb costs 1.1k and fitting + light is nearly 2+ k. It takes 3mins to start to full brightness

See their catalog in website, 2009 catalog under LED PANEL LIGHTS

 

[CyberKID]

Well it is FM LIGHTS LAVOV
For showroom, as if I do diy there it will look ugly
It's really slim(2-4cm only)

He is forcing me to take CDM-T 35W also (10pcs, and use occasionally) he says it provides really good lights for showroom and each bulb costs 1.1k and fitting + light is nearly 2+ k. It takes 3mins to start to full brightness

See their catalog in website, 2009 catalog under LED PANEL LIGHTS

If it's for showroom, then I'll suggest you to go with it. This is one reason I made this a LED's for Home Lighting thread.
DIY's are prone to fail (though chances are low, if done well) and it'll take you too much of an effort to make it look good.

Guys need a little help. I need suggestions for bright dimmable LED. Either multiple 1 watt leds or a single ~5 watt led is also fine.
I need to control these with a microcontroller using a relay and a relay driver.

What you actually want to achieve?
As for dimmers, mostly use resistances, so there's no point in using resistance based dimmers which would eventually waste more energy than you intend to save using LED's.
There's can be one solution though. You can make use of those multi-way slide switches and connect varying number of led's for variable applications.

 

[quagmire]

^Thanks for the reply buddy. Its for a Home Automation project. I want to control brightness based on sensor data (person presence, ambient light, open/close curtain situation) etc. Are those available in the market or should I make one?

 

[CyberKID]

^Thanks for the reply buddy. Its for a Home Automation project. I want to control brightness based on sensor data (person presence, ambient light, open/close curtain situation) etc. Are those available in the market or should I make one?

I think you can well make use of PIR (Passive Infrared Sensors,-to detect activity), LDR (Light Dependent Resistors) for application based on ambient light and open/close curtain situation (I'm taking this as a situation of varying light scenario)
I think such controllers with PIR sensors and LDR's are available, though, AFAIK both these are available as separate modules, so, you'll need to buy one and use accordingly. check out kitnspares.com for more such circuits.

 

[quagmire]

^Yes I'm using a PIR sensor. And a photodiode OPT101

 

[truegenius]

i made mistake here, white led voltage drop is 3.5v, not 0.7v. so replace all 0.7 with 3.5 and re calculate the math please. *l.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/mesg/emoticons7/9.gif

220-70*0.7 = 171 V at the end terminal of led series.

so to limit current to 20mA, u will need to add 171/0.02 = 8550 = ~10K ohm register in series to those leds. the diode should be 1N4007.

if the current to be 0.02A then resistor has to be 0.02*220 > ~ 5Watt rating, like 8W or something. (same as current consumption of circuit)

first diode & register to come in series with led series, then capacitor to be connected parallel to the leds after diode & resistor.

i think that if i use 70 leds then i will not need any resistor , isn't it ?

if u really want to implement this, do it in open space, make sure the mains have fuse installed and u are at least 10 meters away while switching ON the circuit.

CAUTION: U R PLAYING WITH 220 AC ELECTRIC VOLTS, CHANCE OF FATAL INJURY IF NOT TAKEN EXTREME PRECAUTION AND PROFESSIONAL GUIDANCE.
GET THE CIRCUIT VERIFIED BY A PROFESSIONAL ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONIC TECHNICIAN/PHYSICS/ELECTRICAL/ELECTRONICS TEACHER, BEFORE USING.

when was kid, i once connected a led to the mains, and it exploded, throwing away burning fragments.

p.s. 220-70*3.5 = 245 so i think they may not glow, cause mains voltage = 220-230v.

*4.bp.blogspot.com/_MuBl9In_0iQ/TS2VkmMNhaI/AAAAAAAAAUE/F_Ck3OipnQk/s1600/fingerscrossed-fingers-crossed-goodluck-smiley-emoticon-000674-large.gif

though i am 100% sure that the circuit (in attachment of my previous reply) will work and is 100% safe and may replace traditional 220v cfl

Pretty easy setup, but, the complexity of this setup is since this is working on 220v ac, and I suppose that you're planning to use those 70 led's in series, in case of some issue with the circuit, you risk all those led's killed. Moreover, I believe you won't be using that much light as generated by these many led's (I'm supposing that you're talking about 8mm led's, because Rs. 2 is too much for 5mm led's)

and what icebags has noted about working on 220 vac has to be taken into consideration seriously.

@icebags: those resistances (>5 watts are white hard to find) I haven't been able to find one beyond 5watts)

yes these leds will be in series.
according to calculations that i have done it wipp definately work like a charm

recently i made a setup in which i used 4 blue leds connected in series and then i attached this circuit to my pc's smps's 12v line and 8) i got lightning for my pc in just Rs10
but then i sold this setup to my friend for Rs70 only (i have a big heart )

i will tell that friend to invest on this 70led setup (because i will be total 'kangal' because i will buy a cycle from all my money left that i saved )

i will tell him that this setup will cost Rs200-250 ( sevice charge added )

i will use 5mm led or maybe smaller like ~3mm one
and 5mm one cost Rs3 per bulb, and Rs2 when purchasing in bulk (am i paying too much ? )

also i want to know how to purchase that pcb plate thingy to connect all these leds in series

 

[CyberKID]

i think that if i use 70 leds then i will not need any resistor , isn't it ?



*4.bp.blogspot.com/_MuBl9In_0iQ/TS2VkmMNhaI/AAAAAAAAAUE/F_Ck3OipnQk/s1600/fingerscrossed-fingers-crossed-goodluck-smiley-emoticon-000674-large.gif

though i am 100% sure that the circuit (in attachment of my previous reply) will work and is 100% safe and may replace traditional 220v cfl



yes these leds will be in series.
according to calculations that i have done it wipp definately work like a charm

recently i made a setup in which i used 4 blue leds connected in series and then i attached this circuit to my pc's smps's 12v line and 8) i got lightning for my pc in just Rs10
but then i sold this setup to my friend for Rs70 only (i have a big heart )

i will tell that friend to invest on this 70led setup (because i will be total 'kangal' because i will buy a cycle from all my money left that i saved )

i will tell him that this setup will cost Rs200-250 ( sevice charge added )

i will use 5mm led or maybe smaller like ~3mm one
and 5mm one cost Rs3 per bulb, and Rs2 when purchasing in bulk (am i paying too much ? )

also i want to know how to purchase that pcb plate thingy to connect all these leds in series

Mate, I told you, you'll need DC current to use those LED's while you're using AC. The PC SMPS converts 220v AC to 12v and 5v DC, that is the reason you were able to light up those LED's. And as icebags has commented, the setup you're using will damage all the led's, releasing dangerous fumes all over.
And yes, at Rs. 2 each, you're paying atleast double the price of what you should ideally pay for 5mm white led's. These led's are normally available at Re.1 each in retail, so, in wholesale, you should get it in lesser than that. As a matter of fact, the wholesellers sell the lot of thousand pieces for around Rs. 700-750, and not to mention, a number of led's in these lots are faulty. So, ideally you should pay a maximum of Rs. 1.25 to 1.5 for each 5mm white led.
And to purchase, the General Purpose PCB, (I'm taking that you live in Delhi) you can go to Lajpat Nagar market (this is one famous place for hobby electronics components, besides Bhagirathi place market) to get some pre-drilled general purpose pcb. You'll be offered the PCB in various sizes like 3x5, 4x6 and so on, and you could expect to shell out anything between Rs. 20 to 40 for each general purpose PCB.

And if you're seriously considering making the 70 led setup, make sure to add in an MOV (Metal Oxide Varistor) rated at atleast 450 volts, or an NTC Thermister, which can also be used as a spike buster, as AC current is generally known to generate spikes or surges, which will surely damage your components, and blow them out.

 

[icebags]

i did some miscalculations above.

even though theoretically 70 while leds can stand 245v AC, its too risky to do that, first of all leds will be facing AC, then suppose 2-3 leds getting short - then the result will be drastic increase on circuit current flow and leds will soog get overloaded and start exploding.

there is a strong reason leds are never left in a mains without a driver circuit with high resistance and perhaps a diode.

u have to limit current to safely use leds.

 

[The Incinerator]

You are right! I kinda got carried away! Your new thread is really great and very informative.



Well, we're saying such and such items are not available in Kolkata! In case you do not already know, the Kolkata market is one of the most backward in the country. Easily available here are only the low-end stuff. If one wants any high-end or nu-tech stuff, one usually has to hunt, wait and 'pray' for months here.

What Crap,its not the Kolkata market thats backward its YOU actuaally. Update yourself,visit Ezra Street ,Chandni and Poddar Court....to open your eyes.

 

[CyberKID]

Bumping the long sleeping thread again!

This time, with a Practical Implementation Project - A Dual Axis Solar Tracker for mounting Solar Panels

The work on the Alternative Energy source based on an array of solar panels, for my home is underway. Though, I planned, going through some more DIY and design changes to accomplish the stuff, before actually implementing the idea.
In the series, I, along with my brother, planned on to design a Solar Tracker to mount the solar panels that we'll be buying, to achieve, the maximum potential output from the solar panels and letting the panels work at their maximum possible efficiency that can be achieved by following the light source (except for other environmental factors).
So, now, we are midway into designing an Arduino Based Dual Axis Solar Tracker that would work with an ATMega328 microcontroller based Arduino board (Freeduino), working as the main controller for all the components used in the tracker, along with an L298N based H-Bridge Dual Motor Driver Circuit, to drive the two motors to work out the best possible placement of the solar panels, according to the solar radiation.

So, for now, I've procured the following items:
1. Adruino (32 Bit microcontroller)
2. L298N based H Bridge Dual Motor Driver circuit
3. 2 x 12VDC-10RPM DC geared motors having a Stall Torque of 45kgcm each. (Servo Motors would have best suited for the project, but, I couldn't find servos capable of handling so much load )
Other components including Photo Sensors (Light Dependent Resistors), resistances, and other stuff.

Scouring through the internet to get help landed me to some valuable help, including help from instructables and arduino forums.

I got an idea from this instructable, on how to go through the design of the tracker.

Till now, I have completed some coding to drive the motors using the Arduino to control the (L298N based) Motor Driver Circuit. Then added some Light Dependent Resistors to the circuit to get realtime data from based on the lighting conditions, and making some decision based on comparision of data from two of the four sensors to drive individual motors.

A shot of the setup I captured today:
*i.imgur.com/oswPH37.png

 

[CyberKID]

UPDATE
After fiddling on with the hardware, electronics, and a prototype (a working model of the tracker), before starting the work on the actual tracker, I've reached one milestone.
It's that the tracker prototype is now functional, though, the prototype for now, is just a simple single axis one where the Zenith (Altitude) of the sun is being tracked by a piece of thermocole (acting as the frame holding the panels) that, I've mounted on a small platform made out of some wood, with one side of the thermocole being handled by a fixed bolt, while another side being driven by one of the motors. The sensor part is being handled by a couple of simple 5mm Light Dependent Resistors (LDR's) with wedges in between all four sensors to let them track light independent of the other sensors. These sensors are mounted on the thermocole only, so as to track the sun most efficiently.
The code, a small one, just 75 lines have been written for now, and the tracker is actually tracking the light on one axis, while the other one has to be integrated in the prototype design and it'll work too. Will post a video of the tracking part tomorrow!

 

[Chetan1991]

Inspirational. Do you have a blog teaching electronic circuit design? If not, you should have one. It would be a huge success.

 

[mastercool8695]

awesome thread.

[MENTION=96386]CyberKID[/MENTION] : you into robotics ?
you are making a rotating solar panel . right ?
awesome .
i'm also interested.

do you guys know what led id there in mobile phones (behing the number pad) ? they are very powerful and are like 1 mm in size. they are cubic or couboid in structure .
i saw one in a micromax phne when i tried to take the pieces apart and tried to clean the trackball,
the LED is very very bright and very tiny. i don't know what its called.

i also forgot my soldering iron in hostel. so probably, will buy a new one. any suggestions ?

- - - Updated - - -

edit : found out i always googled for "Bright white small LED keypad trackball mobile cell phone"
when i simply searched types of LEDs, i found out they are the SMB LEDs but where to get them and are they really better than general 3 mm or 5 mm LEDs ?
one more question .
why do we need LED driver circuits ?

- - - Updated - - -

can i get 1 mm LEDs (as in here ) locally in kolkata ?
are these LEDs called as just "1mm LED" and "3mm LED" ?

 

[CyberKID]

And now, here's the video of the partially working prototype!
Thanks, Chetan. What I do is purely hobby DIY stuff and working on things, and at times, takes a lot of time to complete, and sometimes, I have to let it midway to take care of something important, so, having a blog or something like for the DIY stuff, I work upon, won't be feasible, because, a blog needs frequently updated content, while, I can't feed that much stuff to a blog to keep it alive for long.
@mastercool8695: The LED's you're referring to from the cellphone flashes are called SMD LED's. Even the ones found in the backlights of phone's keypads, and such are SMD LED's and owing to their size, are quite hard to work upon. These are small LED's supposed to be connected to circuits and such directly. If you check out the starting pages of this thread, a list of types of LED's is available. You can check out Ebay for LED's (1 watt, 3, watt, 5 watt, 7 watt LED's, etc). The SMD LED's mostly are high powered ones, with ranging capacities, and thus, generate a lot of heat, which needs to be dissipated using proper heat sinks, and without one, an LED will get damaged in seconds.
Prices are not much, you can expect to shell out anything between 7-10 rupees for each 1 watt LED (with heat sink-mostly star shaped).
And no, I'm not into robotics. I just wanted to put up solar panels on my home's rooftop, for alternative power generation and power backup, so, planned to build a tracker to get the maximum of the panel's potential, using a dual axis solar tracker.

 

[mastercool8695]

And now, here's the video of the partially working prototype!
Thanks, Chetan. What I do is purely hobby DIY stuff and working on things, and at times, takes a lot of time to complete, and sometimes, I have to let it midway to take care of something important, so, having a blog or something like for the DIY stuff, I work upon, won't be feasible, because, a blog needs frequently updated content, while, I can't feed that much stuff to a blog to keep it alive for long.
@mastercool8695: The LED's you're referring to from the cellphone flashes are called SMD LED's. Even the ones found in the backlights of phone's keypads, and such are SMD LED's and owing to their size, are quite hard to work upon. These are small LED's supposed to be connected to circuits and such directly. If you check out the starting pages of this thread, a list of types of LED's is available. You can check out Ebay for LED's (1 watt, 3, watt, 5 watt, 7 watt LED's, etc). The SMD LED's mostly are high powered ones, with ranging capacities, and thus, generate a lot of heat, which needs to be dissipated using proper heat sinks, and without one, an LED will get damaged in seconds.
Prices are not much, you can expect to shell out anything between 7-10 rupees for each 1 watt LED (with heat sink-mostly star shaped).
And no, I'm not into robotics. I just wanted to put up solar panels on my home's rooftop, for alternative power generation and power backup, so, planned to build a tracker to get the maximum of the panel's potential, using a dual axis solar tracker.

saw those johnsons. thats why.

 

[quagmire]

Great work [MENTION=96386]CyberKID[/MENTION].

Some questions:

1. If you're using a DC Geared Motor wouldn't it require a huge current just to stay in place, ie., balance the torque?
Do you have a gear system to lock the mechanism into place, at a required angle?

2. Where are you sourcing your Solar panels from? How expensive are they?
How much current can you source from them?

3. Maintaining (or plan on) a inverter - battery - charger system with this?




-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------





To mention some of my work :

I had made a 5W LED string using five 1W LEDs (3V,300mA).

*Powered by a 19V Laptop charger
*Controlled by a MOSFET circuit, with PWM on the gate by a microcontroller..
*I'm using inexpensive aluminium channel as a heatsink.
(The aluminium channel is the one the carpenters us for holding sliding cupboards onto place)

Some pics:
(I dont have the image with the LEDs turned on, will post them next time)

Spoiler

*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=14423&d=1401121566


View attachment 14423






*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=14424&d=1401122121

View attachment 14424







*i.imgur.com/5mDcGOf.jpg






*i.imgur.com/AE1jRiS.jpg

 

[mastercool8695]

Great work [MENTION=96386]CyberKID[/MENTION].

Some questions:

1. If you're using a DC Geared Motor wouldn't it require a huge current just to stay in place, ie., balance the torque?
Do you have a gear system to lock the mechanism into place, at a required angle?

2. Where are you sourcing your Solar panels from? How expensive are they?
How much current can you source from them?

3. Maintaining (or plan on) a inverter - battery - charger system with this?




-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------





To mention some of my work :

I had made a 5W LED string using five 1W LEDs (3V,300mA).

*Powered by a 19V Laptop charger
*Controlled by a MOSFET circuit, with PWM on the gate by a microcontroller..
*I'm using inexpensive aluminium channel as a heatsink.
(The aluminium channel is the one the carpenters us for holding sliding cupboards onto place)

Some pics:
(I dont have the image with the LEDs turned on, will post them next time)

Spoiler

*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=14423&d=1401121566


View attachment 14423






*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=14424&d=1401122121

View attachment 14424







*i.imgur.com/5mDcGOf.jpg






*i.imgur.com/AE1jRiS.jpg

i was also thinking about the same thing actually (power consumed by the johnson motors.)
but the share of power consumed now is high (as very less power is generated from the sunlight)
when we put an array of several such panels, the power consumption would be lower as compared to what is generated from the sunlight.

just a suggestion. : what if we use Stepper motors instead ? they would be costly at first but then you loose less power in the function of the motors as they dont have to be powered constantly for holding the panel bed at any desired angle .


would it be possible to design a system of gears to stop and lock the motion and position respectively of the panel bed ? i think it might be

- - - Updated - - -

i found this :
*electronicsforu.com/electronicsfor...85&article_type=1&id=1018&tt=unhot&b_type=new