circuit harness wiring

Useful for liquids level detection and proximity devices, Up to 50 cm. range, optional relay operation

This circuit is useful in liquids level or proximity detection. It operates detecting the distance from the target by reflection of an infra-red beam. It can safely detect the level of a liquid in a tank without any contact with the liquid itself. The devices range can be set from a couple of cm. to about 50 cm. by means of a trimmer. Range can vary, depending on infra-red transmitting and receiving LEDs used and is mostly affected by the color of the reflecting surface. Black surfaces lower greatly the devices sensitivity.

Parts:

R1_____________10K 1/4W Resistor
R2,R5,R6,R9_____1K 1/4W Resistors
R3_____________33R 1/4W Resistor
R4,R8___________1M 1/4W Resistors
R7_____________10K Trimmer Cermet
R10____________22K 1/4W Resistor
C1,C4___________1µF 63V Electrolytic or Polyester Capacitors
C2_____________47pF 63V Ceramic Capacitor
C3,C5,C6______100µF 25V Electrolytic Capacitors
D1_____________Infra-red LED
D2_____________Infra-red Photo Diode (see Notes)
D3,D4________1N4148 75V 150mA Diode
D5______________LED (Any color and size)
D6,D7________1N4002 100V 1A Diodes
Q1____________BC327 45V 800mA PNP Transistor
IC1_____________555 Timer IC
IC2___________LM358 Low Power Dual Op-amp
IC3____________7812 12V 1A Positive voltage regulator IC
RL1____________Relay with SPDT 2A @ 220V switch Coil Voltage 12V. Coil resistance 200-300 Ohm
J1_____________Two ways output socket

Circuit operation:

IC1 forms an oscillator driving the infra-red LED by means of 0.8mSec. pulses at 120Hz frequency and about 300mA peak current. D1 & D2 are placed facing the target on the same line, a couple of centimeters apart, on a short breadboard strip. D2 picks-up the infra-red beam generated by D1 and reflected by the surface placed in front of it. The signal is amplified by IC2A and peak detected by D4 & C4. Diode D3, with R5 & R6, compensates for the forward diode drop of D4. A DC voltage proportional to the distance of the reflecting object and D1 & D2 feeds the inverting input of the voltage comparator IC2B. This comparator switches on and off the LED and the optional relay via Q1, comparing its input voltage to the reference voltage at its non-inverting input set by the Trimmer R7.

Notes:

• Power supply must be regulated (hence the use of IC3) for precise reference voltage. The circuit can be fed by a commercial wall plug-in adapter, having a DC output voltage in the range 12-24V.
• Current drawing: LED off 40mA; LED and Relay on 70mA @ 12V DC supply.
• R10, C6, Q1, D6, D7, RL1 and J1 can be omitted if relay operation is not required.
• The infra-red Photo Diode D2, should be of the type incorporating an optical sunlight filter: these components appear in black plastic cases. Some of them resemble TO92 transistors: in this case, please note that the sensitive surface is the curved, not the flat one.
• Avoid sun or artificial light hitting directly D1 & D2.
• Usually D1-D2 optimum distance lies in the range 1.5-3 cm.

This circuit was designed to detect when a call is incoming in a cellular phone (even when the calling tone of the device is switched-off) by means of a flashing LED.
The device must be placed a few centimeters from the cellular phone, so its sensor coil L1 can detect the field emitted by the phone receiver during an incoming call.













Parts:
R1 100K 1/4W Resistor
R2 3K9 1/4W Resistor
R3 1M 1/4W Resistor
C1,C2 100nF 63V Polyester Capacitors
C3 220µF 25V Electrolytic Capacitor
D1 LED Red 10mm. Ultra-bright (see Notes)
D2 1N5819 40V 1A Schottky-barrier Diode (see Notes)
Q1 BC547 45V 100mA NPN Transistor
IC1 7555 or TS555CN CMos Timer IC
L1 Sensor coil (see Notes)
B1 1.5V Battery (AA or AAA cell etc.)


Stand-by current drawing is less than 200µA, therefore a power on/off switch is unnecessary.
Sensitivity of this circuit depends on the sensor coil type.
L1 can be made by winding 130 to 150 turns of 0.2 mm. enameled wire on a 5 cm. diameter former (e.g. a can). Remove the coil from the former and wind it with insulating tape, thus obtaining a stand-alone coil.
A commercial 10mH miniature inductor, usually sold in the form of a tiny rectangular plastic box, can be used satisfactorily but with lower sensitivity.
IC1 must be a CMos type: only these devices can safely operate at 1.5V supply or less.
Any Schottky-barrier type diode can be used in place of the 1N5819: the BAT46 type is a very good choice.

Thus by placing the bulb and the LDR at appropriate distances, one may vary preset VR1 to get optimum sensitivity.
For smoke detector installation and maintenance use a near electrician.