LED controller project

[JohnR66]

I bread boarded my prototype for a 4 channel LED controller. The idea is to build a programmable controller box with ports to connect the LEDs which are to be installed in their own light box and cabled back to the controller box. The heart of the circuit is a 8 pin DIP PicAxe 8 bit microcontroller chip 08M that can be reprogrammed as needed. One input pin can be used as a switch to change modes or analog to digital conversion. Using MOSFETs, it will be able to control LED arrays. With a 24 volt supply, it can control 6 power LEDs in series per channel or 24 power LEDs in total at up to 700ma per channel.

The picture below shows it operating on 9 volts to power 5mm LED arrays. The layout of the LEDs are different due to the different forward voltage of the LEDs and relative brightness. I'm using the high brightness Cree 5mm 3C503B color LEDs.

I'm using the PicAxe because someone sent me a couple for free to play with. Interfaces to my computer's serial port for programming using a couple resistors and a cable that is easy to make. No expensive programming board needed.

The easy part is over, the hard part is building the little boxes for everything.

 

[2009Prius]

Looks like a fun project! Subscribed.

 

[Dave_H]

I was about to say, John presents this interesting yet not
overly difficult project, and there are no takers... what is
the world coming to...? oo:

So John: what kind of control are you thinking of, dimming
with duty-cycle control, sequencing, remote control,
light-level switching, combination of above or something
else?

Dave

 

[JohnR66]

So John: what kind of control are you thinking of, dimming
with duty-cycle control, sequencing, remote control,
light-level switching, combination of above or something
else?
Dave

Its mainly to sequence through various patterns, such as chasing lights, emergency vehicle blinkers, bouncing pattern, random... Right now I have it programed to run through all of these in a loop.

being programmable I can upload code to make it do whatever I need for a particular application.

Since I don't have the cash to buy 24 XPGs right now, I'll probably make big matrices with some of the thousands of 5mm white Cree LEDs I got for free.

I'm glad someone sent me those micro controllers or I probably would have never gotten around to try them.

When I get finished with this one, who knows. Maybe sometime over the summer.

 

[saabluster]

John this looks like a very cool project and one that is above me. You might consider asking a mod to move this to the Flashlight Electronics forum however.

 

[mastou]

Nice this also looks like a perfect idea for a small LED aquarium light with 12 white XR-E and 12 royal blue cree (programmed sunrice/sunset and maybe a couple of different powerlevels like 50% - 75% - 100%)

I would like to try to build such a light at some point (though I'll start with a diving light mod) so I'll definitely subscribe to this thread and hope it will be simpler to understand than this thread on reefcentral (otherwise is it something you are planning to sell?):

DIY LED driver for reef lighting
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1759758

/Magnus