Fireworks

[Ryan Harding]

Hi, building a firing box to ignite fireworks electronically
Just thinking if anyone has any ideas that i could combine?
So far i have:

:- Built in battery meter.
:- Digital Clock.

It's not much so far, and maybe a hard question to answer?

If anyone has any ideas what so ever, please just say

Thanks in advance

I have attacthched the schematics for you so far

 

[jrz126]

I dont really understand the bottom part of the schematic but...

I'm assuming you are using some sort of filiment to ignite the fireworks (similar to what is used to light model rockets). Is this filiment only good for 1 use? If so, maybe you could have a red and a green led for each switch, when the filiment is connected (completing the circuit) the red led will be on, when you ignite that firework, and the filiment is burt (breaking the circuit) the red led will go off and the green will come on.

Or you could still have 2 led's but have one of them in series with the igniter. so that when you throw the switch it will light up if there is a complete circuit. this will help you troubleshoot if you have a problem with the firework igniting. it'll let you know that the electrical part of the firing circuit is working. and maybe the igniter just needs to be repositioned.

Those are my thoughts...

 

[gerty]

What about a 555/4017 addition for timed sequencial firing :twisted:

 

[zachtheterrible]

just out of curiousity, why would u want a clock fireworks ignition system? Do you mean like a timer to light them off in sequence or something?

 

[Electric Rain]

Well, as far as ignition goes, the easiest way would be to use a piezoelectric igniter such as the ones used in electronic lighters. That along with a 555 and 4017 (like gerty said) with some relays on the output that will give igniters power the would be all you would need. Don't blow your hand off. :wink:

Rain

 

[gerty]

Zach a lot of fireworks are set of sequentially. In a fireworks display they
often set off several of the same type (starbursts/rockets/etc) for effect, and timing is everything ...

 

[Oznog]

Well, as far as ignition goes, the easiest way would be to use a piezoelectric igniter such as the ones used in electronic lighters. That along with a 555 and 4017 (like gerty said) with some relays on the output that will give igniters power the would be all you would need. Don't blow your hand off. :wink:

Rain

Piezo can only be ignited by mechanical means, not electrical! And it only makes a spark, which is not a good way to try to ignite fuses. That tiny spark works best with fuel/air mixtures.

The thing professional fireworks guys use is called "electronic matches", basically a model rocket ignitor. Just a low voltage, high current DC voltage. I believe it's a bit of thin nichrome wire and a tiny lump of solid pyro compound (a matchhead would probably work fine).

You'd need an output transistor for each channel to trigger that kind of pulse.

 

[Ryan Harding]

i was talking about a digital clock!
the guy who i made one previously for said to me that it is very hard to keep track of the timing of firework displays, believe me i didnt think it was that hard! but it obviously is

i like the idea of the led thing. i think that can be made into something nice.

also, it is a fuse that has similar chemicals to a match head, when a large current goes through it quickly, it sets on fire.

i am thinking about putting a sort of volt meter in it. could this be done by using different colour LED's??

Red for really bad
Orange for ok
Green for good

What do you think!?

Thanks again!

 

[crazymonkey]

I've made a simple ignitor in the past. It was just a 6V lanten battery, a switch and a silicon diode. When you connect the battery to the diode it heats up and burns out. If you tape the diode to a match head, it ignites. Only problem is that it's single use.