LED Project for remote Campsite + Automated

[lmeissen]

Hallo everyone

I need some help building a LED Light for our private campsite. Only in the bathroom / shower. I will run these bathrooms from a 12Volt battery + Solar panels.

It should be able to run from -5 Degrees Cellsius - 30+
Power Consumption is very important
Needs to be PWM controlled, 60 - 100 Hz
20 LED's per bathroom in cluster
It should work automated, no input from clients...

I have build a few leds wih the 555 timer ic, driving 6 leds, (2 x paralel sets of 3 in Series), monostable but leds fading away after time.


This is what I have:
lots of ic's
ne555n
lm358n
cd74hc163e
m74hc14b1
cd4093be
lm339n
1350 LED Driver IC's (to small to work with)

transistors
c547c
c557c
ksp2222a
2n2222a
bc549c
2n7000
2n3904
2n3906
c106dg
lm317T
tip127

All types of resistors / Photo resitors / Caps / LED's bright white boaght over time


Dont hace coils for 1350 LED Driver ic's, should it work without it?

Any input will help. I will try to post some pics of the bathrooms.

Kind Regards
+ Thanx - Great site - to bad I found it recently!

Lee

 

[The Mad Professor]

Insulate the battery box, polystyrene is good.

Scrounge a PIR alarm sensor so the lights will come on when user enters
Daylight sensor to turn the whole system off when it is not dark
use a 555 monostable with a long delay to switch the lights

Alternatively hack a security floodlight for the attached sensor which does all of the above and keep the floodlight part for something else.

 

[Boncuk]

Hi imeissen,

I'm missing some important details in your description.

- battery capacity in Ah
- type of LEDs used (e.g. Cree group Q5, cool white, 107lm, 5,000K, If=350mA)

Using 6 Crees in a 2x3 arrangement the current flow will be 700mA.

A 2Ah battery will be depleted very fast.

Further it would be good to know if the bathrooms get daylight. (I've experienced lots of them without any window.)

Boncuk

 

[lmeissen]

Hi Guys!
Thank you for the response. Ok, I am planning to use 1 x deep cycle 102Ah battery, connected to 1 x 55Watt 12Volt Solar panel. There are 7 bathrooms, but we are planning to build 3 or 5 more at that location in the future. There is a lot of shade in the camp, so the battery + solar panel will be next to the camp. Very rough estimate length in power cables, about 500Meters.
**broken link removed**
**broken link removed**


We converted this water tanks to bathrooms. No windows. Toilet, basin, hot shower (gas powered)
I’ve bought a few of these, and so far this type of led is the winner among the several I have tested.

**broken link removed**


I think the heat sink is integrated inside the led.
All LED’s consume 0.4 Amps, with 3.91 Volt battery voltages, not fully charged…
It is using 3 x AA batteries…
LED lifespan, only 10 000 hours.

**broken link removed**
Look at the circuit, there are no resistors, everything connected in parallel.
This is 5mm, super white LED’s

Thanx for your time
Cheers
Lee

 

[Boncuk]

Not everything is connected parallel. The batteries are obviously connected in series.

Have you thought about the possibily that there will be campers suffering from Klausthrophogy?

I also suggest you test the LED lamps in the dark to find out how many are really required to illuminate the bathroom sufficiently.

A cluster of 2X3 LEDs will proably already look like a flood light.

Boncuk

 

[HarveyH42]

Wow, camping sure has come a long way since I was a kid... The toilet, was just some place off the trail, shower (usually ice cold) was a stream or river. Cooked over a wood fire.

Anyway, here are some $5 PIR sensors, run off a 9 volt battery, might handle 12v. Come with modification sheet, so you can add a relay or whatever. Also transmits at 433mHz, but couldn't find anything on a receiver (they had a kit once though). They work pretty good though. Programmable delays, but don't remember how long, could dig one out and see.
SALE! Quorum A-160 Passive Infrared Detector-The Electronic Goldmine
Probably the best deal around.

 

[lmeissen]

THis is our private campsite. You have your own bathroom.

I've done another test, current draw is 0.7 Amps. I will construct a pwm and see what it can handle... Oh, btw... What is "Klausthrophogy"?

 

[Boncuk]

Oh, btw... What is "Klausthrophogy"?

It is fear in narrow rooms. People suffering from it go crazy in a lift, telephone booth or other narrow rooms.

Boncuk

 

[lmeissen]

Can I connect this type of LED's, 3 in series connecting to a 12Volt battery without a resistor? Or is it possible to buit a step-up, 13.7Volt regulater?

 

[lmeissen]

It is fear in narrow rooms. People suffering from it go crazy in a lift, telephone booth or other narrow rooms.

Boncuk

Ah, thank you. They will have to keep the door open then... lol

It is not that small, about 2.1 or 2.5 Meter diameter.

 

[lmeissen]

Can someone give me schematics of a LED driver? I think the forward voltage of these LED's is 4.5 Volts. Can I put 3 in series, and step up the voltage to 13.5Volts?

 

[MRubenzahl]

Hi, I work at Maxim and one of our applications engineers saw your question and made a suggestion, which I am posting for him.

For a simple LED circuit, you can consider the MAX667 linear voltage regulator and the MAX1916 triple white LED bias supply. The MAX667 will convert your 12V battery voltage and provide a fixed +5V for the MAX1916. The MAX1916 has a simple dimming control and will maintain the current for the LEDs. Both the MAX667 and the MAX1916 feature an ENABLE/SHDN input which can be used in conjunction with a light sensor for automated control. You can use each of these devices as depicted in the typical operating circuit in the data sheet.

The data sheet for the MAX667 is available at the following link:

https://www.electro-tech-online.com/custompdfs/2009/11/MAX667.pdf

The data sheet for the MAX1916 is available at the following link:

https://www.electro-tech-online.com/custompdfs/2009/11/MAX1916.pdf

Please feel free to visit Maxim's online Technical Support site at **broken link removed** where we will be happy to review your circuit and offer*suitable component recommendations.

 

[shokjok]

Are you trying to light the whole loo with LEDs?
You only need enough LEDs for the basic minimum requirements. Have you considered using modified LED flashlights connected to the PWM driver?
Perhaps using high-brightness LEDs around the mirror ( if there is one), which should light the sink, and toilet/ latrine with tissue dispenser nearby will suffice for your needs.