Looking to build some of these on the cheap.....

[mbramble]

See the link at https://www.niteguard.com/

I would like to build several of these for my own use. I have a lot of property to cover and can't afford to pay the price for individual units. I am assuming I could build them cheaper and tailor them to my own preferences. I have built a little Radio Shack kit that works but it is simply battery operated and I have to change the batteries. Would like some that I can put in place and forget about.

So, basically I am looking for a circuit that will flash up to 4 bright LEDs (instead of 4 units pointing each direction at a central location, I would build 1 unit with 4 LEDs - 1 pointing each direction).

Flash rate on these units is approx once per second. I have seen flashing LEDs that flash once per second (approx) and would like to use them since I suspect this would reduce the component requirements (and therefore cost) since I guess there would be no need for a circuit to create the timing pulses. I would also be able to simply use standard LEDs if I didn't want them to flash (see next paragraph).

For another (but related) purpose I would like the same thing but with the addition of it detecting motion and turning on LEDs when motion is sensed. I have seen the motion detector modules that are available via eBay (for one source) and believe they could be added into the circuit without too much additional work.

Need to use a solar cell to charge nicad batteries (I have lots of AA & AAA) and I would like the option of it working in daylight OR dark. A switch, or simply a jumper at assembly time, would determine that function.

It seems to me that a single circuit could be designed that would cover these purposes with the ability to add in the motion detector -- or not -- at assembly time.

I have an electronics background -- but that was a LONG time ago and I am not only rusty with the principals but components are much different (no LEDs, few ICs, mostly solid state and vacuum tubes!!) than when I was learning/working (in the Navy) so any and all help would be most appreciated.

Thanks,
Mike

 

[SABorn]

All looks simple enough.

A cheap hack might be to buy a pack of the cheap solar garden lights and replace the leds with a red flashing led, due to the dutycycle of the flashing led it would extend the garden light operating time greatly.

Pete.

 

[gerty]

"A cheap hack might be to buy a pack of the cheap solar garden lights and replace the leds with a red flashing led, due to the dutycycle of the flashing led it would extend the garden light operating time greatly."

Great idea !! That would also provide a waterproof housing

 

[carbonzit]

Interesting. Since their web site says

The simple but effective fact is that a flash of light is sensed as an eye and becomes a threat immediately to the most ferocious night animals.

I wonder how hard it would be to rig up a LED that would flash randomly, so it would look even more like a moving animal's eye?

 

[tytower]

I would doubt that this would deter anything but humans who know that flashing LED means possibly an alarm is installed. My solar lights flash when the battery gets low and I have seen bandicoots digging directly under it . No effect.

Now if it were random as suggested perhaps . If it were combined with an electronic whistle pitched above human hearing then much more likelyhood of sucess

 

[KJ6EAD]

Animals become accustomed to such things and ignore them. That's why scarecrows, plastic coyotes and plastic owls don't work on a long term basis.

 

[crutschow]

I would doubt that this would deter anything but humans who know that flashing LED means possibly an alarm is installed. My solar lights flash when the battery gets low and I have seen bandicoots digging directly under it . No effect.

It could be that that it needs to be small flashing red light, since that more closely resembles the color of the reflected light from a night animals eyes (from the blood in the retina I believe).

 

[mbramble]

Carl, FYI ---- (from Texas State Parks web site)

Eyeshine occurs when light enters the eye, passes through the rods (light receptors) and cones (color receptors) of the retina (image surface), strikes a special membrane behind the retina, and is reflected back through the eye to the light source. This special mirrorlike membrane, called the tapetum (ta-PEA-tum), is not present in the human eye. We have dark-colored cells behind our retinas, which absorb light rather than reflect it.

The majority of animals displaying eyeshine also are nocturnal animals.

Most of the animals with eyeshine are night hunters, and their ability to use the available light twice, once on the way in and again on the way out, gives these nocturnal animals additional light to see by. The majority of these glowing eyes belong to mammals, but spiders, alligators, and bullfrogs are a few other creatures with reflecting eyes. Some night birds also have eyes that glow in the dark, but their eyes do not have a tapetum layer. Scientists are still trying to solve the mystery of their source of eyeshine.

An interesting sidelight is that animals with the brightest eyeshine generally have more rods and fewer cones in their retinas. As a result they have excellent night vision, but most are color-blind.

 

[simonbramble]

Try some high brightness LEDs and a 555 timer (to get the flashing bit). There should be plenty of circuits on the web describing such.

By the way, are we related?

 

[4pyros]

Wow, $20 for a solar powerd flashing LED.

 

[mbramble]

I would doubt that this would deter anything but humans who know that flashing LED means possibly an alarm is installed. My solar lights flash when the battery gets low and I have seen bandicoots digging directly under it . No effect.

I have put up the RS unit I put together with a total of 4 LEDs mounted in a PVC electrical LB box mounted on an 18" piece of PVC stuck into the ground in a part of my property where the ducks hang out (they get locked up at night). I have had it out there for 3 nights now. These are the first 3 nights in weeks that an armadillo(s) has not been out there tearing the ground up. I also have an infrared camera pointed at one of my chicken coops (after racoons got in and killed 4 of them in one night. NOTHING comes into view of the camera at night -- lots of activity BEHIND the camera - especially more armadillos - but they seem to stay away from the area pointed to by the camera and it MAY be because of the red infrared LEDs. I have an extra infrared LED source there for more light for the camera and it is a mean looking sight from across the yard. May have nothing to do with anything. That's why I am testing the Radio Shack unti before I go any further. I am happy with the test so far.....

By the way, are we related?

Bramble is a shotening of my last name -- Bramblett.

Wow, $20 for a solar powerd flashing LED.

Exactly!!

 

[Mr RB]

Wow, $20 for a solar powerd flashing LED.

Add up the cost of solar cells, rechangeable battery, leds, micro etc and the time it takes to order the parts and make each one. I think that sounds like a bargain!

 

[4pyros]

Add up the cost of solar cells, rechangeable battery, leds, micro etc and the time it takes to order the parts and make each one. I think that sounds like a bargain!

Maybe if you are only making one. But many are needed.

 

[mbramble]

Well, went to Walmart and bought 2 cheapo yard lites and then stopped in at Radio Shack and bought 2 blinking red LEDs. Replaced the LED in the yard lite with one of the blinkers but it doesn't (blink).... Maybe not enough juice from the single AA battery?? LED package says 2.5-5VDC supply voltage. It lights but doesn't blink.

 

[audioguru]

Why do gullible people believe the lies of a company selling a flashing red light?? Who says it repells animals? They do if you believe their nonsense. They probably also sell an ultrasonic repeller that doesn't work.

 

[mbramble]

..................

 

[audioguru]

What is a red infrared LED? It is either a visible red one or it is an invisible infrared one.

A solar garden light has a circuit that boosts the 1.2V from the battery to 3.5V to dimly light a white LED.
It might not have a high enough output current for a blinking LED or its "flickering" messes up the blinking circuit.
I have some solar garden lights that rusted away but their red, green and blue fading LED works fine. I added a smoothing capacitor to the boosted voltage in another circuit so that the RGB LEDs work fine.

 

[4pyros]

stopped in at Radio Shack and bought 2 blinking red LEDs.

Thay are probably made for your car, IE-12 volts DC

 

[mbramble]

Visible infrared LEDs....

 

[carbonzit]

Thay are probably made for your car, IE-12 volts DC

[/quote]

Don't you even bother reading the messages you respond to? They said

LED package says 2.5-5VDC supply voltage.