Online repair manual

4 - 6 - 8 - 12 - 24 - 48 hours setting, LED or Beep Alert - 9V Battery Supply

A Pills Reminder is a device that operates a flashing LED (and/or a beeper) at a fixed hour interval. A choice of time-intervals as wide as possible is available with this circuit, namely 4, 6, 8, 12, 24 and 48 hours. At first you must choose the hour interval by switching SW1 to the desired value, then apply power by means of SW2. After the hour delay chosen has elapsed the LED will start flashing at 2Hz, i.e. two times per second.

This status will last until pushbutton P1 is pressed: then the LED will turn off, but the circuit will continue its counting and the LED will flash again when the same hour interval as before is reached. A noteworthy feature of this circuit, usually not found in similar devices, is that the internal counter is not reset when P1 is pressed: this allows a better time-interval precision.

Let us explain this feature with an example: suppose you have set the time interval to 24 hours and started the Pills Reminder at 8 oclock. Next day, at 8 oclock the LED will start flashing, but you, for some reason, notice the flashes at 8:10 and press P1 to stop the LED. With most devices of this kind, the counter will be reset, causing the LED to start flashing next day at 8:10 oclock. This will not happen with this circuit and the LED will start flashing next day always precisely at 8 oclock even if you pressed P1 at 9 or 10 oclock.

Circuit diagram:
Parts:

R1______________10M 1/4W Resistor
R2,R3,R4_______100K 1/4W Resistors
R5,R7___________10K 1/4W Resistors
R6_______________1K 1/4W Resistor
C1,C2___________22pF 63V Ceramic Capacitors (See Notes)
C3______________22µF 25V Electrolytic Capacitor
C4,C5__________100nF 63V Polyester Capacitors
C6_______________1µF 63V Polyester, Multilayer Ceramic or Electrolytic Capacitor
IC1____________4060 14 stage ripple counter and oscillator CMos IC
IC2____________4040 12 stage ripple counter CMos IC
IC3____________4082 Dual 4 input AND gate CMos IC
IC4____________4075 Triple 3 input OR gate CMos IC
IC5____________4520 Dual binary up-counter CMos IC
IC6____________4001 Quad 2 input NOR Gate CMos IC
D1_____________5 or 10mm red LED
XTAL_________32.768 kHz Sub-miniature Watch crystal
P1_____________SPST Pushbutton
SW1____________2 poles 6 ways Rotary Switch
SW2____________SPST Toggle or Slide Switch
B1_______________9V PP3 Battery Clip for PP3 Battery

Alternative Clock Parts:

R8_______________1K 1/4W Resistor
R9_____________330K 1/4W Resistor
R10_____________20K 1/2W Cermet or Carbon Trimmer
R11______________1K 1/2W Cermet or Carbon Trimmer
C7_______________1µF 63V Polyester Capacitor
IC7____________7555 or TS555CN CMos Timer IC

Circuit Operation:

The clock of the circuit is made of a stable oscillator built around two inverters embedded into IC1 and a Watch crystal oscillating at 32.768kHz. This frequency is divided by 16384 by the internal flip-flop chain of IC1 and a 2Hz very stable clock frequency is available at pin #3 of this IC. IC2 counter and IC3A 4 input AND gate are wired in order to divide by 3600 the 2Hz clock, therefore, a pulse every 30 minutes is available at the clock input of IC5. The division factor of this IC is controlled by IC3B and the position of SW1A and B, selecting from six time-intervals fixed to 4, 6, 8, 12, 24 and 48 hours.

The set-reset flip-flop formed by IC6B and IC6C is set through IC4C each time a low to high transition is present at the pin of IC5 selected by SW1B cursor. IC6A and C4 provide to set the flip-flop also when a high to low transition is present at SW1B cursor. When the flip-flop is set, IC6D is enabled and the 2Hz frequency available at pin #3 of IC1 is applied to pin #13 of IC6D causing the flashing LED operation. The flip-flop can then be reset by means of P1. A master reset is automatically done at switch on by means of C6 and R7.

Alternative Clock:

Sometimes, the Watch crystal can be difficult to locate, or could be considered too expensive. For those willing to avoid the use of a Watch crystal and to accept less time accuracy, an alternative clock generator circuit is provided, directly oscillating at 2Hz, thus avoiding the use of divider ICs. A CMos 7555 Timer IC generates a stable 2Hz square wave, whose frequency must be accurately set by means of two trimmers.

R10 must be adjusted first for coarse tuning, then R11 for fine tuning. Setting precisely the 2Hz frequency of this oscillator is a rather difficult task, and can be done with great patience and the aid of a clock, a chronometer or, best, a digital frequency meter capable of measuring very low frequencies. In any case, after an accurate setup, this oscillator showed a very stable performance, not affected by battery voltage variations and an accuracy of about ±30 seconds per 24 hours interval.

Notes:

• Wanting the utmost time precision and if a digital frequency meter is available, a 5-50pF 50V Ceramic Trimmer Capacitor can be used in place of C2. It must be adjusted in order to read exactly 32.768kHz on the meter display with the input probe connected to pin #9 of IC1.
• A Piezo sounder (incorporating a 3KHz oscillator) can be added to provide a visual plus audible alert. It must be wired across pin #11 of IC6D and negative ground, respecting polarities. Remove D1 and R6 if the visual alert is not needed.

One of the drawbacks of a three-pin voltage regulator is that the input voltage needs to be 2.5–3 V higher than the output voltage. This makes these integrated regulators unsuitable for battery power supplies. If, for instance, the output voltage is 5 V, a 9 V battery could be discharged to 7.5 V or thereabouts only. On top of this, most of these regulators draw a current of about 2 mA. Special low-drop versions sometimes offer a solution, but they are not ideal either. The regulator described here is rather thriftier: it draws a current of only 300 µA and the difference between its input and output is only 100–200 mV In the circuit diagram, T1 is arranged as a series regulator, which means that the difference between input voltage and output voltage is limited to the transistor’s saturation potential.

Therefore, a 9 V battery can be discharged to about 5 V, which is quite an improvement on the situation with an integrated regulator. Diodes D1-D2-D3, or a suitable zener diode (D4), in conjunction with R5 and P1, form a variable reference voltage source, which is used as the (output-dependent) base potential of T3. If the output voltage drops below a desired level, the base potential of T3 also drops. The transistor then conducts less hard and its collector voltage rises. The base voltage of T2 also rises, so that T1 is driven harder. This results in the near-instantaneous restoration of the output voltage.

The design of the reference voltage source is clearly of paramount importance. The current through the LEDs or the zener diode is of the order of only 100 µA. This means that thedrop across a 5.1 V zener diode is only 4.3 V and across each LED, only about 1.43 V. For a wanted output voltage of 4.8 V, the three LEDs proved very effective, whereas the zener did not. It may well be necessary, if a zener diode is used, to try one rated at 4.7 V. If, however, an output voltage of 5 V is wanted, it will be necessary to carefully select a zener diode. When the battery voltage has dropped to a level where it is only marginally higher than the wanted output voltage, T1 and T2 conduct hard.

A further drop in the battery voltage will cause the collector potential of T2 to drop rapidly to 0 V, since T2 tries to make T1 conduct hard. The large drop in the collector potential of T2 may be used to drive a BATT-LOW indicator. This may be done in three ways as shown in Figure 2. When network a is connected between terminals A and B, transistor T4 will normally be held cut off by divider R6-R7a. If then the voltage at B drops suddenly, T4 conducts, where-upon D5 indicates that the battery is nearly flat. The network in b is similar to that in a, but is intended for a liquid-crystal display of BATT-LOW.

The collector of T4 is linked to the IC that drives the decimal point and the BAT-LOW segment of the display. Network c may be used if there is an unused inverter or gate in the circuit to be powered. The high value of resistor R7b prevents the internal protection diodes of the IC being damaged. When the regulator has been built, connect it to a variable power supply via a multimeter set to the mA range and set P1 roughly at its mid-position. Turn P1 slowly until the desired output voltage is obtained.

If with an output voltage of 4.8 V the regulator draws a current of more than 250–300 µA, the three LEDs or zener diode must be replaced. The regulator can provide a current of up to about 25 mA. With a fresh 9 V battery, the dissipation of T1 does not exceed 100 mW. If the input voltage is higher, it may be necessary to mount the transistor on a suitable heat sink or replace it by a power transistor, for instance, a Type BD138.

Overture Audio Power Amplifier Series Dual 20-Watt Audio Power Amplifier with Mute and Standby Modes

The LM1876 is a stereo audio amplifier capable of delivering typically 20W per channel of continuous average output power into a 4 or 8 load with less than 0.1% THD+N.

Each amplifier has an independent smooth transition fade-in/out mute and a power conserving standby mode which can be controlled by external logic.

The performance of the LM1876, utilizing its Self Peak Instantaneous Temperature (°Ke) (SPiKe™) protection circuitry, places it in a class above discrete and hybrid amplifiers by providing an inherently, dynamically protected Safe Operating Area (SOA). SPiKe protection means that these parts are safeguarded at the output against overvoltage, undervoltage, overloads, including thermal runaway and instantaneous temperature peaks.

Circuit Diagram

Dual 20-Watt Audio Power Amplifier Circuit Diagram

Applications

High-end stereo TVs

Component stereo

Compact stereo

Features

SPiKe protection

Minimal amount of external components necessary

Quiet fade-in/out mute mode

Standby-mode

Isolated 15-lead TO-220 package

Non-Isolated 15-lead TO-220 package

Wide supply range 20V - 64V

There are monitors which only have three BNC inputs and which use composite synchronization (‘sync on green’). This circuit has been designed with these types of monitor in mind. As can be seen, the circuit has been kept very simple, but it still gives a reasonable performance. The principle of operation is very straightforward. The RGB signals from the VGA connector are fed to three BNC connectors via AC-coupling capacitors. These have been added to stop any direct current from entering the VGA card. A pull-up resistor on the green output provides a DC offset, while a transistor (a BS170 MOSFET) can switch this output to ground. It is possible to get synchronisation problems when the display is extremely bright, with a maximum green component.

In this case the value of R2 should be reduced a little, but this has the side effect that the brightness noticeably decreases and the load on the graphics card increases. To keep the colour balance the same, the resistors for the other two colors (R1 en R3) have to be changed to the same value as R2. An EXOR gate from IC1 (74HC86) combines the separate V-sync and H-sync signals into a composite sync signal. Since the sync in DOS-modes is often inverted compared to the modes commonly used by Windows, the output of IC1a is inverted by IC1b. JP1 can then by used to select the correct operating mode. This jumper can be replaced by a small two-way switch, if required.


This switch should be mounted directly onto the PCB, as any connecting wires will cause a lot of interference. The PCB has been kept as compact as possible, so the circuit can be mounted in a small metal (earthed!) enclosure. With a monitor connected the current consumption will be in the region of 30 mA. A 78L05 voltage regulator provides a stable 5 V, making it possible to use any type of mains adapter, as long as it supplies at least 9 V. Diode D2 provides protection against a reverse polarity. LED D1 indicates when the supply is present. The circuit should be powered up before connecting it to an active VGA output, as otherwise the sync signals will feed the circuit via the internal protection diodes of IC1, which can be noticed by a dimly lit LED. This is something best avoided.

Resistors:
R1,R2,R3 = 470Ω
R4 = 100Ω
R5 = 3kΩ3
Capacitors:
C1,C3,C5 = 47µF 25V radial
C2,C4,C6,C7,C10 = 100nF ceramic
C8 = 4µF7 63V radial
C9 = 100µF 25V radial
Semiconductors:
D1 = LED, high-efficiency
D2 = 1N4002
T1 = BS170
IC1 = 74HC86
IC2 = 78L05
Miscellaneous:
JP1 = 3-way pinheader with jumper
K1 = 15-way VGA socket (female), PCB mount (angled pins)
K2,K3,K4 = BNC socket (female), PCB mount, 75Ω

A small audio test generator is very useful for quickly tracing a signal through an audio unit. Its main purpose is speed rather than refinement. A single sine-wave signal of about 1 kHz is normally all that is needed: distortion is not terribly important. It is, however, important that the unit does not draw too high a current. The generator described meets these modest requirements. It uses standard components, produces a signal of 899Hz at an output level of 1V r.m.s. and draws a current of only 20µA. In theory, the low current drain would give a 9 V battery a life of 25,000 hours. The circuit is a traditional Wien bridge oscillator based on a Type TLC271 op amp. The frequency determining bridge is formed by C1, C2 and R1–R4. The two inputs of the op amp are held at half the supply voltage by dividers R3-R4 and R5-R6 respectively.

Resistors R5 and R6 also form part of the feedback loop. The amplification is set to about ´3 with P1. Diodes D1 and D2 are peak limiters. Since the limiting is based on the non-linearity of the diodes, there is a certain amount of distortion. At the nominal output voltage of 1 V r.m.s., the distortion is about 10%. This is, however, of no consequence in fast tests. Nevertheless, if 10% is considered too high, it may be improved appreciably by linking pin 8 of IC1 to ground. This increases the current drain of the circuit to 640 µA, but the distortion is down to 0.7%, provided the circuit is adjusted properly. If a distortion meter or similar is not available, simply adjust the output to 1 V r.m.s. Since the distortion of the unit is not measured in hundredths of a per cent, C1 and C2 may be ceramic types without much detriment.

The LM3570 evaluation board has a chip enable pin (active high logic) as well as a PWM (active high logic) pin which allows current sources to be turned on and off without completely disabling the part..The LM3570 is capable of supplying up to 80mA of current split between the regulated current sources and VOUT. The LM3570 comes in National’s LLP-14 package.

It shows the connection between the parts such as the front flasher light, rear flasher light, flasher relay, battery, fuse, tail light, stop light, rear flasher light, rear stop switch, neutral switch, front stop switch, AC generator, coil, rectifier, regulator, horn, head light, tachometer, speedometer, high beam indicator light, rear flasher, front flasher, and many more.

The electronic dog repellent circuit diagram below is a high output ultrasonic transmitter which is primarily intended to act as a dog and cat repeller, which can be used individuals to act as a deterrent against some animals. It should NOT be relied upon as a defence against aggressive dogs but it may help distract them or encourage them to go away and do not consider this as an electronic pest repeller. The ultrasonic dog repellant uses a standard 555 timer IC1 set up as an oscillator using a single RC network to give a 40 kHz square wave with equal mark/space ratio.

This frequency is above the hearing threshold for humans but is known to be irritating frequency for dog and cats. Since the maximum current that a 555 timer can supply is 200mA an amplifier stage was required so a high-power H-bridge network was devised, formed by 4 transistors TR1 to TR4. A second timer IC2 forms a buffer amplifier that feeds one input of the H-bridge driver, with an inverted waveform to that of IC1 output being fed to the opposite input of the H-bridge.

Circuit diagram:

Cat And Dog Repellent Circuit Diagram

This means that conduction occurs through the complementary pairs of TR1/TR4 and TR2/TR3 on alternate marks and spaces, effectively doubling the voltage across the ultrasonic transducer, LS1. This is optimised to generate a high output at ultrasonic frequencies. This configuration was tested by decreasing the frequency of the oscillator to an audible level and replacing the ultrasonic transducer with a loudspeaker; the results were astounding. If the dog repellent circuit was fed by a bench power supply rather than a battery that restrict the available current, the output reached 110dB with 4A running through the speaker which is plenty loud enough!

The Dog and Cat repellant was activated using a normal open switch S1 to control the current consumption, but many forms of automatic switching could be used such as pressure sensitive mats, light beams or PIR sensors. Thus it could be utilise as part of a dog or cat deterrent system to help prevent unwanted damage to gardens or flowerbeds, or a battery powered version can be carried for portable use. Consider also using a lead-acid battery if desired, and a single chip version could be built using the 556 dual timer IC to save space and improve battery life.

Source : www.extremecircuits.net

In this simple circuit we give the chip a little more attention than usual. It is astonishing what can be built with a 555. We are always infatuated with simple circuits using this IC, such as the one shown here. The 555 is used here so that a single push-button can operate a relay. If you press the button once, the relay is energized. When you press it again the relay turns off. In addition, it is possible to define the initial state of the relay when the power supply is switched on. The design is, as previously mentioned, very simple. Using R1 and R2, the threshold and trigger inputs are held at half the power supply voltage.


When the voltage at the threshold pin becomes greater that 2/3 of the power supply voltage, the output will go low. The output goes high when the voltage at the trigger input is less than 1/3 of the power supply voltage. Because C2, via R3, will eventually have the same level as the output, the output will toggle whenever the push-button is pressed. If, for example, the output is low, the level of the trigger input will also become low and the output will go high! C1 defines the initial state of the relay when the power is applied. If the free end of C1 is connected to VCC, then the output is high after power up; the output is low when C1 is connected to ground.

This circuit shows how far integration can be taken: IC1, a Type HT82207 from Holtek does virtually everything. Only a (small) loudspeaker and the necessary selectors need to be added. The standard 18-pin Type HT82207 is an integrated sound generator, producing sounds typical of the Old West. The various sounds are selected by S1–S6 as listed below. In the quiescent state, the circuit draws a current not exceeding 1 µA.

• S1 – bugle
• S2 – neighing
• S3 – sound of hooves
• S4 – pistol shot
• S5 – crack of a rifle
• S6 – cannon fire

The halogen or krypton bulbs in modern torches (USA and Canada: flashlights) have a limited life and are not particularly cheap. A simple modification in the torch lengthens the life appreciably. It is a fact of nature that any incandescent bulb has a finite life. However, the bulbs in modern torches (US and Canada: flashlight) have a less-than-average life. The reason for this is that the halogen or krypton bulbs used are operated at over-voltage to give as bright a light as feasible. The life of these bulbs may be extended simply by connecting a resistor in series with the bulb.

For instance, when the battery voltage is 6V and the bulb is a 500mA type, a series resistor of 1Ω will reduce the voltage across the bulb by about 0.5V. This will certainly lengthen the life of the bulb, but it will also cause a reduction in the available brightness. Also, energy is wasted in the resistor (evinced by heat production). Clearly, this is not a very good solution to the problem. A better one is shunting the bulb with a transistor in series with a resistor.

MOSFET:

Another well-known fact is that incandescent bulbs normally burn out when they are being switched on. This is because the resistance of the cold filament is significantly lower than that during normal operation. This results in a switch-on current that is much higher than the normal operating current. Clearly, much is to be gained by damping the switch-on current. The switch-on current may be limited by a simple circuit that is small enough to allow it to be built into most types of torch. As the diagram shows, such a circuit consists of nothing more than a metal-on-silicon-field-effect-transistor, or MOSFET, and a resistor.

The transistor may be almost any current n-channel type that can handle the requisite power. The popular BUZ11 or BUZ10 is eminently suitable for the present application. The requisite limiting of the start-up current is provided by the internal gate capacitance of the transistor in conjunction with the large gate resistor. If needed, a small capacitor may be added between gate and drain. Once the transistor is conducting hard, the remaining losses are negligible. This is true also when the torch is switched off: the quiescent current flowing through the transistor is much smaller than that caused by the self-discharge of the batteries.

Finally:

Since it is much simpler to break into the positive supply line of a torch than into the negative line, the addition of the limiting circuit makes it necessary for the batteries to be inserted into the torch the other way around from normal (as indicated by the manufacturer). Also, the on/off switch of a modified torch works the other way around from normal. Fitting the modification in some of the popular Mag-Lite torches is fairly straightforward.

After the rubber cover of the on/off switch has been removed, the entire push-button switch mechanism may be removed by releasing a central hexagonal bolt. The switch terminals may serve as soldering supports for the transistor-resistor series network. If it proves impossible to obtain a 47 MΩ resistor, four or five surfacemount-technology (SMT) resistors of 10 MΩ may be linked in series. Such a link works just as well and is almost as small as a normal 47MΩ resistor.

This unit employs a dual trace oscilloscope with X-Y function as a display to test and demonstrate the action of circuits and components such as transistors, diodes, zener diodes, and terminated and unterminated transformers. A low frequency sinewave (ie 10Hz - 1kHz) is applied to op amp IC2a via potentiometer VR1 to set the "X" and "Y" levels for the X-Y display on the scope. The output of IC2a is applied to the X input via R4 and IC2b and also to Probe 1 via the contacts of relay 1. IC2b provides a low impedance drive for the X input and also isolates the X input cable capacitance from probe 1. The current flowing into the probes develops a voltage across R4 which is processed by IC2d and applied to the CRO Y input to represent current.


The scope display thus represents an X-Y graph where voltage across a circuit under test is displayed on the X axis (horizontal) and the current though it displayed on the Y axis (vertical). With a calibrated scope this equates to 1mA/V. IC1 and a relay are included to enable two probes to be used and comparisons made between a known good device and a faulty one. The relay should be a low capacitance reed type. By using the scope’s X and Y gain controls, the sinewave applied to the device under test should be adjustable from a few millivolts up to 24V peak-peak to get a very useable display.

Thus, the unit can be used on voltage sensitive devices and at the other end of the scale apply enough voltage to check the operation of, say, a 10V zener diode. Note that all devices should be tested in the unpowered condition. If used for in-circuit tests, the effects of circuit components will need to be taken into account. Shielded coax leads should be used for the X and Y inputs and the probe leads should have zero resistance. Normal scope probes should not be used as these usually have significant built-in resistance which will interfere with measurements.

Suitable for any Infrared emitting device, 3V battery supply

A very simple device allowing a quick check of common Infra-red Remote-Controls can be useful to the electronics amateur, frequently asked to repair or test these ubiquitous devices. A reliable circuit was designed with a handful of components: the LED will flash when any of the Remote-Control push buttons will be pressed. The side of the Remote-Control bearing the IR emitting diode(s) must be directed towards the Photo Transistor (Q1) of the checker circuit: maximum distance should not exceed about 20 - 25cm.

Circuit Diagram:

 Infrared Remote Tester Circuit Diagram

Parts:

R1 = 470K
R2 = 47R
D1 = LED Any Type
Q1 = Photo Transistor
Q2 = BC327
B1 = 3V Battery or 2 AA cell

Notes:

• Current drawing of the circuit is less than 1mA when the LED illuminates and 0mA when no signal is picked-up by the Photo Transistor: therefore, SW1 can be omitted.
• SW1 will be SPST Toggle or Slider Switch

Source : www.redcircuits.com

This circuit prevents the battery in a solar lighting system from being excessively discharged. Its for small systems with less than 100W of lighting, such as several fluorescent lights, although with a higher rated Mosfet at the output, it could switch larger loads. The circuit has two comparators based on an LM393 dual op amp. One monitors the ambient light so that lamps cannot be turned on during the day. The second monitors the battery voltage, to prevent it from being excessively discharged. IC1b monitors the ambient light by virtue of the light dependent resistor connected to its non-inverting input. When exposed to light, the resistance of the LDR is low and so the output at pin 7 is low.


IC1a monitors the battery voltage via a voltage divider connected to its non-inverting input. Its inverting input is connected to a reference voltage provided by ZD1. Trimpot VR1 is set so that when the battery is charged, the output at pin 1 is high and so Mosfet Q1 turns on to operate the lights. The two comparator outputs are connected together in OR gate fashion, which is permissible because they are open-collector outputs. Therefore, if either comparator output is low (ie, the internal output transistor is on) then the Mosfet (Q1) is prevented from turning on. In practice, VR1 would be set to turn off the Mosfet if the battery voltage falls below 12V. The suggested LDR is a NORP12, a weather resistant type available from Farnell Electronic Components Pty Ltd.

Here is the circuit diagram of superb mini audio power amplifier, That can be power with 4.5 volt dc to 18 volts dc (maximum). This amplifier is based on TDA1015, Product of NXP Semiconductors formerly PHILIPS Semiconductors. The TDA1015 is a monolithic integrated audio amplifier circuit in a 9-lead single in-line (SIL) plastic package. The device is especially designed for portable radio and recorder applications and delivers up to 4 watt in a 4 ohm load impedance. The very low applicable supply voltage of 3,6 V permits 6 V applications.

click on the images to enlarge

Parts:

R1330K
R25.6K
R34.7R
C11uF-25V
C21uF-25V
C3100pF
C4100nF-63V
C5182pF
C6224pF
C7100uF-25V
C8100nF-63V
C910uF-25V
C101KuF-25V
IC1TDA1015

Applications:

• In-car use
• Your own unique application
• Power amplifier for audio projects
• For use with portable audio equipment
• Small but powerful multi-purpose amplifier

Special features:

• Low current drain
• High output power
• Thermal protection
• High input impedance
• Separated preamplifier and power amplifier
• Limited noise behavior at radio frequencies
• Single in-line (SIL) construction for easy mounting

Specification:

• Quiescent current : 12mA
• Thermal and short circuit protection
• Frequency Response : 60Hz - 15Khz
• Max. output power : 3W (4ohm/12V)
• Input sensitivity : 20-15mV selectable
• Power supply : 4.5 - 15V DC @ 400mA

Unplugging or re-connecting equipment to the serial COM or PS2 connector always gives problems if the PC is running. Even if you only need to swap a mouse or changeover from a graphics keyboard to a standard keyboard. The chances are that the connected equipment will not communicate with the PC, it will always be necessary to re-boot. If you are really unlucky you may have damaged the PC or the peripheral device. In order to switch equipment successfully it is necessary to follow a sequence. The clock and data lines need to be disconnected from the device before the power line is removed. And likewise the power line must be connected first to the new device before the clock and data lines are re-connected.

This sequence is also used by the USB connector but achieved rather more simply by using different length pins in the connector. The circuit shown here in Figure 1 performs the switching sequence electronically. The clock and data lines from the PC are connected via the N.C. contacts of relay RE2 through the bistable relay RE1 to connector K3. Pressing push-button S1 will activate relay RE2 thereby disconnecting the data and clock lines also while S1 is held down the semiconductor switch IC1B will be opened, allowing the voltage on C4 to charge up through R4. After approximately 0.2 s the voltage level on C4 will be high enough to switch on IC1A, this in turn will switch on T1 energizing one of the coils of the bistable relay RE1 and routing the clock, data and power to connector K2.


When S1 is released relay RE2 will switch the data and clock lines through to the PC via connector K1. It should be noted that the push-button must be pressed for about 0.5s otherwise the circuit will not operate correctly. Switching back over to connector K3 is achieved similarly by pressing S2. The current required to switch the relays is relatively large for the serial interface to cope with so the energy necessary is stored in two relatively large capacitors (C2 and C3) and these are charged through resistors R1 and R6 respectively. The disadvantage is that the circuit needs approximately 0.5 minute between switch-overs to ensure these capacitors have sufficient charge.

The current consumption of the entire circuit however is reduced to just a few milliamps. The PCB is designed to accept PS2 style connectors but if you are using an older PC that needs 9 pin sub D connectors then these will need to be connected to the PCB via flying leads. In this case the mouse driver software configures pin 9 as the clock, pin 1 as the data, pin 8 (CTS) as the voltage supply pin and pin 5 as earth.

Resistors:
R1 = 2kΩ2
R2 = 47kΩ
R3 = 10kΩ
R4 = 4kΩ7
R5 = 1kΩ
R6 = 1kΩ2
Capacitors:
C1 = 10µF 10V radial
C2 = 1000µF 10V radial
C3 = 2200µF 10V radial
C4 = 2µF2 10V radial
Semiconductors:
D1-D5 = 1N4148
T1 = BC547
IC1 = 4066 or 74HCT4066
Miscellaneous:
RE1 = bistable relay 4 c/o contacts
RE2 = monostable relay 2 c/o contacts
K1,K2,K3 = 6-way Mini-DIN socket (pins at 240°, PCB mount
S1,S2 = push-button (ITTD6-R)

Commonly used 3-pin linear voltage regulators, for example the LM317, cannot handle input voltages in excess of about 30V. The LR8A from Supertex Inc is a new, adjustable three pin regulator that can accept input voltages up to 450V and can supply an output current of 0.5mA to 10mA. Using this device it is possible to work with rectified 230VAC. The LR8 has a wide input voltage range of +12 V to +450V. Two external resistors (R1 and R2) allow the output voltage to be adjusted from 1.20 V to 440 V provided that the input voltage is at least 10 V greater than the output voltage. The LR8 adjusts the voltage difference between the Vout and ADJ pins to a nominal value of 1.20V.

This 1.20V is amplified by the external resistor ratio of R1 and R2. An internal constant bias current of 10µA is connected to the ADJ pin so that Vout is increased by a constant voltage of 10µA times R2. The formula for calculating the output voltage is given next to the circuit diagram. To ensure stable operation of the regulator a minimum output current of 500µA is necessary and a bypass capacitor of minimum 1.0µF should be used. Protection circuits in the LR8 limit the output current to 15mA typically and temperature protection ensures that the device temperature will not exceed 125oC.

When the device reaches its temperature limit, the output voltage/current will decrease to keep the junction temperature within limits. The two circuit diagrams show the LR8 used as a voltage regulator and as a constant current source. The current source can be used to a drive an LED. This configuration would give an LED with super-wide input voltage range, i.e., from +12V to +450V. The LR8 was originally designed to be used for switch mode supply start-up applications so it incorporates a feature which shuts down the LR8 when the output voltage exceeds the input voltage. Diode D1 is therefore necessary in the voltage regulator circuit diagram to prevent the output voltage exceeding the input voltage at any time.

The minimum value of the input capacitor C1 can be calculated from the following formula: C1(min) = (IL t ) / (Vpk – Vout – 10V) Where IL is the load current, and t the period between two voltage peaks. At 50 Hz, using one rectifying diode this will give a value t = 20 ms. Vpk is the peak input voltage, while Vout is the selected output voltage. The LR8 is available in two package outlines. The LR8N8 is a SOT89 SMD package while the LR8N3 is the familiar TO92 Transistor outline (e.g. BC 238). The TO-92 package can dissipate a maximum of 0.74W while with suitable heatsinking, the SMD package can dissipate 1.6W.

Nowadays, the speech quality on our telephone systems is generally very good, irrespective of distance. However, there are occasions, for instance, in an amateur stage production, or just for fun, when it is desired to reproduce the speech quality of yesteryear. The eroder circuit accepts an acoustic (via an electret micro-phone) or electrical signal. The signals are applied to the circuit inputs via C1 and C2, which block any direct voltage. The input cables should be screened. The signals are brought to (about) the same level by variable potential dividers P1-R1-R4 and P2-R2-R3, and then applied to the base of transistor T1. The level of the combined signals is raised by this preamplifier. The preamplifier is followed by an active low-pass filter consisting of T2–T4, C3, C4, R6–R8, and P4.
Although, strictly speaking, P3 serves merely to adjust the volume of the signal, its setting does affect the filter characteristic. Note, by the way, that the filter is a rarely encountered current-driven one in which C3 and C4 are the frequency-determining elements. It has a certain similarity with a Wien bridge. Transistors T3 and T4, and resistors R8 and P4 form a variable current sink. The position of P4 determines the slope of the filter characteristic and the degree of overshoot at the cut-off frequency. The low-pass filter is followed by an integrated amplifier, IC1, whose amplification is matched to the input of the electronic circuits connected to the eroder with P5. The final passive, third-order high-pass filter is designed to remove frequencies above about 300 Hz. The resulting output is of a typical nasal character, just as in telephones of the past.