This LED thermometer is designed for in home use, to read temperatures between about 60 and 78 degrees Fahrenheit. It is based around a precision temperature sensor IC, the LM34DZ. This sensor require no calibration and can measure temperatures of between -50F and +300F. While the circuit shown here does not use the full range of that sensor, it can be modified to do so by simply changing the voltage reference to U2 at the sacrifice of precision.
Click here to download the full size of the above Circuit.
You will want to build the circuit with U1 and U2 in sockets in order to be able to complete calibration (which requires removal of these ICs).
You can use any LED you want for D1 - D10, however blue LEDs have a higher voltage requirement so if you want to go blue for a modern look, they may appear more dim then red, yellow or green.
C1 1 1uF 25V Electrolytic Capacitor
C2 1 10uF 25V Electrolytic Capacitor
R1 1 2.2K 1/4W Resistor
R2, R5, R7 3 1K Trim Pot
R3 1 1K 1/4W Resistor
R4 1 1.5K 1/4W Resistor
R6 1 470 Ohm 1/4W Resistor
R8 1 100 Ohm Or 15 Ohm 1/4W Resistor (See Notes)
D1 - D10 10 LED
U1 1 LM34DZ Precision Fahrenheit Temperature Sensor
U2 1 LM3914 Bar/Dot Graph Driver IC
MISC 1 Board, Wire, Socket For U1 and U2, Case
By leaving pin 9 of U2 disconnected, the graph will operate in dot mode and R8 should be 100 Ohm. If you build the circuit with pin 9 tied to 9V, the circuit will be in graph mode and R8 should be 15 Ohms.
To calibrate the circuit, you will need a voltmeter. Power the circuit up and let it sit for a few minutes for temperature to stabilize. Ground the negative lead of the meter and connect the positive lead to pins 6 and 7 of U2. Set R7 so the meter reads as close to 3.345V as possible. Now connect the positive lead of the meter to pin 4 of U2 and adjust R5 until the meter reads 2.545V. Finally, disconnect power to the circuit and remove U1 and U2 from their sockets. Measure the...
This project fits more for custom made battery casing that can have more space to hide things inside. This switch with few alterations can be used for any other project as well but is designed based on e-bike needs! This project use a clever functionality of....
The circuit described here uses ultrasonic oscillations and operates based on the propagation velocity of these oscillations in the air. Thus, we can easily determine the distance of two points if the time within which the wave travels this distance is....
Sometimes the precious metals are hidden too deep and are not detected except with complicated devices. In many cases, however, small pieces of precious metal buried near the surface can be detected by relatively simple means. Everyone is very attractive to....
Many times for various reasons we forget or can not water the plants that we have in our homes. And many humidity sensors units just notify us with a beeping sound or with a flashing light, that the pot needs watering. But what if we are away from home? This....
The principle behind a metal detector is really very simple. Proof of this is the circuit that follows, in which it proves that the construction of a metal detector can be done in the minute, with few components that we find very easily everywhere. With the....
The sub-harmonic bass generator is a sound producing unit for guitars. The sound it produces looks very much like that of the bass guitar. The octave generator is sometimes quite unusual since it does not produce any of the usual ways of coloring the sound,....
In the past the sounding (sea bottom measurement) was done with the "bullet", that is, with a heavy lead object that the seamen plucked into the sea hung from a calibrated rope. As soon as the "bullet" reached the bottom, the depth appeared directly from the....
This Amplifier was designed to have the following specifications: Distortion less than 0.1% at full power of 100W even at 20KHz. Power has to be attributed to an extended bandwidth. The output transistors must be protected against short circuits. The power....
A series of LEDs serve to alert the gardener when plants need water. Using two conventional digital integrated LEDs and a series of LEDs, we make a very useful device for gardening. The device detects the amount of water in the pot and alerts the grower.....
characters left: