This document describes a basic circuit that can be used to power high impedance, high voltage, low current devices such as EL backlights and fluorescent tubes. This project got its genesis when I needed a simple, yet flexible inverter circuit for an EL backlight, using a 12 volt input. My specific need was to power the backlight for the wildly po
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pular LCD-107 ( specs ) from All Electronics Corporation. However, this circuit is versatile enough that it should be able to power any EL strip or small (up to a few watts) fluorescent tube. Why build instead of buy an inverter Well, I actually bought one from one of the several surplus resale houses out there. It was apparently very poorly designed. I connected it to the backlight contacts, then to the +5V recommended, only to get a brief buzzing noise and some smoke for my trouble. I decided I could build a much more reliable, versatile inverter for just a few dollars (total cost is only about $6 for the semiconductors and transformer at your local Radio Shack), and set out to do it. It occurred to me that a simple 555 timer with a small step-up transformer should work well. The 555 timer is now ubiquitous, available on nearly any street corner via Radio Shack. For the transformer, many circuits use a filament transformer or other step-down transformer generally designed for use in a utility power supply. This wouldn`t do - it would be too large and cumbersome for my needs, and besides, I didn`t have a need for Big Power. I`d had good luck in the past using 8 ohm to 1k ohm audio output transformers in "tickle stick" inverter-type applications, so I thought this might work if driven with a good oscillator. I initially setup the circuit for 400Hz operation, with the timer driving the transformer directly through a 47uF...
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.....
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