LIGHT DEPENDENT RESISTORS

LDRs or Light Dependent Resistors are very useful especially in

light/dark sensor circuits. Normally the resistance of an LDR is very high,
sometimes as high as 1000 000 ohms, but when they are illuminated with
light resistance drops dramatically.

What is a Light Dependent Resistor?

A light dependent resistor is a small, round semiconductor. Light
dependent resistors are used to re-charge a light during different changes
in the light, or they are made to turn a light on during certain changes in
lights. One of the most common uses for light dependent resistors is in
traffic lights. The light dependent resistor controls a built in heater inside
the traffic light, and causes it to recharge over night so that the light never
dies. Other common places to find light dependent resistors are in: infrared
detectors, clocks and security alarms.

Identification

A light dependent resistor is shaped like a quarter. They are small, and
can be nearly any size. Other names for light dependent resistors are:
photoconductors, photo resistor, or a CdS cell. There are black lines on one
side of the light dependent resistor. The overall color of a light dependent
resistor is gold. Usually other electrical components are attached to the
light dependent resistor by metal tubes soldered to the sides of the light
dependent resistor.

Function
 The main purpose of a light dependent resistor is to change the
brightness of a light in different weather conditions. This can easily be
explained with the use of a watch. Some watches start to glow in the dark so
that it is possible to see the time without having to press any buttons. It is
the light dependent resistor that allows the watch to know when it has gotten
dark, and change the emissions level of the light at that time. Traffic lights
use this principle as well but their lights have to be brighter in the day time.

Considerations

Light dependent resistors have become very useful to the world. Without
them lights would have to be on all the time, or they would have to be
manually adjusted. A light dependent resistor saves money and time for any
creation that needs a change in light. Another feature of the light dependent
resistor is that it can be programmed to turn on with changes in movements.
This is an extremely useful feature that many security systems employ.
Security would be harder without light dependent resistors.

Expert Insight

It is possible to build a light dependent resistor into an existing light

circuit. There are many electrical plans that outline how to install one.
Usually the sign for a light dependent resistor on these plans is marked by a
rectangle with two arrows pointing down to it. This shows the placement of
the light dependent resistor in the circuit so that it will work properly. Usually
only an electrician can build new circuits, however.

Benefits

There are many great benefits to light dependent resistors. They allow
less power to be used in many different kinds of lights. They help lights last
much longer. They can be trigged by several different kinds of triggers,
which is very useful for motion lights and security systems. They are also
very useful in watches and cars so that the lights can turn on automatically
when it becomes dark. There are a lot of things that light dependent
resistors can do.
Measure Light Intensity using Light Dependent
Resistor (LDR)

The resistance of the Light Dependent Resistor (LDR) varies according

to the amount of light that falls on it. The relationship between the resistance
RL and light intensity Lux for a typical LDR is

RL = 500 / Lux Kohm

With the LDR connected to 5V through a 3.3K resistor, the output

voltage of the LDR is

Vo = 5*RL / (RL+3.3)

Reworking the equation, we obtain the light intensity

Lux = (2500/Vo - 500)/3.3

 555 timer IC
The 555 timer IC is an amazingly simple yet versatile device. It has
been around now for many years and has been reworked into a number
of different technologies. The two primary versions today are the original
bipolar design and the more recent CMOS equivalent. These differences
primarily affect the amount of power they require and their maximum
frequency of operation; they are pin-compatible and functionally
interchangeable.

This page contains only a description of the 555 timer IC itself.

Functional circuits and a few of the very wide range of its possible
applications will be covered in additional pages in this category.

The figure to the right shows the functional block diagram of the
555 timer IC. The IC is available in either an 8-pin round TO3-style can or
an 8-pin mini-DIP package. In either case, the pin connections are as
follows:

1. Ground.
2. Trigger input.
3. Output.
4. Reset input.
5. Control voltage.
6. Threshhold input.
7. Discharge.
8. +VCC. +5 to +15 volts in normal use.

The operation of the 555 timer revolves around the three resistors
that form a voltage divider across the power supply, and the two
comparators connected to this voltage divider. The IC is quiescent so
long as the trigger input (pin 2) remains at +VCC and the threshhold input
(pin 6) is at ground. Assume the reset input (pin 4) is also at +VCC and
therefore inactive, and that the control voltage input (pin 5) is
unconnected. Under these conditions, the output (pin 3) is at ground and
the discharge transistor (pin 7) is turned on, thus grounding whatever is
connected to this pin.

The three resistors in the voltage divider all have the same value (5K in
the bipolar version of this IC), so the comparator reference voltages are
1/3 and 2/3 of the supply voltage, whatever that may be. The control
voltage input at pin 5 can directly affect this relationship, although most
of the time this pin is unused.

The internal flip-flop changes state when the trigger input

at pin 2 is pulled down below +VCC/3. When this occurs, the output (pin 3)
changes state to +VCC and the discharge transistor (pin 7) is turned off.
The trigger input can now return to +VCC; it will not affect the state of the
IC.

However, if the threshhold input (pin 6) is now raised above (2/3)+VCC,

the output will return to ground and the discharge transistor will be
turned on again. When the threshhold input returns to ground, the IC will
remain in this state, which was the original state when we started this
analysis.

The easiest way to allow the threshhold voltage (pin 6) to

gradually rise to (2/3)+VCC is to connect it to a capacitor being allowed to
charge through a resistor. In this way we can adjust the R and C values
for almost any time interval we might want.

The 555 can operate in either monostable or astable mode, depending

on the connections to and the arrangement of the external components.
Thus, it can either produce a single pulse when triggered, or it can
produce a continuous pulse train as long as it remains powered.
 light-emitting diode (LED)
(pronounced /ˌɛl.iːˈdiː/[1]) is a semiconductor light source. LEDs are
used as indicator lamps in many devices, and are increasingly used for
lighting. Introduced as a practical electronic component in 1962,[2] early
LEDs emitted low-intensity red light, but modern versions are available
across the visible, ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths, with very high
brightness.

The LED is based on the semiconductor diode. When a diode is

forward biased (switched on), electrons are able to recombine with holes
within the device, releasing energy in the form of photons. This effect is
called electroluminescence and the color of the light (corresponding to the
energy of the photon) is determined by the energy gap of the semiconductor.
An LED is usually small in area (less than 1 mm2), and integrated optical
components are used to shape its radiation pattern and assist in reflection.[3]
LEDs present many advantages over incandescent light sources including
lower energy consumption, longer lifetime, improved robustness, smaller
size, faster switching, and greater durability and reliability. However, they
are relatively expensive and require more precise current and heat
management than traditional light sources. Current LED products for general
lighting are more expensive to buy than fluorescent lamp sources of
comparable output.

They also enjoy use in applications as diverse as replacements for

traditional light sources in automotive lighting (particularly indicators) and in
traffic signals. Airbus uses LED lighting in their A320 Enhanced since 2007,
and Boeing plans its use in the 787. The compact size of LEDs has allowed
new text and video displays and sensors to be developed, while their high
switching rates are useful in advanced communications technology
 ELECTRONIC LETTER BOX
INTRODUCTION

The ELECTRONIC LETTER BOX is a very useful gadget for homes and
offices the circuit uses single Monolithic -555 in dual in line plastic package
and a few external components.The main advantage of the letter box is we
can find out the presence and absence of letter inside the box without
opening the box.

PARTS LIST
INTEGRATED CIRCUIT
IC1---555
DIODES
D1-Red L.E.D,
D2-Green LED
RESISTORS
R1-220E/.25W,
R2-220E/.25W
PRESET
VR1-100KE
BULB
B1-9V BULB
LIGHT DEPENDED RESITOR (LDR)
BATTERY BI- 9V

WORKING
The L.D.R. is the most important part of this circuit.The Resistance of
L.D.R.is miniumWhen the light falling on is maximum and its resistance is
maximum when the lightfalling on is minimum.LD.R is connected to pin no2
of C-555.When the letter is insidethe letter box,the intencity of light falling on
L.D.R.is minmium, so resistance is high , the voltage across the threshold
pin no 6 goes above 2/3 VCC. The internal flip-flop resets and the output
goes low and the red L.E.D is In the forwared biased condition emitting red
light.In the absence of letter in the letter box, light falling on L.D.R. is
maximum so resistance is low and the voltage across the threshold pin goes
below 2/3 VCC. The internal flip-flop sets and its output goes high which
forwared bias the green L.E.D. emitting green light.
 ELECTRONIC
LETTER
BOX

MADE BY
ATUL KUMAR (914003)
SUPERVISED BY
ANCHAL SRIVASTAVA

2009- 2010