Re: TI-H: hey i have a question.
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Re: TI-H: hey i have a question.
First, you've got to figure out what voltage your lights are using by
analyzing the string you're pulling them from (or just use a voltmeter).
If you've got a string of roughly 30 lights, and they're all in series,
then each bulb is using 120/30 or 4 volts. Recall that mains voltages are
measured using the RMS method, which essentially means that 120v AC will
do the same amount of work as 120v DC. Since we're talking about a simple
light bulb here, it'll glow at the same brightness with 4 vdc as it will
at 4 vac.
Now, you've got to figure out what it is you want to do. Do you want to
leave the lights on their strings, or do you want to take them apart and
put one here, one there? If you're going to be doing something where the
string approach would work better, then you'll probably want to make some
kind of voltage multiplier circuit. Make a 12v sine wave from the 12 vdc
supply and push it through the secondary side of a 12vac
transformer-you'll have approximately 120vac on the primary coil. Since
we're just running some incandescent bulbs here, there isn't any need to
clean up the power; just feed it directly into the light string.
Of course, if you were going to make some kind of light display, you might
want to try a different approach. Get some 74xx series logic chips and use
those to drive the bulbs directly--as long as the bulbs aren't pulling
more than approximately 18mA. Then you can control the 74xx logic with a
microcontroller...
On Sun, 20 Sep 1998, StoryTelr Jedi Knight wrote:
> k now if someone wanted to oh... hook Christmas lites up on his car,
> and use them while driving and/or a display of school and christmas
> spirit. what sortof a power source, or converter would one need????
>
> i mean like a portable generator or a converter on the cigerette
> lighter, the type of christmas lites would be either indoor, or
> outdoor lights, and i live in canada, if that helps with any wattage
> conversions.
>
> - nathan wainwright(StoryTelr@yahoo.com)
>
--
Greg Hill
greg-hill@bigfoot.com
www.comports.com/link
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