high powered led solar lighting system - solar street light with battery

While I like to prove the concept solar project, or the solar project I might use if the world ends, I prefer to do solar projects that are useful in my daily life. (
I like my solar FM radio, but I never have to use it in an emergency)
My father had been complaining about installing a lighting system for the back of his yard last summer.
The big problem is that he hates running 100 yards of wires for three lights at night.
Also, as his most successful person, he decided to bury the wires so that he would not run over them with a lawn mower.
That's how I came in.
I decided to make a high power solar lighting system so that there was no need for wires to run to the back of the yard anymore. Ever.
Oh, I'm not saying there are a few small wussy LEDs in the jar, I'm talking about some high power 3 watt LEDs in the real metal lighting case.
It may attract ten miles of each moth. (
To protect the LEDs in the jar, I happen to have 12 on the deck of the apartment.
A couple walked in and out slowly. )
So for your enjoyment, here's a quick, easy and cheap guide to making high power solar lighting systems. (
If you like my project and vote for it in the non-grid contest for instructures, I am the first entry. Seriously.
Vote for me and bring you a sense of instant karma and warmth.
Warning: In fact, the fuzzy feeling of warmth may be low-level radiation.
Seek medical help)
If you would like to do a smaller solar project, please check out our basic solar USB 2.
0 kit or more solid lithium heavy duty 2. 0 Kit.
To be honest, we just installed a cheap lighting system in the solar lighting system.
Most of the parts we need are pre-installed.
We basically just connect things.
The good thing about this is that we just have to do a little bit of welding.
Accessories: cheap lighting system (
There are 2 or more metal "heads ")
High power led outdoor wire (
1 W or 3 W according to your needs)
High power LED driver radiator 18 v or better solar panel 12 v solar charging controller 12 v battery cord plastic container gasket cable clamp terminal strip detection circuit: PNP transistor (I used a TIP42)
Prototype plate 10,000 ohm resistor 1n4001 power tool: soldering iron assistant screw driver Silicon Calk wire stripping and cutting cost: $75-100Time: 2 -
3 HoursI bought all the electronics from eBay at a cheap price.
I bought hardware accessories at a local hardware store.
The total cost of this project is $75-100.
The price is not too expensive, but it is cheaper than the solar lighting system purchased by any store.
Plus more powerful features
I also bought a more expensive driver than I needed in case I wanted extra features and you could easily save $10 from the project by buying a cheaper driver.
Most of your time will be spent trying to figure out how to plug the wires in and out of things.
The real "production" workload is quite small.
High power led is not like your regular led.
They use a lot of current to release a lot of heat.
They are quite cheap, however.
I bought mine on eBay for a few dollars.
Because I used 3 watts of LEDs. . . well. . .
I like the power.
Most people will be happy with some 1 watt LEDs.
One thing to keep in mind is that these LEDs need a "drive ".
"This is a circuit used to adjust the current so you don't blow out the LED.
Also, you can use any LED color type without having to switch the resistor. Quite handy.
When purchasing an LED drive, make sure you get the same power rating as the LED you want to use.
My driver can handle up to 10 watts of power, which is perfect for running two 3 watts of LEDs from 12 V. (
This is probably what the PDF file says. )
In the picture above, I am using the driver on the left.
It can handle the output of 10 watts.
You can use the power on the right to power a single 1 watt LED.
You might guess the one on the left is more expensive.
I chose to buy this more expensive driver because it adds some features and you can easily reduce the cost by using a more "standard" driver. (
Also, if you really like adventure, you can connect a micro controller on the LED drive and do some crazy effects. Oh yes.
Arduino power your LED lighting system.
I might do that.
Because I can.
Let it enter or touch at some point. . . )
This lighting system was bought at clearance so I have no problem.
First cut the wire into the shell.
Then take out all kinds of electronic products inside.
In this case, just the connector that connects the normal bulb.
Is the cut pull.
Now, bring your new outdoor wire and wear it back along the same path.
I had to use some needle-tip pliers to help it pass at some point.
Not too hard to do, but a little awkward.
Make sure to leave a lot of wires on the top so we can weld. (
Make sure you thread it in exactly the same way as the original wire.
While this is not always possible, this is the simplest solution.
Otherwise, drill a hole on the side and seal it up with some calk. )
Peel off the end of the wire.
Hold the LED with a Aid hand or other Holder.
Now, weld a wire on the label and a wire on. tab.
After I welded the LED, I also put a radiator on the bottom of the LED.
These guys can get hot because we're in a closed space so I don't want to take any risk.
Okay, now you want to pull the extra wires back through the shell.
Take this time to locate your LED. (
To be honest, I just plugged it in.
Additional adhesive or parts are not required.
If you do try to use something, make sure it's heat resistant. )
Reassemble your little lighting. Ta da!
You have a high power LED inside the elegant metal exterior lighting structure!
Do it now once or twice.
I did two heads for this project, but since my driver can handle it, I will end up doing the third one.
Since this is going to be outside, I would like to make a safe fence to deal with the weather in Wisconsin.
I took a normal plastic tub and slightly modified it with a cable clip.
More or less, a large screw in the system, it will be fixed on the wire and fix them in the appropriate position.
I bought it from a local hardware store and they have several types.
To drill holes on the side of the tub, I chose to use the old soldering iron and melt a hole.
If their shell can be handled, using a drill bit is effective for some people.
I have bad luck with drilling plastic and I don't want any cracks.
Once this hole is the right size for the clip, I screw it in place.
I also added a rubber gasket to prevent water from entering.
As soon as everything is ready, I have used some silicon caulking agent to further protect it. (
Yes, there will still be open space when you pass the wire.
Try to pass the wires through several rubber washers and seal the holes with them.
More if you want to make things super permanent. )
If you are worried that the water will enter the top, take some rubber and line up inside the lid.
A cheap, simple O-Ring is OK.
For similar protection, you can also add a line of caulking.
If you want to make things simple, find one that already has O-
Although the ring will become expensive according to the size we use.
From now on, we just screw the wires in place.
The hard work is over.
I cut off some wires and attached them to the terminal connector for use with the battery.
You might want to do the same or just use some crocodile clips.
Then I connect the positive and negative labels on the battery to B and B-
Terminals on the charging controller.
This is easy as my charging controller uses a screw fixture.
Then I took some more wires and connected it to L and L-
On the charging controller.
These are "load" terminals that power any device you are trying to run.
And then those connected to V and ground (Negative)
Screw terminals on my LED Drive.
I told you the hard things were done.
To connect the LEDs, we will do the exact same type of connection, but use the patch panel.
Remove the positive line from one of your LEDs and connect it to the LED drive output clip. (
If you don't know which is positive and which is negative, pick up the multimeter and test it quickly. )
A negative wire from this LED needs to enter one of the terminals with holes.
Remove the positive line from another LED and put it into the same terminal strip hole.
Your remaining negative wires enter the LED driver that completes the circuit.
If you don't find out what we're doing, we'll connect things together.
Positive to negative, positive to negative.
If we want, we can add more LEDs to the mix to achieve the same pattern.
My drive works 10 watts, which means that I can easily control 10 1 watt LEDs if I provide a 24 v power input.
Although I'm just going to do 2 or 3 of my 3 watt LEDs.
At this point you are either blinded by LEDs or screwed up somewhere.
Hope you're blinded.
Now that you know how everything is connected, it's time to connect the box. (
This means that you have to unscrew all the wires.
But don't complain, it's an easy thing! )
Put all your wires in the box.
Two LEDs and solar panels.
Now reconnect everything. Does it work? (
Connect the solar panel to the Solar Charger Controller by screwing the wires into S and S-clamps. )Well that's it.
You should get a lot of light.
Stick it out and enjoy it.
You now have a great lighting system that looks elegant and offers a lot of light.
You can use the same design on any color LED.
I like the cool selection of "white" lights.
You can also modify this design and use it for lighting at home or on the deck.
Same idea, but add a switch to the mix.
If you are a winner, you may want to get into my "last step" and make yourself a dark probe circuit.
It only takes a few minutes to make you look better for your neighbors.
Many of you may wonder why I have not talked about dark detection.
This means that the system is always "open" and it is a waste of power and very annoying.
To do this, all you need is a powerful PNP transistor, a resistance of 10 k ohms, and a diode.
Look at the circuit diagram above and see what I mean.
What we are doing is using transistors as a "gateway ".
When a transistor gets power from a solar cell (
It means a day.
The door was closed.
In the evening, when there is no power supply for the solar panel, the "door" will open and the power will flow to the LEDs.
More or less, the system we use is similar to the way ordinary little garden lights work, all at the expense of PNP transistors and resistors.
The key is to find a transistor that is strong enough.
Standard 2N3904 will not work.
You need something that can handle higher voltage and higher current.
Because my solar panel is 21 V at 0.
I'm using a transistor that kicks bigger.
Another option is to use a micro controller (
Arduino, for example)
Control the LED driver.
My drive has a PWM port.
It is easy to connect the Arduino to the settings as a dark detector.
Although to be honest, this is a bit overdone for this project.
You can then also power the Arduino with a 12 v battery and in my case I can use the USB port built in on the charging controller. (
I may be in the future, but this is a different Guide. )
Parts: 1N4001 diode (
Or something like that)
Transistor (
Or any similar PNP transistor)
Prototype plate line (
Use it if you have an extra radiator. )
Tool: soldering iron wire cutting what we are doing is welding transistors, resistors and 3 wires to the prototype board.
The diodes we use later with solar panels.
* Before you do anything, you should find information about what each leg of the transistor does.
You have a base, transmitter and collector.
Know which is which.
Usually it's on the package, otherwise google it.
* Place the transistor in the middle of the board and weld it in place.
Find the base leg.
Place the resistance next to it and weld the resistance in place.
Now connect one leg of the resistor to the base leg.
Take your wire now.
We want to connect a wire to the free end of the resistor, the collector leg and the transmitter leg.
I also put an extra radiator on the back of the transistor.
It may not be necessary, but I can.
It is important that you label which leg. Seriously.
If you don't do that, you'll end up with the same thing as my first attempt on this track.
The one that my transistor triggered and split in two.
The last thing is to take the screwdriver apart and connect it to the system.
With diodes.
Remove the positive line of the solar panel and LED driver from the charging controller. (
We completely got rid of the positive line between the controller and the drive and replaced it with this circuit. )
Find the positive line that falls off the solar panel.
Connect it to the front leg of your diode.
Then put the negative leg of the diode (
The one with black or silver strips on It)
Positive input of your charging controller.
Remove the baseline from the dark detection circuit (
This is a resistor if you do it right)
And connect it to the diode at the same point where the solar cell is connected to the positive line.
Or in other words, before the diode.
Next, remove the wire from the transmitter leg and put it into the positive and negative load points on the controller.
Finally, put the collection line into the positive power in the drive fixture. That's it.
Turn the solar panel face down to see if the led is on. Mine did.
You can change the "sensitivity" of this circuit by changing the value of the resistance in the circuit ".