Fun Projects 28 Chapter
Fun Projects 28 Chapter
LEDBARGRAPH(E/P)
Thiscircuitdrivesten LEDsin response to an analogvoltageappliedto its
inputandcan be usedto providea visualindication of the instantaneous
powerbeingdeveloped lt canalsobe usedto provide
by an audioamplifier.
visualindication
of variable
eventsin scienceexperiments.
Youcanextendtheprojectby usingtwochipsandyou'llbe ableto continu-
theaudiooutputpowerof bothchannels
ouslymonitor ofyourstereosystem.
Thecircuitcanbe usedwithamplifiers
rangingfrom0.1to 100watts.
In somecasesyoushouldusea smalltransformer, wiredas in Figurc1,to l
isolatethe inputandmatchimpedances.Thisls necessarywhentheampli- j
fierhasa low-outputimpedance.
ResistorR, is chosenaccordingto theout- I
putpowerof theamplifier.
ValuesaregiveninTable1.
Table1
Amplifier
OutputPower Rx
-
0.1 to 1 watt
A schematic
diagramof the LEDbargraph is showninFigure2.Thecircuit
usesan LM3914lC to drivethe LEDs,converting
voltagesintooneof ten
outputs.
Thecomponents areplacedon a printed-circuit
boardas shownin Figure3.
lf youd liketo buildyourcircuitthesameway,youcanetchyourownboard
usingthesolderandcomponent-side templates
shownin thisfigure.
F!|ffi 2t llDlrlrruh
I
(-)SEETABLE 8:1000o
TRANSF'RMER
Figure I
+6112Y
18 't7 16 15 14 13 12 11 . 10
tcl
1M3914
5
D1 R1
1N914 10K
Figure2
fn
HmHdcctslrrilcHpilmmu
Figure 3
ltf
FililGct28 ltB hntiln
PartsList - LEDBargraph
lC1 - LM3914Integrated
circuit(National)
D1 - 1N914or 1N4148generalpurposesilicondiode
Rl - 10,000ohm, 114W,5%
resistol
R2 - 470ohm,114W,5%
resistor
P1 - 10,000ohm potentiometer
P2 - 4,700ohmtrimmerpotentiometer
ldeasto Explore
To learnmoreaboutthe circuitor to get betterperformance:
o Determinethe voltagelevelthat turns on each LED usinga DC
powersupplypluggedto the inputof the device.
SciencepQects:
o Thiscircuitcan replacethe commonmultimetertoindicatevoltage
The visualetfectis better.
variationsin experiments.
o lt can alsobe usedin the outputof a lb detectoror bio-feedback.
fl5