Batangas State University

College of Engineering, Architecture and Fine Arts

ECE/ ICE / MEXE Department
Alangilan, Batangas City

ECE 408
Industrial Electronics

Final Project
Solar Powered Street Lights

Group No. 8

Engr. Mirasol C. Dilay

Instructor

December 9, 2016

I.

CHAPTER I
Introduction
A street light, light pole, lamppost, street lamp, light standard,
or lamp standard is a raised source of light on the edge of a road or
walkway. Modern lamps may also have light-sensitive photocells that
activate automatically when light is or is not needed: dusk, dawn, or the
onset of dark weather. This function in older lighting systems could have
been performed with the aid of a solar dial. Many street light systems are
being connected underground instead of wiring from one utility post to
another.
Automatic Street Light
It needs no manual operation for switching ON and OFF. When there is a
need of light it automatically switches ON. When darkness rises to a
certain level then sensor circuit gets activated and switches ON and when
there is other source of light i.e. daytime, the street light gets OFF. The
sensitiveness of the street light can also be adjusted.

By using an Automatic system for street light controlling, we can

reduce energy consumption because the manually operated street
lights are not switched off properly even the sunlight comes and
also not switched on earlier before sunset.

Objectives
The aim of this project is to create an automatic street lights that can be
implemented using solar panels
Significance of the Work
Anyone can benefit with this project especially at night. Solar streetlights
are designed to work throughout the night. For example, those drivers
who are furiously driving at the streets, the street lights can be their guide
on their road trip. Those students, graveyard shifters and other
commoners can also benefit to this project because the street lights can
lead them properly to a much lighter and safer walk. They can have a
proper glance at those people they encounter at the street.
Scope and Limitations
It automatically switches ON lights when the sunlight goes below the
visible region of our eyes. It automatically switches OFF lights when
Sunlight fall on it in morning, by using a sensor called LDR (Light
Dependent Resistor) which senses the light just like our eyes.
In sunny and rainy days, ON and OFF time differ noticeably which is one
of the major disadvantage of using timer circuits or manual operation for
switching the street light system.
On the other hand, this project cannot work with a voltage supply lower
than 9V. Also, this solar-powered street lights, cannot work properly if the
values of the resistor do not match the circuit. When you added some
more LEDs to the circuit, there is a high possibility that it will make the
lights dimmer compare to the previous state when there are no additional
LEDs.

II.

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This includes the related studies that were conducted by other researchers and
proponents.
Dark Sensor ( light sensor / automatic street light )

it is a simple and powerful concept , which uses transistor ( BC 547 NPN)

as a switch to switch ON and OFF the street light system automatically .
It automatically switches ON lights when the sunlight goes below the
visible region of our eyes. ( e.g in evening after Sunset ).
it automatically switches OFF lights when Sunlight fall on it ( e.g in
morning ) , by using a sensor called LDR (Light Dependent Resistor)
which senses the light just like our eyes.
Needs no manual operation for switching ON and OFF...

Automatic Street Light Control Using LDR and Relays

 The working of circuit is very much easy to understand. In this circuit, we

used IC CA3140 which is basically an operational amplifier. Pins 2 and 3
of these IC are used to compare the voltage and give us the output in
return ie it works as a potential divider in its inverting and non-inverting
inputs (pins 2 and 3). In this LDR and VR1 form one potential divider
which is used to provide a variable voltage at the inverting input (that is 2)
and the second potential divider is built around non-inverting input (pin 3)
with the help of R1 and R2 which will grant half of the supply voltage to
non inverting pin.
As we know property of LDR that during the time of day resistance is low
therefore voltage at the inverting input ( IE pin 2) is higher than the
voltage at the non-inverting input (pin3) hence the output at the pin6 is
low so the transistor goes into the cutoff state which means LED or bulb
will not glow.
But in dimness or in night we know that resistance of LDR is high hence
voltage at inverting input pin 2 of the IC CA3140 decreases than the non
inverting input pin 3 as a result output pin 6 moves to high state which
make transistor to conduct and the LED or bulb associated to it start
simmering.
We need to pay attention while connecting relay with bulb. As different
bulbs have different wattage, so it must support the relay or else relay will
not energize.
Components Used in this Circuit:
IC
CA3140 1
Resistor
R1 (100k) 1
R2 (560E) 1
R3 (1K) 1
R4, R5 (100K) 2
VR1 (100K) 1
C1 (10uF) 1
LDR 1
T1 (BC548) 1
Automatic Street Light Controller Circuit Using LDR And 555 Timer IC

We are living in the world where everything goes to be automatic from

your washing machine to your ceiling fan. Street lights are one of those

examples of the automatic world. Automatic street light are those light
which needs no manual operation to gets turn ON and turn OFF. Did you
ever try to make such kind of street lights that gets turn ON and turns
OFF automatically? In this article, we are going to make automatic street
light using LDR and 555 timer IC.
List of Components
555 Timer IC
LDR
LED
Potentiometer
Resistor 1* 1k ohm
Resistor 1* 220 ohm
9V Battery
Printed Circuit Board(PCB) Or BreadBoard
III.

METHODOLOGY
Components
Resistor
- A resistor is a passive two-terminal electrical component that
implements electrical resistance as a circuit element. In electronic circuits,
resistors are used to reduce current flow, adjust signal levels, to divide
voltages, bias active elements, and terminate transmission lines, among
other uses. High-power resistors that can dissipate many watts of
electrical power as heat may be used as part of motor controls, in power
distribution systems, or as test loads for generators.

1K Ohm

330 Ohm

 Led (Light-emitting diode)

A light-emitting diode (LED) is a two-lead semiconductor light source. It is

a pn junction diode, which emits light when activated. When a
suitable voltage is applied to the leads, electrons are able to recombine
with electron 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 band gap of the semiconductor.

Battery (9v)
The nine-volt battery, or 9-volt battery, in its most common form was
introduced for the early transistor radios. It has a rectangular prism shape
with rounded edges and a polarized snap connector at the top. This type
is commonly used in walkie talkies, clocks and smoke detectors.

 L.D.R: (Light Depending Resistance)

A photoresistor (or light-dependent resistor, LDR, or photocell) is a lightcontrolled variable resistor. The resistance of a photoresistor decreases
with increasing incident light intensity; in other words, it
exhibits photoconductivity. A photoresistor can be applied in lightsensitive detector circuits, and light- and dark-activated switching circuits.

BC547 (NPN) Transistor

Is an NPN bi-polar junction transistor. A transistor, stands for transfer of
resistance, is commonly used to amplify current. A small current at its
base controls a larger current at collector & emitter terminals. The
transistor terminals require a fixed DC voltage to operate in the desired
region of its characteristic curves. This is known as the biasing. For
amplification applications, the transistor is biased such that it is partly on
for all input conditions. The input signal at base is amplified and taken at
the emitter. BC547 is used in common emitter configuration for amplifiers.
The voltage divider is the commonly used biasing mode. For switching
applications, transistor is biased so that it remains fully on if there is a
signal at its base. In the absence of base signal, it gets completely.

 P.C.B is made of Bakelite with surface pasted with copper track-layout.

For each components leg, hole is made.
Connection pin is passed through the hole and is soldered.

1.

2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Procedures
Insert first
transistor Q1BC547 (NPN) on breadboard (or general PCB) as shown in the circuit
diagram 1.
Connect another transistor Q2- BC547 (NPN) on breadboard as in step 1.
Connect wires across emitter pin of both transistors and ve terminal of
battery (lowest/ bottom row of breadboard.)
Connect a wire across Collector pin of transistor Q1 and Base pin of
transistor Q2.
Connect a resistor 1K across positive terminal of battery (topmost row of
breadboard) and Collector pin of transistor Q1.
Connect Light Dependent Resistor (LDR) across positive terminal of
battery (topmost row of breadboard) and base terminal of transistor Q1.
insert a resistor- 330 Ohm across base pin of transistor Q1 and negative
terminal of battery (lowest bottom row of breadboard).
Connect a resistor 330R across positive terminal of battery (topmost row
of breadboard) and anode terminal of LED (Light emitting diode) &
Connect the cathode terminal of LED to Collector pin of transistor Q2.

IV.

CONCLUSION
From the findings of the study, the researchers came up with the following
conclusion. 1. Light Dependent Resistor (LDR) is a very sensitive electronic
device. It must have the maximum and minimum lightness and darkness to
function well. 2. The smaller the value of the resistor that is connected in the
Light Emitting Diode (LED), the brighter the LED will be. The more LED the circuit
has the larger the voltage it needs. 3. It will be needing a transformer to function
well if the solar panels voltage is greater than the batterys voltage.