Can I Control This USB Air Pump with an Arduino (Uno or Nano)?

Projects General Guidance
1

UPDATED:

Hi everyone,

We're working on an Arduino project and wanted to ask if this setup is possible and if so, what components we'd need to make it work.

The goal is for something to trigger an infrared proximity sensor and then inflate a small pouch created from a deconstructed blood pressure cuff to gently restrain a rat (no actual animals are being used or will be used, this is a design project for research testing).

Our current setup:

Microcontroller: Arduino Uno and/or Nano (both available)
IR Sensor: HiLetgo Infrared Proximity Sensor

Air Pump: FLEXTAILGEAR Portable Ultra-Mini Air Pump

Power Source: 9V battery setup (portable is the most ideal but wall plugin is also available)

What we're trying to do:
When the IR sensor detects something (like a hand), the Arduino should turn the air pump on to inflate the pouch and keep it on for 10 seconds at the least (we are scaling down the time frames to keep this simple for a demo but Ideal the pump should run for up to 2 minutes)

Questions:

  1. Is it possible to control this USB air pump with an Arduino?
    The pump is rechargeable and designed to be powered via USB. We’re wondering if we can turn it on/off programmatically.
  2. What components would we need to make this work?
    I'm not sure what the safest and simplest option would be.

Clarifications:

  1. Current battery calculations show we can theoretically power the Arduino, sensors, and airpump with two 9V batteries in parallel.
  2. The current airpump linked above is capable of inflating our pouch efficiently
  3. This airpump is not the only option, we just have this one at our disposal and wanted to see if it could work. We are now aware that it is likely it won't work but we are unsure where to go next.

Any advice, suggestions, comments, and questions are welcome but please be respectful. We are novices who are design a system for the first time by our selves.
We came here for help not to be belittled for not doing things right.

2

  • You will need to hack the pump, i.e. bring out the ON/OFF switch contacts for the Arduino controlled driver to operate the pump.

  • The pump isn’t operated when it is charging.

3

Is it possible to do a 5V relay and turn it on and off? Not sure how that would work, but is a 5V relay possible? If so, then how?

4

Your testing will tell you how long the 9 volt battery will last. You will also need wire to connect stuff together.

5

Have you seen that at Amazon description?

....... (not suitable for balloons) .....

6

yes, we aren't actually using a balloon, but it was the closest description for what we are doing without going into unnecessary detail. This pump inflates what we have perfectly fine and relatively quickly.

8

Thanks for clarifying that.

9

We aren't hugely worried about the power set up this was included to add clarity as we cannot plug into a computer and would like to avoid having to use a wall plugin. We already have different battery calculations for this project and are mostly looking for advice on getting the Arduino to turn the air pump on/off.

10

I'm not sure how to hack the pump. This specific pump isn't concrete, so if there are any ideas/ options on getting an Arduino to turn an airpump on and off please let me know. We are open to all ideas including other options for air pumps.

11
  • We are trying to give you advice without going into unnecessary detail.
12

Sorry if I came off rude, I wanted to keep the project set up as simple as possible to focus on the airpump issue.

13

Then be accurate about your descriptions! Please explain how you think an Arduino can turn the pump on and off. You MUST have given some thought to this, since you have the device right there in your hand.

15

I'm sorry for the confusion. I am a novice and have never used a device without a datasheet for programming and this airpump does not have one. If there is other stuff you'd recommend using I am more than willing to change. My initial post reflected my overall project and I'm sorry if it was confusing, I tried to simplify it as much as possible as the true description of the project is 20+ pages long. I am updating the initial post to try and be more clear. If there is any other information you think is missing please kindly let me know.

16

The obvious solution is to pick a pump that gives access to the innerds so you can make the changes you want.

17

I would think something like this would work better for you:

You could switch it on and off by using a relay connected to the Arduino.

18

Thank you so much! I am going to look into this to see if it'll meet our requirements for noise, inflation time, etc.