Hi all,
I am new with Arduino, I have a device that is powered by an AA battery. The device also has two buttons that change the modes of operation. I wish to power and control the device using Arduino. I have attached the picture for reference. Any help is appreciated.
Thanks!
Controlling the power to the device is as easy as using a relay but controlling the buttons depends on the circuit of the device. Can you establish what the buttons do ? It would be common for them to take a point in the circuit to either GND or 1.5V
What is the device ?
The device sends out electric pulses, the buttons control the frequency of pulses.
amshar05:
The device sends out electric pulses, the buttons control the frequency of pulses.
That's the most ambiguous explanation I've ever seen. You just described every remote control on the planet.
What is the mystery device and what does it control?
So you will need a mains power supply, such as a USB "phone charger" to power the Arduino to do this. OK?
@ SteveMann It is not a mystery device, it is just. a circuit that sends electric pulses and the buttons control the frequency of those pulses.
@Paul__B yes I understand that I would need to power the Arduino using a USB. My purpose here is to control the circuit using Arduino.
My purpose here is to control the circuit
A clumsy solution would be to use relays to mimic the action of pressing the buttons
Do you have any details of the circuit ?
Do you have any details of the output ? It may be possible to replace the whole thing with an Arduino rather than trying to control what you have
the output is current with intensity 0- 10mA
Pulse Width: 220microseconds
Pulse Modes: Continuous
Pulse Shape: Asymmetric Biphasic Square Wave
It looks to me like an Arduino could produce such an output
UKHeliBob:
It looks to me like an Arduino could produce such an output
But how? I did a lot of research over the internet but could not find anything useful!
I guess that device has a voltage step up circuits because 1.5 volts may not be enough for those leds.
If you don’t want to analyze circuit to explore any possible optimisation measures, then use 3 relay modules and a 1.5 volt regulator (with matching capacitors).
Is there a switch which is not visible in the picture or how is the device powered on ?
Can you measure the current from the battery to the device when it operating?
Have you an oscilloscope to view the output waveform?
6v6gt:
I guess that device has a voltage step up circuits because 1.5 volts may not be enough for those LEDs.
Did you notice the power transformer at the top?
amshar05:
But how? I did a lot of research over the internet but could not find anything useful!
What exactly did you look for ?
Turning an LED on and off at a particular frequency is not difficult. What do the 2 buttons and the 7 segment display do ?
Please provide a link to the actual device
It is not a remote control device. It is from an "infrared therapy device". I'll leave it to the OP to produce links if he wants to. The circa 4kHz infra red infra red signal was the clue.
Anyway, focussing only on the technical issues and ignoring the application area, it is interesting that the manufacturer chose a more complex design which a boost converter instead of simply using an extra AA cell. It could be that being ultra compact was important for this market segment. I guess that the startup current could be quite high and may not be a suitable load for a USB power supply, meaning that any Arduino solution to switch the device may be best retaining a battery.
I imagine also that it would be possible to create a pure Arduino solution., i.e. one having a similar effect to the original. It is probably not critical that the wave form of the original device is duplicated with a high level of fidelity. That is, if the OP is interested in reverse engineering the device with a view to building a replica of it.
6v6gt:
It is not a remote control device. It is from an "infrared therapy device". I'll leave it to the OP to produce links if he wants to. The circa 4kHz infra red infra red signal was the clue.
Yes, It is an electric therapy device, it gives electric shocks of the specification I mentioned earlier. And yes I wish to build a solution that is purely Arduino-based, but I do not know how? That is why I switched my focus to controlling that circuit with an Arduino rather than creating a new one. Also replicating this device is not of much importance to me, all that matters for my project is to connect it to the rest of the system and trigger its operations based on parameters received from other devices.
Currently, I am able to connect the device to an Arduino using a relay and a AA battery. But still confused with how to connect the buttons to be able to fully control the device with Arduino.
Thanks
UKHeliBob:
What exactly did you look for ?Turning an LED on and off at a particular frequency is not difficult. What do the 2 buttons and the 7 segment display do ?
Please provide a link to the actual device
here you go,
https://www.amazon.com/Acupuncture-Electronic-Meridian-Powerful-Included/dp/B081PMRZCB
It would be nice to at least know how the buttons are configured? If the buttons just make a momentary ground with one side held high by a pullup then a few simple NPN transistors like a 2N3904 could have emitter (ground) and collector (high side) placed across each button, drive the bases with your uC. How is the device normally turned on and off?
Ron
It must be quite sophisticated as it provides "Auto-detection of meridian energy points". At least it is "Safe and effective, with no side effects".
amshar05:
. . .Currently, I am able to connect the device to an Arduino using a relay and a AA battery. But still confused with how to connect the buttons to be able to fully control the device with Arduino.
. . .
Again, you could use relay modules to short out the switches momentarily.
See here for the construction of those switches: Push Switches | Arduino Lesson 6. Digital Inputs | Adafruit Learning System
Test which terminals to connect by shorting them out with with a piece of wire to simulate the button press.
There are likely to be better ways of achieving the same thing.
Paul__B:
It must be quite sophisticated as it provides "Auto-detection of meridian energy points". At least it is "Safe and effective, with no side effects".
I rather suspect that it is Safe and (in)effective, with no side effects
