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  • Author Author: tariq.ahmad
  • Date Created: Date Created
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Enhancing a Magnifying Headband with Auto Sensing Light -- Episode 585

Do you often use a illuminated magnification headband? Do you get annoyed that you need to turn it off and on when looking away from your work? This project contains 2 solutions, a basic tilt sensor option that can be added in minutes, and a more complex distance detecting circuit which will change the illumination depending on how far away the object you are looking at is.

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Bill of Material:

Product Name Manufacturer Quantity Buy Kit
LC1780USB Magnifier, Spectacles & Headband, 1x, 1.5x, 2x, 2.5x & 3.5x LIGHTCRAFT 1 Buy Now
102010328 Arduino Microcontroller Board, SAMD21G18, ARM Cortex-M0+ SEEED STUDIO 1 Buy Now
STMICROELECTRONICS Daughter Board, VL53L0X Gesture and Ranging Sensor, FlightSense STMICROELECTRONICS 1 Buy Now
MICROCHIP Power MOSFET, N Channel, 60 V, 200 mA, 5 ohm, TO-92, Through Hole MICROCHIP 1 Buy Now
COMUS (ASSEMTECH) Tilt Switch, 15 °, 60 Vac, 0.25 A, Nickel COMUS (ASSEMTECH) 1 Buy Now
 

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  • Nice project!

    Just curious, what resistance is in series with the LED? The schematic shows 1 kohm, but I'm guessing that was for the red LED, and not the one in the head-magnifier. It could be worth increasing the resistance slightly, to see what happens. It could be a brownout causing a repeated reset of the microcontroller. 

    If you can't access the LED to see what resistance was in there by the manufacturer (assuming they did that!) then just another resistor could be added, e.g. 100 ohm or 47 ohm just to see what happens.

  • in reply to shabaz

    Yes, the schematic includes that for the red LED that I was using whilst testing on breadboard. The LED on the magnifier had a 10ohm resistor on the PCB with the switch component on it going to the LED moulded in the plastic housing.

    Interestingly it isn't causing a brownout, the micro continues to be. up, and in comms with the sensor the whole time.
    Removing the switch and replacing it with a latching switch fixes the flickering (There may be a slight hint, but I may also be seeing things by this point!)

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  • in reply to shabaz

    Yes, the schematic includes that for the red LED that I was using whilst testing on breadboard. The LED on the magnifier had a 10ohm resistor on the PCB with the switch component on it going to the LED moulded in the plastic housing.

    Interestingly it isn't causing a brownout, the micro continues to be. up, and in comms with the sensor the whole time.
    Removing the switch and replacing it with a latching switch fixes the flickering (There may be a slight hint, but I may also be seeing things by this point!)

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