So, my current idea is to automate the coffee maker in my room, so I don't have to get out of bed to turn it on in the mornings, and also be able to trigger it via remote command
I was thinking sms command, or possibly IR
Probably gonna run it with an arduino

my idea was a latching relay to just put in series with the current on/off switch, triggered via the arduino
I should be able to find a 12V/5V power line in the coffee maker somewhere to use

anyway, I need a latching relay triggered by 12V and capable of switching 120V
Does anyone know any good part numbers to look up from their experience, or have other ideas to pitch into the project?


Thanks!

 

T90, T91, T92 series from here will do it. Choice of PC mount, panel mount or PCB coil drive with off-board tabs. Get name brand TE (tyco) etc. Many of the Chinese knockoffs are pure junk.

Mouser stocks them.

EDIT: oops! Didn't see 'latching' requirement. Why? You could do a standard latching via contact affair I guess but why not use the uC?

If you can't do it with the uC, consider a small DIP 2 coil magnetic latching relay to drive the coil of the power relay. Cheaper than a power latching relay.

 

yea, doing it with the uC would be easier, I failed to think that power relays that latch would be more expensive

Thanks for the part advice!

 

hrm, coffee maker is unfortunatley simple

might switch to a smaller uc, and just set up a simple timer, rather than sms

 

There are many various types of coffeemaker, I would say this is really nice idea to have this kind of machine. Coffeemaker contains a lot of advantages like they have many style model, it can also various price and one most of all you can save time for making a coffee.

 

hrm, coffee maker is unfortunatley simple

might switch to a smaller uc, and just set up a simple timer, rather than sms

With the how-to resources available here and with a uC, why not make it a timed ON with a passive IR sensor that will override the normal ON time and make coffee early when you get up to let out the cat?

 

You can buy this machine for 25 bucks at Walmart:

You can buy this Arduino for about the same from Adafruit:

Once you get the Arduino you still need a coffee maker.

 

I HAVE a coffee maker, and it cost like $10, and just needs automated
I also have 3 arduinos floating around with no home or purpose in life

also, dorm room, no cat, and a roommate that sleeps till noon kinda puts a damper on the passive IR
though, it is a good idea, I might get a sensor of the wavelength of the flashlight on my phone so I can just shine it at it

now the question arises, what kind of setup do i use to determine the time?
It's seeming easier to tie this into my old junk alarm clock that sits right next to it...
melding the clock and this together would allow an easy power source for the uC, as well as a time reference and way to set the time for it to start

 

Make a simple one with an H11AA1 or something similar. When the line cycle goes through zero, both input LEDs will be off. If you have a pullup on the collector of the p-transistor, it will spike up every 8.3333ms. Connect this to an IRQ input of the uC and count em up. Consider what happens if the power fails. If you have a battery backup, you can generate an approximation of the timing while waiting for power to come back.

Make this with a transformer ->bridge ->filter->regulator linear supply, pick up the AC off the input of the bridge (lower voltage).

 

Why not just use the uC's timer to keep track of the time? Super accuracy shouldn't be a requirement.

 

Why not just use the uC's timer to keep track of the time? Super accuracy shouldn't be a requirement.

Actually, its not as simple as you may think. Even using something like a PICs TMR1 with the watch xtal setup requires trimming for long term accuracy. Same using the main osc with an internal timer. You can do it but without trimming the error will eventually accumulate to something noticeable. For a timer, say run something a few hours and shut off its not a problem. For a time of day clock which should be accurate without intervention, it can be a challenge.

Electric power co's are constantly fine-tuning the line freq to maintain an average of 60Hz VERY accurately. The freq at any instant may be off by a little but over time, its bang on.

 

yea, but if I use something like that, then I need a way to SET the time, and then a way to view what the time is set to...
It's really much easier to tap into the buzzer line on the alarm clock

I already went ahead and re-wired the 9v battery backup line on the clock to be a 10V output, cut the buzzer wire, put a voltage divider on it, took some measurements, and wrote the code for the arduino to measure the voltage to the buzzer
works like a charm actually, which is surprising, since the clock has just a transformer and diodes, so the entire circuit fluctuates between 10-12 volts for the power supply

  int alarm = A0;      // select the input pin for the potentiometer
  int coffeeMaker = 13;// select the pin for the LED
  int sensorValue = 0; // variable to store the value coming from the sensor
  float voltage;       // variable to store voltage in
  
void setup() {
  // declare the coffeeMaker pin as an OUTPUT:
  pinMode(coffeeMaker, OUTPUT);  
}

void loop() {
  // read the value from the clock:
  sensorValue = analogRead(alarm);    
  
  float voltage = sensorValue * (5.0 / 1023);
  
  if (voltage > 1)
  {
    digitalWrite(coffeeMaker, HIGH);
    delay(100);
  }
  else if (voltage < 1) 
  {
    digitalWrite(coffeeMaker, LOW);
  }
  
}

 

For a time of day clock which should be accurate without intervention, it can be a challenge.

Didn't think we were talking about a time of day clock. It only needs to run from the time the appliance is set up until time to brew the coffee.

 

Didn't think we were talking about a time of day clock. It only needs to run from the time the appliance is set up until time to brew the coffee.

I guess we were thinking along different lines. Good info either way!

 

Timer as in "make coffee at 8AM"
not as in "make coffee in 2 hours"

anyway, my problem now is how to wire the relay

if i do it in series, i need an override switch so i can turn it on when the alarm is not on

the current switch is spDt, and im not sure why since nothing happens when its off, it just connects the side of the heating element that should be hot, to neutral, so i might just disconnect it and wire it a always on, then the relay will do the switching

I'm glad i caught that, or the resulting short would NOT have been pretty

 

I guess we were thinking along different lines. Good info either way!

Agree. I think I'm going to try an experiment with my PIC board and see how long it stays accurate. I can think of some ways to compensate for off-center crystal frequency, but not for drift.

Sorry for the O/T Magnet, but your question begat more questions.

 

Timer as in "make coffee at 8AM"
not as in "make coffee in 2 hours"

anyway, my problem now is how to wire the relay

if i do it in series, i need an override switch so i can turn it on when the alarm is not on

the current switch is spDt, and im not sure why since nothing happens when its off, it just connects the side of the heating element that should be hot, to neutral, so i might just disconnect it and wire it a always on, then the relay will do the switching

I'm glad i caught that, or the resulting short would NOT have been pretty

If you wired the relay contacts in parallel to the switch, then you could still use the switch if you want coffee at some odd hour other than what you set up the timer for. You have the options of using the timer or the manual swtich.

 

If you wired the relay contacts in parallel to the switch, then you could still use the switch if you want coffee at some odd hour other than what you set up the timer for. You have the options of using the timer or the manual swtich.

I almost did that, then realized that the hot side of the element was connected to neutral via the switch, so if i had just used the relay to make the line hot, it would have shorted
I don't see why it needs to go to neutral though, I'll rewire it after class

ooh...
unless it's the neutral line that allows the in-switch light to light up...
in which case it's fine...
I'll see

 

I almost did that, then realized that the hot side of the element was connected to neutral via the switch, so if i had just used the relay to make the line hot, it would have shorted

That doesn't make any sense. By wiring the relay in parallel, the relay contacts would simply replace the switch contacts that presently operate the appliance. If what you say is true, the switch should blow every time you turn the appliance on.

 

It's a SPDT switch, 3 contacts