What is your parts source? Radio Shack? Mail order?

You could handle this like a garage door, using micro switches for the two end positions, basically to start and stop the motor. Something that would have a open and close push button, it would be easy to interface with other later.

I'm am basically on the 555 guru's around here. I also don't use PICs, which require some programming skills, I prefer to use logic instead.

 

yea radio shack and internet plus a bunch junk lol
i have an electronics kit with a few 555's and breadboard and such s i can tinker just need a lil direction

 

I'd build the basic mechanics, including the open/close buttons first. Like I said earlier, the rest is gravy. Have you done any construction yet?

I was going to ask about the protoboard. I assume you have a photocell and a 555 handy.

 

See image for a possible circuit which times for almost 680 seconds (~11.3 minutes) after the light level changes. It is the product of two 555 timers. You'll probably want to tweak the relay connections and component values to get the most optimal performance, but it should work. Note the similar schematic to the bike light, except a second 555 timer has been added in place of the PICAXE chip.

 

thanks again tom66 u guys have been a tremendous help
that will be my next project

but for now i bought a 12 volt coil dpdt relay and have everything hooked up except the photocell substituting the photocell with a simple sp switch the door works perfectly

now maybe u guys could help me with a simple circuit i would like to use the photocell to switch 12 volts dc and maybe a pot to adjust the sensitivity is this possible?
i culd buy a 12 volt photocell but have lots of junk to rob parts from and think it would be fun to try and build this myself
if anyone could help id be so happy
thanks again guys

 

... lower it like a guillotine door.

NICE word choice!

Maybe you were looking for the word Portcullis?

 

thanks again tom66 u guys have been a tremendous help
that will be my next project

but for now i bought a 12 volt coil dpdt relay and have everything hooked up except the photocell substituting the photocell with a simple sp switch the door works perfectly

now maybe u guys could help me with a simple circuit i would like to use the photocell to switch 12 volts dc and maybe a pot to adjust the sensitivity is this possible?
i culd buy a 12 volt photocell but have lots of junk to rob parts from and think it would be fun to try and build this myself
if anyone could help id be so happy
thanks again guys

This is possible. What kind of adjustment range do you want? Do you want it to have hysteresis so it will not switch on and off near the right light level?

 

What if a chicken is left out after the door closes...then you'll be one kitchen short.

 

What if a chicken is left out after the door closes...then you'll be one kitchen short.

Not to mention the bedroom!

 

What you need is a smart eye to look at the chickens if they are in or out.
And also to call them in when the sunsets.

I hear these cuckoo brains climb up trees at night..Do you have trees around, if so, what good an automatic chicken door would be..

 

Ok..Ok.. since we are going that far, you can use RFID collars or leg tags on each chicken and the door can keep track of them.

BRILLIANT!

Kidding. Actually we were looking at an auto dog door for my parents cat.. (The most dog-like cat you have ever come across.. No litterbox, begs food, goes outside or holds it. He fights like a dog-cat combined.. At least that is how I see it.

Sorry, getting off topic.

 

Can you show us your door schematic as it currently stands?

Whatever photocell arrangement you come up with needs a delay, so things like flashlights and lightning don't trigger it. This isn't hard, it just needs planned for.

A typical photocell schematic might look something like this (don't take this as an absolute, it can be tweaked a lot).

 

yea tom thats exactly what im talking about

 

something to adjust the sensitivity of the light that turns it off or on plus a short delay

i will try to get a pic up soon

 

here is what i have i think this is drawn right not sure but i know its working

 

bill thanks for the schematics any idea wich circuit would be best for my needs

 

Give me a while, and I'll draw some ideas out. I tend to design on the fly, the good news is most of them work. Want the bad news?

If you get this working could you put it in the completed projects forum? Like I've said, this is not the first thread on the subject. Shoot, back in my chicken ranching days I might have liked the idea. The 555 was brand new though, and pretty expensive at the time.

It is probably some one else will post something first, that is the nature of forums.

 

OK, this will probably work.

C1 is to prevent things like lightening from false triggering the door. It slows things down a lot in terms of response times.

Adjust this for maximum sensitivity, so it will open in a dark environment (like cloudy stormy days) that have a little light. The only concern I have is it may not close as readily as it opens, if this turns out to be the case I have a fix in mind for it.

 

the vcc that goes into r1 is that input voltage if so what should that voltage be ?

the vcc that goes to pins 8 and 4 etc is that voltage in r out what is that voltage supposed to be?

and is k1 half of a transformer? if so what kind type?

have the circuit built except for those questions

 

It is very open ended, the 555 will work off of either 6VDC or 12VDC, you choose. The relay needs whatever voltage it is rated for.

K1 is the relay coil, this is one of several standard ways of showing a relay. The diode can be any general purpose power diode. It absorbs transient high voltage spikes that might cause damage to the transistor.

You might think of adding a switch so C1 can be out of circuit when you are calibrating it, otherwise it will be a real pain.